Diveboard-Dave makes a return.

For those who follow my blog, my long absence from writing may have been noticeable. I'm no different than lots of other folks when real-life happens. Sometimes, no matter how much one wants to do the things they love, other important things (read: work, family, life's unexpected surprises, and any number of things that takes precedence) leaves little time for other stuff.

Time is one of those ever elusive things. We all wish we had more of it, and there's seemingly never enough hours in the day to do everything one enjoys. As you may guess, I love to write. If fate would permit, I would love to spend a great deal of my time writing. My dream is sit in my home office, overlooking the fields and woods in the distance, with a great cup of strong coffee and typing away about whatever issue has stirred my literary indulgence, with the terrific silent countryside (aww...silence--a post for another day) interrupted only by the occasional sound of fingers tapping on the keyboard. But alas, my life over the last few months has been decidedly distracting. 

And as byways lead to other byways, the longer one gets away from something, it's harder to jump back to the way things used to be. I'll leave the details for future blog posts. I have promised myself to try to get back into writing regularly, including on this blog. My goal is to post at least three times per week.

Recently, I have had some ideas about new topics and subjects. I have given some thought about the tone & vein of this blog, and decided I am open to it being a bit more edgier then it has previously been. As one who loves history, politics, social issues, and as an admitted news junkie, sometimes it's difficult for me to refrain from being totally candid. I like considering each side of the coin (story).

However, working for a not-for-profit company, for which I am sometimes in the public eye, I have tried hard to be cautious in writing nothing that could be considered in bad taste or cause potential embarrassment for my employer. As Falstaff in Shakespeare's Henry IV rationalized, sometimes 'discretion is the better part of valor.'

Nevertheless, it would truly be a boring world if we were all identical, thinking alike all the time. Differences make for interesting conversations (and topics for blog posts). If we truly believe in liberty and a free society, then one should be free to express ourselves without fear of the political correctness that would extinguish the marketplace of ideas and discussions that someone may find disagreeable.

I have friends with diverse backgrounds and beliefs. Some have vastly different views of faith and God. Others have extremely different views of politics and social issues. There are those of us who actually enjoy a good debate every now and then. And then there are a few of us who, well, let's just say we just agree to disagree and leave it at that.

I do not want to seem to be an arrogant egomaniac, pretending to have all the answers. I am far from perfect. Perhaps more human than I care to admit, even with some of the basic things. Sometimes, I find myself wishing for a volunteer editor (I am often aghast at finding simple typos or grammatical errors. Kinda embarrassing.  Well, perhaps more than just a little).  So, no, I don't have all the answers. I want to always be respectful and mindful that humanity is fraught with imperfection, frailty, and often given to self-deception. We live in a lost, broken, and hurting world. I've always thought the solution to bad ideas and misconceptions isn't censorship, but the freedom to have better and more frequent, thoughtful discussions. By doing so, perhaps we can leave the world in a better place than we found it. And, paradoxically, maybe we'll find that in spite of all our differences, we just might find more common ground than expected.

Well, anyhow, the Dive-Board-Dave blog is back from hiatus. I encourage you occasionally test the waters and take a dip. Poke around and take a look. Dive in & don't be afraid to disagree. Maybe we'll have some fun and make a splash along the way.

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