Mother's Day Fishing

On the lighter side of life, my daughter caught her first fish all by her self this month. (Well, I guess I did cast the line for her), but she did hook it and reel it in herself. We went fishing out in Hopedale with my parents for Mother's Day. Great little park they've been putting together out on the edge of town for the last... 10 years or so.
She was so pleased. So now you're asking, how did she respond? Was she grossed out? Interested, but wary? Taken aback by the cold, wet, slimy, flopping Bluegill? My little girl... she named it. Sam. "Hello Sam the fish" she says.

Welcome to Country Roads

Welcome and thanks for stopping by my newly started blog. As this is indeed a new adventure for me, I should start with introductions. This blog will focus on three main areas of my life. Three things that I believe really summarize who I am. In no particular order:

1. I am a patriot. I love my country. I'm fascinated by its history, it's people, culture. Not just our country in the larger, national sense; but in a regional sense as well. I was born and raised in central Illinois. I have a strong appreciation for the Midwest and its people and way of life. Don't be surprised to find posts on politics, history and life in farm country.

2. I am a man. I am a husband, a father, a leader in my church. I am (or strive to be) strong, steady, dependable, a protector and provider. Now, that didn't used to be such an earth-shattering assertion. However, I was born in the 1970's. For my entire life our culture has increasingly tried to convince me that I am an ignorant buffoon. That I am outdated, dangerous, a liability. Many men have taken this to heart. Many children don't have fathers, wives are without husbands, women are carrying rifles into combat to protect our country. I reject that world-view.

OK, this paragraph is turning into its own post. A somewhat preachy one at that, eh? Suffice to say that I intend to post a bit on family life and fatherhood. We plan on homeschooling our kids (currently 3 and almost 2 years old) so expect some posts on education as well.

3. I am a Christian. I attend a “Reformed Baptist” church and could best be described in that fashion. While the primary focus of this blog is not theology and theological issues, no discussion of my life and experience would be complete unless Christianity was woven throughout. In addition to the fact that posts on other subjects will either directly or indirectly reference the teachings of the Bible, I hope to post some occasional book reviews and Biblical responses to cultural events.

Please be patient as I figure out the technical side to blogging. I hope you'll add me to your regular reading lists. Please feel free to add your questions or comments on any posts, or posts you'd like to see.

~Gabriel