Childhood in Newfoundland in some ways was not much different from my own. I spent mine catching things. My fondest memories of my childhood are of the being in and around the water at Boshkung Lake, north of Toronto, at my grandparents’ cottage. What was under the water kept me spellbound, all day. I kept a bucket of water on the beach, ever-ready for the day’s catch. As I stood knee deep in the gentle waves, toes anchored to the hard sand bottom of our shore, no polliwog, minnow or frog escaped my intense pursuit. I am taking care of my daughter’s puppy today. Dried leaves that have escaped being trapped in the shrouds of snow are targets of his childish game of hunt as well.
As these boys make game opponents of the flounder, resting benevolently at the bottom of the harbour in Elliston, they hone their primal instinct to hunt – instinct that will perhaps serve them so aptly as the Newfoundlander men they will become. Children would count on becoming fishermen, for hundreds of years. What will our radical changes to the environment in the oceans allow our current generation to do? Can we as a worldwide society be adequate custodians of ocean health and our fish supply? There is nothing that can be taken for granted now. The only assurance is paying careful and abiding attention to research and following up with pro-action - responses at every level, immediately.