Why I Am On Public Platforms

I was not afforded the pleasure of knowing either of my grandfathers. My maternal grandfather died when I was still in diapers. My paternal grandfather divorced my paternal grandmother in 1953 and moved to Florida where he was run down and killed in a very suspicious hit and run incident. I was a grown man, about eight years ago, when I first saw a picture of my paternal grandfather.

I have only a vague memory of my maternal grandmother. I was barely out of the toddler stage when she died. There are pictures of her. My mom, aunts, and uncles told stories about her and their father. Hardscrabble farmers … sharecroppers in the upper part of the State before moving to the lower part … where they managed to pull things together and purchase their own hardscrabble forty acres.

My paternal grandmother?

She lived next door to us in a little house that my dad built for her. I was a young kid in elementary school when she died. I walked over to see her quite often. She cared for me like a grandmother cares for a grandchild. I remember that much about her, and that our conversations … if you can call them that … were little more than a mess of pointing and grunting. She, and her husband, had immigrated from Czechoslovakia. She never learned to speak more than a few words of English. My dad was born in Minnesota and grew up bi-lingual. He saw no value in teaching us to speak the language, though when he and his siblings were together they carried on their conversations in what sounded like jibber-talk to me.

So here I am, all these years later, myself a grandparent. Shirli and I have eight blood-related grandchildren and another ten step-grandchildren. I never wanted to be called grandpa. I opted for the grand-title of Poppy. Maybe it is my futile attempt at escaping this age-related reality. Poppy, in my head anyway, doesn’t sound as old as grandpa or its other life-spectrum counterparts.

People use these modern self-publishing platforms for an assortment of reasons … blogs, YouTube, Facebook, and the like. Some uploaded keystroking and video footage and, in an instant, the world sees you and knows your business. On the one hand it is a good thing. On the other hand, it is scary considering the enormity and diversity of what can be found with a few keystrokes.

Why am I on these platforms carving out my own little corner in cyberspace?

The answer is basically three-fold.

I am a solitary hermit-type that thrives on solitude. I am not anti-social. I have grown, however, quite selective-social. It would be extremely easy for me to pull the plugs, drown my smart-phone, and disappear from view altogether except for the occasional wander into town to pick up supplies. These platforms keep me from becoming a total recluse and offer me a needed outlet for personal creative expression.

The encouragement factor figures into the three-fold answer. I want to encourage others to explore and adventure outdoors. All of us may not be able to hump a forty-pound pack deep into remote areas for days on end. All of us can discover and develop an interest in activities that take us at least to the edge of deep woodlands, mountains, and flowing streams where nature’s medicine can be absorbed by our senses. I personally need a lot of nature’s medicine. David Kralik Outdoors reflects my pursuit to satisfy my personal need.

The third part of the answer has to do with legacy. Those old black and white photos of my grandparents are merely cold and lifeless images of them. The stories told of them by their children will be forgotten with the passing of time. These modern printing and recording tools offer me a way to leave something of my living-self behind as a gift for my grandchildren … a lot more than a box of cold and lifeless photographs.

Note: I have added a subscribe feature in the right-hand blog column. By subscribing you will be sent an email notifying you when blogs are uploaded.

I also want to make a few keystrokes to express my appreciation and say thank you for including David Kralik Outdoors in your reading and YouTube viewing material. Your comments are always appreciated.

The adventure continues. Enjoy the Adventure!