Ruth Narramore

Ruth Elliott Narramore (August 23, 1923 – May 30, 2010) was the editor of the Angel award-winning Psychology For Living Magazine from 1982 to 1999. Before then she co-wrote and edited books for her husband, Dr. Clyde Narramore. Earlier, she conducted and wrote instrumental arrangements for the orchestra at the Eagle Rock Baptist Church in Los Angeles.

Ruth was the sister of Dr. Rev. Gordon Elliott, a career minister and professor at the Fruitland Baptist Bible Institute in Hendersonville, North Carolina. For 64 years she was married to pioneering Christian psychologist Dr. Clyde M. Narramore. The Narramores had two children, Melodie and Kevin. Melodie was a Gospel recording artist with the Bread 'N Honey Music Label and was the Director of Theater Arts at California Baptist University until her death in 2007. Kevin, a musician, behavioral scientist, author and medical researcher directs the Narramore Institute in Los Angeles. In the 1950s, Clyde and Ruth created the Narramore Christian Foundation and the international radio broadcast Psychology for Living.

In addition to co-authoring several books with her husband, Ruth Narramore wrote poetry throughout her life. Influenced by the style of Ogden Nash, Ruth's poetry collection Come Share My Joy blends a whimsical Joie de vivre with heartfelt spiritual and existential reflection.

Early life

Six months after her birth in Brooklyn, New York, Ruth and her missionary parents, Edwin and Alice Elliott, ventured across the pacific on the Canadian ocean liner, the RMS Empress of Asia arriving in Tianjin, China. At age two, Ruth was speaking both Mandarin Chinese and English.

As the Japanese moved into China in the thirties, foreign consulates urged their citizens to leave the country, since their safety could no longer be guaranteed. As a result, her family returned to New York, where her brother, Gordon Elliott, was born. In the New York City School system Ruth's creative talents clearly emerged as she began to win citywide awards for her artwork.

Ruth attended King's College, and received her master's degree in music education from Columbia University. The list of musical instruments that she since learned to play included: trumpet, piano, organ, harp, vibraharp, cello, Swiss bells and alpenhorn. During WWII Ruth met a young Naval officer, Clyde M. Narramore at a Jack Wyrtzen rally at Times Square in New York City. They dated and were married in 1946 in Manhattan, NY.

In the book, her poems are divided into seven areas of life: Home and Family Friendships and Relationships Christmas and Easter Daily Living Our Relationship to God The World Around Us Just For Fun