This week's topic from Amy is "Mistake". I have a special story that was written by my mother-in-law, Gail Martin, also known as Grandma Martin, that I want to share with you. She has written many children's stories based on her own life, the lives of her ancestors and her descendants. This is one of those stories that answers the question - Mistake or Blessing! She has given me permission to use this story and I am grateful.
We started our life together with absolutely nothing but each other – and God. We spent our “honeymoon” job searching. He took a very mundane office job - @ $35 per week – and we lived in an upstairs two-bedrooms-turned-into-an-apartment, with a bed, a chair, an ice box and hot plate. Oh, yes, we did have a kitchen cupboard and a table with two chairs – and we shared the bath with the landlords downstairs. But even this was a blessing. They were such lovely people and so helpful to two young people just starting out in the world, knowing nothing about making a life for themselves – especially when the ice box started leaking into their home downstairs because I didn't know how to care for it!
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| Gail and Arch Wedding Photo, 1949 Personal Collection |
BLESSINGS UNEARNED
by Grandma Martin
I have made so many mistakes in my life, insignificant and
major mistakes. But God has not only forgiven every one of them; he has turned
them all into major blessings. Why? I don't know, unless it's the fact that,
like I do all my children, He loves me in spite of anything I do.
One of the most major mistakes I ever made was being the
cause of the one I loved most to abandon his life goal and greatest desire to
become a minister of the Gospel. I was so selfish and so passionately in
love. All I wanted was to be with him
every hour of every day. God's greatest
blessing was in allowing him to love me as much as I loved him. He had less
than two years to finish school, but he dropped out to find a job and take care
of me.
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| Gail and Arch Personal Collection |
We started our life together with absolutely nothing but each other – and God. We spent our “honeymoon” job searching. He took a very mundane office job - @ $35 per week – and we lived in an upstairs two-bedrooms-turned-into-an-apartment, with a bed, a chair, an ice box and hot plate. Oh, yes, we did have a kitchen cupboard and a table with two chairs – and we shared the bath with the landlords downstairs. But even this was a blessing. They were such lovely people and so helpful to two young people just starting out in the world, knowing nothing about making a life for themselves – especially when the ice box started leaking into their home downstairs because I didn't know how to care for it!
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| Aunt Mary McBurney (Arch's great aunt, sister of his grandmother, Maggie McBurney Martin Sell) Personal Collection |
Just before our baby arrived, we moved to a third-floor
efficiency apartment downtown. Aunt Mary -provided a few pieces of furniture
and we had a bathroom all to ourselves, plus a kitchen with modern
appliances! We had no car so Arch rode
his bicycle to work. He had to carry it up both flights of stairs every night
because there was no place to keep it downstairs. I enjoyed sitting in that
bright apartment each day hand sewing maternity and baby clothes. And if we hurried as soon as he got home from
work, once in a while, we could run through the alley beside the apartment
building and get to the theater before 6:00 pm for a movie at half-price.
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| Gail Anne Martin Personal Collection |
When our little one made her appearance, God gave me another
great blessing. The circumstances being as they were, I was afraid of what my
young husband's reaction might be with my forcing early fatherhood upon him
like that. He cradled our baby in his
arms and with his tears falling on my face he kissed me and thanked me for
giving him this precious little life to love.
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| The Martin Family Singers Personal Collection |
He was so proud of and grateful for each of our seven
children, even with the enormous responsibility their births and care placed
upon him. He was, in my estimation, the absolute finest father ever on this
earth. And God blessed me with the most
wonderful husband, lover, and helpmate any woman could imagine in spite of my
many drawbacks.
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| Arch (Robert Archibald Martin) Personal Colletion |
Through sixty wonderful years we both made many, many
mistakes, but through God's blessing we enjoyed the most remarkable
relationship any husband and wife could ever know. I am so thankful God stayed close beside us
throughout the entire sixty years.
___________________________
I hope you have enjoyed Mom's story!
'Til Next Time!
#52Ancestors
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