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There's an old Peggy Lee song, "Is that
all there is my friend? Is that all there is...."
The song relates a series of bad stuff and
laments life. Quite haunting and very sad.
How many of us go through 'bad stuff' and
feel our lives are senseless, joyless and
meaningless?
Don't misunderstand me, we all have our
problems - as my husband JC (or Castwell) and I
age we are aware of the slowing of our step,
little memory glitches, more pills than champagne
flutes in the kitchen cabinet - all signs of
aging. We didn't make our 'annual' trek to
the Bahamas this spring, and we both miss
that terribly. That really is our vacation,
and we have a special feeling toward the out
islands and the bonz. It just didn't work out.
We lost a few close friends this year as well,
and that isn't easy either. There are some
problems, but nothing we can't handle. We
could feel sorry for ourselves, but in reality,
what does that accomplish?
We were watching a little Saturday morning
television and there was one program about
bonefishing in the Bahamas, and another about
fishing grasshoppers on the Yellowstone River
where we used to live. "Been there done that."
We said it at the same time and laughed about it.
I don't know when we will do it again, but I'm
not willing to say "never."
I look out my window here in the den and have
a lovely view, garden in bloom, koi swimming
about and a couple of the koi are happily
eating the roots of the water lettuce I put
in the pond for them a day or so ago. There
is good food in the frig and freezer, JC had
a very successful check-up with his surgeon
on Friday, we aren't broke and we did actually
go fishing over on Rocky Ford a week ago.
Life is good.
So what do we (I) do when things do get me
down? Is there something you might be able
to do to help yourself? How can we regain a
little of the peace and joy we experience when
we are fishing...when we can't fish? This may
not be something you've ever thought about in
this way, but you can use your own mind to
call up those fishing trips and events which
gave you joy and pleasure.
Some call it conjuring - but that's an old-fashioned
word which many may not have even heard. Webster
defines it as:
TRANSITIVE VERB: 1a. To summon (a devil or spirit)
by magical or supernatural power. b. To influence
or effect by or as if by magic: tried to conjure
away the doubts that beset her. 2a. To call or
bring to mind; evoke: "Arizona conjures up an
image of stark deserts for most Americans"
(American Demographics). b. To imagine; picture:
"a sight to store away, then conjure up someday
when they were no longer together" (Nelson DeMille).
3. Archaic To call on or entreat solemnly, especially
by an oath.
INTRANSITIVE VERB: 1. To perform magic tricks,
especially by sleight of hand. 2a. To summon a
devil by magic or supernatural power. b. To
practice black magic.
NOUN: Chiefly Southern U.S. (knjr) See hoodoo (sense 1a).
ADJECTIVE: Chiefly Southern U.S. Of or practicing
folk magic: a conjure woman.
The active part is this: To imagine; picture:
"a sight to store away, then conjure up someday
when they were no longer together."
The trick is you can store away more than
"a sight" - you can store a whole event or
series of events in you mind and call them
up when you need to want to.
One of my favorites is JC and I sitting outside
in the sun, on the patio of the corner room at
Emerald Palms, South Andros in after a morning
of bonefishing. The wind had come up too strong
to continue fishing and we told our guide Gary
to head for the dock. Once in, showered and
changed, we sat with a fresh pot of coffee, out
of the wind, watching huge fish swim by in four-foot
waves. The turquoise waves with little white puffs
of foam blowing off the tops was gorgeous. I can
also call up many individual fish on the rod, and
run a movie in my mind of JC's big 'cuda' tail
walking across the water out on the west end of
South Andros. Oh yes, I can hear the sounds as well.
I'm not weird (well, then again I may be) but
anyone with a little practice and concentration
can do the same thing. Is it a form of self-hypnosis?
Meditation? Could be. But it does work. It will
allow you to unplug from your everyday life or
pressing problems enough to get a little renewal.
Some peace. It is worth learning how to do. ~ DLB
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