I TORE 'EM UP

I stole this from my wife's blog Moving On To The Past. She writes better than I do so why I figure why not just steal her stuff?

I pushed off from shore, stepping into the khaki green jon boat at the last minute, completely unaware of the struggle that would shortly ensue.  The jet skipped us over the rocks and barely submerged logs in mere inches of Meremac river water, glistening as the early evening sun reflected images of trees and sheer bluffs on its banks.

I sit at the bow facing the stern, hair tentatively pinned atop my head, loosening strands whipping in the wind.  I shut my eyes as the boat approaches the most shallow areas.  I can see the pebbles on the bottom.  If we stop, we're stuck.  Finally we reach Fish Trap Rapids where we meet up with neighbors also enjoying the quiet evening.  The girls are innocently playing on the gravel beach, swim suits damp from water play.  We're going fishing, slowly following the banks rich with grassy vegetation, fallen boulders and trees, bark peeling and sun bleached.

I am trying artificial bait, using something tiny and white with a treble hook.  It has a nickname, which I won't mention in polite company-or impolite for that matter.  At any rate, I don't typically use anything but worms so I'm not optimistic but I like to cast, particularly with a spinning  reel. It's light, you can feel everything, even the smallest nibble and control is much better.  I seem to have pretty good hand-eye coordination.  I can usually put it exactly where I am aiming (as long as I don't have a moving target)!  

Suddenly I have a hit.

I'm fighting it.  The rod is bending and my husband is yelling, "Keep the rod tip up" to keep the tension tight. I'm thinking, "Don't lose him!"  as I reel and pull.  I'm wishing our boat had those deep sea fishing straps,what if this guy starts pulling me in!   My brow is full of sweat, I'm bracing myself against the side of the boat.  I'm winning.

The river is pretty clear, aside from the mystery foam, seeds and occasional leaves that float down with the current,  I can start to see the beast beneath, struggling as much as I am.  I am confident now, I can do this. He breaks the water, caught solidly through the lip. I yell to get the camera, I can't let this opportunity go undocumented. 

I'll warn you, scroll down to see the photo.  I'm a mess by this time.  My hair is trashed and I'm exhausted.  I look like crap. 

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I hope you enjoyed my Big Fish Story!  LOL  :)

I did catch the first, in fact four of them.  We would be lucky to have popcorn fish bites from this but it was fun!  A bald Eagle flew overhead.  He must live here because the guys tell me he is there every time they go fishing, which is often.  A beautiful heron was posing on the beach as we passed, watching us as much as we were marveling at him.

Neighbor's boat 

One of the many beaches

Have a wonderful weekend.

OUR PROBLEM IS NOT IMMIGRANTS

"And why should Hispanics vote Republican? 

The majority of Hispanics are among that half of the population that pays no income tax. Why should they vote for a party whose major plank is that it will cut income taxes? 

Hispanics benefit disproportionately from government programs." 

Has The Bell Begun To Toll For The GOP?

If the Republicans want to get the Hispanic vote there's one sure way to do it; embrace the teachings of the Catholic Church instead of Ayn Rand. Unlike many Americans, for the most part Mexicans are very serious about faith and that faith is Catholicism. If the GOP would only stop playing games with the faith issue and embrace it they'd get the Mexican vote. Paul Ryan has been explicit in how his Catholic faith influenced his budget plan. The leader of the house, also a Catholic, should take that ball and run with it. The GOP needs to understand Catholic social teaching and how government properly exercises it's responsibilities. If it can both talk the talk and walk the walk it'll get the Mexican vote and make America a far better country.

Buchanan is right. America is no longer the white Protestant stronghold it was and it'll never be that again. But that doesn't mean it should lose it's soul, it's historic Christian nature, the thing that has allowed it to prosper. In fact, I'd argue that to embrace Catholicism is to embrace true Christian thought and the philosophical muscle that tore down the pagan world.

Our real problems today are of a spiritual nature, not a material one. The material problem derives from the breakdown of Christendom. We've moved away from God and towards mammon. We've thrown aside the traditions that supported our society. And with them we've thrown away any chance of an ordered and productive world.

It doesn't make any difference whether America is white, black or brown. What does matter is that the ideals that America was founded on are preserved and applied. And those ideals are the ideals of Christendom, the ideals of the Catholic Church. Sure, they may have been brought here by Protestants but those Protestants were the beneficiaries of the 1500 years of Western thought that was developed by the Church and before her by the Greeks and the Jews, all the way back to Abraham.

Our system and the parties that benefit from it are corrupt. They've been corrupted by materialism - power and profit taking the front while the people and their God given rights and responsibilities are trod into the dust. The problem isn't the Mexicans or any other group that comes here. The problem is us. We've bought into the promise of material salvation and now we're going to reap the results of that decision in collapse and misery. America has become a hollow shell. We're no better than all the material wonders we advertise, all glitter and promise but nothing of substance.

We've gladly traded the transcendence and freedom of Christendom for the rot and decay of materialism. We follow Rand or Marx, both promising happiness through the material world. One holds up the corporation and the other the state, like a priest raising the Blessed Sacrament above the altar.

So get ready because like the Jewish people in the Old Testament we're about to reap the fruits of our disobedience and disbelief. We have free will and we can choose our own path. But there are consequences for choosing poorly. Salvation doesn't come from a material choice, from politics, power or wealth. It comes from a spiritual choice, choosing truth over lies.

We've made our choice and we're about to get what we asked for.