“CORONAVIRUS SELF-ISOLATION ISN’T A PROBLEM FOR ANGLERS – WE’VE BEEN DOING IT FOR YEARS”
WE’RE living in strange, threatening times and with the current Coronavirus pandemic, it seems that having some space around us and some time to ourselves has never been more important.
But talking of the virus, perhaps anglers are already one step ahead of the rest with self-isolation. Preferably with a pint of maggots and limited phone reception.
Joking aside, if there is one silver lining to the current crisis, it might just be the licence to spend time alone for a change. And as our usual activities become increasingly risky or forbidden, angling could be an invaluable means to stay sane.
Don’t you ever get the urge to take off and be alone for a while? In our relentlessly busy, obsessively connected world, the notion of solitude can seem alien. Even when we are alone, we are seldom truly free of the burden of other people.
If that sounds antisocial, just consider the current world. Thanks to our digital devices and the endless clamour of social media, we appear to have sold off our precious solitude cheaply.
Unlike Brexit, we barely noticed, nor had any say, yet this priceless commodity has withered. The culture of “show off and share everything” is so all-pervasive that the quieter souls among us tend to be looked upon as weird or lonely.
At any given moment we are at the mercy of messages, texts and emails. We have hundreds of online “friends” while simultaneously losing the ability to make friends with our own minds.
Even on the bank, we can find ourselves constantly interrupted, unable to enjoy a beautiful sunset because we’re too busy smashing it straight to Instagram.
And yet fishing has never lost the vital ability to transport us to somewhere more private and peaceful. It allows us to relish our own company and win back some distance from the office, the wife or whatever else we need a break from.
The only cautionary note I must add is that we’ve become so accustomed to the clamour of the modern world, it can take patience and conscious effort to actually feel comfortable in our own company again.
Tragically, we’ve become such strangers to solitude that the very experience of enjoying time alone can feel like a shirt that no longer fits. How many of us can sit perfectly still for a whole hour, for example, without checking our phone?
Like a muscle we haven’t exercised in a while, the act of being alone might feel strained. But like physical exercise, it is so important that we try to keep our mental health intact. And on this level, you couldn’t recommend angling more highly, ideally in a wild, secluded location with no digital device to hand.
How ironic that sometimes the only way to truly connect with ourselves is to lose that incessant connection to others.
“How many of us can sit perfectly still for a whole hour?”