Grandma Doc's Eulogy

Grandma Doc passed away at 2:45pm Saturday, October 9. I was one of the family members with her at that time. I read some of Hebrews 11 to her just before. Janet and Dad were holding her hands when she took her last breath. The services were held in Rantoul, Illinois at Lux Funeral Home on Tuesday, October 12. It was overwhelming the people that made a sacrifice to attend. Our church was well represented, along with family, friends from the Rantoul community, Ag Spectrum friends, and even old high school friends of Mom and Dad's. She was laid to rest at the cemetery in Rantoul next to Grandpa Doc's remains. After the services, we ate lunch at the Linden where she used to play Bridge with her friends.

It's been a week of mixed emotions. Although there was sadness, she lived a long life (dying at the age of 95). My cousins Jeane and Matt came on Sunday and we have been able to spend quality time with them, mourning and catching up. Jeane stayed at my house so we have definitely stayed up way too late most nights picking up right where we left off. We really would be best of friends if we lived closer together.

Two other special cousins flew here, one from Texas and one from California. They are both retired Air Force officers. Not only did they come to the services, but they stayed in town so they got to come out to the farm and have a couple of family meals with us. It was a wonderful time of healing as we all shared stories of our families, especially our Canadian adventures.

Dad and I both delivered a eulogy at the funeral. Mine is below:

The last two days corn’s up 75 and beans are up a dollar; now that would be music to Grandma’s ears. Evelyn Wissmiller, Grandma Doc, as many of us affectionately called her, was an intelligent and strong Swedish woman. She always dressed beautifully and enjoyed sewing, crafts, and cooking, a seemingly contradiction to her love of sports. Even though the Illini teams always came first, she also followed the Bears, the Bulls, and the Cubs.

Her quick and agile mind was a sharp as a tack. I remember playing dominoes with her last spring. We were keeping score so we had to count up the points after the hand. In a matter of seconds, she had added all of them up in her head while I was still counting the dots one by one. If she had been born a little later, she probably would have been a broker and a high school basketball star!

She was so proud of her children and their accomplishments. She loved to talk farming and finances with Roger. She adored Janet and always insisted on consulting with her on medical issues. She came to appreciate Dianne’s unconditional love and dedication, especially in the last few months. She connected with Alan and Jeane instantly when she realized they had her talent for making and saving money. Matt and I were a little harder sell but she soon discovered our individual talents as well as Bridget’s delicious cooking always kept a smile on her face. She and Scott had an instant connection because of their common Swedish heritage.

Grandma was always bragging about Janet, Jeane, and Matt to anyone who would lend an ear. She loved hearing and retelling the story of the latest California adventure. She returned from her trip just last winter with stories of being in the boat with Janet and Jeane and about Matt’s fabulous meals! Her two great grandchildren were very special to her. Every Christmas she sang along as they played songs on the piano. She liked talking to Paul about his latest hobby (astronomy, horses, soccer) and was thrilled with Hannah’s love for sewing.

`My sorrow is great and I will miss Grandma, but I can rejoice that she is now face to face with our heavenly Father – not because of her human strength or goodness, but from the small act of faith - believing in Jesus Christ as her Savior.

One of the verses that Gina just sang says, “Neither life nor death can ever From the Lord His children sever, And His love and deep compassion Comforts them in tribulation.” I am comforted because God the Father loved us so much that He sent His Son to die as a substitute for us. As I study His Word, I appreciate more each day, the sacrifice His Son has made. Even though we may have difficult days and sometimes pain on this earth, it does not compare to the suffering Jesus Christ endured so we can have eternal life.

How can we not rejoice when Revelation 21:4 tells us, “And God will wipe away every tear from their eyes; there shall be no more death, nor sorrow, nor crying. There shall be no more pain, for the former things have passed away.”

