  This is a personal account of how I became an astronomer. Fascinated by the
stars and planets in the dark sky over Lolland, an island 100 km south of
Copenhagen, the interest in astronomy was growing. Encouraged by my teachers, I
polished mirrors and built telescopes with generous help from the local
blacksmith and I observed light curves of variable stars. Studies at the
Copenhagen University from 1950 gradually led me deeper into astronomy,
especially astrometry (the astronomy of positions), guided by professor Bengt
Str\"omgren and my mentor dr. phil. Peter Naur. I was lucky to take part in the
buildup of the new observatory at Brorfelde during the first difficult years
and the ideas I gathered there have contributed to the two astrometry
satellites Hipparcos and Gaia launched by the European Space Agency (ESA) in
respectively 1989 and 2013.
