Gone Fishin'

I told my dad a week ago that I really wanted to go fishing. He laughed and said, "How can you say that with a straight face?" But I was serious! He asked if I'd ever actually been fishing. I think I've been once or twice. The more I thought about it though, I realized something. It's not so much that I enjoy fishing; I think I more enjoy the idea of fishing.

My somewhat idealistic mindset associates fishing with something like this picture:

Two boys on a sunny day. They've got poles over shoulder, tackle box in hand, bare feet crunching leaves as they walk through the woods. They're probably skipping their chores or maybe even school, but they haven't a care in the world. Who'd want to be cooped up in a classroom on a day like today anyway? To them, girls still have cooties. They still hold that sense of adventure. They have no responsibilities, no prior engagements, no worries. They're not really thinking about anything as they walk to the stream; they're just walking in silence. They can do that, ya know. Sometimes silence is good. They're not irritated or agitated. They're somewhat dreading the whoopin' they'll get this afternoon, but right now, at this moment, it's all worth it.

So that's what my mind associates with fishing. It's almost that Tom and Huck "we'll finish white washin' the fence later" kind of thing. And then off they go, to build a raft or skip some rocks or get into some kind of trouble. I wish I would of had those boys as friends growing up. I'm sure it would have been a blast :)

I know life can't always be like that now. We all have responsibilities and things that must get done, whether we want to or not. Life is busy and fast paced. We're constantly adding something to our planner or thinking about the next task to check off the list. But may we never lose that sense of wonder. May we find time every once in a while to take a break from everything, put the sign on the door, and say that we've gone fishin'.