Welcome to the Good Old Blades Podcast. I am your host, Darren LeVier. And join me as we talk to other knife makers and craft about anything and everything now. So it's been two years, a little over two years actually, since the Good Old Blades podcast had its last episode. And I thought that I would take the opportunity to talk a little bit about kind of what's transpired over those last few years, what's kept me from podcasting, um, and kind of like what the direction is uh going forward. So uh around the time um that we wrapped the Denton episode uh for Bob Loveless, um I had an event where uh all of a sudden I started having a lot of stomach problems within a short period of time and went into the ER, had uh a GI bleed, and uh the GI bleed led to a series of investigations basically that um they found uh polyps uh in my upper intestine. So uh fortunately and and by what what I would consider a miracle, uh they were not cancerous. However, I wasn't due to have a colonoscopy or anything for like a scheduled one based on age for about eight years. So what ended up happening is they found polyps that were uh are were precancerous in size. Eight years in the future, um it's hard to say, but my belief is after uh talking with doctors and uh and the investigation itself uh that um that it would have looked a lot more like um like you know colorectal cancer or intestinal cancer of some type. Um I think that it didn't scare me, I felt a lot of relief. Um but it made it it started me thinking a lot more about my mortality, a lot more about my family, a lot more about what I would leave behind. Uh and uh I I've always felt a need to prepare my family and to be on good footing uh so that way they can handle the uh the the emotions and the finances and things like that. But I don't really think I don't really think I was um really that prepared. Not until it really was clear that um I could have succumbed to uh to cancer and this bleed. It wasn't a small one. Um so that's kind of where we start the journey. Now that was in late August, early September of 2024. And after that, I can't say that I was depressed, uh, but I was really introspective and really I don't know, searching for what this all meant. Why, why me, right? Why, why have this kind of intercession in my life? Um and and what does that mean? What does that mean? Like why why why not, right? Uh I mean I've I've I've buried friends. Um we've buried uh our son who died in a motorcycle accident in 2019. Um our daughter has a heart transplant, and she's I've seen her almost die many times. You know, that there's all of these questions that you start asking yourself when faced with mortality. And I realized that, you know, my belief was shaky at best. Um my family was not uh secure emotionally after all of these things that we had dealt with as a family, like losing losing Christian and going through transplant with Evelyn and um you know uh you know uh per personal things that uh just really kind of rocked our boat. So uh, you know, I tried to fix things uh as best I could. Um and I realized that um I just wasn't I wasn't enough. Uh I wasn't uh able to fix all uh fix and heal all of those wounds of my wife and my children that really were were just constant, um constant. Like we were it we were all emoting and um you know as I was kind of going back and looking at at my bleed and everything, at the end of the endoscopy, uh the doctor said, I don't know what caused your your stomach to bleed. When we went in and we did an endoscopy and a colonoscopy, uh he said, There is nothing inside of your esophagus or stomach or anything that would lead to a bleed, whatever it was, healed. And keep in mind this was only a few a few weeks, like less than a month. Uh, there was no trace at all of any inflammation, any tears, any scar tissue or anything. And uh it's it's honestly, um we we are we always as a family um had a belief in in God um at times more than others, and have tried to be faithful. Um both my wife and I uh grew up in Christian households, but there was something that just felt um off about the situation, not often in a bad way or in an ominous way, but what is this and what what is this situation telling us? What's it telling me? Um and that's when um we started to venture back into the church. Um we have had a lot of bad experiences in non-denominational churches, bad experiences in the Anglican church, bad experiences in the Church of Christ, um uh in the uh Presbyterian church. And um I grew up uh adjacent to Roman Catholicism and uh and Greek and Russian Orthodoxy. It's very common up in Pennsylvania where I'm from. Um and so we would we would drive by um churches uh that were uh uh Russian Orthodox and Greek Orthodox. And I also had a good friend that was investigating or you know what we call inquiring to uh Orthodoxy. Um it didn't happen overnight, it was maybe uh a good six, eight, ten months of of kind of inquiring before we actually found a parish uh that was close. And uh funnily enough, uh the the Orthodox parish um is a Western Rite parish, which is the Western expression of Orthodoxies where you have Eastern Eastern Orthodox and Eastern Orthodox, you know, Orthodox in the Western Rite, anyhow. Uh probably m people would be more comfortable with that I um the the Western Rite if they did come from a Roman Catholic or a uh or a an Anglican type of um uh uh belief system. But uh the thing that I had discovered after a lot of uh research, which is something that I um am painstaking about, is that the original church um from Christ is the Orthodox Church. It's been uh alive and and and moving and and being uh revealed to humanity uh by Christ and his apostles