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[at-l] quotes (why we are out htere)

As to why, Robert Traver said it best.  Although he was 
referring to fly fishing, if you think of Back Packing 
as you read it you will see the universality in his 
statement.
BTW Robert Traver is the pen name of the late Michigan 
Supreme Court Judge John Voekler, also the author of 
"Anatomy of a Murder" and many fishing stories.

TESTAMENT OF A FISHERMAN

I fish because I love to; because I love the environs 
where trout are found, which are invariably beautiful, 
and hate the environs where crouds of people are
found, which are invariable ugly; because of all the 
television commercials, cocktail parties, and assorted 
social posturing I thus escape; because in a world where
most men seem to spend their lives doing things they 
hate, my fishing is at once an endless source of delight
and an act of small rebellion; because trout do not lie
or cheat and cannot be bought or bribed or impressed 
by power, but respond only to quietude and humility 
and endless patience; because I suspect that men 
are going along this way for the last time, and I for one
don't want to waste the trip; because mercifully there
are no telephones on trout waters; because only in the
woods can I find solitude without loneliness; because
burbon out of an old tin cup always tastes better out
there; because maybe one day I will catch a mermaid; and
finally, not because I regard fishing as being so
terribly important but because I suspect that so many
of the other concerns of men are equally unimportant--
and not nearly so much fun.

Robert Traver

I hope you enjoy this piece as much as I do (I have a 
calligraphed copy on the wall in my office).  While
typing it I realized that it is all one sentence.

Rich Lubitz
(lubitz@alpha.fdu.edu)



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