Woman in Waders - Michelle Meyer.................. Reflections

Michelle Meyer

It started on a day in 2020 while I was bumming on the couch watching Netflix. I suddenly saw a reflection of my past whilst watching The Queen’s Gambit, a marvellous miniseries starring Anya Taylor-Joy and based on the novel by American Walter Tevis.

“The Queen's Gambit traces chess prodigy Beth Harmon's life from her childhood ... to her triumphant rise through the Grandmaster ranks.” -wikipedia

Now by no means do I consider myself a prodigy, a grandmaster or an orphan in the sixties, and I by no means do I have a disturbing past. But what really struck me was Beth from the series; her personality, her experiences and how chess was a core part of her being and how it defined her way of life.

I started fly fishing at the age of ten. It was my Uncle Norman who first put a rod in my hand. He was my role model. He was always so calm on the banks of the water. We spent forever in silence staring and searching so deeply into the depths. I believe that every young child that goes fishing with a mentor learns to behave more calmly, is a lot more in tune with their surroundings and is able to achieve intense focus and perseverance.

Beth as a child was taught chess in an orphanage by the janitor. Later in life she heard of his passing and went back to the orphanage and into the Service Room where they had played. The tears rolled endlessly down my cheeks, as I was only fourteen when my Uncle passed. The passion for the sport you shared, when you realise how special the gift was that they had given you, changes things. It adds that additional drive and, in a way, an indebtedness such that you will never give it up.

After his passing I was overwhelmed with support by my parents and family members to keep me fishing, even if it was to drive me to every Bell’s Competition so that I could win some tackle and enjoy my hobby with some fellow anglers. Beth was adopted by parents that later divorced. The mother struggled and Beth wanted to compete for money.

Lessons. A young girl competing in a predominantly male dominated pastime. Walking in and snatching away the prizes. One short story; Competition Day. We all did our draw and we started lining up on the bank in what seemed like three meter long beats. He walked towards his flag and immediately threw down his toys and started complaining hysterically about getting a spot next to me, convinced that I would be slapping the water and chasing away fish.

I ran across the dam to ask my Aunt what I should do, she too loves fly fishing and took me under her wing. She demanded that I get back, reminding me that the siren was about to go off and that I needed to get my line in the water. I ran back, held my breath and waited.

The siren sounded and was followed the buzzing of dozens of lines being unwound off of reels. I did my double haul and landed my fly far out across the water. Silence. I think he went as white as a sheet. He might have only gotten about twelve meters out. I just pretended not to notice. Ten minutes later he reeled up and disappeared. I never saw him again.

What did I learn? Let haters be haters. Even when one feels like you don’t belong you don’t need to convince people to believe in you, just believe in yourself. Eventually all will be revealed, just take your time with things. Grow and observe but enjoy those tough moments when you come out on top and when it’s your time. The feeling will be so great you will be glad you never wasted any negative energy on something that just is what it is.

Connections. In one episode after Beth became a little famous she got invited to the popular girls’ school club. Oh boy, those years of puberty. This made me laugh and smile. I got this sudden memory of my past.

The Spice Girls were it! And just like in the episode the girls all got up and started dancing and singing along to a song Beth had never seemed to have heard before in her life. Indeed, completely oblivious to the new billboard hit, I too stood all stiff at a party I was invited to once. I think my parents were renovating so I was fishing a lot!

However the connections I made on the water, like the connections Beth made, were more could you ask for. From the super-rich to the poorest. From all across the country. People in professions from CEOs to artists.

The interesting conversations. I learnt all about truck mechanics on the way to Paris once. I heard life changing stories. Challenges people have overcome. Struggles with travels, illnesses you get in your old age that I had never heard of. The general knowledge about living in certain groups, communities and regions.

Learning about how to travel and how to save up for retirement. Learning how to make good choices. Being protected, watched over and taken care of. Trusting strangers in life threatening situations. Studying people approach each other when wanting to ask a question - which may seem so novel and embarrassing. Observing how everyone present starts to learn and soak up knowledge. Learning how to teach and to be empathetic. And if you are lucky, learning the lyrics to a Scottish Folk Song and teaching the Makarena to a bunch of cold people getting warm through sherry and whiskey.

Information Gathering. Home internet connections only became popular in my late teens and early twenties. I studied Multimedia at varsity because I wanted to make User Interfaces and Human Computer Interactions my career. So we heard of this thing called facebook and we created accounts and shared varsity themed content and tagged on our friends’ walls. But I couldn’t resist. I had to find flyfishers. After we kinda realised what facebook was, we created our social media profiles. Magazines and books became a part of my special collection. My profile was about flyfishing and there were random tags by Thunder Photographers or ‘friends’ who owned digital cameras and caught you unaware.

I made connections from across the globe. Spain, France, UK, America and more. It was amazing. We shared techniques, mp3 fly tying videos. We taught each other our languages and shared music. I finally had people I could bounce ideas off, and could test questions and theories I had about overseas techniques and entomology. Just like Beth I had a click of friends, a group I could never walk away from. Friends that I have made for life.

Destinations. It must be said that as a young student and no longer traveling with the family competitive fly fishing was a blessing. A lady invited me to join her team at a Nationals. It was the first time a ladies team would be entered into an event. From there on ladies teams were established in several provinces.

We trained with the others in our province; juniors, ladies, seniors and travelled and fished hard together. We had lift clubs and I felt safe. It was structured and my parents knew where I was. I recall having a cellphone, but actually having it on wasn’t a thing yet.

What you learn when being part of a provincial team is priceless. You participate in national events and fish restricted waters. Dedicating time and money as an investment into your sport and representing a team is something I would recommend to everybody. Being part of a federation, showing support and paying membership fees helps us to have accessible flyfishing destinations. Being part of a province gives you a sense of responsibility and develops you into a better person in general, as long as you don’t let it get to your head.

Beth learns to speak Russian as her dream is to go to Moscow and compete against the Grandmaster. She doesn’t make it the first time and makes mistakes along the way. The cinematography of Moscow blows you away. The director captures the emotion of suspense and anxiety as she tries to remain posed and calm. It’s the same feeling when you fly in to land at that fishing destination you have dreamed of for so long. How the beauty of the moment, the sense of massive achievement was exactly in line with the feeling I recalled when you land the trophy catch.

The miniseries ends there, so I can’t really relate to what happens next in her life. However, my hope for all of us is to continue to learn every time we visit the water or find ourselves in the company of other fishers. To forever stay grateful for the gift that has been given to us. To never lose the passion or have life bring us down and distract us from our dreams and the place where we find peace.

I believe that all my experiences, good and bad, during my journey so far as an angler will continue to help me get through the challenges I face in social and corporate environments. Hopefully all the exercise on the keyboard keeps my fingers flexible and fit for all the flies I still need to tie. May my reflexes stay sharp so that I never miss a bite and also catch the mug before it spills coffee all over my workstation.