It's purely the moment in itself that they (and I) will remember the rest of our lives...
In the end, the legacy that really matters are memories. Making shared memories worth remembering is one of highest pursuits one can undertake.
On another tack. I would like to address feed quality. It's a challenge to produce feed that meets the nutritional needs of fish and every species has differing nutritional requirements. To be sure, fish feed is not gluten and melamine.
Snipe is currently conducting a trial that is demonstrating that fish convert feed very efficiently. The results thus far indicate that feed formulated for centrarchid predators converts comparably to dried fish. It's hard to argue that anything is better for fish to eat than other fish ... so I am not trying to say that fish feed is equivalent to 100% dried fish ... rather ... I am saying that these feeds are pretty darn good at providing nutrition to centrarchid predators.
As always there is a balance with me and just like drinking too much water can kill a person ... too much feed can also kill a pond. One of simpler ways to gain a sense of this nutrient addition is just to equivocate the feed with dried fish. If equivalent, the wet weight of dead fish fed to a typical 1 acre pond (at 50 lbs feed over 5 months) is 1250 lbs wet weight fish. This is three times the standing weight a fertile pond carries. One question that comes to mind is whether one year of feeding in combination with liming can transform a pond of low fertility to one of acceptable or high fertility? Another question is how long can one sustain this level of nutrient addition without causing severe problems such as excessive primary production (vegetative growth), fish kills, etc.? The question is not yet answered but it is one that I am deeply interested in understanding. When I have my pond one day, I want it to be one that my great grandkids could enjoy into their later ages. Far too little concern about the nutrient loading effects of feed prevails ... but like RAH ... I respect the rights of everyone who choses a long term path of nutrient addition and control. Even so, I will follow RAHs lead, example, and approach to pond management with only one exception (I will make a focus of population control). Are you concerned about adding too much feed to your ponds nutrient reservoir? If not, then you might possibly make the mistake of drinking too much water as well.
