The River Why Page #4

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(Gus) Do you think the soul strikes

harder early in the morning...

and late

in the evening...

kind of like fish?

Could be.

Okay. So how

do you suppose...

I ought to fish

for mine?

With a soul pole,

I suppose.

Where do

I get one?

Right here's good.

This where you

got yours?

I got mine here.

You got yours

in there.

[walla and soft music]

I still can't figure out

where this soul pole is.

Shall I show you?

Can you?

I can by analogy.

But you'll have to answer

a few questions first.

Fire away.

All right.

Where is Rodney,

your trusty fishing rod...

right now?

At this moment...

he is hanging

on my cabin wall.

Who made Rodney...

from an

indistinguishable blank...

into the singing rod

he is today?

I did.

Yes. And who controls

his destiny?

Decides when he'll

hang on the wall...

or ride in the back

of the pickup truck...

or cast for trout?

And who will, one day,

decide he's worn out...

and consign him

to a funeral pyre?

I will.

Excellent.

Can you get me

a couple of cues?

Yeah. Two of them.

Now, who

do you suppose...

created you...

into the living fisherman

you are today?

I wish I knew.

Excellent!

And who controls

your destiny?

Wish I knew that, too.

Very good. And who will,

one day...

consign your body

to a wormy grave?

I wish I knew that, too.

Perfect!

Why is that perfect?

All I'm saying is,

"Oh, I wish I knew. "

Come on. Don't you

want me to say...

"God does it," or,

"My soul does it"-

Gus, I'm a philosopher.

I'm not an evangelist.

It's the "I wish I knew"

that is crucial.

I mean, to say, "God did it,"

and then just leave it at that?

That's to abandon the search

before it's even begun.

Believe me, no one's ever

discovered any truth...

by barfing up Sunday school

answers to questions.

Now, you and I agreed,

did we not...

that Rodney is oblivious...

to everything save

some weight and varnish.

We did.

Therefore, does it follow...

that he is

just as oblivious...

to Gus?

Even though Gus

is his maker?

Even though Gus

controls his destiny?

Even though Gus is-

Let's go ahead and call it.

Gus is his essence.

Yes, it follows.

Then therefore,

is it possible...

that maybe you and I...

are just as oblivious...

to the presence

of a Creator?

Just as oblivious to a

controller of destiny?

Just as oblivious

to our essence?

An essence that wields you

and I even more deftly...

than you wield Rodney.

Sure, it's possible.

Well, there you have it.

Rodney is to Gus...

as Gus is

to his essence.

You name the essence soul

and you, sir...

have your soul pole.

Me?

So, no matter how

hopelessly stupid I am...

in comparison to my essence

or my soul...

I still have

a profound purpose.

I like that, Titus.

I like that.

Thank you.

I swiped it

from Plotinus.

[balls clack]

[soft lively pop music]

Wait till I wake up

Wish something

could interrupt

The dream for much too long

I've lingered in

[music fades]

[water running

and birds chirping]

[loud splash]

(man)

Hold on!

Hang onto it. Easy.

Easy. Don't force it,

don't force it.

Easy. Easy.

[man, guffawing]

[thump]

That's a real nice

jack salmon, son.

It's not a jack.

It's a sea-run cutthroat.

Oh.

What are you doing?

I'm getting skunked,

God damn it.

I've been fishing all day...

and I haven't

even gotten a bounce.

I'm plum jinxed.

Or plum dumb.

What's that?

Uh, done.

I got here early

in the morning...

nary a strike.

You come here,

in ten seconds...

zabba dabba doo.

You land a nice jack.

So, you...

know any good tales about

this grand sport of ours?

Yeah.

So, what do you know?

If you want to catch

a blueback...

you're gonna need

some lighter gear.

You have any with you?

I guess, uh...

I guess we can both

use my rod.

Ah, now you're talking.

[splash]

Oh! God dammit!

I am sorry.

I am sorry.

It's okay, it's fine.

It's fine.

Just- How about you

just stay up here...

and hold on to that. I'm gonna,

you know, make us something up.

Okay.

Get yourself-

Get yourself a little

nightcrawler there.

Some clay.

Right there.

Just roll it up

like that...

and smooth it out.

What's that

invention called?

A Hostess Twinkie.

And get ready.

[lively music]

I got one!

I got it. I got it.

[chuckles]

Yeah. Don't

lose it.

I got it!

I got it.

Come on.

You got him.

Look at that.

[laughing]

Nice.

Oh. Oh.

What do you say, 18 inches?

Oh, you can tell people that's 24.

Love it.

Hey, I gotta

rush back to town...

and write this up

for tomorrow's paper.

For tomorrow's what?

Post Telegram.

Dutch Hines.

The F-F-Fishing Dutchman.

You're Dutch Hines.

Yeah. What's your name?

I'm just Gus.

But that's really

just a nickname.

So I wouldn't- I would-

I wouldn't use that.

You know, I'd like

to interview you, Gus.

Haven't had

a better day's f-f-fishing...

since I lost nine steelhead

one morning on the Kilchis...

two winters ago. I was

fishing with Fuzz Gramsay.

Yeah, I

- I remember that trip. You wrote about it 12 times.

Yeah! So, you wanna do

an interview?

Um, c-c-

Can I have one second?

Sure.

Dutch Hines wants

to interview me.

That idiot's got three-quarter

of a million readers.

He can write about me for

weeks and not be distracted.

Nothing's gonna distract

him for months...

'cause he's not gonna

catch a fish for months.

He made Fuzz Gramsay rich

by endorsing him.

He endorses me...

and I'll have a thousand

polers by the end of the month.

Well, what do you say? You

want to do an interview?

Listen to this, Caroline.

"By a stroke of dumb luck, this old

dog learned a bag full of tricks...

"from a young buck

he bumped into...

"who just might be...

"the finest fisherman

this great Northwest of ours...

has seen

in many a decade. "

[grunting]

[footsteps]

"His friends call him Gus. "

"But he told us this

is just a nickname. "

Okay. My real name

is Antoine Chapeau.

I'm originally from Palm

Springs, California...

where I used

to manage a-

[clears throat]

a beauty salon.

And I would spend

my whole day...

just looking

at women's hair.

But you know

what, Dutch?

I thought

I was going crazy...

because I'd be looking

at a woman's hair...

and I'd be imagining

five-pound tippets.

Or algae or something. Three-pound

leaders. It doesn't matter.

Everything reminded me

of-of the river.

So finally I said,

you know what?

Antoine, this

can't be healthy.

So I pulled up the stakes.

I moved to Oregon...

and I just

started fishing.

All day

every day, fishing.

(Titus) "And fish he does,

with a passion and skill...

"he claimed he acquired

using a fly rod...

"out in the deserts

around Palm Springs.

"This dry fishing, as he

calls it, is what taught him...

"both the incredible patience

and the shamanistic approach...

to the sport

that characterizes him today. "

(Dutch) Listen, I gotta

get back to the paper. Uh...

what do you say we

meet again next week...

and you tell me

some more?

Okay. But only if you put a

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