Fishin'

“I’m going out to fish,” Simon Peter told them, and they said, “We’ll go with you.” So they went out and got into the boat, but that night they caught nothing. John 21:3

Here is the "backyard".

Sarah and I were invited by Dr. Francisco, who is our supervisor at AMC, to spend the weekend with him fishing. Dr. Francisco is a fanatic fisherman, but also works so often he doesn't always have the time to go fishing. He's been known to carry his fishing pole along when traveling with AMC to visit the project sites along the Rio Coco.

Dr. Francisco in his element.

One of the family members, from the house where we fished, found this baby "lora".

Last Friday night, we traveled with Dr. Francisco and his wife Alicia to stay with Dr. Francisco's mom in Matagalpa. Her house is located in a neighborhood just outside of the city and sits raised up on a hilltop with an awesome view over the city. We got to meet his mom and some of his siblings.

On Saturday, Dr. Francisco, his brother, brother-in-law, nephew, nephew's friend, Sarah, and I loaded up in the pick-up truck with two in the back with the poles and headed to MuyMuy or very very. The big question is very very what? We fished in a river in the backyard of a friend of Dr. F's. When I say backyard, I mean a breathtaking view of the mountains and rushing river. Their humble home sits in one of the most gorgeous spots in Nicaragua.

Kency and Sarah fishing with Kency's "breakfast" sausage.

I have to note that this is the first fishing trip I've gone on where we actually walked directly through the water while casting. I was very grateful to be in the cold water after a while and not standing on the hot shore.

One of my favorite moments was standing chest height in the river casting my line and simply listening to all the sounds surrounding me. I heard the clicking sound of my reel as I reeled my lure back in, the grunting/yelling sounds of local resident herding his cattle down to the water to get a drink, the sound of water rushing through rocks, and the slapping sound of a women as she swung her clothes to on stone in the river.

Sarah hadn't been fishing since she was 10. She became a casting pro.

One thing I quickly took note of was how little we fit into the scenery around us. We walked with our life vests, hats, fancy fishing gear, the whole package, yet we encountered "cowboys", children bathing and women washing clothes. We did encounter another little boy fishing, but he was using a simple fishing line and hook. Dr. Francisco's brother-in-law, Antonio, said he caught a fish but then noticed a local women was only catching little puny fish, so he gave his fish away. We were fishing for pleasure, while the community members were seeking food to feed their families.

We came across this precious little girl as we walked along the river. She was carry a sack of stones back to her house.

Dr Francisco quickly captured this picture right as my camera battery died. We traveled outside of Mantagalpa to stand at this breathtaking lookout where we could easily spot several of Nicaragua's volcanoes.

Sadly, no one caught any fish in our group, but as every sport fisherman and woman knows- it's not all about the catch- it's more about being in God's creation and being present with others. The whole time I could not stop thinking about how much Keith and my Pa would love to fish in such a location.

After fishing, we enjoying swimming and risking our lives for a thrill.