Good Luck

Here's good luck excited angler,

May your quest be not in vain;

Though you follow leads elusive--

Hook and line or sagging seine--

Though you stumble over boulders

In your eager, mad pursuit

And the river spills its water

Down the funnel of your boot;

Though you never get a nibble

And you're weary, worn, and wet

And you swear your trip's a fizzle

And a failure on a bet. . .

This for you, frustrated angler,

Is the only thing I wish;

That you learn there's more to fishing

Than a creel packed full of fish.

You'll forget the bumps and bruises,

Empty hooks and broken lines,

When you've caught a glimpse of heaven

Through a sun-rift in the pines.

(First published in Along the Lane: Dedicated to the memory of Thomas William Larsen, who lost his life in World War II)