Friday night found me attending a fly-fishing film festival at our local Oscar Blues Brewery. Being that I neither drink beer nor fly-fish, I wasn’t completely sure what I was in for.
The first short film started and I have to say, I was hooked (heh).
With good music, awesome camera angles, and a lot of dudes (and one or two dudettes) all pumped up about fly fishing for trout, shark, and even carp, how could I not have a good time? Plus, they fished rivers, lakes, and even the ocean in these short films. Who knew you could fly fish in the ocean while sitting on a stand up paddle board?
I also appreciated the focus on the environment and catch-and-release. It was fish-preservation at its finest.
Interestingly, one film really stuck out for me.
The film series itself was sponsored by Trout Unlimited. They were raising funds for Project Healing Waters Fly Fishing (TM), whose goal and mission is dedicated to the physical and emotional rehabilitation of disabled active military service personnel and disabled veterans through fly fishing and associated activities, including education and outings.
A Vietnam veteran was featured in one of the final films and his words stuck in my throat and opened my heart:
“When I’m out in the water, I want to get the cast right, get the bug right, and get the float right. I can spend hours doing this.”
He admitted after returning from the war, he’d isolated himself. He considered suicide. His thoughts and memories from the war left him feeling raw, damaged, and frightened.
Because of fly fishing, he found a community. He found support. He has friends. And they share several common bonds.
It’s awesome.
Gentle reader, I think a lesson here is we need each other. The veteran in the movie didn’t have visible wounds. He had all his limbs. He was suffering silently.
Through the act of being in nature, especially on the water, and through finding a community of kindred souls, this man found healing. He found health. He found joy!
I hope if you are suffering silently, you will find the courage and bravery to seek out help. To find a community of kindred souls. To find your own health. And to find joy!
I’m sure if there’s a business lesson in all this, it’s to say: people matter. Put people first. Make sure people are more important than your being wildly successful or outrageously profitable.
People matter. I matter. YOU matter.
The other lesson is to make time to be in nature. She is healing. Our fast-paced, artificial world is unhealthy. Spending time in nature, doing an activity you love, is restorative.
Find your joy and practice it with abandon!
Make some room (and don’t forget to FISH ON),
Angie