Sea Trout Religion
~
I have never, to my recollection, been accused of being a
religious man. To all outward appearances, I am as rational
as the next man, quite normal. Really, I am. Yet I do, from
time to time, get the feeling that perhaps something is
amiss, that I am somehow just a wee bit out of the ordinary.
The odd sideways glance, the occasional raised eyebrow, a
look, even, of incomprehension on the faces of those I meet,
when talking about something as simple as the weather, give
me pause for thought and I have to raise my hands and
confess. Yes, I am a practising sea trout fisher and, it
would seem, I do exhibit many of the symptoms of the
religious devotee.
Many are the sacrifices I make for my "religion", which I
put before all other things. My faith is strong, unwavering
and rarely reinforced by experience. I make annual, and
often arduous, pilgrimages to holy places where it is
rumoured that Salmo trutta trutta once appeared, and, when
asked, I am unable to produce evidence of His existence. On
holy days, I perform ancient rituals, often misunderstood by
the non-believer, involving walking in water in the dead of
night, dressed in robes of green, comforted by rod and staff
and often accompanied by a priest. I am daunted neither by
drought nor famine, pestilence nor plague for I am steadfast
in my faith, resolute in my mission. In the long dark days
which we know as the "Close Season", I devote much time to
the reading of the scriptures and create, for Him, wondrous
offerings out of fur, feather and tinsel. Wherever I can
find those that will listen, I spread the word, often at the
risk of ridicule, derision and social exclusion. At the time
of the winter solstice, our small community of believers
gathers at the appointed place for our annual ceremonial
meeting to hear the word, admit new members, gather in the
collection and talk of times of plenty in years past and yet
to come and, at the dawning of the New Season, we pray for
the Heavens to open and deliver unto us a bloody great
flood.
~
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