Most people who do not fish, think fishing is all about catching fish and having fun. For some people who fish that is true catching fish is the only reason they are fishing, but it is not true for all fisherman. Many fisherman I talk with either when I am fishing or making good conversation fish for reasons other than catching fish.

Fishing is like any other sport or pastime, somedays everything falls into place, and you catch a lot of fish. On other days, perhaps most days, not everything falls into place and not many fish are caught. When these days occur, and they do same as baseball or other statistical sports most days are not dream days for catching fish. I imagine if fishermen caught all the fish they wanted to, they would become bored with fishing.

Going to a new lake is always a new challenge, everything looks the same, there is water and there is shoreline. Where is the best fishing spot for this day? Everyone has their own best choice, and some people make better guesses than others. The best choices have the opportunity to catch the most fish.

I enjoy what I observe most of the time. Fishing at a lake with interesting scenery or wildlife is satisfying. Some times I see things most people will never get to see, like the water train on the right left.

Other times I enjoy am enjoying the view and am pleasantly surprised by something I did not expect would happen, such as these people on horseback, out enjoying a spring afternoon. They were a ways from where I was sitting pretending to be seriously fishing, and there appearance was a pleasant distraction.

Of course then there is the scenery all by itself. In June when the monsoon season hits, starting about one in the afternoon the clouds start rolling in. That is a not so subtle signal that whatever you are doing, you may want to finish up pretty quickly. Usually by three o’clock, the storm breaks loose.

Every once in a while fishing actually happens, and life is really good. Those few hours are busy and little of my time is spent watching what is going on around me. Before you start thinking the was all fun and no work filling coolers with Carp, I want to define the purpose of fishing on its most basic level.

While someone may think I had a blast catching all these fish; okay I did, it was fun! There also was a second more serious reason to my fishing. The reason the Carp are in two coolers is because of where they are going. One cooler of fish went to the south end of town to be used to feed, a few Dogs, Ducks, a Goose, and a few Cats. The second cooler of fish went to the far north end of town to a Dog rescue center to become, ‘Doggy Stew’.

So when you see someone out being lazy snoozing by the waters edge with fishing pole close by, remember they may there on serious business and not just to relax and enjoy the day away from it all! Yeah right, I almost believe that sentence, and I wrote it.

If you find yourself wondering how to do something for others, look at what you love to do. For myself, I am happy to have found service in something I love to do. Perhaps there is something in what you love to do that serves others too?