The Solitary Task of Writing
September 30, 2009 by hames-1977
Like a man in his fishing, so is writing.
You throw the fishing rod as if throwing on chances
while anchoring your boat on a chosen spot. In the open water.
And your fishing line sink deep in the ocean of words. You wait
in the hope that the hook lay captive to some imaginary mouths
snapped on a bait, struggling to come away like thoughts.
They are like fishes- these thoughts. They are swimming against the current.
Trapped and tackled. You hold the reel, winding down farther and farther
in search for the bounty of inspiration. Luring its elusiveness to a catch.
The waves of emotion might crashed into your shore.
The sinkers might get stucked through the rocks. Buried in sand.
Or in a desperate attempt, you cut the line and start anew.
But again, you throw the fishing rod. To wait and to hope
that a big catch is on its way to lock its jaw on the bait.
You keep gripping the reel firm awaiting for the prize.
And soon in the mid-air, after all hours spent in silence
like a child born out of the womb. Eureka! The feeling
of winning, the silver fish glimmer in your hands.
The writer has become a fisherman, persevering
in solitude, diving deeper into a mea culpa.
Hoisting the fishing line catching hearts, once again.
Marvin,
I’m feeling the same way lately, about the solitary task of writing. To the point of questioning and doubting myself, if I picked the right cup. But often, we always get answers to questions by writing. Somebody said, that we write to right things.
I also thought, perhaps the reason God gave me the gifts of writing and painting only to prepare me to survive a solitary life as an adult. He knows early on that I need to survive this, and exactly knows think ahead how to prepare me. So youre choice of fishing is perfect to enscape your thoughts. I’ve always loved fishing as a kid. And my childhood thoughts of fishing always bring back such a quiet fun. My poem: “Childhood Nook, Revisited!” is a poem I wrote to recapture the moments as I remember them. I also wrote a poem about fishing entertwined with “WAITING.”
~
You can test your patience by goin’ fishing
You can catch big fish if you wait and willing.
.
It takes the earth 365 days to make a year,
But it keeps on going.
It takes centuries to make history ~
The freedom we’re now enjoying.
It took your mom nine months of waiting
Before she held you in her arms,
The moment she’ve been longing.
.
It took us years to learn to walk, talk,
Read, write, paint, sing.
It took us years to find each other ~
You were looking and I was waiting.
.
It takes days, weeks, months, years,
Centuries, eternity to build new things ~
There is always a price for waiting.
~
And as what the wise Confucious said, “It doesn’t matter how slowly you go, as long as you don’t stop.”
I like this poem because it succeed to confront some thoughts about writing and finding enlightenment in the end, and the backdrop used of fishing made it really interesting I could and anybody could easily connect.
I wish you well.
~ Jeques
jeques,
i have been to a trip recently with my churchmates, at first, i don’t want to come at all. i dread going out in the crowd, but the image of the beach, enthralls me. i love the sight of the sea and water. i love to go there alone, quiet and undisturbed.
i remember a friend said to me that his brother will come and will bring along his fishing gears. i commented, that fishing is a boring sport, i would rather bring myself a book instead. then he quipped, that reading a book is much more boring, then he laughed.
yeah, that is true, sometimes. so one night, i just come along and curious on how it is being done. i just observed how they do it. and it has given me inspiration to write about writing and connect the two.
reading and writing can be boring to some, but never to me. but sometimes, we ought to go out, and try new things, that would make one’s life experience richer and fonder.
oh, others might be interested how to express themselves in writing, but found handicapped on this ability. in things, all are equal. to learn something, we have equal access to time and effort. plus the heart to really learn it. so i guess, everyone, is on the same ground.
it is really hard to write on something that interests. most especially, on a topic that interests equally on everyone. for that matter, a writer’s skill is put on the test, on how to make a bland and cliched topic, all the more interesting. i admire those writers who can seamlessly express themselves when they are writing, at such ease and speed.
like the way i admire your works at such depth and soul.
best of times,
marvin