More Than Worth The Wait

In a few days I’ll be doing this again:

I can’t wait, but there’s something sweet about anticipation…

I’ll try and post something before I leave, but I’ll definitely have much to share when I get back.

That Didn’t Take Long

It’s been over a month since I last wrote anything on my blog, the title of which might lead you to conclude that I have not been thinking about much lately. That’s not quite true, I have just defaulted to using “the lazy man’s blog” or Facebook.

Now that I have my blog hot wired into my Facebook feed there are no more excuses and the world will no longer be deprived of my run on sentences.

Here’s a bit of what we’ve been up to over the last few weeks.

Venturing North To Mark An Occasion

Ericka and I took a week off at the end of May to celebrate our third wedding anniversary. That’s right, we have obtained the marriage hat trick. Though the fact that we are Forsbergs should have left no doubt that we would quickly reach this milestone. It seemed faster than three years anyway.

We celebrated by spending a very relaxing week at the family lake place near Brandon, MN. Late mornings, big breakfasts, long walks, good books, and second breakfasts all while surrounded by the simple beauty of the lakes region made for a great get away.

We took some pictures to preserve a few moments. Here’s a sampling:

What I enjoy most about visiting the lake is the chance to interact with all of the memories it holds for me. This is where I learned more about fishing from my Dad, where my cousin and I would play hours of catch-pretending to snag home runs off the out field fence, and it’s where I fell in love with my wife.

Going back is like taking a big drink of cool, clear, water. It reminds you how absolutely refreshing the blessings of our lives are and how amazing it is that God has surrounded us with a world full. That I would have the eyes to see them more everyday is the prayer I need to pray.

Hello, Rabbit
Easily my favorite moment of the trip was about a ten minute visit we had with a few rabbits one evening in an open field that runs adjacent to our families’ property. Earlier in the afternoon we had picked up a book called, “Trees of Minnesota” and were on a stroll educating ourselves and becoming expert arborists. On our way back we cut through the open field and across the path of a wild rabbit. Ericka, whose love for animals jumps off the charts when they are cute, spotted him first. We stopped and watched the timid little creature do the same to us. Then, he slowly hopped forward. We waited. Another rabbit came into view. Keeping in mind the cuteness quotent you’ll understand that this made Ericka even happier. Sensing Ericka’s excitement at the prospect of a closer visit with the furry visitors, I sat down on the grass and watched. As Ericka would step towards the first rabbit he would hop a bit closer to the woods. Then he eventually stopped and his partner would begin to hop around towards me, keeping an eye on Ericka and his escape into the tall grasses. Sitting there watching the rabbits and my wife negotiate how close they were going to get to eachother was as entertaining as it was peaceful. There’s something about the most timid creatures in nature showing bravery and wonder that reminds you of the way we’re all made to live.

Since I eluded to “pictures”, here are a few more:

Taking in the view from the church we would attend during visits to the lake when I was a boy.

I still remember sitting in services with my family and relatives, our brood would take up a few rows and nearly double the size of the faithful in attendence.

And finally, proof of my fishing prowess:

Impressive, yes?

Since we’ve been back home we’ve done a lot of planting around the house. I’ll probably be posting some pics from our growing garden in an upcoming post.

Thanks for visting, and come back soon.

A Thick Handled Day

Early Saturday morning I ventured north and decided to test out a theory I developed along the way:

You can tell the quality of a day of fishing by the thickness of your coffee cup handle. The thicker the handle, the better the day.

I’ve also found this theory generally holds true for the quality of food at your average road side diner or greasy spoon. It’s not an exact measurement, but it’s close.

The coffee cup handles at the Swedish Inn in Lindstrom, MN are good and thick. There’s enough porcelain there to make a sink.

Fishing Opener 2009 found me with my friend, fishing guru, and all around outdoorsman, Jason Riebe.  With stomachs full of Lindstrom’s second finest breakfast (no doubt Mrs. Riebe would have made a finer breakfast if given the chance) we headed out to see if my theory held water.

Our first stop was a reservoir called…well, I can’t tell you that, or the secret would be out. Upon our arrival though we – and all the other fishermen braving the day- had one thing fighting against us: the weather. The cold front that had come through was encouraging the fish to stay away from our lines.Which presented the first obstacle of any fishing adventure: Will you let your circumstances determine your catch? Jason’s answer to that question: No.

When we finally made it to the choice spot we had set out to find we determined that my rod and reel were not going to be working with me as much as against me. To make a long story short, I needed a new rig or fishing the was going to be a pretty useless venture for me the rest of the day.

We decided to head back to the Riebe Estate, grab lunch and some new gear, but not before one more cast. On that cast Jason reeled in the first game fish of the season: a decent sized Bass. Now that we were able to say that we weren’t skunked at our first stop, we broke for lunch and restocked our equipment.

Our game on we launched Jason’s canoe onto the St. Croix and headed up river to spend the rest of the day enjoying the simple pleasures of angling. I learned plenty of new tricks, Jason sharpened his skills, and the beauty of a cool bright day in May reminded me of what I loved so much about fishing as a young boy: everything.

It’s not as much about the fish you catch, though we did catch a few, it’s much more about getting away from the business of life, throwing a line in the water and waiting. In doing that fishing teaches you something profound: often the simple hopes in life are the best and watching and waiting for them on the water can put everything into focus.

All in all I would definitely say it was a Thick Handled Day, but I’ll let the pictures describe it from here:

The man. The legend.

Taking in the scenery

Natural Wood Framing

Fire and A Line

I caught one too.

A nice view on the World.

A Big Step for my Third Post and The Power of Sheep

Well, I’ve been at this blogging thing for a few days and I’ve received a shout out on a national blog.

