"Create from nothing."

It was energizing to join Alan Geller's summer blockbuster party on beBee last night. Lots of fun elements and enjoyed the ongoing dialogue with participants. Alan's party was reflective of what I so much enjoy about this platform - the recognition of work/life integration.

Speaking of which, on Saturday my boys (Gabriel and Samuel) and I hopped in the car and drove up to visit Uncle Andrew Sanders who lives in Warkworth, Ontario. That's a small community north of Cobourg and just a few minutes from Rice Lake. A last-minute adventure to join him on the lake to fish. Uncle Andrew is an enthusiastic and highly-skilled fisher. I, on the other hand, am not. Samuel, who is six, has inherited the Sanders' fishing gene. First introduced to the activity by his Bapa Roger, he has taken to the sport like a, well like a fish to water!

So off we went on a gorgeous Saturday summer evening to search for the elusive scaly residents of Rice Lake. It was only moments before Sam had his first strike. That one got away during the exciting and forgetting to keep the rod tip up. But it was only moments later when another fish hit the bait and this time Sam was determined to bring that beast on board.

His first catch was a very handsome pickerel - which just happens to be, in my opinion, about the best-eating fish you can catch. Great excitement ensued and he quickly encouraged Uncle Andrew and I to get the lines back in the water.

On my next cast there was a very heavy, pronounced attack on my lure. I was about to pass the rod to Sam when whatever had assaulted the bait was gone. Waiting a few moments to see if the fish would return, I thought, probably just weeds - that's what I am most proficient at catching. But no! Another powerful strike and this time Sam took over the rod and began to reel in our catch.

His reward was the first-ever Muskellunge of his life (mine too for that matter.) 

As you can see from the smiles on Sam's and Andrew's faces, this little man totally rocked out the retrieval.

We returned the Muskie to the water so it could live on and bring joy to some other fisher but we didn't know at the time what Uncle Andrew would tell us. It is thought that it takes perhaps 10,000 casts in a fisher's life to catch a Muskie. They are elusive and wily predators. And, here was Sammy, at age six, landing one almost as large as him.

The next night, during Alan Geller's party I read a great comment by Werner Hans Erhard. He wrote: 

This resonated powerfully with me and I thought of Sam's experience of landing the Muskie. His joy and wonder was created from nothing. He had no expectations. He had no preconceptions. He was living in the present moment and was rewarded with the creation of a powerful memory which I am sure will remain with him always.

So, that's why I think this forum is going to be such a success. I can learn from people such as Erhard and apply his observations to my professional life. At the same time I can see the relevance in my personal life and that, my friends, is called work-life integration. 

That's where I want to live and where this forum allows me to express all aspects of my experience of living.