Salmon StreamReflections on the Salmon
August 31, 2003

About 10 days ago, we got home from four weeks in Prince William Sound on our little sailboat. Susan, even more than me, enjoys just being out there in the wilderness, away from the details of work and the city. She would be perfectly happy spending the whole summer out there! We had the bays we visited to ourselves for the most part. We had only a few nights with another boat in the same cove. It’s a good contrast to the busyness of Anchorage in the summer.

We don’t do much fishing, and the winds are rarely good for sailing in Prince William Sound. We are what is called “gunkholers”. We find a nice gunky place to anchor and then go canoeing, hiking, and exploring. I always like to check out streams for salmon, bears, and birds. This year, the pink salmon were amazing. This was one of the largest runs in many years. I’ve never seen so many fish in one place, and I’ve lived in Alaska for 40 years. We saw streams with thousands of fish gathered at the mouth or struggling up the shallow water. There was life and action everywhere. The fish bumped up against the canoe and made the water seem to boil.

You know, some of the fish looked really good. They were silvery, fresh and strong. Others were already dead, and there was everything in between. In one cove we looked down through the clear water and saw hundreds of dead fish carpeting the bottom. It struck me that they are all just in different stages of dying. Within a few weeks, even the freshest-looking of them will be dead and rotting.

I got to wondering whether they are aware of their fate! Surely they can look around and see what’s happening to the others. But then I thought they’re just like people. We’re actually all in various stages of dying. The young, strong, and beautiful people can’t imagine that they’ll ever be old and wrinkled and arthritic, but if you look around, the evidence is pretty strong! Us older folks, like the salmon that arrived at the stream early, are just in a little more advanced stage of dying. We were just like you young people a few years ago. We couldn’t imagine that we’d ever be old. Sometimes I look in the mirror and wonder who that old guy is. It can't be ME!

I’m reminded of a poem on a tombstone I saw in Haines several years ago:

Remember, youth, as you pass by,
As you are now, so once was I.
As I am now, so you must be.
Prepare, my friend, to follow me.

Pink salmon have a much shorter lifespan than we do, of course. They hatch in the spring, feed on the bodies of last year’s dead salmon, and go directly into the ocean. The first summer in salt water they stick close to shore and eat plankton. They leave for the deep ocean in September and become hunters. They grow from tiny fry to as much as 10 pounds in two summers. Two years is a short lifespan, but compared to eternity, our human lifespan of 70-80 years isn't much longer. I think life here on earth is kind of like a “free sample”, just a taste of what life really is. We won’t know real life until we can drink the water of life and eat from the tree of life in heaven. We’ll know real life when we’re in the presence of the Author of life, and when our dying flesh is replaced with living flesh.

There was a bumper sticker on one of the trucks that was launching a boat down in Whittier. It said, “Jesus is coming. Look busy.” Now, you might have a job where everyone tries to look busy when the boss comes around, but it’s humorous to think you could “look” busy and fool God. It did get me thinking about what Jesus wants us to be busy doing in anticipation of our death or His coming. If we agree He’s the Boss, what’s our job description? What does He want us to spend our short time on earth doing?

Susan searched the red letters of her Bible to put together a job description in Jesus’ words, and I want to share just some of what she found. Other writers of the Bible have even more to say, but these are straight from Jesus.

In a nutshell, our job description is to love God with all our heart, soul, mind and strength, and love our neighbors as ourselves (Mark 12:30-31). Paul calls the Church the body of Christ. That means it’s our hands that express Christ’s love in the world, and our voices that bring His message to others. We are the physical body through which the Spirit of God communicates.

In John 13:34, Jesus says, “A new command I give you: Love one another. As I have loved you, so you must love one another. By this all men will know that you are my disciples, if you love one another.”

Soon afterward, in John 14:15, He says, “If you love me, you will obey what I command.”

Well, friends, that’s our marching orders. That’s what we’re supposed to be doing when the Boss comes, or until our particular march toward death is finished. We all fall short, but it’s good to evaluate once in awhile, and desire to improve. Are we actually spending most of our time doing what Jesus asked us to do? I’m afraid with God, it will never do to “look busy.”

Let's pray:

Father God, we lift up your name here today. We pray that our lives will be pleasing in Your sight, that we will so live our short time on earth that the greater span of eternity will be spent with You. There is trouble here on Earth, and the older we get, the more trouble we see.

May we always be mindful of the blessings we have as Americans, especially here in Alaska where we see and enjoy your beautiful creation every day. Bless this offering today, as we give back a small portion of what you have given to us. We pray that it will be wisely spent to your glory. Bless also Pastor Steve and his family as he teaches us from Your word.

In the name of Your Son, Jesus Christ, Amen.

Source: www.SusanCAnthony.com, ©Susan C. Anthony