The Last Trip You Don’t Know Is Your Last

A Guest Post by Jim Spurlock

Never take your fishing trips for granted, because one day it’ll all be done.

I didn’t even see the signs that were preparing me for a long time. First came a bad tremor in my dominant hand and arm, which I pushed off as a side effect of the medication I was taking for anxiety. Next came a speech impediment where I slurred my words and didn’t talk loud enough. Then came the falls, which I blamed on my bifocals. Then came the apathy – excuses, really. Not wanting to go out, dumb lame excuses, but they felt legitimate in my mind.

The last time I went out, I didn’t stay long. A small tornado had gone through weeks earlier and made it very difficult to travel along the bank. When I was younger, that would’ve been no problem, but for now it was an excuse to go home. I maybe cast five or six times the whole time I was out. That was a year and a half ago.

I kept finding excuses not to go out. My stuff sat in my truck for all that time, untouched. I know now that my last real trip was one with a good fishing buddy, Mike, it wasn’t too long after that trip to Deep Creek that things started to fall apart.

Just recently, I was found to have a disease with no cure. One that takes away your mobility and your thoughts called Parkinson’s disease. There was a wrong diagnosis back in 2008; they called it a tremor, but it was really Parkinson’s. For over eight years it went untreated and unchecked.

When you go out, just like Mike said at Deep Creek, stop and smell the roses. Enjoy the scenery. Who knows, it could be your last time out on the water. Enjoy every second, because one day it’ll be taken away from you. Enjoy your trips, and be sure to take pictures so you have the memories.

God bless you,
Spurky

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