Arthur never doubted that he and Signe were meant for each other since the moment he set his eyes on her in Visby! Signe fell in love with Arthur when she picked him up at the boat in New York. But neither of them knew what the other felt and at the time they never discussed it. They had both lived through World War I and were convinced of the necessity of what Buchman was pioneering, the way he did it and they each wanted more than anything else to contribute fully to it. They felt that this was a God-given opportunity that would never occur again if they didn’t grasp the moment.
Marriage would have meant the need for alternatives which they were individually unable or unwilling to visualize at the time. It would either have involved a home, children and a job to finance this – or family life on the road with the team! Both were impossible to visualize at the time and they individually accepted the present challenge for what it was. They chose a celibate life, not knowing where it would lead.
Soon after the end of the war and shortly before leaving for Europe Arthur finally felt that the time had come to propose. But when he asked Signe to marry him she said no! She had begun to feel that they were too different and added to that, she was not at all keen on becoming British! Signe had by then heard that all of her family were alive, but she had been out of Norway for most of her life and spent the whole of the war in America barely knowing how they were doing. She was simply homesick and no longer in love.
As it turned out her youngest sister Lillan had been terrified as the family stood at their living room window and watched the occupying soldiers march into Oslo in 1939 in full view of the windows of their apartment on Thomas Heftyesgate. He father, Kjell, quickly realized that he would be needed up north in Sulitljelma to manage the strategic coppermine that he was director of in order to keep it out of the control of the occupation forces. Added to this Lillan was terrified and so he quickly arranged for Lillan and his wife Aagot to flee by train, taxi and a horse-driven sleigh to Sweden until they could figure it all out. Eventually Aagot, Kjell and Lillan settled in Sulitjelma during the first part of the war so that Kjell could slow down production. Lillan frequently had to change schools as the schools she attended were closed down. She travelled from north to south, sometimes on her own, as her parents were determined that she should get the best education possible despite the restricting occupation. By the end of the war Lillan had completed her schooling and her parents moved back to Oslo where she graduated.
Signe’s closest sister Nussa (Anne Karine) struggled at university during the war years. She had a nervous breakdown which led to a broken engagement and eventually developed schizophrenia which she struggled with for the rest of her life. Inger finished her schooling in Oslo and moved to their family friends the Paues in Stockholm where she studied to become a photographer. It was here that she met and married exiled Norwegian Marine Officer Carl August Høy-Petersen – but without her own family being able to take part. Lillan was 12 when Signe left and was now nearly 19. Signe wanted to get back to her roots.
Arthur was not deterred and during the days after he proposed they spent time together daily to talk, share their thoughts, fears, hopes and visions. After 3 days, when Signe was resting, a thought shot through her: “You are chasing a rainbow: compatibility. When I put people together, I fit them together!” And from that moment she knew that all would be well. She realized that it wouldn’t always be easy but her values would undergo a natural and necessary change. Arthur had invited her to the opera on the evening of April 13th 1946 and in the interval Signe said yes to his proposal! It was lilac time in Washington and next day Arthur gave her a big corsage of lilacs to wear when they drove out to Mount Vernon to spend the day together. After that it was lilac-time everywhere they went, place after place, giving them both a great sense of hope for the future!
In a world without TV, internet or social media their skills as press photographer and graphic artist were continually needed to spread the positive news that was growing from the reconcilliation work undertaken by Buchman and his team. Now that the war was over they could return to Europe. Arthur proudly introduced his fiancé to his family in England one by one. Nothing was said about the past and all were all obviously relieved that Arthur would be getting married and settling down – or so they thought!
Signe and Arthur then took the boat to Norway to meet the Lunds. Lilac-time again! This was the first time Signe’s family had been together for over 7 years and they received a warm welcome. It hadn’t been easy for the family that Signe had been so far away during the war and they had all had traumatic experiences so there was a lot to catch up on. Signe and Arthur were invited for a week at Åsgårdsstrand with Signe’s parents. Signe shared a room with her mother and Arthur with Signe’s father. A challenge for Arthur as Signe’s father didn’t say a word to him!
