Trotlines

This morning while I was making my rounds I spotted a trotline running across the narrows at the north end of Harper Lake. I ain't got nothing against a fellow using a trotline to fish, as long as he is fishing to feed his family or make a living. But there ain't to sport to it. A real fisherman will consider his angling as an art. He will study the subject and learn not only how to fish but when and where to fish. He will consider the weather (cold fronts, warm fronts, clouds, sunshine, temperature) and the best spot on the lake or river to dip his hook. He will learn casting technique and bait selection. And he will unhook and release any fish he does not intend to have for supper. If a man sets out a trotline just to see how many fish he can land, he ain't no fisherman, he's a fisherdunce. That's my own word so don't bother looking it up.

Tales of Harper, short stories and poems about the fictional town of Harper, Mississippi is available on Amazon Kindle