First Cast Fish at Deckers South Platte River

I do not know what it means when someone picks up a fly rod for the first time in their life, haphazardly flops the fly on the South Platte River and a fish takes the fly.  Such was the case this morning when my client who had never fly-fished, netted a fish on her very first cast. The cast was made, the fish was on and screaming down the river.  For those of us who regularly fish the South Platte River at Deckers, we know how stacked the odds are against this feat.

How do we understand such events? Are they explainable? Do they mean anything? Are such events worthy of our attention and consideration?  Or, do we just quickly resolve the issue by calling it “Beginners Luck?” Yet, if we are honest with ourselves, we know this cliché does not completely explain the phenomena? The religious might call it a blessing of God but this also does not settle the issue as I want to ask,  “Why a blessing of God today with this person and not tomorrow with another?”

Before we consider quickly responding to these questions, we need to look at the opposite of “good luck” and consider what we call “bad luck.” For every story of good fortune when it seems that some “blessing” falls out of the sky (or comes down the river), there are countless other stories of misfortune.  Perhaps we are at the same loss of words to explain both the fortunes and misfortunes that make up our lives.

A fly fisher catches 5 or 6 big fish in the morning. Another angler just across the way, also hooks 5 or 6 big fish but only to have the hook pull out just before netting? Why? Is this good luck for one and bad luck for another?  Are the “fish gods” with the one and not the other? 

In the big scheme of things, does any of this matter? Yet, we can think of more important life events that results in more profound outcomes in our lives.  Our explanations can be just as vague. And maybe we need to stay unresolved and without definite conclusions.

In the end, I do not know. Or, at the very least I am not sure. I do believe though that when something happens and gets our attention, even such as the catching of a fish on our first cast, we could consider the event and ponder its occurrence.  We may never figure out its meaning but we can “live in the question.”  I have also found that as we live in these questions, this is probably not the time to quote scripture;  those “one liners” we often use out of context, to support ones explanation and viewpoint. All too often this results in superficial resolution and neglects the person standing across the river who might be fish-less.  

We ask the questions that have no answers. As we ponder the questions, we might vaguely become aware of a story, a bigger story, and yet, in some small ways, is the story of our individual lives. We become aware of both the seemingly fortunate and unfortunate events of our lives and those around us; all connected in the mystery of our life with God.