The MRA work was now focused on rebuilding and an old hotel, that had been a refugee camp during the war, was bought by the Swiss MRA team who saw this as their opportunity to contribute to rebuilding the world as they due to neutrality had been spared the many attorcities of war. Many many famillies gave their savings in order to buy and refurbish what became a conference center in the little village of Caux up the mountain above Montreux. While Arthur and Signe were in Norway they decided with Signe’s family that the wedding should be held at the newly furbished MRA conference center in Caux that September. Lillan and Nussa travelled down to Caux with Signe at the beginning of August and they all shared a room together untill the wedding when the rest of Signe’s family joined them. Arthur’s closest brother Tigs was his best man. By now most of their friends were in Caux and could be their bridesmaids and ushers.
Marrying so soon after the war meant that Signe had to become British! In Switzerland they had to have a civil marriage first and this took place in Lausanne with a wedding breakfast at their friend’s the Mottus.
WEDDING
Signe and Arthur were to become my parents.
As the years passed several of the families in the task force settled down and created homes or centers of their own in different parts of the world. My parents helped many others to create their homes but it took close to 30 years before they bought a home of their own. These times were a far cry from the 21st century. The role of the family unit had not been defined in the same way as it is today. It certainly hadn’t been defined within the task force as Signe and Arthur were one of the first couples to get married and start a family. They had just emerged from two world wars during which families were split up across the globe. During this time husbands and sons had left home to fight in the wars. Mothers and their children were if at all possible moved to a safe place in order to survive. Many children were sent way from home to stay with “new” parents. Women worked as nurses, in industry, in the armed forces, or as land girls producing food. Despite the fact that sending your children to boarding school was more or less unheard of in Norway, Signe’s own sister Lillan had to spend one year in a boarding school and a couple of years with another family so that she could finish her schooling during the war.
For Signe and Arthur life on the road continued inspite of Signe’s health challenges, though with some modifications. During her pregnancy Signe travelled with Arthur through the coal fields of Britain and beyond. But when the added strain of pregnancy meant that she was no longer able to carry on in the bustle of the London work, Signe was offered to stay at Tirley Garth, a stately home on an estate in Cheshire owned by Irene Prestwich who had donated her home to the work of MRA.
It wasn’t easy for Signe to be away from Arthur, her family and her friends, but there was no question in Signe’s mind that Arthur was where he was meant to be. The situation in Europe was still precarious. Hatred, despair, poverty and depravity poisoned the post was years and leaders of all nationalities were looking to Caux and MRA to supply the missing factors needed to create peace. Arthur was in Switzerland photographing a conference in Caux at the time Signe was to give birth and later she said, “I was glad to have a part in the effort to build up a new Europe by letting Arthur take part in the conference in Caux.” Signe’s friend and midwife Jean McBain, stayed with her at Tirley Garth during the weeks before and after my birth. I was born in the guest room and the local Doctor Bark helped Jean to bring me into this world and untangled the umbilical cord twice from round my neck! The bathroom was almost as big as the guest room, with dark brown natural panelled wood walls and a huge bathtub at its center.
The birth was announced by a proud father at 7.30 during the first meeting of the day in Caux!
When I was 5 weeks old we took the first of many travels and Jean came with us. We flew to Switzerland to meet my father where we stayed for a month. Our first home was Chalet Suisse, a picture postcard chalet in Caux with an amazing view, but they only had cold running water! This village was to become our home base until I was in my teens.
After the conference was over it was time for me to meet my relatives. We went to England to meet the Strongs and then Signe took me by boat to Norway where Arthur met us and we spent our first family Christmas with my grandparents, aunts and cousins Kristin and her sister Tove who was born a week after me. Arthur then flew to Washington DC where we joined him in January.
These were the first of 82 times during the first 2 years of my life that Signe packed our bags and moved to join Arthur, Buchman and his team!
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