Mecca-The Convention Part Three

By Keith Fisher

Note there are more pictures here!

In Years past, the event was better attended and there were more cooks in the Taste of Dutch area. But 2009 was a great time. As you know, I spent a weekend last month at the Dutch oven Convention. Some folks call it the Mecca of Cast Iron Cooking.

The weekend started off great with the Dutch oven Gathering (DOG) picture a big potluck dinner where almost everyone cooks something in Dutch ovens and everyone is invited to try it. Great food, good friends old and new.

Because of mud in the campground area, we were allowed to dry camp in the parking lot this year. It reminded me of years past, when there were dozens on campers and trailers, people sleeping in the back of their trucks. Those were good times. Through it all was the food, and the love of cooking in Dutch ovens.

There weren’t as many people this year, but after the DOG, I brought out the portable campfire and we roasted marshmallows. Ranes Carter of Lehi, Utah, took us to Georgia by boiling peanuts in a Dutch oven. It’s a taste treat, although uncommon here, is very popular in the south. John Foster from Duchesne, Utah, brought out his guitar. Omar Alverez, of Idaho, Dutch oven cook and 2008 World Champion, played his washboard. They entertained us with sing along music, and poetry.

Others told stories and we enjoyed the campfire until bed time.

The next morning started early when the doors of the convention opened at nine. Classes started on time and the wisdom was priceless. This event has to be the best source of Dutch oven information there is. I’m very surprised anyone missed it.

The Vendors set up in building two along with International Dutch oven society. They included, Ram Kitchen Supplies, Winder Dairy and Farms, Colleen Sloan representing many vendors and teaching. There were Camp Chef, Lodge, and Warthog Blade Sharpeners. In the past, this has been a very lucrative event for Vendors. The advertising was priceless.

In the third building, the Youth Challenge Cook off was held, along with Taste of Dutch cooks. Here, we admired the abilities of the young people, while rewarding our salivating taste buds with many different kinds of food, cooked in Dutch ovens. These guys even provided recipes.

At Three p.m. and after a great day of Dutch oven mania, members of International Dutch Oven Society (IDOS) met for the annual meeting. Many new members attended their first assembly.

And then it was over. In the past, I hated the rush of trying to get packed up and on the road before dark, while saying goodbye to my old friends. This year, we stayed over and got home before church on Sunday.

All in all, the event, a precious gem, remains an untapped resource and it surprises me. So many people tell me they would love to learn to use their Dutch ovens. But they don’t take the time to come and learn from the experts. Other than World Champions, most of those who taught and demonstrated were your friends and neighbors. People who, just like you, wanted to learn to cook in their Dutch oven.

There will be another one next year. Make up you mind that spring 2010 will be when you start having the time of your life. It will be the beginning of many backyard parties and camping trips your family will remember forever.

And I’ll be there---I’ll bring the campfire.

Note:

You are invited to the launch party for Tristi’s new book, Saturday May 16th, 3-5 p.m. at Provident Book in Pleasant Grove (661 W State Street) Refreshments, door prizes, sales ... you'll have a wonderful time! And bring a friend!

My Belated Blog-Convention, Part Two

By Keith Fisher


Two weeks ago, at the Dutch oven convention I promised the cooks of the youth cook off I would write a story and post it here. I told them I wrote for YourLDSneighborhood.com. Since then, the neighborhood has discontinued the blogs, and I’ve been busy with life.


I’m at a writer’s workshop today but I am continuing my series of blogs about the convention and today is the cook off. (See guys I told you I’d put you on the internet.)

I planned to be on vacation at the convention this year. I wanted to meet old friends, make new ones, eat a little, and joke a lot. When Terry Lewis, the current world champion and the person running the cook off told me a couple of his judges didn’t show up, I said sure. I always love watching the kids cook. By and large, they are better cooks than we are because they don’t follow the same conventions that we do.


I have lots of reasons, but I think the most important, knowing there is another generation coming up that will continue my love of Dutch oven cooking. Long after us "oldsters" have given in to our broken backs, the kids will still be providing food and propagating smiles. See more pictures here

This year, we had three teams.



