Hannah

Hannah S. McCall

My story begins in Memphis, Tennessee, where I was born. I was the second of three. I have two siblings, a brother, Sam, and a sister, Sarah. Sam is two years older than me and Sarah is three years younger. My parents, Ed and Mary (Walton), were married in 1975.

As a kid, I loved school and had lots of friends there. I loved going to camp in the summertime and staying with my grandmother in Brownsville. I can still smell the salmon croquettes she would make on Saturday afternoon and her facial expression when she shushed us in the library. Also, I loved summer vacations with my family. We mostly went to the beach and played in the sand but also took trips to St. Louis and Washington, D.C. And always in the month of August we went to Tabernacle, a family reunion most unique of its kind. It was the remains of a Methodist revival—we went (and still do) go to church three times a day, eat three hearty Southern meals, play ping pong, and sit on the swing drinking sweet tea catching up on the lives of family members we only see that one week of the year.
My parents were so important to me growing up. My mom would meet us at the bus stop after school and want to know every detail of our day. She would help me with homework and get me to soccer practice every day. I thought (and still think) she is the greatest mom. My dad would take my sister and me to school on Mondays and would let us pick out a doughnut at this bakery on the way. My mom would never have let us eat doughnuts for breakfast. My dad was a runner and worked out a lot, and I wanted to do those things too. I liked when he let me do sit-ups with him and jump rope in the garage. He would take us to Mississippi to see my grandparents, Bubba and Bo. It was so fun because they lived right next to a college campus and college seemed like a lifetime away. We always went to church on Sundays too. I liked my friends at church and every Sunday at lunch my dad would ask me what I learned. We also sang in the kid’s choir and on special holidays.
Around fifth grade I started noticing some family problems. A lot of that had to do with my father drinking too much, too often. Just after sixth grade, my parents divorced and my dad moved overseas for a few years. My dad had changed jobs and decided to move overseas where he could be promoted in his company. In the meantime, I started junior high and hated it. It was a new school and awkward time altogether. I didn’t know what to tell people about what happened to my family. I didn’t really know myself. I also lost a friend in a fatal car accident when I was fifteen. That kind of thing had never happened to me. I was sort of awestruck by the grief and emotion I felt for a long time about the loss. I played soccer a whole lot just to deal with it all. I was running and playing out of town competitively every moment I wasn’t in school.
As a result of some of those hidden emotions I suffered from stomach problems during this time in my life. I began losing weight as a result. That weight loss started bad habits. I had gotten accustomed to the praise I received when I was sick and losing weight and so I wanted to continue losing it. Losing weight was one way to take control of something in my life in the midst of a lot of uncontrollable things that were happening around me. I developed a number of symptoms of eating disorders. At one point I was diagnosed with disordered eating – a milder version of eating disorders. That struggle stayed with me and continues to be a challenge on a daily basis.
I continued to played soccer, softball, swimming, tennis, and ran cross country (some) at White Station High School. I loved high school. I really liked all the friends I had made from junior high and sports. I really worked hard at school and almost always made all A’s. During my freshman year I started going to Young Life with my brother. I loved it! Soon I was able to talk my friends into it. The summer after freshman year I went to Young Life camp called Windy Gap in N.C. with my two best friends. I learned all about God all over again. It was a majestic place. I remember really thinking about who I was and where I belonged that week. I decided that I didn’t really know God and if I had before I had wanted to escape him after all that had happened in my life. I talked to my Young Life leader one night when I was there and told her I wanted to know God now. I stood up the last night of camp and told everyone that I wanted to know God and wanted God to know me. I made that decision, and I will never forget that feeling.
From then on I was a new person. I told my mom when I got home that I was going to start “knowing God again.” I became active in Campaigners—a girl’s bible study through Young Life and actively sought after the Lord. After my parents divorced, we started going to a new church. I became more active in the youth group and church. I really got a lot out of the sermons for the first time. I went to my pastor’s office and told him that I had made the decision to know God. He gave me some good books to start reading and I kept him informed of what God was teaching me. I also went on my first missions trip to Recife, Brazil with the youth group. My brother and some friends from church went too. It was such an amazing, eye-opening experience. God was so gracious in revealing his people and purpose to me. I went on more trips, almost every one that church would allow me.
My sophomore year of high school I began talking to a guy named Charles McCall, who I had met through my brother. From here you can read “Our Love Story.”