"I'm a boat man!"

Took my grandchildren fishing this past weekend.  Annabeth is six and little Owen is three.  Annabeth has been fishing before.  Even caught her own fish, kissed it, and wished it a good life as we let it go.  Owen?  It was his first time out with Grandpa.

I suspected that he was having fun playing on the ol' pontoon and playing captain, but I didn't realize HOW much until I got a text from my daughter yesterday that read:

Owen woke up and said, "Take me back to the lake house.  I am a boat man now.  I need the water!"

I love it.

There is a lot to learn from fishing.  Or, at least, try to learn -- I'm not sure any fisherman actually masters it all.  But, here are some basic Carpe diem Life lessons:

1. Planning & Preparation.  This one is a tough one as I still go out fishing forgetting something back on land.  

2. Practice. Actually, it's all practice. Sort of like doctoring and lawyering.

3. Optimism. At least for me, the odds are stacked against us when we go fishing.  But, there is always hope.

4. Patience. Something that three-year-olds and six-year-olds don't understand.  To be honest, 58-year-olds don't either. 

5. Unplugging.  Just get out of the house, unplug the electronic devices and plug into the harmony of nature.

6. Accepting failure. Well, at least not catching any fish.  How can spending a day with those you love (even fishing alone) on the water be a failure?

9. Celebrating success.  As I mentioned above, we celebrate by kissing the fish, thanking it for letting us catch it, then wishing it a good life.  Crazy, I know.  I guess if I really loved the fish, I wouldn't even catch it in the first place, but . . .

10. Creating memories.  I know that little three-year-old Owen will probably never remember the exact experience, but hopefully, he'll remember that his Grandpa and Grandma love him very much and want him to be happy.

Here's to many more days on the water, Little Miss Annabeth and Mr. O.

Love,
Grandpa

Carpe diem Life,
David Kuhn