What A TRUE Fisherman Is

          All my life I have always grew up around the ocean. I can consider it like my second home.  A true fisherman does more than just fishing. He should be well rounded in all the different things that the ocean has to offer.
          When I was young my father and I would always go fishing almost every weekend. I started off using a small spinner pole with light tackle. Catching Ta'ape and Moana would make us more than happy; and if we caught a good size Papio that would be a bonus. Every summer we would wake up early and head down to Waianae Boat Harbor to catch the small but very tasty Halalu. I will always remember the site of sitting out on the break wall with many other people and everyone catching hundreds of Halalu.
          As I grew older my father introduced me to surfing. I started off riding my dads old Primo beer board and eventually got boards of my own. I entered a few surf contest and did alright in all of them. Surfing taught me that you should never underestimate the ocean and treat it with respect.
          My first diving experience was on the island of Kauai. Haena to be exact. Being able to see whats under the oceans surface is very amazing. Its almost as if your in a whole other world. As soon as I jumped in with my goggles I was HOOKED! It took me many years to be where I am now in diving. Now that I am a better diver I catch my own Tako for bait when i go Ulua fishing.
          During the 8th grade I would go with my uncle and cousins to go Ulua fishing. As I watched them cast out 13ft fishing poles with really big reels it was just a matter of time before I got a set up of my own. It took me 3 years before I finally caught an Ulua of my own witch weighed in at 16lbs. I am a senior now and im still proud to call myself a hardcore Ulua fisherman.
          In conclusion I want to say that a true fisherman should be well rounded with the ocean and its elements. He should treat it with respect as if it were his own house. A true fisherman knows the feeling of being by the oceans side overnight relaxing and relieving stress. To me the ultimate feeling is just being one with nature and making the best of what it provides.