Tanner Jacobsen of Tooele, Utah. He’s been cooking in Dutch ovens for three or four years. He cooked Beef Meal In One and Strawberry Braid.




Taylor and Nicole Baugh, sisters, from Bountiful, Utah, have been cooking in Dutch ovens for three or four years but mostly, they’ve been watching Mom and Dad. They cooked Stuffed Roast Beef and Mandarin Orange Cheesecake Bread Pudding.


Kenny Ludwig from Fruitland, Utah. He’s been cooking since September and he made Beef Enchilada and Spiced Apple Pear Pie.


The dishes they cooked were delicious, and made me glad I’m not entering cook offs these days. In a couple of years these guys are going to more than hard to beat. With advice, (and only advice) from an adult supervisor, these young people went to work preparing their dishes with a professional flair.


As the Main dish Judge, I had me work cut out for me. But I was in the company of World Champions, and we had our day in the sun. Now it’s time for the kids to shine.


In the end, the winners were Taylor and Nicole Baugh – first place, Kenny Ludwig – second, and Tanner Jacobsen – third. They couldn’t have been more thrilled. They took home, coveted prizes and of course, the bragging rights.

The convention Part One

by Keith Fisher

There is so much to say about the Dutch oven concention that I'm going to tell you about it in several pages. Also, I'm at a writer's conference today, so I have a guest blooger who is going to explain why he's here and what the subject is.

But, first, you should know, I looked around at the faces at the conference this year and noticed many missing friends. Ross and Angie Conlin are two of the originals and they are still here. While many of us get tired of packing cast iron, they are still enthused. So without further ado, here's Ross:

I was asked by Keith Fisher to write about 2 things. 1-Why I would travel to Salt Lake from American Falls Idaho to participate in the International Dutch Oven society’s Spring convention and 2- Why I am still involved in Dutch oven cooking in general. I hope at the conclusion of this article I have answered both of those questions.


I was raised in Preston, Idaho, a very much LDS community where family values are taught from a very young age. This would also be where the family spends time together learning and sharing things with each other. This was my case as I had the many experiences as a young boy with my family in outing at Willow flat on the Cub River near Preston.


As I was growing up, my father worked in the local meat packing plant and we always had good meat for any outing. It was during these outings that my father introduced me to the art of Dutch oven cooking. He would always have the Dutch oven potatoes and meat. He explained how the cast iron was so essential to having good flavors in the food. This was being done with coals from the fire whereas we did not have so much access to charcoal at that time in my life.


The next step was learning to cook from my mother. As a young boy, I would stand on a stool next to my mother where she taught me how to bake breads and desserts. It was these young years where the foundational of my Dutch oven cooking began. That love of cooking has never diminished from my soul.


I had opportunities as a young scout to also cook with the Dutch oven but it was not until I was married and had a family and I began to spend as much time as I could in the outdoors with them teaching them the things that my father and mother had taught me, that I truly began to appreciate the efforts of my parents to instill in me the importance of family get-togethers and learning from each other.


As my boys grew into scouts, I began to participate in the Boy Scouts of America as a scout leader. In doing so I was able to instill those ideas I had learned at a young age with these new youths as well as my own boys. I could see the need for more understanding in teaching Dutch oven cooking. I also was able to spend time on many, many Adult leader training sessions and was able to show what great food could come from a Dutch oven.


It was about this time that Dick Michaud along with Mike and Wally Kolher and their wives began to have competitions and later started the International Dutch Oven Society. My wife, Angie, and I began to cook in these competitions and were very successful. It was here that we came across the most wonderful people from all walks of life that had that same passion that we did for Dutch oven cooking. They became instant friends. It was this same time that we began to teach Dutch oven cooking in the Outdoor program at Idaho State University in Pocatello, Idaho.

Once again during these classes we met young people who were hungry to learn about his skill.
With all the friendships we have made over the last 25 years during the Dutch oven gatherings, workshops throughout the northwest and all the students which we have came in contact with; my question would be to everyone else, "Why would I NOT want to come to these gatherings?" To associate with such fantastic people is pure pleasure.


