Mom

On October 21, 1917, Harriet, the fourth of Walter and Martha Bohen's six children, was born in the tiny farming community of Hope, Kansas. Before Harriet could attain school age, Walter—motivated in part by the need for more work opportunities and partly by missionary vision, moved his family to Upland, California. Walter was a Brethren in Christ lay minister, and the church had a congregation there. He and the three older kids—Gladys, Evan, and Elizabeth—went by car, and Martha followed by train with Harriet and her younger sisters Naomi and Mary.

In California, Walter plied his trade as a carpenter and planted little churches in Sunnymead and Moreno Valley—now thriving communities only a few miles from Loma Linda. When Harriet grew up, she attended the church's high school, Beulah Academy, and eventually married Eldon Bert. In due course, the young couple had a son, Norman, and five years later another, Arthur.

After serving as a non-combatant in World War II, Eldon built a home in Upland, and he and Harriet raised their sons there until they both married and moved out of state. Harriet pursued her calling as a home-maker and also found time to serve the church's youth program as an advisor, Bible quiz coach, and Sunday School teacher, and to contribute her beautiful contralto voice to the chancel choir.

Mom had a huge influence on my life. From her I caught my love for reading, a love that would make me a good student and guide me toward the humanities. She was also my earliest teacher of writing. The form was letter writing, and she would read my scribbles and make suggestions—usually, "add details," a good admonition. She also instilled in me an interest in religion and, in particular, a love of Bible study that was eventually given form by my teachers in seminary. And by tolerating my presence during family gatherings, I believe she unintentionally nudged me toward theatre. It was either listen to the men discuss business—a topic that bored me to tears—or sit in while she and Aunt Faye gossiped—by far the juicier, livelier, more dramatic option.

Eldon passed away in 2004, and Harriet now resides in Messiah Village, a Brethren in Christ retirement center in Mechanicsburg, Pennsylvania, where she spends much of her time reading. Today she celebrated her 92nd birthday.

Happy birthday, Mom! And thanks!

Today I passed the quarter-way mark in my course of treatment and added a yellow dot beside the green one on my name tag to signify my stage in the program.

Treatment count: 12 down, 33 to go.