The Iowa That Was: Memories of an Iowa Farm Boy Turned Philosopher

by Wayne G. Johnson

Publisher:

Resource Publications

, 2022

Overview

"You can take the boy out of the farm, but you can’t get the farm out of the boy." Wayne Gustave Johnson explores this proverb as he recounts memories of his early years on an Iowa farm rented by his immigrant Swedish parents. Nourished by these gentle parents, a little church, eight years of country school, and four older siblings, Johnson established the values that shaped his life. The labor-intensive farming of the 1930s grounded him in the dignity of labor and the sense of fulfillment which comes through cooperation with nature. A little church of fundamentalist leanings nurtured his love of choral music and gave him respect for the support provided by religious faith. While his eight years of country schooling would not quite classify as prep school experience, they did provide a basic grasp of the three Rs. Sex education--of sorts--is inevitable on an Iowa farm where the romancing of farm animals is open to view. The transfer of these observed activities to human experience was natural, but required some fine-tuning. At thirteen, the death of his father prompted the author to eventually pursue the big questions through the study of religion and philosophy.

Product Details

• Title: The Iowa That Was: Memories of an Iowa Farm Boy Turned Philosopher
• Author: Wayne G. Johnson
• Publisher: Resource Publications
• Print Publication Date: 2022
• Logos Release Date: 2022
• Pages: 90
• Language: English
• Resources: 1
• Format: Digital › Ebook
• ISBNs: 9781666794502, 9781666736342, 1666736341, 9781666794496, 166679449X, 1666794503
• Resource ID: LLS:9781666794502
• Resource Type: Monograph
• Metadata Last Updated: 2026-02-22T02:43:41Z

About Wayne G. Johnson

Wayne G. Johnson is Professor Emeritus of Philosophy at the University of Wisconsin-Parkside in Kenosha, Wisconsin. Johnson holds a Ph.D. in Religious Studies from the University of Iowa, a B. Div. from Andover Newton Theological School in Newton Centre, Massachusetts, and a Bachelor of Science in Civil Engineering from Iowa State University.