Picture This Life

There’s nothing I enjoy doing more on a warm, calm, summer Saturday morning than going fishing. And that’s just what I did a few weeks ago. I’m fortunate enough to have access to a small, secluded pond on the back forty of a Missouri farm that’s got enough bass in it to make my forearm ache just thinking about reeling another one in. Sitting there in my canoe, feet hanging over the edge, toes dipping in the cool water, birds singing in the cattails, I don’t know that I could be any more at peace.

As I cast my favorite lure towards the edge of the lily pads, it lands with a gentle splash and a cascading series of ripples on the smooth surface of the pond. I twitch the lure and the water ripples. Twitch and ripple. Twitch and ripple. And before long a hungry bass responds with a vicious bite, I set the hook, reel him in, let him go, cast back out and continue to twitch and ripple.

Reeling in another bass, I got to thinking about how much fishing and peace-building have in common. Three things came to mind…

First, fishing gives me peace. And while peace for one person in a world so filled with hate, war, violence, suffering, hunger, conflict and pain, may seem insignificant or even a little selfish, I believe that it’s far easier to share peace after you’ve first found a way to restore peace in your life.

Second, the ripples. It’s amazing to think that a twitch of my wrist can travel up the rod, down the line, to the lure and then onto the surface of the pond. After we’ve found peace, it’s up to us to let it radiate outward like ripples on a pond.

And third, our suffering planet and the people who live on it are in such dire need of peace and reconciliation, that it can be daunting to know where to start and how to make an impact. In much the same way, that pond is full of fish, but no matter how hard I try or how many fish I may wish to catch, I can only reel in one fish at a time. This one step at a time approach makes fishing, and peace-building, a little less intimidating and a lot more feasible.