I was thinking... October 22, 2023
This week's reflections...
Stones
Monday and half of Tuesday found me in the hospital having kidney stone surgery, then recovery. It wasn’t the most conducive environment for banging away at the keyboard. Recovering at home has been slower than I hoped, and the energy and focus to devote to the project has been in short supply. I pecked out a few desultory starts as I slowly recovered. By Sunday afternoon I had enough gumption to clean up the mess and get on with it. As I was having stones removed, Mick, Keith and the boys (I so miss Charlie) gave us “Cockney Diamonds.” It’s been 18 years since they gave us a studio album. I didn’t think there would be another, and I’m delighted to have this one to savor.
Reality
The opportunity to see how things turn out is one value of getting to be as old as I am. Recovering from surgery brought the difference between hope and reality into focus quicker than I was expecting. Shocked that I wasn’t rebounding as fast as I expected, I started arguing with myself about what was happening and it got me thinking. Why do I argue with reality? Why do I say “they (undefined) should have” or “why isn’t this…”? It’s wish casting or arguing with reality. And just like wishing I would heal faster; it wasn’t a good use of my time or energy. I’m not going to argue with reality anymore.
LaBash’s Lefty
It appears I was not the only one in my circle who was in recovery mode this week. Pen pal Matt LaBash was lamenting his recent bout with COVID and he used the occasion to remind us of the greatness that was Lefty Kreh.1
“What Lefty did best of all, with his reverence for things that matter (fish, rivers, people) and irreverence for that which doesn't ("there is more BS in fly fishing than there is in a Kansas feedlot"), was make you want to fish just like he did: full-on, without pretense, doing what works, discarding what doesn't, grabbing all there is to be gotten, then returning it right back to where you found it.”
While I never fished with Lefty, I hung out with him a bit. A highlight was a conversation about Tenkara.2 Since his passing six years ago, there have been numerous tributes. LaBash’s ranks in the top tier. If you want to know more about Lefty, Monte Burke’s article, “Southern Master: The Legend of Lefty,”3 is my favorite. What Labash and Burke highlight is Lefty’s view of life. I’m thankful to be reminded of it.
Double Taper
With a little extra time on my hand this week, I had the chance to read more. This article, “Whither the double taper?”4 by John Juracek got my attention and got me thinking.
“Double tapers, with their longer tips and tapers, offer a much smoother turnover—a wonderful quality that adds to the pleasures of casting and aids presentation in delicate fishing situations,” writes Juracek.
For the last three years, I’ve been using double tapers on my Sweet Grass bamboo rod. Like many, I thought weight forward was the way to go. But when I talked it over with my friend Jerry Kustich, who designed and built the rod he told me the double taper was the way to go.5
My personal experience, talking to Kustich, and now reading Juracek has me seriously rethinking my line choices. As I replace them, the double tapers are going to find their way on to the reels.
Leadership
I’ll have the opportunity early next year to take part in a leadership development program. The leadership training and development has been enough of an interest of mine that I’ve had the privilege to have contributed to published works on the subject. One of the more interesting opportunities was to contribute to the book “Fly Fishing for Leadership.” My contribution is minimal, relating a story about a client whose reason for fishing that day caught me by surprise. It was used to illustrate the healing power of fly-fishing. As I recalled the story and I thought about that day, I realized how much fly-fishing, even while I wasn’t doing it, was healing me right then
https://gardenandgun.com/feature/southern-master-the-legend-of-lefty/
https://www.hatchmag.com/articles/whither-double-taper/7715795
You said, "I’m not going to argue with reality anymore." So, how's that going? It's not an easy thing to do, I find.
Tom, I hope you are feeling better soon (selfishly so we can get on the water) and I really appreciated the article about Lefty. I think Tenkara is fabulous on small mountain streams going after my beloved brook trout. On the subject of a double taper. When I got back into fly fishing almost two years ago after 20 years everything was weight forward as opposed to the double tapers I had been used to growing up. Which DT line do you recommend?