If I was retired and had nothing else to do I would still be traveling from American Falls, Idaho to each event some where in the United States to show my support in Dutch oven cooking. I truly love to cook in the Dutch oven, share friendships and time with others who have the same passion. Even with the physical challenges of age it is such a please for me to cook for others and teach them everything I have learned in cooking in Dutch ovens.


Ross Conlin

Great Fun Big Appetites

By Keith Fisher


Again, I want to continue with the announcement about the BIG Dutch Oven Gathering (DOG), and international convention. Held April 17-18 at Davis county fairgrounds, (Farmington, Utah).

You can call the county and make reservations to camp on Friday night. I will be there with my portable campfire. After eating at the BIG Dutch oven potluck dinner on Friday evening, you can stop by and roast a marshmallow or three. The convention starts on Saturday morning. There will be vendors, classes, demonstrations and lots of food to taste. It lasts all day, and admission is free.

My truck broke down this morning, It snowed a pile and other stuff. I might not be at the convention this year. Cross your fingers and hold your breath.



In the meantime, I want to tell you about last week:

It started early and the canyon wind was cold. We were there to cook for one hundred fifty, students, helpers, and teachers. At the school where my wife works, the fourth grade has a yearly activity. To mark the end of the American history unit on the westward migration, the students learn nineteenth century crafts, games, and eat a lunch semi-indicative of the time period.

Me and my wife have been cooking the Dutch oven dinner for a few years now. This year, we made Three large pots of beef stew, six 14-inch corn breads, and eight cobblers.
I cooked the corn bread in my carport the night before which helped with Dutch oven space. We had some parents to help prepare and serve but I did all the cooking.

By the time we served, the kids were hungry and the food turned out great. We had many of the kids come tell us how good they thought it was, and that’s the payoff, the reason we do it.

I've attached some recipes for you.





Big chunk Beef Stew

by Keith Fisher
12-inch deep Dutch oven

3 lb. cross rib beef roast
10 small potatoes
9 large carrots
1 large onion
5 beef bouillon cubes
1 ½ cup flour
warm water
salt and pepper to taste

(Note Packets of Stew seasoning can be substituted for the bouilon cubes)

Cut beef into ¾ to ½ inch slices then cube. Put into a 12 inch Dutch oven with a little oil and brown. Remove meat and set aside. Dice onion and sauté in the juice of the beef. Peel and dice potatoes and carrots and add with 2 cups water and 2 bouillon cubes. Return the meat and stir. Cover and cook with 10 coals on the bottom and 16 on top.

When a fork can be inserted easily into the potatoes and carrots, add enough water to almost cover the contents, then add 3 crushed bouillon cubes. Bring temperature back up and mix flour with enough water to make a paste about the consistency of waffle batter. Add flour mixture to stew for thickening being careful not to add too much.

Let it cook about 15 minutes more and it's done.


Best Corn Bread
Wendy Fisher
10-inch or 12-inch Dutch oven We increase amounts and make this in 14-inch Dutch ovens.

2 eggs
1 cups milk
2 cups Bisquick
2 tbs Heaping corn meal
1 1/2 cube marg
1/2 tes baking soda
1 cup Sugar

Beat eggs ,add milk melted marg to eggs. Put all dry Ingerdients together then Put in egg mixture. Mix well. Grease a 10"Dutch oven, or if you Double the recipe put it in a 12" Dutch Oven. Grease oven and Flour well. Put 9 on bottom 15 on top for a 325 degrees for 30 to 35 min.


The Cobblers were just dump cobblers and we have talked about them before.

Remember to use club soda instead of sprite or 7-up for less sweet.
two cans pie filling
one cake mix dry
one can club soda

In a 12-inch Dutch oven, spread pie filling on the bottom. sprikle cake mix on top. break up lumps. club soda to cover and bake. 15 coals on top. 9 on the bottom. when cake is done eat.


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And while you're there, subscribe to the yourLDSneighborhood Newsletter. In addition to being able to shop in the new virtual neighborhood, the newsletter brings you articles, products, services, resources and interviews from around the world-all with an LDS focus. Look for issues delivered to your email inbox every week on Monday, Wednesday and Friday.

