Just a short update on a recent trip back to Jurong Lake Park first. Went to my usual spot earlier this week for some last light action before heading to an event back in school. The water was unusually clear for the lake but water levels seemed awkwardly low too. Managed to land a couple of juveniles that day and it was great fun. It was actually the first time I managed to spot the peacock basses in this part of the lake because water conditions are usually quite bad. Towards the end of the session I was able to do some spot fishing which was definitely a much better experience compared to my usual blind casting.

For the past few weeks, I've been fishing slightly more at my usual haunts and have met quite a number of characters along the way. It's really quite intriguing how a hobby or passion that has a stigma of being boring has allowed me such opportunities to interact with these strangers. We do not exchange names but the amount of insights they share definitely tells more about who they are than their names ever could.

A man in his early forties shouts to me from afar like we have known each other for years as he leads his family to the beach. He tells me about my terrible choice of fishing location and shares with me his preferred spot. Stories of fish he has caught keeps my attention for awhile before he excuses himself to have lunch with his family. It's been years since they last came here as his daughters reminisced the years that prelude. One of them follows him with a small net in hand as he tosses a pancake with his casting net.

Wrinkles and sun-aged skin covered this next one. A different location on a different day. Trips out to sea and working at ports exposed this man of experience to situations I was not familiar with. A man who has stopped fishing for years as age has crept close but yet he labors on as society deems it so. I realized that for all I know, there is much that I still do not know and he has no trouble reminding me of the fact so tactlessly. 

With this next man, our conversation begins with fishing and ends with a reminder of different systems that govern the world . His dog stares blankly into the distance as he asks about the pliers which I had left in the open. Nobody likes being on the wrong side of the law but the inflexibility annoys him as he explains his woes. An avid traveler who has seen more of the world than I have my own country. 

She smiles at me as I sat next to her and she asks about my destination. The law I abide by of catch and release of fish doesn't go too well with her. A wizened old lady who talked about the Japanese occupation and how I am privileged to be in the now. She speaks truth and while I do not like to admit it, I know that there is no better time to live than in the now. I avoid sitting next to her as we board the bus.

"Hello" was all it took for this other lady. She loves her son and she speaks to me of her son's fortunate circumstances and her take on life. A lady who is familiar with bus captains and had no trouble making friends. We were on the last bus and she smiles throughout but her eyes betray her. She is thankful that I am willing to listen as she talks to me about her family and how her son seem to care more about his pet fish than her. I reflect on my own actions and guilt takes over. She alights and stands at the bus stop to wave goodbye to me. We were both smiling but I am sure she sighed right after, just as I did.

A routine check which I was familiar to. Two young men dressed in blue approached me. One of them initiated a conversation akin to a subtle form of interrogation and the other radio'ed in to do a background check. One of them, I can't recall which, tells me about his fishing experience when he was younger. He tells me to sign on.

He wore a bucket hat and strolled confidently as his lady friend puffed away beside him. A Chinese man who was not local. He set up his rod before proceeding in an exchange of saliva. My casts close to his direction got his attention as he approached me. We shared photos of fishes we've caught and he took a few pictures and videos of me which was a little amusing .

Then there was this boy. A boy who stunned me with a statement. A boy probably ten years younger than me and has gone through so much more. A boy who whilst beaten, is still positive about his future and seizing every moment.

It is understandable. I have felt it too before. We all know that feeling where people come up to you and are moderately interested in your activities and occasionally they prod and prod and get on you. My take is that while many a times, they poke to get information, sometimes it turns into a sharing session instead and you never know what others have to share. This is where the beauty of fishing plays its part in giving people opportunities to initiate a conversation. Sometimes people really just need a reason to share.

It's 3am in the morning and I'm not quite sure if any of it above makes any sense or even what point I'm trying to drive at but just hear me out. You see, I'm at some sort of crossroads in my life currently. I am no longer a student and I am not sure if I am ready to adult yet (is anyone ever ready anyway?). The thing is this, I am all of these people I have met and maybe we all are at every point of our life. Some parts of me are the older folks who occasionally look back at the past to put into perspective of where I am now, some part of me is the man with the cigarette-puffing lady, enjoying the now, and maybe some part of me is also that boy who has ended one journey and looking forward to the next. 

Maybe sometimes fishing is more about people and less about the fish.

Maybe sometime if we share a little, we gain more in return.