LifewithBruceBackman.com » Life & Family

Fly Fishing…a slice of life!

Bruce Backman — Tue, 14 Jul 2009 23:16:33 +0000

After nearly walking for 4 miles…this is where we started!

14+ inch Brown Trout!

Action shot!

Daughter being sneaky!

Casting further up the creek!

Son getting ready to catch one!

17+ inch Brown!

Where I caught the 17 inch Brown

Okay…it is a day late and I apologize for that! However, I had some issues with the photos so I have a bit of an excuse.

One of the beautiful things about fly fishing is that it teaches you to live in the moment. If you are not aware of each second then you would surely miss the opportunities that arise in the form of catching fish. When fishing for trout specifically they can rise in an instant and be gone just as quickly. You very much have to experience it all as it is happening or you miss the experience.

With the stunning beauty of the surroundings, the utter enjoyment of the fishing and the wonderful interaction with my two eldest children…I had such a fantastic time. We ended up fishing for three days. The first day we fished Flat Creek; the second Caples Creek; and the third the Silver Fork of the American. I am still trying to decide if I should give exact locations and give away our secrets, but suffice it to say that we had to do a fair amount of walking to get away from the beaten path and into some great fishing.

I can tell you this…Flat Creek was flat this time of year. I have never fished this creek in July before and now I know why. It was much too low for any productive fishing. However, the next two days were filled with lots of fish and lots of fun and lots of walking. We were just absolutely worn out. Anyhow, my main objective is just to say how proud I am of my children as they were really starting to get a hang of this sport that literally takes decades to fully learn. Also, I wanted to share just a few pictures for fun!

Action shot!

Nice Brown!

© Bruce Backman for LifewithBruceBackman.com, 2009. | Permalink | 6 comments | Add to del.icio.us
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I am amazed with my eldest son…

Bruce Backman — Tue, 07 Jul 2009 22:44:01 +0000

My wife has taken the three girls to a “sewing day” today. They are involved with a local sewing club and every year the “ladies” get together and spend nearly an entire day together. Most of the people involved are older in age…but apparently quite young at heart. My three girls are decades younger than most of the women in the club but they are embraced and helped as though they were everyone’s daughters. It is a beautiful thing. Tami will then take them all directly to their soccer training…oh the modern girl! I must brag a bit and say that all three girls are quite talented in the sewing and even more so in the soccer. All three of them (the twins on one team and the elder on another) “play up.” That is to say that they play on teams for girls that are older than they are. I would go on about them but my intention is to talk about my son.

He is nearly fifteen years old. Since Tami is gone all day with the girls it has fallen on his shoulders to have primary care for the younger three boys…7, 5 and 18 months. Now, I have talked to many moms who have a difficult time dealing with only one or two at these ages. My son has done an incredible job feeding them, taking care of their needs, making up games for them, playing with them and just overall giving his entire being to his three younger brothers. I hardly know a handful of adults who are so able to give up their own agendas and give themselves so fully to others…especially others covering these particular ages.

His ability to pour his love into his brothers speaks of an understanding about life and love that far surpasses his nearly fifteen years of age. He has caught a glimpse of what it means to be loved…not only by his mother and me but by God…and is able to allow that love to flow from his very being. I am not trying to say he is perfect. But, I am simply trying to share with all of you that a life of one who understands what it means to be loved has an incredible ability to enjoy others and love others because of the inherent understanding of the precious beauty and gift of love.

One of my greatest desires in all of life is to be able to share with as many people as is possible what it truly means to live loved. I hope you can continue on this journey with me and come to see a glimpse of this incredible beauty in life that is not only available and accessible…but the doors are standing open for you to enter in. We will talk more about these things in the future…but I wanted to share with you what a lovely human being my eldest son truly is.

By the way…he is one of the most talented soccer players at his age that I have ever seen.

Remember to “live the adventure!”

© Bruce Backman for LifewithBruceBackman.com, 2009. | Permalink | 10 comments | Add to del.icio.us
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Why I do what I do…

Bruce Backman — Tue, 30 Jun 2009 22:06:04 +0000

I am reminded daily as to why I have never been drawn into the corporate work-a-day world. Every time I open my eyes and see one of my most beautiful and precious children I know why I don’t “trudge” off to work everyday. You see, we have made our home the hub of everything that we do because we believe that our home is the place from which everything else flows.

