Appreciating Dartmouth and Friends

These past two days on Sunday and now today Monday, June 6th, I have gone saltwater fishing with my good friends. This post is more of a reflection and appreciation post than a statement or ideas that I am sharing out to the public. Fishing for me always brings back nostalgia. Eighth grade summer going into freshman year, I started fishing with my buddy Matt. Matt and I had become very close during middle school, yet I had never been fully introduced into his number one hobby which was fishing. The first fishing expedition I ever went on was with Matt, his dad and me. We went to Bayside pond and caught sunfish using worms Matt and I had collected in his backyard. I remember the feeling of catching my first sunfish and the excitement and joy it brought me. From that day on, I was hooked! Hahahaha. During the first two years of high school, Matt and I did everything together. We also went fishing almost every day after school which consisted of us jumping on our bikes and biking to all the ponds we knew of in a 20 mile radius of us. Whether that be sneaking into private backyard honeyholes, fishing off the bridge, or jumping from pond to pond, we did it all. As we got older, the bikes turned into mopeds with attachments on the back to hold our rods. These were the days where many laughs were shared and friendship was built. It was also an awakening for me. It taught me about the beauty of nature and developing the ability to appreciate the little things. The phrase about fishing goes like this: It’s called fishing not catching. If it was called catching, everyone would do it…(or something like that). There are many days that I don’t catch fish, yet catching fish is only one part of every adventure out on the water. What makes fishing so special for me is the time I have to be alone with my thoughts, the memories I make with friends, the mess ups and learning experiences, the nature and foliage you experience, and the list keeps going on and on. Since being at the University of Vermont, I really haven’t fished at all. Since going out with Matt and friends these past two days in our kayaks out into the harbor to go saltwater fishing, I have felt rejuvenated and re-excited by the whole experience of fishing. Being in the saltwater with your kayak, seeing amazing sunsets light up the sky, being able to paddle out to the breakwater, laughing and sharing fish catches with friends… It is all so amazing! This appreciation of beautiful days in Dartmouth has also been a new feeling for me. Don’t get me wrong, I always appreciate warm, sunny days, yet this year since coming home from UVM seems different. Up in Vermont, we really only had a couple of nice, warm days before I came home to Dartmouth. As a result of such long winters and an especially long rainy season this year, seasonal depression is real up there. To be home and have some vitamin D and sunshine in my life has made the whole difference. I also am just really enjoying the balance of my work and finding a new appreciation of Dartmouth, Massachusetts. All this fishing, doing landscaping work, and being back in my home town is making me feel very nostalgic and I am enjoying it. It feels good to be relaxed and enjoying the moments that made middle into high school so special for me! :)