About Me — Melinda Miles-Lindberg

From Alaska to the tropics of Panama

Me in front of our home in Panama. Photo courtesy of the Author.

My life motto is “ give it a go.” Don’t delay, don’t rethink, and don’t put yourself down. Instead, put yourself out there. So, here we go.

It all began. . .

I was born deep in the panhandle of Idaho in 1962. I was born there before the white supremacists infiltrated the sparsely populated woods. My mother got us out of there before the guns, violence, and radicalism took hold.

We moved to a small town in Eastern Washington where I thrived as a big fish in a little pond. I was the good girl, the perfect girl. I outpaced my classmates in most things.

In my elementary school years, I had many inspiring mentors. In this complicated world, I didn’t have only one. I took parts from different people.

• My fourth-grade teacher taught me to learn as much as fast as I can.
• My first piano teacher taught me to appreciate the finer things in life, like classical music, and classic friends.
• My crazy eccentric father taught me to be crazy in eccentric at times.
• My mom taught me everything else I needed to know.

My most defining moment during my childhood was a summer trip in that I took on the federal…