Waiting for word

I'm still waiting to hear back from Tim Hobbs on the Tuesday Nite Walleye Tourney at East Jefferson.

I'm a little nervous for the participants, because after what I saw on that lake, the fishing had to have been tough.

Weeds, weeds and more weeds.

Of course, a good majority of the guys fishing these tournaments know a thing or two about walleye fishing. I'm sure at least one of the teams in the top 5 caught fish, but I won't know that until I talk to Tim.

On another note, I took my son fishing yesterday. These outings offer little time for me to fish, but they are fun for him — well, sort of.

About two weeks ago we couldn't get him to fish with worms, which we all know will allow him to catch something, even if that something is a carp or a bullhead.

Tyler wanted to fish like Daddy, so he kept reeling in his bobber set-up and casting it out. Then he'd reel it back in again.

"Like Daddy."

So I threw on a beetle spin for him because I figure that's just an easy lure to catch fish with. Well, in the two outings since switching to the beetle spin, he's been skunked (though my wife lost something yesterday that Tyler surely would have been able to reel in, had she set the hook).

When we left he was mad because, "I just want to catch a big fish!"

Of course, explaining to him patience is a failed experiment. He's a month shy of 3. But the fact that he can cast his little Spider-Man pole, and cast the beetle spin for distance, well that's worth every minute of being out there for ol' dad.

We can't predict what our children will grow up to be or what interests they will have. We can't push our children into the things we want them to love either; history has shown us this is a blueprint for failure.

But we can show our children the things we love with hopes that someday, they grow their own love for those things. Tyler may not be catching fish hand over hand, but he definitely shows an interest.

For that, I'm thankful.