Death of an Angler

Have you ever caught a great trout? Have you ever had an amazing day of fishing, where you caught an unbelievable number of fish? Have you ever spent a day out on the water that you just know you’ll never, ever forget? Have you ever thought about what it all means – what you’ll cherish when your days are short? When all you have left are your memories?

I’ve caught a few fish here and there, and I’ve had those days where the fish were biting like they hadn’t eaten in a year. I’ve made the near perfect cast and witnessed the long, hard look of a discerning trout. Whether that trout refused the fly or took with abandon mattered not. Just to see the fish was enough…to know he was there and to become a part of his world, even if it was in the most counterfeit of ways. I’ve lived some halcyon days on the water, in the midst of my often hectic, worry-filled life. Alone or with friends, I’ve spent countless hours standing in knee-deep, ice-cold water trying to entice the fickle favor of a worthy opponent who has a brain the size of a pea. It’s a maddening game at times, and a joyous rush of glory when it all goes right.

But what then do we make of this – all this angling. All the fly tying, the shopping, the gear buying, the strategic planning, the driving, the wading up cold rivers, the hiking? In some cases the fish worship, the angling “lifestyle,” the romanticizing of angling and the money we spend on this, our passion? When we’ve each come to the end of our road and we look back on our days obsessed with fishing, will we find that fishing in and of itself, was enough.

I don’t have the answer to that question for you. Only you can answer that. But I can tell you what I think about it for myself…

I believe that the important thing isn’t how many trips we make to the river, or how many fish we catch or the number of flies we tie. The important thing isn’t how much we love the great outdoors or even how often we give money to protect and preserve it. It isn’t the things we own – the gadgets and gear and fly boxes full of wonderful little works of art – the photographs or fly rods…or even the places we love.

The important thing, in fishing…and in life….are the people around us. When it’s all said and done, I have no doubt I’ll remember little about the rise or the hike or the one that got away…..and much about the people with whom I’ve shared my life…those gracious, kind, caring and good-hearted souls I called friends.

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