Gone Fishin'

I like to think that I’m the kind of person who is open to trying new things. But, if I'm being honest, I’m really the kind of person who likes the obscure, leans towards the off-the-beaten track, and revels in the undiscovered, someone who tends to shy away from the mainstream and everyday. In other words, I don’t play golf on weekends, don’t really like steakhouses, and my favorite artist is not U2, The Beatles, or The Rolling Stones; I play sports, but I don’t get why one would watch sports. By no means do I promote my ways as better. It is simply how I tend to be.

That said, every once in a while I find myself trying something that I’ve (mis-)labeled “ordinary." In this case, it was fishing. When I was a kid I used to go trout fishing with my pa and grandpa. We’d sit on the banks of Trout Lake or fish the waters of Strawberry Reservoir, waiting eternally for even a bite on the line. It was quality time with dad and with grandpa (their view, of course, as I was 10 or so), and so you might think these fishing adventures would have continued as the years rolled on by. However, as it happens, I hated eating fish, and certainly wanted nothing to do with gutting a fish. When it came time for me to eat and gut what I caught, I simply chose to fish no more. That was about 25 years ago.

Since then, I've thought about fishing, but couldn't really see the point. I still don't eat fish and it seemed to me that 4-6 hours on a boat would likely be a long and tedious adventure. Then, a few weeks back a friend talked me into getting up at 4am and heading out to sea on a fishing adventure off the shores of Harwichport. Even as I drove to the boat, I wondered how I’d gotten myself into it. But I was wrong to be apprehensive. The trip was great fun! It was a delightful, warm morning and as we motored out to sea past Monomoy Island, the sun began to rise. A sunrise at sea ain’t such a bad start to a day. Even better, the fishing was splendid…we caught 10 big fish and were home by 8:30am.

So, I’m here to tell you that keeping an open mind (or having wise friends who push your boundaries) can pay off. So many discoveries in life, but you’ve got to keep on opening yourself up to them. Even those who stay conscious still can easily miss the goodies that sit right before them. Guess I better set a good example for Olie this afternoon by brushing aside my bias, putting on some U2 and learning what I’ve been missing out on all these years!