A friend of mine is struggling with where he is at in his life. 40 years have gone by with him not having much to show for it in the form of possessions, relationships, career etc. I was a witness to some of these years and in some cases an accomplice. He traveled the country living here and there. He picked up odd jobs and met odd and interesting people. In a sense he was our circles Moriarty.
Nowadays I feel its my job to try to keep him above water and other substances. He loves fishing and I've used the analogy a few times that its "not the fish, but the fishing". This seems to register with him and so i ponder the question here; is it the fishing?
We ran with many dudes that seemed to 'get it done' - in the form of education, career, relationships and failed relationships - a lot quicker than he, and even I did. When he gets stuck in this mindset I remind him that they never had the life experiences he did. Yea, they 'got it done' and they have a heck of a lot to show for it now, but what did they 'see' outside of the dorm room and board room?
I am pretty sure that the emptiness felt by having nothing can only be quieted temporarily by this type of pondering. I remind him that one good decision in succession with another can lead to life altering change. We all have heard that timing is everything in life but i would add that timing is everything only if we have put in the 'time' to prepare ourselves for when the 'timing' is right. So can one have it both ways? Can a person live essentially like a gypsy for 40 years and not expect to some day have a sense of emptiness?
I think that small changes can lead to bigger ones and I think that ultimately my friend needs to focus a little more on the fish now but not lose sight of everything he's learned while fishing.
I wonder what the fish thinks?
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