Testament of a Fisherman

Originally written on Thursday, February 14, 2008
Originally posted at www.myspace.com/dallas_cowboys_nfl

One of my favorite things to do is go fly fishing. There's nothing like being alone on a mountain stream or river with nothing but the sounds of rustling water and your own private thoughts meandering through your head. It's perfect serenity as I cast my line upon the water in hopes that a fish will rise.

I love to read pieces by anglers who write well and can capture those feelings and thoughts we fishermen have when we are on the water away from all troubles and cares. One of my favorite authors along this line is Norman Maclean who wrote A River Runs Through It. Yes, the movie is good, but I recommend you read the book if you ever get the chance. There's some great prose in that book. The closing four paragraphs always remain in my mind. If you saw the movie, you heard Robert Redford narrate this part, but the beauty of the written word is much better I think. Allow me to share it with you:

"Now nearly all those I loved and did not understand when I was young are dead, but I still reach out to them.

Of course, now I am too old to be much of a fisherman, and now of course, I usually fish the big waters alone, although some friends think I shouldn't. Like many fly fishermen in western Montana where the summer days are almost Arctic in length, I often do not start fishing until the cool of the evening. Then in the Arctic half-light of the canyon, all existence fades to a being with my soul and memories and the sounds of the Big Blackfoot River and a four-count rhythm and the hope that a fish will rise.

Eventually, all things merge into one, and a river runs through it. The river was cut by the world's great flood and runs over rocks from the basement of time. On some of the rocks are timeless raindrops. Under the rocks are the words, and some of the words are theirs.

I am haunted by waters."

There is so much in that book that is wonderful. I strongly recommend it to you if you love fishing. If you don't love fishing but just appreciate great writing, then you should check it out as well.

I want to share one other short piece with you. This was written by John Voelker and is a great "justification" for why one should just take the day and go fishing. It's called "Testament of a Fisherman:"

"I fish because I love to; because I love the environs where trout are found, which are invariably beautiful, and hate the environs where crowds of people are found, which are invariably ugly; because of the television commercials, cocktail parties and assorted social posturing I thus escape; because, in a world where most men seem to spend their lives doing things they hate, my fishing is at once an endless source of delight and an act of small rebellion; because trout do not lie or cheat but respond only to quietude and humility and endless patience; because I suspect that men are going along this way for the last time, and I for one don't want to waste the trip; because mercifully there are no telephones on trout waters; because only in the woods can I find solitude without loneliness; because bourbon out of an old tin cup tastes better out there; because maybe someday I will catch a mermaid; and finally, not because I regard fishing as being so terribly important but because I suspect that so many of the other concerns of men are equally unimportant - and not nearly so much fun."

Thank you Norman and thank you John. Words are truly a thing of beauty, much like those solitary mountain streams where the rest of the world gets left behind - even if only for a short while.