Genealogical Interview: Rebecca’s Legacy

Mom had you when she was 17-years-old. Her mom gently brought up the possibility of abortion and Mom declined. So you were an unexpected baby but a wanted baby. What does that mean to you?

Well, for a long time I associated “unexpected” with as being “unwanted.” One day, I had the realization that unexpected did not mean unwanted so I would say that my opinion changed. I would say my outlook changed when I realized that unwanted was different than unexpected. I began to feel better about being unexpected.

Can you name five of the absolute best moments in your life?

Yes I can. Oh, you mean you want me to actually list them? Smiles. OK. Well, I would say that marrying Roger is definitely one of them. Having Aaron and Zoe are definitely two more. Buying this house is definitely a best moment. Even though I got nauseous, going skydiving was definitely a best moment. Celebrating holidays and birthdays are always best moments for me – quite simply because they are happy times and everybody gets along.

What events taught you the most important lessons in your life?

Honestly, I’m not sure. Most of the difficult times have taught me valuable lessons and I’ve grown and changed through them.

You’ve been skydiving and will never make that nauseating choice again. Are there any other life experiences that you hope to have?

I would like to travel. I have always wanted to go to Australia, but the more I hear about it, I think I would probably skip it. I think I would rather go to Ireland. I would probably also like to go to the Scandinavian countries and see where our family came from. I would also like to be published as an author. It doesn’t have to be like Stephen King or anyone famous that has a lot of books published, but it would be cool to have the stories I wrote for the kids published.

Young Rebecca and Sarah. Which is which, can you tell?

What are the best and worst parts about being a mom and a wife?

One of the worst parts is cleaning up after everybody but one of the best parts is the snuggle time. One of the best parts is hearing them call you Mom or watching them grow as they learn to do things like walking, crawling, and learning to ride a bike. One of the worst parts is having to wait for everyone to get ready and it’s taking a lot longer than it needs to.

Why did you marry Roger and when was the date and where was the location? Don’t say in a gazebo, we already know that.

I married Roger because he made me feel better about myself than I really did. I also married Roger because he didn’t expect me to change who I was. I could be who I really am. He didn’t try to change me. We got married on a gazebo in Portland, Maine on Munjoy Hill on September 11, 2003. We did it so that our families would have a better reason to celebrate on 9/11 instead of having to be sad because of the tragedies that happened to the Trade Center.

When you and Roger were planning your wedding, what were your expectations? Please tell me you had some!

Well, I planned on having the big, fancy wedding on with the big beautiful dress and all of our family being there. I wanted a normal reception with dancing and eating and everyone having a good time and laughing. I wanted basically the fairy tale wedding – you know the Cinderella type. I ended up getting impatient and didn’t want to wait so we eloped!

Thinking about all you’ve been through in life, as a mother and wife and all those other roles, what do you think your future will look like? How will it look and who will you be?

Looks like she’s being drowned.

How will it look and who will you be? Honestly, I don’t know but I do know that I will continue down the road following Jesus Christ and continuing to grow following Jesus. I am grateful for all that Jesus has taught me so far and I can and do look forward to what He’s going to show and teach me next.

If you had the chance to tell any group of people something and they had to listen to every word you said, what would you tell them? 

Nope, he let her up. Rebecca’s water baptism.

I really don’t know. There are so many lessons in life that are very important and that everyone should hear. But I think the most important one would be to have a relationship with Jesus Christ. I would want them to know how loving and kind He is. And to know just what he went through for them. And that a relationship with him is not just religion.