Homesteading in Montana – Part 2

This is the second installment of the account of Dietrich and Kathrina Olfert, Oma’s aunt and uncle, telling us about their lives and experiences. So far Dietrich is recounting his early years. His final remark in this portion sets the stage for Kathrina to begin telling about her life, which will be presented in the next installment.

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Two of my cousins, Pete, Frank and I were able to save up our money and bought motorcycles or motorized bikes. This made going back and forth to town and to visit in the countryside easier. On one occasion we three boys decided to ride our motorbikes into Mt. Lake. There was to be a celebration and parade of some sort. As we came to town and saw all the people lining the sides of the street we decided to show off. We were riding single file down the street and decided to stand up on the seats and let go of the handle bars and balance upright. We first all stood on the seat but bent over and still held the handle bars. I saw that Frank in front of me lost his balance and fell over into the people. Peter and I decided that the trick was too dangerous, so got down and stopped to help.

Another time I fixed a small ramp and was going to jump over the hood of the car. I made it over and only broke the hood ornament off the radiator cap. When I landed on the other side there was a great crash, and I had to spend over $50 to fix the motorbike again.

Another one of the tricks my brothers and I did was to take gun shells, most likely .22 shells, put them in a vise with a board on the floor below. Then we would hit the end of the shell with a hammer and fire the point into the board. Today we think of how dangerous this is, but then it was great sport.

In the early years we started a band. Dad bought a pump organ that was put into one of the upstairs rooms. I got a guitar. John was a good musician, and he played the violin and led us. Oh, could we play! Abe had the mandolin and one of the girls played the organ. At midnight Mom would come and pound on the door and tell us to stop and go to bed. Just one more song: “Church in the Vale.” Well, that sounded so good—just one more. So it would go on many nights until very late. Neighbors would also come and bring their instruments over and join in to form a larger group. What fun we all had playing together!

When I was 16 we had revival meetings in our church. Most of the kids my age went forward during the meetings, but Abe Stoesz and I resisted until the last night. That is when we went forward, but I lived a very miserable life for quite some time. In spring, either April or May, at our evening devotions my mother was so concerned about me and she mentioned my name in her prayer. She prayed that the Lord should save me. That really hurt me. The next day I had to harrow the south field to get it ready for planting corn. I walked behind the drag all day with a 500-pound load of sin on my back and crying and praying all day. Every time I would come to the west end of the field, I would stop and kneel down and pray. It was 6 o’clock in the evening, and I just didn’t know what to do anymore. I had stopped here so often all day that the horses automatically stopped now. I said, “Lord, this is it. I am at my wits’ end. Here I am, Lord. Save me, please.” Just then the heavens opened and a joy came into my life. All the burden of sin rolled away. I was as happy as could be. So I said, “Thank you, Lord, for saving my soul,” and off I went to finish the field. It just seemed I was walking on feathers. Everything was so light, and I was not a bit tired. When I came to the end of the field, I unhooked the horses, and home I went just as fast as the horses could run, not knowing my mother was watching me through her bedroom window. When I got the horses in the barn, I ran to the house to tell her. When I got to the door, Mother opened the door and said, “I know all about you. I have prayed all day for you, and you are saved. You have the Lord Jesus in your heart.” “Yes,” I answered. “At 6 o’clock the Lord Jesus came into my heart.” My, what a Mother we children had, and Daddy always stood by her and also prayed for us children.

Later in 1910, together with 34 others, came my baptism. My, what a wonderful feeling that was! When I stepped into the water and Pastor H. Dick baptized me, I saw a white dove on top of my head just as plain as could be. I was so tempted to touch it, but I just could not do it. It seemed so real, I just could not get my thoughts from it. Then we, all 36 of us, joined the church. We had great times in Sunday School and Christian Endeavor programs, as well as singing in the choir. (E. M. B. Valley Church, in Mt. Lake, Minnesota)

Before I started Christian Day School, a girl came over and invited me to come to a dinner on Saturday night. It would be only about 2½ miles away, so I went. She asked me to dance with her, which I did but I did not feel good about it at all. About half through the evening I noticed that some boys went outside to the barn, and soon I found out that they had a drinking party there. I excused myself and took my bike, driving home alone in the dark. The next day I had to work in the field. I usually drove four horses. In the afternoon, I stopped the horses in a coulee and prayed to God to direct me to a nice girl friend that I could go and visit. I did not want to be in such a wild bunch which I did not enjoy. The dear Lord answered my prayer.