Praying for Trout?

In the course of my years of fly fishing, I have probably spoken dozens of prayers while on the stream. When the sun was well below the horizon, and there was just enough light to tie on one more fly, I said to myself: “Please let one more trout rise.” When the rain clouds were forming, and it looked like my day of fly fishing was going to be cut short, I may have whispered: “Just a little longer, please.” And of course, when the trout were not biting, and every cast and every fly was ineffective, I might have said out of frustration: “Come on, just one bite.”

As The Fly Fishing Rabbi, sometimes people ask me if my prayers for trout to rise are answered more readily than those of everyone else. I think not. I’m just as likely to get rained on, or to lose my fly in the dark or not to catch a single fish as anyone else.

As I thought about praying on the stream, I asked myself: What should we pray for when fly fishing? Is there such a thing as a blessing for fly fishing?

In Judaism there are two types of prayers, petition and thanksgiving. When we say “Come on, just one bite,” we offer a petition, asking for something specific. But I am not sure that this is really a prayer. To pray usually means bringing God into the equation. At my Temple, we say a healing prayer, called the mishebeirach, each week at services. I look around the sanctuary and ask people to share the names of those that are ill. And then we sing and pray together that they will find healing. Asking for a fish to rise is not exactly a prayer. It is a wish. Asking God to heal a person is a prayer.

There are prayers that are good for fly fishing, and they are prayers of thanksgiving. Ironically, I am more likely to say a prayer of thanks when I am not catching fish. When the trout are rising, I am to busy or excited to think about anything but the fishing. But when the water is silent, and I cannot get a bite, and I am not too frustrated, then I sometimes take a moment to look around. I watch the river flow by. I feel the breeze. I smell the pine needles.

Picture: A beautiful stream to be thankful for.

When I see the beauty of nature, I ask myself: How did such an amazing earth come to be? What did I do to deserve to live in such a beautiful place? Feelings of awe, connection and humility come to me. And then I am led to a simple response: “thank you.” Saying “thank you” when fly fishing is to acknowledge that this earth we live on is a gift. Saying “Dear God, thank you” when on the stream is to offer up a prayer.

In Judaism, there is a formula to begin a blessing: Baruch Atah Adonai, Eloheinu Melech HaOlam, Blessed are you, Adonai our God, Ruler of the Universe. Then you add thing for which you want to say “thank you.” Sometimes when fly fishing, I speak the words of this blessing from Jewish tradition: Blessed are you, Adonai our God, Ruler of the Universe, Creator of light and darkness, Maker of peace, Creator of all.

The next time I am on the stream, I will probably still wish for the rain to hold off and a big trout to take my fly. But I will also try to take a moment to offer up a simpler prayer. I might just say something like this: “Dear God, thank you for the gift of this amazing world.”

What Makes a Good Teacher?

There was an article in the New York Times this week about a substitute teacher in Great Neck, New York. Arnold Blume is 81 years old and serves as a substitute teacher for 12 and 13 year olds. And he is a good one. As the article put it: “Mr. Bloom is no beleaguered sub from Central Casting. He has never had to call security. He does not even have to write his name on the blackboard. Everyone knows Mr. Blume.” As I read about Mr. Blume it made me think about great teachers in my own life. I asked myself: Who are the best teachers I have ever had? And what makes someone a good teacher?

Teachers surely must be knowledgeable in their field and academically qualified. Yet it is the intangible qualities of a good teacher that we remember. To make history real for his students, Mr. Blume begins many of his classes with the words “Let me tell you a story.” In one class, he then described what it was like to see firsthand a sign that read: “No Jews, No Negroes, No Dogs allowed.” One 13 year old reported: “A lot of kids don’t know how life used to be harder. He tells you about how it wasn’t always like this. Because he lived through it.”

What sets Mr. Blume in Great Neck apart from other teachers is his passion. A great teacher does not simply convey material. She puts herself into her teaching. And the passion that a teacher demonstrates is contagious for his or her students. We have all probably had one teacher who swept us in with his excitement. A teacher in a subject area that we would normally think was deathly boring, but who inspired us. For me, that was Mrs. Noland, my 12th Grade English teacher. She had a reputation for being tough, and she was. But Mrs. Noland cared so much about Joseph’s Conrad’s “The Heart of Darkness,” that you could not help but get sucked in. The greatest teachers inspire us.

Along with a passion for the material, good teachers convey another important trait: caring for their students. In 5th Grade, I got it in my mind to run for class president. I did not think I could win because the other boy in the race was more popular. One day after school, I spoke to my teacher and she gave me some advice: Why not run for vice-president since no-one else is running and you will win for sure! What I remember today is not so much the power of her wisdom, but that she cared and reached out to me.

It is not enough for a teacher just to know his or her material. A great teacher demonstrates passion to his students which is contagious. And a truly great teacher cares as much or more about the welfare of her learners than the equation on the board or the assignment in the textbook.

The word Rabbi means teacher. At the Temple, I do not always succeed in teaching with knowledge, passion and caring. But a few weeks ago a freshman in college came by to say hello when he was in town. Then a sixth grader came to my office to interview me for a school project. They knew that my door was open to them, and that made me feel that that I succeeded in my job as Rabbi, a teacher of Judaism.

To read the New York Times article about Arnold Blume: CLICK HERE