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Welcoming Words Newsletter           August  2024

By Debbie Sorensen

Do the next right thing.

Today’s Focus:  Leave a place better than you found it.

My dad was a great storyteller and would say something that would come out of the blue to encourage us to do something good. The words were usually simple and to the point. Lessons we learned were often caught rather than taught. I remember how Dad showed me how to do the next right thing because of garbage.

Application:

Junk can teach us lessons. In this case, Dad and I were fishing on Little Belt Creek for my spring birthday. I was so happy with the gift of time together with him. We rolled out of bed a little early to get our lines in the water before we returned home to get the regular chores done before breakfast.

As we drove down the hill, we discussed our strategy, where we’d park, and if the fish were hungry. We made our way through a barbed wire fence and checked for a likely pool where the small Brook Trout would be found. Mom liked to bread those mountain trout with cornmeal and fry them crispy and delicious. We could almost taste the delicacy already.

Dad had gotten permission to cross their land to get to the creek. Pushing our way through the brush and undergrowth, we headed for our spot. To our dismay, we found an old tire lodged against a tree root in the water, filled with beer cans and trash. What an unsightly mess. There would be no fish caught in that quagmire.

Why it matters:

We looked at each other. Dad raised his eyebrows and we went to work. We leaned our fishing rods against the fence and went to work. In 20 minutes, we had the junk out of the water and hauled to the truck. What a difference it made in our little corner of the world. We even saw a few fish swimming around in the space we had just cleaned. Hooray!

It was time to head home for chores. Instead of being crabby and disappointed, we found ourselves encouraged by how much better the creek bank looked. Seeing the brook trout gliding around the water was the best. We knew where we could wet a line the next time we went fishing. 

Dad looked at me and grinned. “It’s always better to leave a place better than you found it.” 

He was a fine guy who took the time to teach his daughter to do the right thing.

Contact:  Debbie Sorensen at [email protected]