Our Favorite Aunt Joan
It's a family joke because she is our only Aunt Joan. In fact, she is my great-aunt, married to my grandpa's uncle. I have known her all my life and have felt a special connection to her. She is 60 years and 1 day older than me. She was the the first devoted follower of Christ in our family that I knew of. In that sense, she served as a role model for me in the faith. She exudes joy, and I always knew that joy she had came from her faith in Christ. She was the only person I knew like that, and to be honest, I thought she was kind of weird for it. After I became a Christian in college, I would turn to her family for support and advice. I knew if they supported my decisions to spend a summer in ministry training, to go on a mission trip to Japan, or to leave home and family to go to seminary, then I would be able to withstand any criticism I might receive from other family members. She came to my baptism. She prayed for me and for my future husband whoever he may be. Faithful, lo...