Bread Magic Part Two

By Keith Fisher

Here are the pictures I took of the bread makers at Worlds

Are you ready to continue our discussion about baking bread? Well, first I want to continue with the announcement about the BIG Dutch Oven Gathering (DOG), and international convention. Held April 17-18 at Davis county fairgrounds, (Farmington, Utah).

You can call the county and make reservations to camp on Friday night. I will be there with my portable campfire. After eating at the BIG Dutch oven potluck dinner on Friday evening, you can stop by and roast a marshmallow or three. The convention starts on Saturday morning. There will be vendors, classes, demonstrations and lots of food to taste. It lasts all day, and admission is free.

Now, the bread---last time, we talked about yeast and kneading. I hope you made bread dough and developed a personal relationship with it. Did you play with your dough? Do you know how it feels when you are finished kneading? One thing that all bread makers will tell you is, ingredients and yeast quality aside, kneading the dough is perhaps the most important part of bread.

If you don’t get it right, If you don’t trap the gluten and carbon dioxide in the dough (and distribute them), you will have heavy bread. It will still be good to eat, but it won’t have the perfect cell structure you can see from a bread machine, or the bakery.

Okay I’ve pressed and turned and pounded (get it) kneading long enough. Lets move on to the next steps.

Now that your dough is perfect and you have a relationship with it. (Not a romance, but a relationship). You are ready for the first rise. I’ve heard that letting dough rise in the wrong bowl can hamper your efforts.

They say metals react to yeast, and glass is too smooth and sterile. Wood has pores that collect yeast from the air, which is good. I use a big green Tupperware, bowl. Whatever the material, make sure you have something to cover it with, try to make that bowl the only bowl you use, and dedicate it to the cause.

Okay, time to chat with your neighbor. Like new seeds just planted, Leave the dough alone. It will rise. (You did make sure your yeast was good? Didn’t you?) Have faith in the yeast and let the dough rise for about 45 minutes (the amount of time, is up to you.)

After the dough ball has doubled, punch it down, knead a bit, and form the bread. What’s it going to be? Dinner rolls, full loafs, round loafs, baguettes? I’m mostly going to talk about rolls. But I will show you some others.

Take your big dough ball and start dividing. If it’s braided bread, you will need to make three ropes of equal size. If it is a round loaf, form it by tucking it under itself. If you’re making rolls. You will need at least 24 balls of dough, a little smaller than a fist. How you do that, can vary. Some people take a likely amount of dough in their hands and roll it into a ball. (Possibly the reason they are called rolls?)

I watched a man as he kneaded the dough, then he squeezed off perfect sized balls. Just like a well-oiled machine. He kneaded the batch after every two or three rolls and started again. When he finished making balls, He dipped each ball in melted butter and arranged them in his pot, spacing them to allow for raising.

After you have formed your bread, let it rise again. The bread will double in size and be full of reproduced yeast and gluten loving carbon dioxide. Remember from last week, yeast makes bread light and fluffy, Yeast byproducts make bread taste good. Do you see why we let it rise twice?

My friend, Debbie hair lets the dough rise twice before forming then a third time before baking. If you have good yeast and a warm kitchen this will give you great tasting bread. But Yeast gets tired like we do, so be careful. In my opinion, there is nothing worse than rolls that are flat and hard.

Okay, we’ve gone through the rise and our rolls look fantastic. Now all we need it to bake them. This is where the outdoor cook will differ from the cook using an oven at home. A Dutch oven is just that, an oven. The food is placed directly in the oven and the heat is applied to the outside. No difference right? Okay, there are differences, but believe me when I say, barring bread machines, it really is easier to bake in a Dutch oven, in camp, then in your kitchen.

Remember the rule for coal placement? We will be baking, so we need even distribution of the coals. Now that you have refreshed your memory about coal placement, We will need aprox. 350- 400 degrees and a coal pattern conducive to baking. You don’t need coals in the center under the oven. (The center takes care of itself.)