Devotional for Informatics Students

Sunday, August 29, 2010
I have missed every one of you throughout the summer. It’s great to see you all again. God has been teaching me a lesson the last few years, and that is to keep my eyes on Him not the important people in my life. He has demonstrated His immutability to me. He never changes. No matter who disappoints me in my life, He is always there, He is always consistent. I can rely on Him. I can honestly say that almost every person that has worked for me has pleasantly surprised me in different ways. They have stepped up in ways I was not expecting. BUT I can also say that the same people – you – have also disappointed/discouraged me once in a while. If my work life was dependent upon whether you are surprising me or disappointing me I would be on a yo-yo. I would probably slowly begin to lose my mind. God has taught me that we are all human and we all make mistakes. He doesn’t require us to be faultless just faithful. When we mess up we need to pick ourselves up, take responsibility and try again to do our job as unto the Lord.

We don’t expect perfection from you but we do expect you to step up and do your best. Those of you have been in sports may know who John Wooden is. He was a basketball player for Purdue University and a NBL player before he began his coaching career. He is probably most known for coaching the UCLA basketball team through ten NCAA national championships in a 12-year period. One of his many life inspiring quotes is, “If you don't have time to do it right, when will you have time to do it over?” I would like you to think about this as you spend this semester on your homework, your sports, your music, your friends, your family. Something else that stands out about John Wooden was his faith.

As you begin this new semester, I hope that you will take time to reflect on your successes and failures of last year and re-prioritize. This is a new slate, a new semester. Decide what is most important to you and talk to God about whether it needs to be adjusted or not. Remember to keep your eyes on God and turn your frustrations over to Him.

Thursday, August 5, 2010 & Friday, August 5, 2010

We drove a couple of hours to Duluth where we planned to stay and kayak on Lake Superior but we couldn't find any place to put in. We spent about an hour driving around Duluth and when we tried to get back on the 53 South there was this crazy detour. We got gas in Superior and ate lunch at Culver's. Then we drove to Chetek, Wisconsin campground. When we arrived we put our kayaks in the Chetek River and kayaked three miles to the dam and back. It took a couple of hours and we saw six bald eagles. They were really close. It was really awesome. There were also a lot of ducks and heron cranes also.

When we got back we went swimming in the pool and then fixed microwave mac and cheese for dinner. Scott worked on his homework and I read before we went to bed around ten. We got up around 8 in the morning and Scott worked on his homework again while I took a shower and read. We got on the road around 11am. According to Garmin we would be home by 6pm so we decided that we would probably head home. I slept half of the way and Scott drove the entire day. We had lunch in Black River Falls, Wisconsin and decided to take 355 home through Chicago, the problem was that it was around rush hour. We were sardines on I 290. We finally made it to the farm around 7:30pm. We left the kayak trailer there and took the camper home to unload in the morning.

Wednesday, August 4, 2010

There was an 80% chance of rain so Scott, Alan, and Paul didn't go on their fishing trip. The four guys took the fishing boat out on Eagle w/ the plan for the girls to take the float boat to Connaught Point and we would grill for lunch. I planned to kayak there. We got everything packed and loaded on the float boat including an extra kayak and the float boat started on it's way. I got about 100 yards from the dock and thought I heard thunder. I paddled a little further until I heard it it again. It was getting closer and louder so I turned around to paddle back. When they noticed me going the other direction they came back to find out what I was doing. I told them it was thundering so we decided to wait it out. We looked over Tivo Island and saw lightening strike straight down. We unloaded the float boat again and headed up. The guys still weren't back so we were hoping they went inland to wait it out. I ran back down and took a quick bath. About an half hour to an hour later the guys showed up all decked out in rain gear.

