Looking Back to Go Forward:
Letting the Kid Live
As we come to the close of 2024, we can’t help but look back over the past year. Can we look back to the beginning and remember what our New Year Resolutions were? I know I had some great ones, but the one that glares at me the most was to go fishing more and get better at what I was weak at. And the most important, personally, was to finally get serious about my fishing.
I tried that, getting serious and found out I had always been serious about it. I was told that I didn’t because I loved to have fun. I would joke around, act foolish, and make an adventure of everything. People would see it as not being serious. But I decided to get serious and found that my fishing declined. That sounds odd, but the truth was I stopped doing what I loved. I started to overthink everything. And then it hit me! I love fishing because it is fun! I put the fun back into it and my fishing got better. I was always serious, just I let the fun disappear. I let what others thought enter into my thinking.
And I remember I said get better at what I do. That lead to a lot of frustrating days. Why? Because I would lock on rod into my hand. One rod, one technique and the determination to learn to do it better. It took time, but I learned a lot about myself and my fishing abilities. I fished jigs, but I didn’t understand them like I should have. I studied the head design, the hook, the weedguard, the skirt, and the trailer. I learned what each did and how to make them a part of me. And how to use them to feel the bottom. And as I learned, I got better. Am I the best jig angler ever now? No, but it is a weapon I am able to use very good now. I achieved the goal.
I fished more, but it wasn’t always easy. The heat wasn’t brutal at times. And I payed the price for it. In the end, years of being in the sun without full protection gave me a small amount of basal skin cancer. I had it taken care of, but also have learned to not forget the basics I let slide this year. Sunscreen! Especially on the areas we least want to put it on, the face. I wear sun shirts to protect my arms. I wear gloves to protect my hands. I always wear a hat to protect the head. And I wear long pants to protect the legs. But the face and ears are always exposed. I like sun shirts with a hood so I can pull it over my ears. But I forget to use it a lot of times. That is something I will need to work on.
And I need to think about either making sure to always apply the sunscreen or change my hat style. I love my baseball cap, but I think I am going to try a wide brimmed hat like Randy Howell and Rick Clunn wear. Finding the right one might take a little looking, but I think it will be worth it in the long run.
Looking back at 2024, I think it was a great year. I had a lot of fun. I learned a lot about myself. I met a lot of great people and made a lot of new friends. I learned that you can’t take the fun out of fishing. We all got into fishing because we loved it and had fun at it. It allows that little kid in each of us to live! The kid that keeps us going back to catch another fish, no matter the size. Here is to a 2025 filled with being that kid still!