Forever Young

Some say that every minute spent fly fishing will not be deducted from your life-span. Some say that, in fact, it is time given back. This is a beautiful and awesome thing to think about because many of us spend a great deal of time on the stream with fly rod and fly, and to think we can achieve a kind-of piscatorial
near-immortality is a whopper of an idea to contemplate. Simply said—the more
you fish, the longer you will live. And isn't that exactly one of the reasons why we fish? To escape—to get something back that has been taken from us? Time.
And maybe health.

There is a spattering of evidence in historical fishing literature to support the idea of prolonged longevity. Consider the following:  Speaking specifically of fly
fishing Roderick Haig-Brown once said, "It is a sport than can never grow old." 
Charles F. Orvis spoke of "...the new lease on life secured thereby."

The unstoppable Kenneth Abbott. "...and he looked that it should bring forth grapes, and it brought forth wild grapes."

And the waters of our rivers and streams have long been known to instill life, reverse time, and heal: "All the water we see has been around since time out of memory, passing through all kinds of bodies as it carries the life of...life!” - David
Richarde, from "The Yellow Dog River, Magical Dialog of a Woodland Stream"

Combine the healing, time reversing ability of water with the inherent beauty of fly fishing and it's easy to understand why organizations like Casting for Recovery, Reeling & Healing Midwest and Project Healing Waters exist.

When we are young, youth is a statement of fact. When one achieves maturity it becomes a state of mind. But when we fish in beautiful waters we are forever hopeful, forever young. - WES:::

---