âThe morning was cool, damp, and not yet fully awake as I stepped up to the river. A slight fog held just above the water. The grass bent soft and wet beneath my footsteps, and the gray-skinned, ancient cypress trees stood there watching, waiting for something to happen. I stood there, too, my fly rod in hand, watching, waiting for something to happenâand it did. I donât know why it is that some of my best days on the river have begun with waking alone in the darkness, truly alone, with that deep, empty feelingâthat hollow aloneness that you cannot shake free of. It had been some time since my service in the Marines, but years later, the ghosts came to call, and I found myself afraid to sleep, knowing they come back.â â Read on... |