for two thousand plus years. And it wasn't until coming into orthodoxy uh that I felt a lot of attacks, like everyone in our family. Um everything was uh amped up, our emotions, our our anger, our our uh feelings uh towards loss in our lives and the abuses that we've suffered and things like that. And never before coming into a Protestant church uh did I feel uh that way. Never before being Anglican for a little while on the fringe of Anglicanism. I say that because we weren't members. Uh uh, you know, never before did we have problems. It was like you just go to a church, you find a church, you like the culture, you like kind of what they're teaching, we're already familiar with the Bible, just do those things. Um orthodoxy is not that way. Uh it is it is intense, it is the the living, the living expression of Christ on earth. Uh it is um it is holy, it is reverent, it is um it is healing. And and that changed us. It also requires that you go through a year of catechesis uh to understand what you're taking upon yourself, what you're what are you committing to. Um, and uh that was something that took time, um, one year of catechesis, living in the church, um, letting that heal our family, which it very much has. Um, I can say a year, a year later, um that it has brought us closer and we live a life of of prayer that is uh deeper and more peaceful than it's ever been in our lives. And I'm almost 40. I mean, I've lived long enough in a in a constant state of chaos uh to know what peace feels like because I know what the absence of peace feels like. Um I felt it almost my entire life. Um but you know, at the same time we're going through these things, um, I'm also still making knives, going to shows. Um, so we're still grieving Christian. Evelyn had a bout of rejection that we were following, and um during this time of coming into holy orthodoxy, uh, she was hospitalized eight times, and we find that she has this um obscure form of rejection called non-HLA specific uh rejection and a treatable kind uh because there's two types, and one's not treatable and detrimental, and the other is can still be detrimental if untreated, but it can be treated. So um we've spent um almost two years going through that, um through helping our daughter heal from these uh injuries to her lungs and her body and uh affecting her weight and everything that it comes from uh long hospitalization stays. Um we started uh homeschooling her uh because it's safer for her to be out of the school system. Um and uh, you know, we we're more traditional, um, um more uh follow an ancient belief uh in Christ, and uh the peace is very palpable to us. Um, you know, at the same time, in in knives, um in life in general, right? Uh everything's gotten more expensive. Tariffs are a thing. Um uh the costs of everything has gone up, so it affects a knife maker. Um, you know, these things change. Um I've we've lost several um really wonderful uh iconic knife makers in the last two years, and uh ones that I'll never get the opportunity to speak to and to interview for you guys. Um but the thing about knife making, the thing about um the the crafts is that the situations might change, but the heart of an artist very much stays the same. Um we've had the um the adoption of artificial intelligence in in technology that's available to the knife maker. We've had um we've had multimedia and content creation boom. Um it is really uh flourished. And some of the expectations around a knife maker and what they provide to the industry and how they use the internet uh to promote themselves has changed uh drastically. Um but but those are things that an artist adapts to and overcomes or doesn't. Um and uh as I've kind of watched the knife making industry unfold mostly without me being involved heavily, um I've realized that there is a consistency and there is a a calm and there is a uh a beauty to stepping back and watching things happen, to see new knife makers uh uh flourish uh and to see artists getting paid a little bit better uh than they once did. Um you know, they can start to command a little bit more money for pocket knives or uh fixed blades. Um it's not it's not just an edge case anymore. Um there's industry that's opening up for knife makers that weren't there two years ago, even. Um, you know, there's new shows. Um, there's existing shows that are just getting better. You know, it's things like that. And I I what I want to do and what I what I have done with the podcast is uh present the the makers and those who uh um live and breathe in the industry in a way for you just to get to see them, that they that yes, they might be larger than life, um, but they also just live a life. A lot of them have imposter syndrome, a lot of them um struggle, uh, and it humanizes all of us to know that we we suffer, to know that we come from uh uh pain, uh that we uh that we can overcome those three things. Um my personal journey in that is through Christ, and I feel the greatest, um, the greatest peace I ever have. But um, but eve even still, um everybody's everybody's story is different. Um and it is these ties that bind us together as human beings, as craftsmen. And that's something that I still want to explore and to communicate with you, the listener. Um, and and hopefully, if you have the ability to watch this on YouTube and everything comes out correctly, you'll be able to see this unfold on on YouTube and Apple Play in video as well. And I'll try to incorporate that in um with how we record things as well. But suffice it to say, stepping back has been one of the best things for me because it's allowed me to gain uh some perspective, to not be so concerned about the the