In fact, it’s so national it’s called National Review. (I suppose you could keep clicking the links back and forth between these two articles and rip a hole in the very fabric of the world wide web. Be careful.)

Anyway, that was awfully nice.

I’m now expecting my readership to take a big nosedive.

Here’s something else that’s nice, Extreme Sheep LED Art. To which I give a shout out to my Uncle Mike for sharing.

Enjoy:

The Happy Warrior

I came home last night, and after flipping on the internets to NRO, discovered that a favorite writer/thinker of mine, Jonah Goldberg, was going to be speaking at St. John’s University Tuesday night.

Skip to Tuesday and several emails later some last minute plans came together and my friends, Brad, Juliette and Jason, made the trek to St. Joseph, MN to hear Mr. Goldberg speak.

(Unfortunately my sweet wife had a class and couldn’t  join us, but she fully supported my efforts. It’s easy to love such a sensible woman.)

The title he gave his speech was, “No Time For A New Deal.” Essentially, he was holding forth against the egregious growth of government we’ve witnessed over the last 90 days from the basic tenents of his new book Liberal Fascism: The Secret History of the American Left from Mussolini to the Politics of Meaning.

Here’s my review: It was great.

There’s nothing quite as inspiring as listening to a true intellectual clearly articulate many of your strongly held ideologies. While the event was hosted by the Young Americans Foundation, not everyone in the crowd was cut from the same political cloth. Yet you could hear the wheels of everyone in the room turning as he laid out a clear and rational analysis of the real affects and successes of the “New Deal”, its origins, and out of what political philosophies modern progressivism was actually birthed.

I was happy to hear him speak, happy to pick up his book, which I’ll happily be sharing more thoughts from here I’m sure.

I’ve read all of one page, but I recommend picking up a copy.

Jonah, me, and his book.

Thoughts On Sovereignty and Baby Ducks

If you are one of the few remaining people in North America who has not seen the BBC documentary Planet Earth, you should stop reading this sentence and go fix that problem. It’s incredibly well shot, which really is important when it comes to film, but it also covers some never before seen areas of the world. Not just by me, which are many, but by documentary film crews, which are a considerably smaller number.

I think we first heard about the series  through our friends, the Knights, and have been loving almost every minute of it. The only portions that get unfavorable reviews in our household occur when a creature that my sweet wife has deemed cute ends up being eaten by a less cute animal. I’ve done the calculations and I think I’ve averaged the time it takes from the point when Ericka has deemed said “cuteness”, to the time that it takes that thing to be attacked and eaten. It is, roughly, 1:09:54321.

The event usually goes something like this:

We see the Forsbergs sitting in silence on the couch. One or both may be eating. They watch as a two week old caribou frolics on the tundra’s spring grass.

Narrator (The always enjoyable Sir Richard Attenborugh): The young caribou enjoys a simple romp next to his proud and happy parents.

Ericka: That. Is. Adorable!

Sir Richard: Little does he know that danger is close at hand.

At this point the score shifts to “dark and sinister.”

Ericka: Oh, great. Perfect.

Sir Richard: The sleek and stealth movements of the Arctic’s greatest hunter, the Timber wolf, become a quick lesson to the heard of the fragility of their existence. The youngest and oldest are always the weakest link and the easiest target.

Ericka: C’mon! Not the baby.

Nate and Ericka watch in silence as the chase begins.

Sir Richard: The calf is quickly separated from the heard, and at only a few days old must now rely on the speed of his own legs to save him.

Ericka: Well…that’s it…I’m outta here. Tell me when it’s over.

Ericka exits. The calf runs a few more feet and…we hit the 1:09:54321 mark. Ericka usually comes back right after the score picks up to a light and cheerful tune.

Which Brings Me To My Point

There’s nothing quite as sweet as watching your wife enjoy something just because that thing is cute. Or, more accurately stated, just because that thing is created the way that it is.  It’s the power of nurturing love that really should make more men sing. It certainly brings a big smile to my heart whenever I witness it.

One of those happier occasions in Planet Earth consisted of the exit from the nest for several baby ducks. As I was watching the event unfold I thought of Jesus’ words about the sparrows.

²⁹Are not two sparrows sold for a penny^[a]? Yet not one of them will fall to the ground apart from the will of your Father. ³⁰And even the very hairs of your head are all numbered. ³¹So don’t be afraid; you are worth more than many sparrows.

Which, made me think, this is a part of what God’s sovereignty looks like*:

Think about it:

At birth the ducks are safe because the mother knows she has to build her nest away from predators, high above ground. Once born though they must make that big leap. Yet, they came with pliable little bodies, and a bed of soft leaves to land on. Surely, there is order here. Clearly, a plan.

It’s that sovereignty that holds sway over this earth. That sovereignty which is so much bigger than financial markets, so much bigger than the evil in men’s hearts, so much bigger than that gap between the ground and the nest.

It’s so much bigger that we can all know that, no matter what, we are ready to fly.

*Though, in this version, it’s narrated by Jean-Luc Picard.

“Why Do I Need Another Site To Visit?”

You may be asking yourself that question. The short answer would have to be, “You don’t.” Not really anyway.

But, since you’re here, I’ll tell you why I’m writing: It’s what I currently do for a living and I want to get better.

So, look at it this way, for as long as this thing lasts it’ll be like a great big test. Share your thoughts, tell me how I’m doing, or tell me how you’re doing.

It should be fun, possibly informative, and at the very least result in me sending fewer emails to clog up your in-box.

I consider that a win, win, win.

Having said that, welcome to “Here’s What I Think”, I hope you enjoy your visit.