By Tim O’Brien,Knight Ridder Newspapers

I have a confession to make. I fish. I offer the following lessons learned while in pursuit of fish:

Fishers, especially those who believe – as I do – in catch-and-release fishing, do not exaggerate, they extrapolate. What? Well, when we release a fish, it is still alive and so it continues to grow, right? So when you ask a catch-and-release person how big that bass or tarpon was, they think about it. They remember how big it was when they caught it. They remember how long ago they caught it. They make an estimate of its annual growth. Then, they tell you – based on their updated calculations – how large the fish probably is now.

Many fish love beautiful places and we humans can learn from them. Marlin and tuna grow very large in places such as: Kona, Hawaii; Golflito, Costa Rica; Cabo San Lucas and Mazatlan, Mexico; the American Virgin Islands; and the Cayman Islands. See what I mean? If you want to catch big fish, you should go to exotic beautiful places to increase your chances for success.

Fishing holds the hope and expectation, but not always the guarantee, of catching. It is the chance that maybe, today, the big one won’t get away. It is an opportunity to spend time with others, or alone. It is your choice. So, we can learn to be flexible, sensitive and keep our options open from people who fish.

Fishing takes patience, waiting for the fish to bite. Fishing takes perseverance and tenacity. Fish don’t always bite. Fishing requires coping skills and the ability to deal with frustration. The bait shop doesn’t always have the bait or lure you want. There are and will continue to be equipment failures: lines break, lines backlash and the bottom snags.

Patience, perseverance, tenacity, coping skills, dealing with frustration, and you probably thought fishing was simply recreational? Everyone can benefit from this group of fisher skills.

Fishing takes humility and the ability to deal with failure. Operator error is the largest cause of “the big one that got away.” Sometimes, the fish really are big. And sometimes they do get away.

Few people realize all the benefits of fishing. The lack of understanding by others sometimes causes the serious fisher momentary cognitive dissonance as they sit under their cabana in Hawaii after a long day of trolling for marlin off Kona. They’ve wondered, “Doesn’t anyone believe my fish stories?” The pondering usually continues until the Luau begins, or until it is time to get ready to go fishing again.

Tim O’Brien writes continuing-education courses and presents seminars on stress management.