Be sure to place your bottom ring of coals so they overhang the edge slightly. This will promote heat rising up the sides and browning your bread on all edges. Contrary to certain claims made by certain charcoal companies, every coal does not burn the same. Some are hotter, and some burn longer.

Because of this, you will need to rotate the food between the heat source. More than with other foods, bread will burn where there is a hot spot. So, every fifteen minutes or so, while cooking, turn the lid, ¼ turn and rotate the oven ¼ turn. This will keep the food moving and the hot spots won’t have time to burn the bread.

Are you excited about hot bread with melting butter dripping down your fingers? Good, you’d better get some butter ready, because the bread is almost done. Most have their own method to determine if Bread is done or not. With hard crusted breads, thump the crust with your finger. It will sound kind of hollow.

Some cooks stick a Thermometer probe in and wait for the inside to reach a certain temperature. Some people look for color. I say, It’s up to you. Other than the fact that fillings in stuffed bread often need to be a certain temperature, it’s really up to you. After you have baked bread, you will get your own sense of when it’s done. If you burn it slightly, eat around the burns. If it’s doughy in the center, eat the crust. Every time you bake, take mental notes.

Now let me tell you about Gratitude. When you see the face of your little child, your wife, or husband, and they are enjoying that hot piece of buttered bread. You will know you made it from scratch with loving hands, and you will be glad you made the effort. I will be glad I had a part in persuading you to try it. If you bake it in a Dutch oven, then all the better.

YourLDSneighborhood has added exciting new things to its website. Please drop by and take a look, browse around, check out our vendors, our radio station, our authors, our musicians and more. Check out the Neighborhood.

And while you're there, subscribe to the yourLDSneighborhood Newsletter. In addition to being able to shop in the new virtual neighborhood, the newsletter brings you articles, products, services, resources and interviews from around the world-all with an LDS focus. Look for issues delivered to your email inbox every week on Monday, Wednesday and Friday.

Bread Magic

By Keith Fisher

First, I need to make an announcement. The International Dutch Oven Society’s Annual Spring convention and Dutch oven potluck dinner will be held April 17 and 18 at the Davis county fairgrounds in Farmington Utah. This is your opportunity to learn from the experts, have fun, and eat good food. More about that later but you can get more information at http://www.idos.org/.

Back in the days before countertop machines and corner convenience stores, people made bread every few days. They didn’t fuss over, or worry about it. They just made bread. It was either that, or they went without.

It wasn’t that long ago either. Many people over forty remember bread dough rising in their mother’s kitchen. I remember the big Tupperware bowl my mother used. Often times, even though it goes against common wisdom, she put the dough in the fridge to let it rise. Keeping it cool delayed having to deal with it, and kept the dough from taking over the kitchen.

Like snippets of joy, the memories of hot, fresh baked bread, smothered in butter, will be forever cherished. I always fought with my brother for the heel, because it was always best when hot. (lousy for sandwiches). We were chastised many times for cutting both heels off a hot loaf. Without the support of a heel the hot bread would fall. (Again, lousy for sandwiches.)

In homemaking circles today, there seems to be a reluctance to attempt the bread making process. I have heard some people tell me they suck at bread. It’s true, some people make better bread than others, but its only because of fear and lack of a relationship to bread dough. I will explain later, but first I want to share what I learned at the cook off.

When I asked, what is the secret to good bread? Ross and Angie Conlin from American Falls, Idaho said, "Practice, practice, and practice." I know that sounds a little flippant, but it’s true.

Will and Jen Ward of Stockton, Utah said, "Lot’s of love."

Tony Thayne of Carbon County, Utah said, "Don’t be afraid of it."

Terry Lewis of Tabiona, Utah said, "Be patient. Use good ingredients."

Debbie Hair of Murray, Utah said, "Add your flour gradually and stick to a method." Baking bread is a science according to her.

Bruce Tracy of Ogden, Utah said, "Before you knead, put all your ingredients in a bowl except most of the flour. Then beat the &%3#2 out of it." He feels it’s most important to put air in the dough.

