Friday, May. 7, 1999

`Wanna go fishing?'

Early lessons leave a lifelong impression

By DAVID SIKES
Staff Writer

   "Wannago fishing?"
   The sweetest words of my youth.
   Dad would walk into my room on a Friday or Saturday night, the wrinkles at the corners of his eyes revealing an otherwise concealed smile.
   "You got much homework this weekend?" he'd ask coyly.
   That's when I knew.
   We were either going fishing or hunting, depending on the season.
   "Nope," I'd say, barely able to hide my excitement. I didn't want to spoil his fun.

Common fishing knots

John Bruce/Caller-Times

   He'd never come right out and reveal his intentions. He relished toying with me.
   "Well," he'd sigh and pause for drama's sake. "You wanna go see if the sac-a-lait (crappie) are biting down at Spanish Lake?"
   This really wasn't a question.
   I never said no.
   He knew I wouldn't. Even as a teenager, caught up in the trappings of high school parties and girls, I don't remember ever turning him down.
   By the time I was 8, I had already developed fishing habits by spending hours, mostly fishing by myself at Devil's Pond in New Iberia, La.
   Early on, my motivation to fish was so strong that I'd ignore my curfew repeatedly. One time, I even gave my Christmas Timex to a friend to hold, so I could tell my parents I lost my watch and didn't realize I was late.
   Truth was, the fish were biting and the risk of punishment seemed to be the obvious choice.
   These schemes often backfired.
   Because while other kids couldn't watch TV after lying or disobeying, similar offenses meant lost fishing privileges for me. My parents knew how to leverage good behavior.
   So I learned to follow the rules or fabricate more clever excuses.
   At any rate, the pre-dawn blast of an alarm clock was always as welcome as a bobbing cork.
   Still is.
   Today, fishing links me to fond memories. That's the way it ought to be and, I suppose, the basis for why I still enjoy it.
   But with age, it's grown into more than an occasion to reminisce.
   As with many outdoor pursuits, fishing provides much-needed perspective on life's problems and worldly issues.
   It allows us to escape routine and provides a standard from which to measure the childlike feeling of simple joy.
   In today's jargon, it puts us in touch with our inner child.
   That's a good thing, I've heard.
   Fishing has been described as a hobby, a sport, a pastime, a passion.
   To me, it's also therapy, especially when I'm fishing alone. That, and a Zen-like means to connect with nature and reflect on two of the most influential men in my life, my father and his father.
   Both men were intense anglers who fished hard, which I'm glad was passed on to me.
   To you, who knows what fishing means.
   The point is, it's personal.
   Of course, we share motivations and have common feelings about angling.
   But it's the emotional nuances angling evokes that sets us apart.

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