Fly Fishing with Family & Friends

With a new heart and renewed energy I’m picking up nostalgic activities like fly-fishing, which has been in my family for generations. Mom used to drive my brothers and me up the canyon after elementary school or early Saturday mornings so we could drop a line in the water while she read in the car. I don't remember if we caught fish, but I remember being together.

There’s something magical about being away from civilization in the early morning hours shortly before the sun pops over the mountain. The air is fresh and pristine. It’s quiet except for the light sounds of chirping birds, rippling water, rustling wind, and occasional cars driving by on the distant road. Eventually the sun shows it’s face as the sunbeams dance on the river's crust.

All of this beauty connects me to memories of past fishing trips with family and friends, some of which have crossed over to the other side to be with the one who created all of this beauty for us to enjoy.

I’m a descendant of pioneers, people who journeyed west to settle in uncharted territory and worship God according to their newfound religion. My ancestors drove their wagons led by a team of oxen or they themselves pulled a handcart with all their belongings. The path was unpaved and rough. Along the way they found their food as they fished the streams and rivers.

One such pioneer was Wilford Woodruff who wrote about his experience in 1847. He said, "The man at the fort said there were but very few trout in the streams, and a good many of the brethren were already at the creeks with their rods & lines trying their skill baiting with fresh meat & grass hoppers, but no one seemed to catch any.

"I went & flung my fly onto the [brook] and it being the first time that I ever tried the artificial fly in America, or ever saw it tried, I watched it as it floated upon the water with as much intense interest as Benjamin Franklin did his kite when he tried to draw lightning from the skies. And as Franklin receive great joy when he saw electricity or lightning descend on his kite string, in like manner was I highly gratified when I saw the nimble trout dart my fly hook himself & run away with the line but I soon worried him out & drew him to shore."

Photo: My cousin Tyler holding a Steelhead trout on our trip to Salmon, Idaho. We've been fishing together since we were kids.

Funeral of a Child

This morning I played the piano at another funeral for a child. These things never get easy.

The infant’s young mother stood at the podium in front of a large group of family and friends to share her feelings. With her loyal husband at her side with his arm around her she expressed gratitude to God for this experience. She publicly thanked her Father in Heaven for her infant son.

Born prematurely, he lived only three weeks, but his beautiful spirit had been with her for almost a year. With confidence she stated her belief in an afterlife and that her family would be reunited.

If we believe this life is all there is and that death is the end of our existence that would be a sad and pathetic conclusion.

This weak theory makes people even more miserable and undermines the very intelligence of who we are and how far we’ve come in understanding things as they really are.

Some bright minds conclude the advancements in science are evidence there is no God. Is such naive intelligence and so called theorists to brilliant that they overlook a possible conclusion that a supreme being could possibly be the source of applying all these truths? Who are we to question the existence of a God when we have so many problems of our own. Nations and cultures can't even figure out how to get along with one another. Maybe our selfish nature denies there is something greater than ourselves.

Nothing in science can remotely prove there’s no God. Rather every proven theory or fact of truth in science advances the notion God is behind all of this beauty. "All things denote there is a God; yea, even the earth, and all things that are upon the face of it, yea, and its motion, yea, and also all the planets which move in their regular form do witness that there is a Supreme Creator." When the sunsets it's not just beautiful, it's a reminder He's close by. When there's fresh snow on a Christmas morning, it's not just a hallmark card, but a reminder he's close by.

I love the statement by Leo Tolstoy who said, “The more we live by our intellect, the less we understand the meaning of life.” Those who choose the path of humility during times of crisis will find a loving and kind God if they are looking. What they discover as they kneel in humble prayer with an open mind cannot be described in words. If consistently seeking help from the Almighty they will hear His voice and feel the comfort in their hearts.

God’s love is like warming our hands on a fire after a cold day. I’ve felt that fire many times. I can’t deny it.

I pray that we might pay more attention to the life events experienced by other people. For some it’s difficult to do. But we can find the strength within ourselves to ease the burden of those who are burdened. We can mourn with those that mourn. God will guide us and inspires us how to help or what to say when the time is right. Sometimes the most powerful form of expression is to wrap our arms around those in pain and say nothing.

