Fishing

For some it is a necessary skill or activity to survive. For others, it is a hobby--much like hunting game.

My attitude towards fishing has remained the same through the years: indifferent. Why fish when others can do it for you? I don't see it as a necessity or as a good hobby. I don't feel comfortable where it is done--the sea or any body of water. More importantly, I have yet to master the skill essential to fishing: swimming. To engage in fishing one must learn how to swim in order to be able to survive fishing mishaps that could lead to going overboard or drowning. Finally, I think that if I do fish, I'm afraid I won't be able to catch anything for lack of enough fish in the sea.

Like any other skill or activity, I learn by copying. So in order to be better at fishing, I observe others who're good at it. First, I surround myself with people who engage in fishing as a hobby and as a means of survival. Then, I mentally list down what is it they do that catches the fish and what is it that don't.

So far, I have a general idea what makes good fishermen good but I have yet to go fishing alone. However, I have tried fishing with other people and, so far, I haven't caught anything (yet). But I'm getting an idea where the fishes generally are and how they react/behave. Maybe, if I fish more often, I'd develop my own fishing style/technique to lure in the big catch.

I do have one question: What will I do with the fish I will catch? which inevitably leads to a lot of other questions.

Do I eat it? Eating would be barbaric and Stone Age-ish.
Do I make it my pet? I think this is even more rude than eating because it amounts to slavery.
Do I play with it? How does one exactly play with fish.
And then what happens after playing?
Do I give it away? Which makes my effort useless, I guess. Or do I catch it with the intention of letting it go eventually? As if all the fun--or at least, all the thrill--is limited to the act/process of fishing  or learning how to fish. As if the catch itself does not interest me. Maybe.

Which begs to ask a more profound question, "Why am I (interested in) fishing?"

Is it a matter of need? Is it a matter of want? Is it a matter of finding a solution to boredom? Is it a matter of trying to be 'in'--since almost everyone I know is doing it? Or is it a matter of finding something that is lacking?--as if fishing or the catch itself is the missing piece of the puzzle I call, my life.


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This blog is inspired by the indie films Go Fish, and Isda (Fable of the Fish).