Here is David fishing. We walked the Metolius River. Occasionally he clamored into the stream and did like Brad Pitt in a River Runs Through It. But mostly, we looked for fish. Apparently, there is some magic between which bugs are hatching on the water, how fast the water is running and whether there is a perfect downed tree creating a little calm pool perfect for a fish to hide in. It is a lot of work. All I could think about was the meat and cheese feast I had in the backpack which we could eat after we “finished fishing.” It reminded me of my favorite opening line in a book from Plum Island. The book is about a cop who is convalescing after getting shot. The book starts with this line: “The hard part about doing nothing is that you don’t know when you are done.”
Right? Fishing is like that. We finally ate. No fish were caught but we identified a lot of areas where they were likely hiding.
(Shannon getting ready for a day of golf)
This takes me to the idea that some people seem so good at finding life pursuits, and others, like me, fail. David has fishing. My friend Shannon who visited this weekend has two: sailing and now golf. He has golf apps, a special cooler that goes on a golf cart and golf lingo. My dear friend Jenny journals. She used to drink punch and all her close friends got punch bowls so we could drink punch too. Bre is fanatical about watches. He even belongs to the horological society and if I am lucky, brings me to lectures there.
Me? Nothing. I garden but only because my mother once said I’d never be able to grow roses. I had to prove her wrong. Part of my psychological make-up.
When contemplating what one wants to do with their life as I am now, a life pursuit is a good anchor. If I fished, I could build my life around that. So now, in addition to deciding where I want to live if not in Dupont Circle, I need a hobby. My complete inability to decide makes me wonder how I ever picked a college. There were thousands of them. But somehow I picked eight in very different regions of the country and ultimately ended up very happily at Smith. I have a track record of success. This should embolden me that when it comes to life decisions I have done well in the past.
Yet, here I sit, next to a river I have no intention of fishing in. Perhaps I will go play with the lock and picks a well-meaning friend sent me in case I decided my life’s pursuit was cat burglary. You never know.
Adventures in LuLu 