The other day, the dog and I were going for a walk around a man-made lake. The weather was really nice, but I was still surprised to see no less than 15 people scattered around the edge of the lake, fishing. This particular lake didn’t strike me as much of a hotspot for fish (this is the same lake where I shot a set of photos featuring abandoned shopping carts), but it still got me thinking.

Fishing is one of those activities that’s viewed by many cultures as one of the most meditative, relaxing ones we can engage in. It forces us to slow down, be patient, and live in the moment. Unfortunately, it also means injuring or killing fish (yes, even if you throw them back). So, I got to thinking… is there any fish-friendly way to go fishing?

The act of feeding fish is harmless enough as long we’re careful about what we give them. But just tossing food into the water lacks the in-the-moment quality of sitting in a rowboat with a fishing pole in hand (I’m guessing here… I haven’t been fishing since I was a kid). So, would there be a way to take a standard fishing pole and replace the hook with something that can hold food while it sits in the water but not injure the fish when he tries to eat it? Do things like this already exist?

I’ll smile the first time I hear someone say, “I just fed a 7 1/2 pound perch!” rather than “I just caught a 7 1/2 pound perch! *”

* May be followed by “and it was the best moment of my presidency!”