The community tackle box

I like to hunt – but truthfully, I enjoy fishing more. On a lucky day, I might consider myself an amateur angler. On the luckiest of days, I might know a thing or two about fishing. I’ve always liked bass fishing the most, but I can occasionally be found at the end of a dock on the coldest night of the year doing a little perch fishing.

For me, “perch” is what some might call a crappie, spec or speckled perch. While you’re shivering at the end of the dock, you might not feel its worth- but afterwards the benefits far outweigh any of the struggles. It really is worth the bone-chilling cold to see a perch shadow in the green light. Maybe, you too, find yourself whispering prayers of encouragement as it approaches. So far in life, I have found fish tales to be a language that can break through most barriers.

One of my favorite fish stories to tell is the time I caught a Yellow Perch from underneath a rock off the bank of Spring Creek with a gold spinner bait. Its body was striped with shades of green and bright orange fins.

I didn’t know what in the world I had caught at first. It looked like something that ought to be in the Amazon River, not a creek in Southwest Georgia. I never expected to reel in such a great catch. I honestly thought I would spend most of the morning in the back of the boat eating vanilla cookies instead of doing much catching.

It was completely out of the depths of what I thought possible at that time. Rest assured, there were hundreds of casts made with no results to brag on, which proves fishing really is a lot like economic development.

People who care and want to make a positive difference are a community’s greatest asset, along with time. It takes patience, skill, appropriate planning, and more often than not – a lot of casting to land any-sized fish. I admit- there have been the rare occurrences of catching a monster fish on the first cast. It certainly is exciting when that happens. It’s rare – unless you find yourself exceptionally lucky, of course… and even then you must be prepared.

I’ve heard people, including myself, say it’s important to “think outside of the box.” As the days have passed, I find myself saying the opposite. The truth is we have everything we need in our tackle box to land the small, medium and big fish!

Since it was formed by the Georgia Legislature in 1818, Early County has possessed the items needed to generate a thriving economy. It just needs to know how to use the tackle in its box.

A well-organized tackle box is essential for successful fishing. Likewise, knowing how to use various resources is vital for effective economic development. Both involve preparation, variety, adaptability, skill, collaboration and sustainability.

If you’re aiming to catch a quality fish, it’s important to prepare for the trip. It would be a waste of time and energy to forget the bait.

Fishing is very intentional and strategic. The plan must be appropriate based on the conditions. Similarly, community development needs a range of resources to meet diverse needs.

The sad part of this fishing story is I lost that gold spinner bait on a cluster of lily pad stems some years back. I tried just as hard to retrieve it from the depths of the murky pond as I did to catch the picture-perfect Yellow Perch. To this day, it’s still tangled up in those lily pads somewhere on Spring Creek.

When I lost the gold spinner bait, I had to be willing to adapt. A successful angler knows how to adjust their tackle based on the fish and environment. In community development, flexibility in using resources helps address the unexpected.

Fishing requires skill in using different tackle effectively. Likewise, communities must learn to utilize appropriate resources to encourage growth. Often, fishing is an activity requiring collaboration. Effective development relies on teamwork, bringing together stakeholders to pool their resources for a greater impact. If you don’t think it matters, just ask any angler whose co-angler cost them the winning 8-pounder by not effectively communicating the placement of the net.

Just as sustainable fishing practices help maintain fish populations, sustainable community development ensures resources are used wisely for long-term benefits that support a better quality of life for all.

With all this talk of fishing and the warmer temperatures we’ve had over the past week, it’s put me in the mood to organize my tackle box, find some water to wet my line and get to “rippin’ lips!”

Shared with permission from The Early County News