Dear fathers,
The first person your little girl will fall in love with is you. Make her next love fly-fishing.
The best gift you can give to your daughter is time spent outside. Passing down your spirit of adventure is critical for a little girl’s world to be opened up to endless possibilities. It creates an opportunity for her to explore, learn and fall in love with nature. Be the man in her life that introduces a way to play outside and remain child-like forever by playing in streams, ponds and rivers, and by teaching her how to fly-fish.
Take a step into a young girl's world; she’s hungry to learn and craves spending time with you. Let your daughter enter your world and expose her to your passions. Teach her the ways of the beautiful cathedral we get to play in, install the sense of respect of the wildlife that runs through the corridor, teach her about which flies to use, how to cast and how to tie the fisherman's knot. Show her the art form of fly-fishing and she’ll slowly become an artist.
By adopting the teacher role, you’ve created a pact to be her guide forever, on and off the water. When you become her guide, you become someone she trusts, someone she feels comfortable coming to, and someone she loves and admires. As she matures, your river time together provides massive opportunity to help insert confidence into her fibers, supporting her in achieving her best self. Being on the river creates a sense of openness to talk about things that are dominating her world. By removing the distractions, good quality time is produced. In my personal experience, the realest talks I’ve had with my dad have been on the river. We talk about God, relationships, life, death, miracles, family and love. Take time to be open with your daughter, it's what she needs. She’ll take your words to heart. I know I did.
By firing her spirit of adventure, she will have the confidence to try different outdoor activities and create her own passions. She’ll never lose her heart for the river and fly-fishing. Memories of the adventures the two of you shared go with her everywhere she goes. The time she hooked you in the ear with a fly while learning how to cast, or the time the blizzard hit in June and you had to wrap her in your waiters to keep her warm. She will be grateful for all the hours spent on the water and everything you taught her about fishing and about life. Sure, she loves fly-fishing, but she loves you more.
Fathers,
Teach your daughters how to fly-fish, you'll sure be glad you did.
Thank you, dad, for being my guide, my stronghold and giving me the best gift ever: Your time and love.
Your little girl, Maddie
