Happy Birthday, Dick!

As a kid, I used to hate fishing. Let me rephrase that—I used to HATE fishing! It might have been different had I been able to catch fish. To top it off, I was jealous of my brothers Dick and Tom, because they ALWAYS caught something. Again, let me rephrase that statement—Dick always caught THE FISH HE WAS FISHING FOR. It was almost a vocation for him. He bought the books. He bought different poles and different reels. He learned what each of them was for and how to use them to his advantage. He’s fished and hunted in many different parts of the world. When he is fishing or hunting, no matter where it is, he’s in his element.

As I grew older (and, I’d like to think—smarter), I began to realize what he saw in the sport. I also realized that it wasn’t the catching that was important—it was the fishing. It gives me a chance to just “be” in beautiful surroundings and reflect on the goodness of God’s creation! I don’t even care if my hook hits the water! I don’t know if it’s the lesson he wanted to teach me, but teach me he did. I heard Dick say that he was “skunked” once—He didn’t even catch a cold! But he was just as happy!

I’m not sure I ever thanked Dick for all of the lessons he taught me as my older brother, but I thought that his birthday would be a good day to do so.

Thanks, Dick and God Bless you always.