Early on, I think I wanted to be an entrepreneur. This photo is from 1989 when we lived in Ft. Worth, Texas while my dad was in seminary. Being a Georgia boy I thought that the summers here were HOT. I also knew that HOT meant people would be thirsty, therefore I should capitalize on their thirst.

I’m not really sure how well I did in turning a profit – it looks like my only customers may have been my brothers. I guess I was pretty desperate for customers since I was giving away the drinks two-for-one.

I may not have been the best businessman early in my life, but I think even at an early age I was taking the first tentative steps toward making my own way in the world.

This photo of my brother Brett was taken at the indoor pool at Southwestern Seminary. This was actually “one last jump” into the pool before leaving for the day. My mom snapped this photo as Brett jumped backward into the pool.

At the moment of the photo what we didn’t know was that Brett did not jump far enough backward and when he came down he would hit the edge of the pool with his chin busting it wide open.

He wasn’t seriously injured. A few stitches in the emergency room fixed the chin and I’m sure he had a headache for a few hours.

Now the only thing that survives from the incident is the picture above. Its a little reminder that we don’t know what will happen…

I remember this day. I remember my dad taking me out to his truck and telling me to close my eyes. I remember the sound of a plastic bag and a box being placed into my hands.

It was my 8th birthday.

In the box was a BB gun. It was a very low powered little rifle – you could only pump it once – but the first words from my father’s mouth  were words of warning and a lesson in responsibility.

The photo above was likely the first time that I ever shot it. We had a large, wooded backyard and I was aiming at a large oak tree that was probably five feet across and a hundred years old.

I don’t remember the shots that I took or how accurate I was. I do remember wanting my dad to be proud.

I remember this lesson from my dad as one of the steps of my passage into manhood. I put away a very small part of childhood on this day. This is one of the first moments I can remember being handed a mantle of responsibility.

On my 8th birthday I was given the gift of something far more than just a BB gun. Thanks mom and dad.

Growing up, this might have been one of the greatest things my dad ever did for me and my brothers.

This photo is from 1987 – I was six years old. Dad built an amazing tree house in our backyard! It even had a roof and solid walls! I remember it being unique because it was a triangle shape and seemed to have an “inside” area and a deck on the left.

I’m not sure exactly what is going on in this picture, but I’m over on the far left in red and Brian is facing me in the middle. It appears that my mom and grandmother are sitting in the tree house with us (probably the only time that ever happened).