Our Dad, the Superhero

I'm laying in a bed in Paris, TN, at the Paris Landing State Park listening to a storm pass over the lodge. I'm speaking in the morning to a men's retreat, and I'm hungry.


Being at this park makes me think of camping with Shane and Dad.

I'm not sure why, but Dad always liked to figure out new stories that would make Shane and me feel like he was some kind of superhero. Like that time when we went to Boonesboro, KY, and he had us believing there was an indian family watching us from across the water. I could have peed my pants all day and night just thinking about being scalped in my sleep!

Or, on the same trip, when he made us believe that he had some kind of sixth sense that allowed him super-directional senses. It was flat nuts! We looked up onto a ridge and, just like he said, there sat the primitive fort. Dad could have started flying and it wouldn't have impressed us any more than we were at that moment.

Good stuff.

E Unum Pluribus

I've learned a lot from my dad and my brother.

• coolers are only cooler if your hand is lower
• hard cow patties only
• it is better to enter a graveyard naturally
• plant your garden on clear days
• don't leave corn in the car too long
• let your brother sing it the way he wants to
• if you set your mind's alarm, it will still blow your mind when it works

There's so much more. We'd like to share with you what we've learned. You may already know it all, but if you've learned anything at all then you know reminiscing never hurt anyone, so stick around.