Thread: One True Thing
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Old 02-20-2003, 03:54 AM   #19
mike lee
Location: Taipei, Taiwan
Join Date: Jun 2002
Posts: 646
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polishing the link

Quote:
I'm interested in these events - when we are able to rise up and do 'one true thing' be it a perfect pot, song, technique, or shot.
It can and should be in every moment. But perfection? Not sure what that is other than the pure fabrication of the human mind.

THE ONE THAT GOT AWAY

During my college years, I worked as a trip guide for young boys up in the boundary waters of the US and Canada (northern Minnesota). We travelled in groups of three canoes with three people in each boat.

We would often troll as we paddled, and if the fish started biting, we would stop for awhile and catch some more.

One day, after having just portaged, we entered the mouth of a long (maybe 3 miles) beautiful lake. It was late afternoon and the conditions must have been perfect. We couldn't haul the fish in fast enough. Mostly large-mouth bass — big healthy ones. Our mouths were watering; we were going to have a feast that night.

Then, for a brief moment, everything got still. The water started bubbling around the stringer that was in the water and now heavily loaded with our catch.

I yelled over to the kids in the other boat: "Pull the stringer up. Pull the stringer up."

When they did, there was one of the biggest freshwater fish I'd ever seen. It was a full-grown muskie. It was trying to eat our fish! I's fished for years with my grandfather, and I'd never seen such a thing in all my life!

It must've easily weighted 35 lbs. I thought, "that'll feed the whole camp easily."

But the fish was too heavy and the boy was shocked, so he dropped the stringer back into the water. I yelled over for another boy to help him. I said, "Pull it up and put it in the boat!"

As they pulled it up the second time, the entire fish jumped out of the water, fighting like the true beast that it was. And then suddenly, all was quiet. I asked, " What happened?"

The kids were stunned. The boy held up the empty stringer and said, "He ripped the metal ring right off the stringer."

That night, after the best fishing day of the entire summer, we had no fish to eat — but what an incredible story we had to tell.

Last edited by mike lee : 02-20-2003 at 03:58 AM.
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