A change of pace for a quick moment
Often I sit back and reflect on my previous years on this earth and all the fish I have caught and all the flies I tied. It?s these dear memories that comes to me as I sit and tie flies on a long winters day. I think of all the trials and tribulations I had along with a haunting I feel fishing the streams in the Catskills that great ones have fished before me that are now long gone to never shine their light upon this earth again. They are now the stars in the sky that I look up to and see them sparkle and shine. It?s these wonderful thoughts that place a smile on my face and a warm feeling deep down in my soul. This is a genuine moment, one that cannot be fabricated or conjured up. It?s this moment in time when I am thankful for all the gifts in my life. It?s this time I realize how fishing and tying has truly touched my life. I come out of this daze with a chuckle and a smile on my face and look at the wet fly that I just tied and say to myself how beautiful. I love the tying of these wet flies especially the Ray Bergman patterns found in Trout, Just Fishing and With Fly, Plug and bait. I realize that tying these old wet flies is a passion of mine and how it connects me to the past. I then start to look at the wet fly I just tied and start to think where this fly will work and the fish that I hope to catch. Its days like this spent at my vise that becomes some of the best winter days I ever had. People now a days forget to stop and smell the roses. I feel this to be true of some of the younger generation coming up. They get so caught up in catching that Trout and what fly to use. They never stop to take a deep breath of cool clean air and look at all the beauty that surrounds them while out on that stream. I am realizing more and more just how much fun and relaxation that fly fishing and fly tying truly are. I also notice how this sport fuels the mind and instills peace in ones self. There is a lot more to fly fishing and tying that I just mentioned. But at this moment in time these are my thoughts and feelings. I write this tonight because I know there are others on this great site that we call home that may have the similar thoughts and feelings. Just taking a break from fishing and rods and gear and tying for a brief moment.
Andy B
