When my mind wanders, it wanders to this place. A place where my Dad and I used to work as security guards. One of my duties was to check the outdoors. On a break I decided to capture some beautiful scenes. This is one of them. A clear sunny day. On a day off take a boat out on the lake and cast into some of the deeper areas where the bigger fish hide. A nibble, a bite, STRIKE! Gotcha! Fish fights, out of excitement I try not to lose the fish. In the end, the fish is hanging from the line and we're staring at each other. Descent size fish. Now I have to get out the hook and let it go. There, all done. I set the fish back into the water and watch it swim away.I feel satisfied. Boastful even. I caught a fish! Okay, conquered that challenge. Time to go back in. But not so fast. The lake is quiet. A stillness falls over it. A peace. I sit there for several minutes taking it in. The scenery, the colors, the trees, the color of the water, the grasses and other water weeds surrounding the edge of the lake. Then I see the red dock.
I row myself back to the dock, tie up the boat, unload the gear and load up the car. But something stops me from leaving. It's as though I'll miss something. I sit in my car looking at the scene again. And then I remember. My Dad and I went fishing here. He caught the large mouth bass, I caught the small mouth. It was one of the last times we did something together alone before he died. That memory was probably in the summer of 2003.
And I hang onto it like it was yesterday. Since I was a little girl he taught me everything I needed to know about having a hobby that's relaxing and challenging, one can be done in solitude - one that can clear your mind. Fishing...quiet times spent with Dad.