Phil Newman said, "If you can see the fibers and gluten when you stretch the dough, then you’re finished kneading. But," he said, "You can’t over-knead bread dough."

As you can tell from this small cross section of bread makers there are as many ways to make bread as there are bakers, but that should not discourage you. It just goes to show that it’s hard to screw it up.

The basics are simple. Yeast, kneading, first rise, second rise, forming, and baking. Of course the most important step is enjoying, but let's get you to that point.

First is yeast. There are many types of bread that don’t need to rise, but flat bread, corn bread, and pita’s are not what we’re talking about. There are many kinds of yeast. The little microorganisms of yeast are all around us. When a baker uses sourdough, he is encouraging the growth of natural yeast.

According to Daniel Leader in the book Bread Alone. With dry yeast, these micro cells remain dormant until mixed with warm water and flour. Then, they begin to consume the sugars in the flour. Note: adding sugar makes the yeast lazy. When the yeast consumes the sugars in the flour, they reproduce, and leave by-products of carbon dioxide and alcohol. The carbon dioxide, when trapped with well-developed gluten, starts fermentation. The alcohol flavors the bread.

Okay the simple fact is this, good yeast and warm temperature makes great tasting bread. Proof your yeast by adding it to warm water. If it bubbles, it’s alive. If not get some more. This is why bread makers mix the yeast first.

Next to yeast, kneading is perhaps the most important step. So many bakers grow afraid of kneading. Remember: Pie dough doesn’t like touching. Bread dough loves it. So how do you know when you’ve kneaded enough? See above. Debbie Hair uses her science and kneads for exactly 10 minutes. Terry Lewis said, When it’s soft not quite sticky. It just feels right." Tony Thayne said, "Knead till your arms hurt. You are the Kitchenaide." The one thing everyone said is it’s done by feel, and I agree.

The terms soft, not sticky, and elastic are very important to remember. I once watched a master bread maker as she kneaded her dough. She slapped it around, tossed it onto the board, and pushed the heel of her hand into it. She put love into it.

Okay. Now I want to you to use any bread recipe. Make dough and start kneading it. You gave your kids Playdough. Now you do it with real dough. Have fun and learn the feel of it. Next week, I will finish this discussion.

Here's a secret. If you have a mechanical bread maker, make dough and stop, take the dough out and feel it. Stretch it. Knead it. You will begin to get the idea. Also remember to spread flour on your kneading surface. It will prevent sticking while you knead.


YourLDSneighborhood has added exciting new things to its website. Please drop by and take a look, browse around, check out our vendors, our radio station, our authors, our musicians and more. Check out the Neighborhood.

And while you're there, subscribe to the yourLDSneighborhood Newsletter. In addition to being able to shop in the new virtual neighborhood, the newsletter brings you articles, products, services, resources and interviews from around the world-all with an LDS focus. Look for issues delivered to your email inbox every week on Monday, Wednesday and Friday.

May God Bless You

By Keith Fisher

I know I promised to write about bread today, but I’m going to flake out. You see we buried my father a week ago and you could say It’s time to fall apart I’m not given to displays of grief and I’m very happy for my dad. Just being able to see again made him, (I’m sure) dance with joy and I never saw him dance.

Anyway, my fall apart stems from a hard couple of months and I need to take the day off. So, I’m going to do the bread thing next week. Oh and one more thing: I’m not telling you this because I’m looking for sympathy so don’t feel you need to say anything. Although, I am very grateful for all the support and condolence I have received.

I’m going to post the talk I gave at Dad’s funeral. Do you remember the blog I wrote called Finding Dad for Christmas? I read that to him right after it went into the YourLDSNieghborhood Newsletter and he was touched. I hope he was equally touched when he heard this at the funeral.

After the operation that determined the stomach cancer was inoperable, I went to visit dad in the hospital. When I walked in, he was listening to a nurse telling him that he had to wear those things on his legs that improve circulation in a hospital bed.

Dad didn’t like it and told them his wife believed they gave her blood clots. The nurse told him that wasn’t possible and she had to put them on or she would get in trouble.
After they were attached, Dad said, "I return to what I said before."
"What is that, sir?" she asked.

