Hand Me Downs -- Both Audio and Text

My wife and I prefer hand-me-downs to new things in most cases, but then, we're antiques freaks - Lots o’ fog an’ kinda brisk that mid-November morning when my an’ Russell’s tackle boxes spread to face the dawn. A big old bass just down the shoreline breached the quiet bay, and, glancing up, I spotted, in the brush, a tiny fawn. I’d brought us to a special spot that only locals know, and - cold and early - didn’t expect to see another boat. The lake was like a mirror when the two of us would pause to watch the clear reflection of a Great Blue Heron float. Holding up a favorite lure, I told my fishin’ buddy, “This one here’s the finest fly my granddad ever tied. I’m hopin’ I can pass it on to Randy when it’s time. I’ve caught a bunch o’ good ones with it every time I’ve tried.” “I know you’d really hate to have to tell him,” Russell said, “that some ol’ twenty-pounder took the hook and broke your line, But using it is what, of course, he meant for you to do….and - though it is a risk - I’d do the same if it were mine.” “Remember Terry Michel," I inquired, "his brother, Joe, took their father fishin’ almost weekly…Spring to Fall? Well…Virgy, too, had ‘special lures’, and --- just as he had hoped --- now his kids, and some of theirs, are proud to own them all.” “An’ fishin’ hand-me-downs ‘ll save ya’ money,” I went on, “‘cause we don’t have to buy much more than bait from year to year. Connie uses one o’ mine whenever she’s along, and Randy’s never had to spend a dime on fishin’ gear. “Even this old boat an’ motor’ve seen their better days, but neither’ve been a problem since my dad first put ‘em in. Time to throw a couple lines in…then we’ll tap the thermos. Could get pretty nippy if that breeze comes up again.” Well, after our discussion ‘bout our many hand-me-downs, and after giving all the things we’d talked about more thought, And after weighing all the facts concerning past events, including all the things we’d done and all the fish we’d caught, Even in that chilly fog, I smiled to realize it didn’t really matter ‘bout the breed…or length…or pounds… As long as I was fishin’ with a loved one, or a friend, relaxin’ on the water, with my good old - hand-me-downs. PS: I've now got 4 new Audio-CDs - @ 4 1/2 hours each = (62 diversely varied pieces). They’re listed on EBAY - under - “Mark Stellinga Poetry” - or available by simply contacting me at -- mark@writerofbooks.com -- should those of you who enjoy listening to poems as well as reading them - and particularly those of you that travel - care to be so entertained. (We use safe and simple - PayPal) Cheers, Mark