One of our favorite things to do is go fishing. Specifically, fly fishing for trout. There is something wonderfully calming about the sound of the water, the slow steady casts, watching the fly float along. There is also something incredible that happens when a fish takes your fly when you see it happen and feel the line tighten and you start to reel it in.
Reeling in a fish while fly fishing isn't nearly as common as we'd like it to be but fly fishing isn't easy. Or maybe we just aren't good at it. Either way, the time spent fly fishing is never wasted. The drive to the river is usually pleasant and involves a dirt road or two. And what's better than a couple of dirt roads? We tend to fish in the evenings and mornings and the light is beautiful at those times. There are rituals surrounding fishing that are time-honored and remain steady beacons during the hectic pace of life.
Arriving at the site you plan to fish at and wandering down to the water to check it out, opening up the back of the vehicle, stringing up your rods, picking a fly, shrugging on waders and forcing the wading boots on. When you finally and slowly step into the water, the sound fills your ears with a rushing white noise. Nothing much matters while you are fishing except that you're fishing.
And oddly enough, that gives you time to think. And not about to-do lists or groceries you need to get but about the present moment. You might catch a glimpse of an otter and wonder if otters live in riverbank burrows or maybe old beaver damns. You might wonder about the insects in the river, watch a leaf lazily travel along the river, and readjust your stance on the gravel bottom. But mostly you don't think too much about anything really important and your mind wanders along the way the river does.