ego that comes from uh operating a successful podcast, which the the Go Blaze Podcast uh has been highly successful. Um it at the time when I um when I fell off the face of the earth to everybody uh pretty much, the podcast had been in 58 countries. Um so streaming actively in 58 countries. And in the two years that nothing has happened, these same beautiful interactions with artists and real people uh and and real painful moments and and just the the raw um quality of what we've been able to achieve in interviewing and just being personable with each other has reached 114 countries. And there's there is 190 some established countries, uh you know, regular countries, not ones that like shift every few years because of war. Uh and uh that's a big deal. It's it's over doubled its worldwide exposure, and I've done nothing. I've done nothing. I've just paid for everything and kept it up, which is not inexpensive, but uh but otherwise it's the interaction with with episodes and the the listening, it does not stop. And that's not because of me, it's because of the artists and the interest and the uh and the the intrigue that comes from interviewing. So um, you know, I I want to continue that. The the thing though is that I work a full-time job in technology, um, and I also am going back to school to finish out a degree that's 13 years overdue um in in history. Um, so those are some really great things. But but I in keeping up with podcasting, I will probably pare it down to maybe once or twice a month instead of every week, and then putting out shorts and things like that. It's just too much. Um, it was too much, it is too much. Additionally, I have a few a few podcast episodes that were in raw form that I need to go back through and do uh the proper um honor to those makers and to edit them and to present them. It will take a little bit longer than it did when I had originally uh uh did the interview because some of the context is lost two years in the future. Um I'll probably provide some some level of uh disclaimer when I'm going through and and presenting these. I think that there might be three. Um but you guys will be able to listen to those and they'll be duly marked. And in addition, I have lots of friends that are willing to go on and get their um 15 minutes of of marketing uh for uh for their knives, businesses, and things like that. So, you know, I I think that there is still a lot of of meat on the bone to the Good Old Blades podcast, and that's why I am reviving it, although I will say revive is uh not exactly correct because it has been uh kind of in a state of of uh slumber. Um but the giant is is reawakening. And I think that with the perspective that I've gained over the last two years, um it will help me to be a better interviewer, it'll help me to be um to ask better questions, right? To to be more more thoughtful um rather than just racing through things to try to catch sound bites, which I think that in some ways I was subject to um in in schedules and in trying to uh get on big names and things like that. So um intention is just to uh continue to grow the Good Old Boys Podcast, to continue to have uh great artists and minds and contributors towards knives and knife making um on on the podcast and to uh release it a little bit more um conservatively. Um I really appreciate every single one of you uh listeners and and viewers who have been on this journey of me podcasting and uh interviewing and uh talking to all of these beautiful souls that um share their lives and their time with me and with you. Um and the encouragements along the way. Um there's been uh a lot, a lot, a lot trying to get me to put to podcast again. And uh, you know, it's been uh the it's not the right time, but my intention is to still do it. Well now is the time, um conservatively and um with uh respect towards my family and the time that I need to spend with them and work and school and things like that, you know, so I'm busy. Um but um if you ever have any questions about holy orthodoxy, hit me up. Um I recommend it deeply. Um if you would like to um if you'd like to be on the podcast, uh reach out to me. Um it's not an invite-only type of process. I mean, obviously, I'm not um I need to understand um a person and to have a friendship with them and to interview them and pick their brains and things because I have a fiduciary duty um to ensure that when somebody comes on the podcast, um, that it's not just a dud of an interview, that it's not just passing time. You know, it has to be of quality. So um people are willing, if they're willing to work with me and to spend some time uh talking about um uh their relevancy, why they would want to be interviewed, um, those things I'm very open to. Um I never want the podcast to um have a feel of arrogance or um or um undue pride um where it's a good old boys club or um you know things like that. That's not the way this is w this works, and it's not the way it's ever worked. Um although I know that I've I've had to sift through and work through hurt feelings with uh some people. Um it's not it's not intentional, and I know I don't ever mean to slight people. Um it's just there's only so many hours in the day and only so many uh um avenues for interviewing. So be patient with me. Um I know if you're listening to this that you probably have been extremely patient. Uh maybe given up on the podcast, but um, you know, again. Uh thank you uh for giving me the time. Uh thank you for being a dedicated listener and uh prepare for good things uh because that is on the horizon. Thanks. Thank you for listening to another episode of the Good Old Blades Podcast. Remember that you are loved and God bless.