Fishing is a silent sport
We pass them,
There is a brief nod of acknowledgement as they turn their reel
I cannot tell if it is respect in their nod, or if the silence is simply a language that says
I fear you will scare the steelhead away
There is nothing bright about the river
It is North
Dark
Sprinting with river weed and salmon
Dead leaves
The fishermans eyes gloss over, flirting their line across the skin of the water, reeling it in, repeat
Waders pulled up, thick like Tupperware
Tight to their nipples
Large like clown pants
While we skim by like blue water bugs with paddles
I saw a blue heron plummet from her branch like a novice ballerina
But watching her sprite forward into the sky on two wings
Was enough really
To make me love the river