Fishing - Sport or Therapy ?
Fishing is not merely a sport; it is also a time to reflect on your life’s meaning and worth. I know this to be fact due to all the epiphanies I have had while sitting on the banks of the Mississippi River waiting for the fish to bite. You begin to become stress free and, as your mind clears, your life unfolds in your own cerebral theater. You reflect upon whether your job is one that you want to do for the rest of your life, all the while contemplating the missed opportunities you have had. Staring up at the clouds, or the stars, if you are night fishing, you reflect on your spiritual life. “Where will I spend eternity?†“Have I led a good life?â€
Just as your thoughts begin to wander, you are snapped back into the realm of the conscious as you realize you are getting a bite. While reeling the fish in, thoughts of the struggle of life and death begin to flood forth. Even though the fish is within legal size limits you release him and thank him for the fight. Your eyes drift over to another fisherman on the bank, down river, noticing that he has been keeping as many fish as legally allowed. This brings you to another self revelation. You are fortunate enough not to have to keep what you catch to feed your family.
Realizing all is well in your world, you begin to think of all the times that you could have affected other’s lives. The next fish you catch, that is of legal size, you offer to the fisherman’s son who has come over to watch you. The smile on his face brings about a reminder that your greatest accomplishment in life, your son, will one day be sitting here with you. You remember that it was not long ago that you were wondering if you’d ever have children.
As you are brooding over how fast life is passing you by, you notice the size of the shadow that stalks the boy when he returns to his father’s side. This makes you glance down at your wrist and realize the hour is getting late. You gather up your equipment and make the trek back to your vehicle, thanking God for one more beautiful day. Before you leave the serenity completely, you turn to soak in the view one last moment. You’re searching for one last revelation to carry you through until the next time you can go fishing.
You then notice the powerful current pushing a large piece of driftwood downriver. This vision brings about the feeling that life is just one great journey and nothing lasts forever. The mighty oak falls, when its time has come, and drifts out of sight into eternity as we all will. As you finish loading the gear up, you recognize that you have caught a few fish, pondered your existence and justified your life, not bad for a Saturday afternoon.