Unregrettable
One of the most famous quotations in sports mythology and inspirational meme-world is Wayne Gretzky’s “You miss 100% of the shots you don't take.” It’s true that once an opportunity has gone by that particular window has closed. As such, I have certain regrets in my fishing career:
I regret that I did not pay attention to the high school Spanish teachers who told me to study harder, because while I can now cobble together a few words, true fluency escapes me. Given the amount of time we intend to spend in Mexico and Guatemala and Panama, it would have been a helpful skill.
I regret that I did not spend more money on my 2007 tackle tour of Japan.
I regret that I didn’t make a second trip to Japan to fish/shop while my brother and his family lived there.
I regret that I never took fly casting lessons.
I regret that I ate lunch out nearly every day during my six years working for a law firm rather than bringing lunch from home and adding that money to my retirement fund.
I regret that I didn’t pursue offshore fishing during my long gap between trips from 1995 and 2020.
I regret that I didn’t take more writing classes in college instead of the “resume builders” that I assumed would help me get into law school.
I regret the fact that Hanna and I did not start Half Past First Cast earlier, since it’s been one of the most rewarding writing experiences I’ve undertaken.
I regret that I did not buy a small house on a nearby lake when real estate was far less expensive – it would have been an awesome location for teleworking during the pandemic.
I mean all of the bullet points listed above, but to dwell exclusively on them is an unhelpful “glass half empty” mentality. Like Gretzky, I can’t retake the shots that I decided to forego in the moment. I do, however, have a lot of runway ahead of me to learn from them or compensate for them…in other words, to start taking more good shots. All of us do, and for each past opportunity missed you need to think of a tool or resource you’ve gathered to counteract it. For instance: I’ve spent the last 25-plus years in general and 15 years in particular building a huge network of fishing contacts; I’ve spent hundreds of days on the water building up a basic skill set and appreciation for the sport; Hanna and I have spent the past year working our tails off to get this site off the ground; and while I hope that I’m nearing the point where we’ll have more time to take leisurely trips, I’ve also developed a system to make the most of my time off from work.
Thinking about it in this way makes me happy and hopeful.
Remember, our motto and mantra involves helping you “keep fishing fun and make the most of your remaining casts.” Gretzky may have eventually run out of shots, but the rest of us have not, so write down your regrets and figure out how you’re going to make up for them. I’ll start – I can still learn Spanish and study fly casting and return to Japan, among others. You too can make a list of species your want to catch, or places you want to go, or things you want to learn, and start checking them off one by one.