We decided to go to Busters BBQ and then Scott and I were going to head out. Paul was in rare form, and sat by me at the restaurant. All of the guys got a half rack of ribs with three sides. Mom got soup and sweet potato fries. Bridget and Hannah got BBQ Pork with sweet potato fries and I got BBQ beef brisket with onion rings. It was really good but expensive. When we got back Scott and I finished packing and headed out. This time we headed west on 17 to go home. We took route 71 with a plan to stay in Sioux Falls and/or Nestor Falls. It was a fun way to go. It was about an hour longer mainly because you drove through a lot of towns. The scenery was beautiful but the signs terrible. We missed where we wanted to go but it was only about 7pm so we decided to head to the border and spend the night in Orr, Minnesota. It was smooth sailing past the border and we missed the campground but found it after we turned around. It was a small campground probably not worth the $17 we had to pay for it. There were bathrooms and showers but you had to pay for the showers. It was a dime for 4 minutes and a quarter for 9 minutes. The showers were worse than the dorms at Sherman Hall where I stayed at U of I two weeks ago.

Tuesday, August 3, 2010

After doing our Bible study, Dad, Hannah, and I went to Dryden. Grandpa gave us ten minutes at Egli's and fifteen minutes at Walmart. While he was at the lumber yard, Hannah and I walked to IGA to get blueberries. There were no blueberries so Hannah and I bought salt and vinegar chips. Then we got lunch there - it was terrible!! When we got back Mom and Bridget had done three loads of laundry.

Yesterday I kayaked out and around the Sunset Island. It was probably about 5 miles. When I got back Paul did donuts around my kayak and figured out how to spray me. When he got tired of it I laid down to sunbath when I heard a motor coming toward me. It didn't sound like Paul so I sat up and so a boat heading toward me. When they noticed me they swerved out of the way and waved. Paul came back to me and said, "Why did they wave to me?" I told him I didn't know that everyone always waves to everyone in Canada. Then he informed me that they almost hit me and they swerved to miss me. I told him I noticed it. He laughed and started doing donuts around me again.

After much cajoling Hannah and Mom quite a bit, I finally convinced them to come swimming. We literally drug Hannah out passed the rock kicking and screaming. At some point she figured out that it was fun so we did it again. This time she swam on her own. After that we all took a bath and then Hannah and I played in the water with Uncle Scott for awhile. As I was leaving. Paul and his friends pulled each other on the kneeboard behind the jet ski. It looked like fun b/c if they turned to sharp on the jet ski the kneeboarder would fly off.

August 2, 2010

Wissmiller - Martinsen - Grove Dinner on the rock

http://picasaweb.google.com/asj405/20100802?authkey=Gv1sRgCPez--yboOmt4wE&feat=directlink

There was a huge storm, wind and hail. I thought our camper top was going to blow off. It only lasted about a half hour. It rained a lot today. We kayaked and Paul and his friends pulled each other on the tube behind the jet ski. We played a couple of card games in the afternoon, Bridget was our entertainment -- she was loopy and had us in stitches. After dinner on the rock we sat around the cabin telling funny stories. It was very relaxing.

August 1, 2010

Sunday we cleaned and made chili. We were expecting Alan and Bridget around 3:30-4pm so after lunch Scott and I set up our kayaks for fishing and headed to Paradise. I caught two northern. It was pretty terrifying. I was just casting in hopes that I wouldn't really catch anything. Scott unhooked the first one I caught which was a decent size. Then the second one that I caught was really scary. It flipped into the air. That was enough for me - I flung my pole and Scott and made him real it in the rest of the way. He lost it before I got a very good movie of it. Then mom and dad showed up so I loaned Dad my pole. He caught a little northern and I never got my pole back.

It was getting winder and starting to look like rain so Scott and I went all the way around the island. It started to sprinkle a little bit but not much. An older couple in a boat from Wisconsin stopped us to ask questions about our kayak. By the time we got in mom and dad were back and inside. Scott and I took our baths and headed up. We decided to rest and as soon as I got cozy in the camper Alan, Bridget, Hannah, and Paul showed up. We visited for a little while and then Alan and Paul put in the jet ski. Paul, Alan, Scott, and I all jet skiied.

After that Mom took Hannah, Scott, and I out on the float boat. We caught about six walleye but only brought 3 home. Dad wasn't very excited that he had three fish to clean.