Happy Go Fishing Day! Picture this. The sun is just beginning to rise over the horizon, painting the sky a vivid palette of reds and oranges. The quiet buzz of insects can be heard as they dance over the water’s surface, punctuated occasionally by the splash of a fish breaking the surface for its morning meal, unknowing that it is destined to become a meal itself. Go Fishing Day celebrates quiet, meditative moments like this and those individuals who find solace in the pursuit of this elusive prey. But we aren't here today to talk about the fish themselves. I'm more interested in the positive benefits activities like fishing have on us, both mentally and physically, based on the skill and diligence they require. So often these days we get caught up in the fast-moving, instant gratification activities of life that we become almost allergic to anything that requires us to slow down and progress at what feels like a glacial pace towards competence, let alone even mastery. Activities that require deliberate and intentional work over long periods of time can have real and meaningful benefits for us. Some of the biggest physical benefits include boosting the immune system! Yes that’s a fact, if you’re doing something that you love, then your body is healing and strengthening itself constantly. Add this to the muscular strength you need to reel in that big one on the line and you’re really working your cardiovascular system also. Good start isn’t it? Plus just being out in nature with some fresh air and vitamin-D dosing sunshine does the body good in so many ways too. After all, we're still just animals and our bodies reward us for getting up from our desks and immersing ourselves back in our natural roots. All those bodily feel-goods transfer internally too. Being outside doing something you love, even when you aren't making any catches, will help you relax. For those who have a little bit of a short temper, you could choose fishing as a way to tame that fiery temperament and learn to chill the eff out. Practicing patience promotes a calm nature, which is beneficial for you mentally and physically; it can lower blood pressure and allow you to feel more calm and ready to tackle life long after you get home! It will help promote self-reliance and the ability to learn for yourself, and it’s a sport that can be enjoyed individually or with family. As you can guess you guess you can enjoy these benefits with many activities, not just fishing. But you have to find activities that meet at least some of these criteria. First, you need to get out of your regular habitat, which means either home or work. You need to get some place where you aren't (1) surrounded by all the regular stressors of daily life and (2) surrounded by all the things we use to distract ourselves. When we put ourselves in an unfamiliar environment our brains are scientifically proven to get primed to absorb new experiences, focus, and learn better. You don't even need to go out to the middle of nowhere; even just going to a new coffee shop is enough to trigger that reaction. Next, these activities shouldn't be something you can master in a weekend. You want something that you can go both broad and deep on so there is plenty for you to explore over time. You want something that will require patience and diligence to progress to greater levels of competency and skill. These are the kinds of activities that will give you those mental and emotional boosts.