We school at home! We create wealth at home! We share our joys and loves at home! We take care of our health at home! We swim at home and enjoy each other immensely at home! We even birth at home! We are an enigma to most of society but we are asked more times than I could ever count how our children have turned out to be such fine people. There is a reason for this…our home is sacred and our children learn what it means to live, to be loved, to love, to have fun, to enjoy life, to create wealth, to trust, to have an entrepreneur’s mindset, to work hard, to cook and to interact with each other and those outside our family.

Don’t get the wrong idea…we spend a great deal of time with others. My children and I all play soccer multiple times/week. I coach a couple of teams as well and my two eldest play at a very high level where traveling is a must. My son and I spent nearly a week in San Diego in the spring for a tournament that he was in. He also has traveled to England and Scotland to play in a tournament. They happened to win that one…a great honor. My eldest daughter’s team is playing in Europe next year as well. We see more people and have more friends than we could ever keep up with on a regular basis. We love the visiting the mountains and the coast. We love to fish and ride motorcycles but most of all we love, absolutely love, to be together. My older children adore the younger children and my younger children love to be with their older brothers and sisters. They take care of each other because they have learned what it means to be loved.

I tell you all of these things because I want others to understand that they too can make similar choices. Life is all about what you choose to do with each and every moment that is given to you. What you do with these moments actually shapes your destiny.

Do we have tons of money? Not quite yet but we are getting there. It takes tons to simply get by…but we learn each and every day how to increase our wealth so that we can continue to live the way we do…which is by far the greatest wealth we will ever have.

We will talk more about the mechanics of how we do all of this later. Until then…live the adventure!

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After seven children we surely have learned something…

Bruce Backman — Tue, 16 Jun 2009 19:25:59 +0000

One of the single greatest things in my life is what I have learned from having my children. After we had our first son, I truly believed that my love quotient was all used up. I could not see how I could possibly muster up any more love…so I was very satisfied! I told God that I was very happy with our child and couldn’t see how I could love any more should He choose to bless us so.

Well…he did. I was scared! I did not know until my eldest daughter was born this simple secret in life…The Flow of Love is Endless if it comes from the depth of Love itself. I was absolutely right when I didn’t think I could manufacture any more love. I realized I couldn’t. But, when I saw my daughter…I was flooded with Love. I thought I was all spent with my son. However, I knew in the instant of my daughter’s birth that there truly is an unlimited supply of Love. The crazy thing is it didn’t depend upon me…it just happened.

After having seven, I can verify what I realized after two children is true. The Love I have for my children has taught me this truly Endless Supply of Love never, ever stops. It doesn’t matter what they do or don’t do…the fact is My Love for them is all consuming. It devours any issue of disobedience or laziness or whatever the current issue may be with one of my children.

Seeing this worked out in my life has taught me a thing or two about Love in general. Although people tend to judge us based upon a whole host of criteria, there is One who never has and never will. We are not earning our way toward any certain level of being Loved or not being Loved. The flow of this Love is Endless. Most people, including religious people, do not have a clue as to where this ever-flowing current of love comes from. The God that most of the world worships has all sort of restrictions and judgements attached to his love. If you don’t behave properly…you surely have not earned his love.

Now, if the above were true…then where does the Endless Supply of Love come from in relationship to my children. They surely are not perfect. (They are awfully wonderful, I must admit…and we have been told so by countless people–more than I could possibly rememeber). Since they make mistakes…then the reasoning behind most religious teaching would be that they have to get their act together in order for me to show my love for them again. However, I have found the complete opposite to be at work. It is precisely my Love that helps them get up after they have stumbled. It is my Love that causes them to want to relate back to me in such a way as to learn all they can from me. Isn’t that a better picture than someone having to figure out on their own where they went wrong and then have to fix it in order to earn back the affection of another? It just seems ridiculous to me.

The things I have learned from being a parent of seven can fill volumes…things having to do with me, with raising children, with relationships with other adults including my wife, with healthcare, with finances…it is amazing. Anyhow, we will continue this discussion in the future. Also, I will continue the “three levels of heaven discussion” soon as well.

Thanks for reading…don’t forget to Live the Adventure!

© Bruce Backman for LifewithBruceBackman.com, 2009. | Permalink | 2 comments | Add to del.icio.us
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