Are you scared of the shocks that come with growing old? There is a fine fellow who comes to the island in Winona Lake every summer who is my hero - the person I want to grow up to be like. Now, I am 66 years old already, but this man shows me how joyful, productive and special it is possible to be when I turn 89, which he is doing this month.His name is Dr. Paul Siebenmorgan. I first grew close to him at our church in Terre Haute. He invited my dad, Stewart Volkers, to bring our family to Winona Lake to stay for a week in 1959 while Dad, a carpenter, helped put windows in Dr. Paul's lake place. This offer of Dr. Paul's gave my family their first golden opportunity to vacation away from home as a whole family. Continuing to spend a week in one of their apartments here at Winona Lake every summer, enjoying the Bible conference atmosphere, affected my whole family's lives. My husband and I, who retired here, and my three brothers, who have summer homes here, are all within 80 feet of Dr. Paul's original summer place property.
When Dr. Paul (and always that includes his wonderful wife Jane) first comes to the island here each summer, that's when summer actually feels as if it begins. People say, "Dr. Paul is here." That has meaning to us as powerful as The White House saying the president is in or not in. You could set your watch to Dr. Paul and Jane's regularity at walking by our house every morning to play tennis. Up until about three years ago, Dr. Paul still water skied and had my brother take him up to parasail over Winona Lake. Facing unexpected health and life stresses like any people who are older, he is upbeat with no complaints and demonstrates you can live in peace anyway.
Dr. Paul never hesitates to pull up a chair for me when I meander over to where he is sitting enjoying the lake ... always the gentleman. He never says anything unkind about anybody. He immediately expresses interest in me, my youngest grandchild, what is good about the day, etc. I have not seen him display continued frustration or rage in the 50 years I remember knowing him. We talked about faith the other day and he commented how hollow it would feel without it. He counts his blessings every morning, he says.
Yes, I want to be like him when I grow up, so that people around me, no matter what is going on with my body and life at that time, feel inspired, appreciative, and motivated by my presence - that is what Dr. Paul does for me. I once heard, "Fear throws out faith and faith throws out fear." Dr. Paul takes away fear of aging and inspires you to replace it with faith and hope.