Life goes by quickly. Every moment counts. With every passing moment how much more fulfilling our lives will be if we count our blessings and seek to recognize the daily influence of a loving God in our lives. He understands all things and why he brings children home. We have to trust Him or we have nothing to trust in.

After losing his young daughter, singer Steven Curtis Chapman wrote these power lyrics worth reading:

We planted the seed while the tears of our grief soaked the ground
The sky lost its sun, and the world lost its green to lifeless brown
Now the chilling wind has turned the earth hard as stone
And silently seed rise beneath ice and snow
And my heart's heavy now

But I'm not letting go of this hope I have that tells me
Spring is coming, Spring is coming
And all we've been hoping and longing for soon will appear
Spring is coming, Spring is coming
It won't be long now, it's just about here

Hear the birds start to sing
Feel the life in the breeze
Watch the ice melt away
The kids are coming out to play
Feel the sun on your skin
Growing strong and warm again
Watch the ground: there's something moving
Something is breaking through
New life is breaking through
Spring is coming, Spring is coming
And all we've been hoping and longing for soon will appear
Spring is coming, Spring is coming
And it won't be long now, it's just about here
Spring is coming, Spring is coming
Out of these ashes, beauty will rise
And all we've been hoping and longing for soon will appear
Sorrow will be turned to joy
Spring is coming, Spring is coming
All we hoped for soon will appear
It won't be long now, it's just about here

LISTEN TO THE SONG

Disney World | 6 Months!

Super Bowl tradition has someone in the media asking the MVP, “Hey, you just won the super bowl. What are you going to do next?” With excited the athlete replies, “I’m going to Disneyland.” For me, it can be phrased, “Hey Paul, you just got a heart transplant. What are you doing next?” I'd make the same reply.

Six months ago yesterday I survived congenital heart disease and received a donor heart from a wonderful human being who I think about every hour of every day.

Photo: Mickey, Lynnette, Eden, Me, Minnie

One of our goals if I lived through the surgery was to take Eden to Disneyworld in Florida and enjoy a week of rides, treats, no technology, and endless fun.

Mission accomplished.

With all the fun we had the usual moments of an over-stimulated child who was trying to take in all of the thrills, chills, people, and waiting in line, but in the end she simply can’t stop talking about what we experienced.

After climbing nearly 10,000 feet in the air our 4 year old looked out the window to see hundreds of clouds below the airplane and she curiously asked, “Are we upside down?”

Photo: Eden meeting a fellow Princess

Another honest remark from Eden came after she insisted we go on Hollywood Studios’ Tower of Terror or Twilight Zone ride (watch a video). You enter a haunted building and sit on benches, which takes you into a dark elevator shaft where you climb a hundred feet and when you are not expecting it, the shaft drops and it feels like you are free falling. Then in the dark, pitch black with a loud sound system of music and haunted noise, you go up and down, up and down all over again. Both Lynnette and I had no idea what this was. The sign at the entrance said a person 40 inches high could ride the tower. The park should probably clarify if the 40 inches refers to little people or children also? Needless to say, her insistence in going on an unknown ride put her through quiet an ordeal. Her sweet little innocence has experienced something wild and new. For me, I loved the ride, but Eden said with some frustration, “Let’s not do that again!” Of coarse, upon getting home and seeing cousins and friends that’s all she talks about. “You would be way scared,” she says… We won’t forget the tower of terror.

We made up for the tower by going on Splash Mountain and the Big Thunder Railroad various times at the Magic Kingdom resorts along with visiting Typhoon Lagoon, Animal Kingdom, Hollywood Studios, and more. Eden loved these rides and was anxious to return in a long line to do them again. Interesting how we are patient for some things we know and understand and not as patient at times for the unknown events in our lives.

Photo: Taking Eden into the Typhoon Lagoon

Aside from the rides and crowds, on a personal level I was enthralled with the amount of energy I had to walk all over the various parks for the past week carrying a backpack and at times Eden on my shoulders. I enjoyed working out at the GYM and stretching my limits to prepare my body for my next adventure climbing Mount Olympus in honor of my brother Brian. The endurance I experienced on this trip was helpful and motivating in my realization I can do this. I can climb Mount Olympus in 90 days!

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