Dad said, "If I’m dying, what does it matter?"

That’s how dad dealt with the cancer that ended his life. He patiently bore all the infirmities that came his way. It will be 23 years this Christmas since Dad stepped on a piece of grating at the moment it was knocked loose, and Dad fell approximately 90 feetto the floor below, hitting various things on the way down.

At that time, all of his loved ones used their faith and prayers to keep him here. Personally I wasn’t ready to let him go. I needed him.

Since then, he faced everything that came along. When his left ventricle blew out, he survived a very unusual operation. He had rotator cup surgery, Thyroid cancer, and other things. The one thing, however, that hit him the hardest was his macular degeneration. His vision slowly grew worse until he couldn’t see well enough to weld.

Dad had always loved to work and to weld. He called me one day, to come and weld something for him, and I knew it was bad because he asked me to weld. It was a big blow to him when he couldn’t see to tie his own fishing line, but dad bore it all patiently.

I once asked him if he knew he was here because we had prayed to keep him here and he said he knew and he was touched that we would love him so much to want to keep him around.

23 years ago, I recognized the need to be closer to my dad. I decided to make it count. We went camping and dragged mom and dad along to cook offs we told them we needed a baby sitter along, but we always traveled in two separate cars and I enjoyed the long talks I had with dad.
During those talks he would often talked about my brothers and other family members. He wanted the best for all his sons and as I said he was pleased.

During the twenty-three years I spoke of, Dad and I evolved. You see, when I was young, Dad and I had an adversarial relationship. Perhaps the word is too extreme but I was a wayward son, and he was doing his best to keep from cracking my skull.

Sometime after high school, he discovered a better way of dealing with me. It brought us closer and we became best friends. His loving the sinner, not the sin approach made me realize I could be a part of his family even with all my problems.For many years we had long "bull sessions". We talked about hunting, fishing, and cars. When I came back to church, we added religion. After
I got married, we added gardening and greenhouse techniques.

And Always, if I had a project to do, or car to fix, he’d be there getting me out of bed to get started on it. I can’t begin to estimate how much it would have set me back in wages had I paid him what he deserved.

When he had his heart attack, we’d been cutting down hardwood trees at my grandmother’s house. He couldn’t let the firewood go to waste, and we had a limited time to gather the wood before the road crew came in and demolished the land. From his hospital bed, he told me he was sorry, but he wouldn’t be able to finish the job.

Many times, we discussed my problems, while riding around the mountains on the deer hunt. He often stopped and showed me a spot where this or that happened when he was young. I was grateful to see my dad in that light.

The last time Dad carried a rifle on the hunt, he asked me to walk with him. Like an idiot I had forgotten to bring my license, and couldn’t carry a rifle. So naturally, he asked me to carry his. That was when he admitted to me that he wouldn’t be able to tell if the deer we saw were bucks or does.

As we are fond of saying in the church, the Lord closes a door but opens another. Dad subscribed to a service that gave him a player and sent him books on tape. He’d listen to them and send them back for more. I think he read more books that way, than I will ever read. About that time I got serious about my writing career. When I came home from writer’s conferences, I’d tell him about the new author friends I’d met, and he’d order their books.We started talking about literature, and my own writing. We critiqued other writer’s books together. I am so grateful I had that opportunity. He lost his sight and I started writing. We had something else to talk about.

It has been a wonderful twenty-three years, and now its time for him to go. But he left us stronger, better people than we were before.

Thanks for your patience.
I had a great dad and I’m sure that most of you can say the same. I’ll be back next week.


YourLDSneighborhood has added exciting new things to its website. Please drop by and take a look, browse around, check out our vendors, our radio station, our authors, our musicians and more. Check out the Neighborhood.

And while you're there, subscribe to the yourLDSneighborhood Newsletter. In addition to being able to shop in the new virtual neighborhood, the newsletter brings you articles, products, services, resources and interviews from around the world-all with an LDS focus. Look for issues delivered to your email inbox every week on Monday, Wednesday and Friday.