It’s More Than the Amount of Fish You Catch

On April 1, 2019, I set out with my father to enjoy a day of fishing in Upstate NY, as their season had just opened. We loaded up the truck and headed to the stream, it was a chilly morning, the kind where it is hard to tie flies because your hands are instantly numb. When we arrived on the stream there where quite a few other people, so we set up our rods and found a few spots to start fishing. My father and I did not see a whole lot of action and had only a few hits here and there but no success thus far. A few hours went by and we had caught a few, nothing of any size or to brag about. As I wandered around looking for different spots and holes to try all I heard from the other fisherman was that, “there’s no fish in here, or what a slow day”.  I didn’t think much of this at the time and continued to fish, but as the day went on, I started to just appreciate the day. It was cold but the sun was shinning and there was still color in the trees as spring was starting to transform the landscape. I had found a spot on the stream that no one else was in and my father had walked up stream to where I couldn’t see him. After a few more hours with very little action we decided to pack up and head to, “Mahogany Ridge” as my dad calls it. 

As we were sitting at a little brewery on Seneca Lake shooting the breeze and enjoying a few beers, I started to reflect on the day. Sure, it wasn’t the most productive day fishing wise, but we still had a wonderful day in my book. Just having the opportunity too spend a day outdoors with my father, doing something that we both love and have a passion for was enough. Now that I have a family of my own and have become busy with my own career and business ventures it is harder to get away and have those type of days. So, when they do happen, I try to enjoy and cherish them and just appreciate the small things and the people that I am with. I try not to focus much on whether I caught the biggest or most fish. I strongly believe and encourage others next time you are fishing, hunting, hiking, or just doing something that you enjoy, just stop and really reflect and appreciate the whole experience.  Try not dwell on whether you were the best or caught the most fish or hiked the most miles.  I challenge you to start living in the moment and being mindful of the whole experience. You may surprise yourself on those “bad days”, and start enjoying the outdoors for what they are. By really examining and reflecting on your experience you may come to find out that they weren’t so “bad” at all.