Fishing Can Be Enjoyed But We Must Protect Our Oceans

The documentary entitled, #Mission Blue featured on Netflix was compelling as it presented beautiful sharks and a variety of fish. A comment was made concerning sharks, “They are the tigers of the sea. The only good shark is a dead shark.” How sad that statement was. Sharks are some of the most magnificent creatures in our oceans. Marine Biologist #Sylvia Earle came to their defense as she explained, “Shark fins are harvested especially in China. Not just what is happening to sharks, algae and seaweed generate more than half the oxygen we breathe.” Sylvia is one of the country’s most highly respected Marine Biologist who broke barriers as one of the first women in this field. She works diligently to protect our gallant bodies of water. Sylvia made these potent statements during the documentary, “Protect the oceans now in the way we protect the land... No ocean, no life, no us.”

Sylvia Earle also specializes in the development of aquatic equipment. She explained, “One thing lead to another and a system called #Deep Rover was born. And it’s a beautiful system that l have had the joy of taking it to its full 1,000 meters. It’s full rated depth... And a little bit more. And until James Cameron came along with his system that went all the way booming down to seven miles, 11 kilometers, we had the deepest solo dive that anyone had achieved.” The narrator talked about Sylvia and her accomplishments. “Her interest in developing new technology for the sea burned brightly in her. Sylvia started designing her own submarines. A company she founded designed the manipulation arm that was on the Deepsea Challenger the sub that #James Cameron used for his record setting dive.“ Sylvia said this about the sub, “Of course l wanted to go but alas, it’s a one person system,” she laughed. He laughed also as he explained, “Sylvia was ready to volunteer. She said, ‘Fine put me through pilot training. And the thing is she’s not but this high. So she’s actually...A better deep acquanaut than l am...”

There was a discussion about how Sylvia started scuba diving to see this tremendous world underneath the ocean. “#Jacques Cousteu was able to vicariously amd sometimes directly, get people in the water by inspiring me to say, that‘s cool! I wanna go. I wanna see it! His silent world world made me want to see what he saw. To meet fish swimming in something other than lemon slices and butter on a plate. To actually go and witness this vast blue realm.“

Stevens the narrator of the documentary explains, “Before the 1950’s diving had been very risky and experimental...Until Cousteu invented the Aqua Lung and became one of the first to use a Self—Contained Underwater Breathing Apparatus, SUBA. He showed how simple it could be to explore the sea.“ Sylvia went on to explain how she started diving. “In 1953 my major professor some how managed to get two of the very first scuba sets that were available. It seem, so improbable. You can be underwater and breathe. Most of all it was the gift of time. Be able to actually stay and watch the creatures that were there. And it made me want to always go deeper, stay longer.”

Sylvia was appointed later which was announced on the nightly news, “In 1990 Sylvia Earle received a presidential appointment that for her was the culmination of a life’s work. She became the Chief Scientist for NOAA, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. NOAA oversees the nation’s coastal waters and fisheries.” Sylvia later resigned from this position because it confined her based on bureaucratic politics. It was just too stifling for Sylvia.

Now as a free citizen Sylvia, pursued her real love. “The idea of protecting the ocean to bring back the fish is an idea whose time has come and its beginning to work all over the world... We need to scale up. We need to think big... l am driven by what l know... By the reality as a scientist looking at the evidence that my species, the world l know, the world l love, is in trouble. People l know and love...may not realize how much trouble we’re in.” Sylvia returned to one of her favorite places to view the coral reefs under the sea. Once she rerturned to the boat, Sylvia appeared devastated. Almost in tears as she revealed, “The world is changing. Half the #coral reefs around the world are gone. So we’re lucky to see what we did see.“ One man on the boat asked if the cause was bleaching? Sylvia continued by explaining, “Coral reef is like that city. It’s not just the buildings. New York needs its taxi drivers. It needs its doctors. It needs the teachers. It needs all the pieces that make the system function. The corals need the fish. The fish need the corals. You take corals away, the fish die. You take the fish away the corals die. We will do things to the ocean. We will do things. But first we ought to think about how can we use the ocean and not use it up.” Syvia was then asked whether the corals looked good? “The living stuff was mostly young. Well, the reef were big.“

When asked if she plans to ever stop pursuing this concern for the ocean? Sylvia Earle gave a powerful illustration by explaining, “If you see a child falling out of a ten story window, and if you have the ability to reach out and catch him. You don’t take a break and say, Oh...while the child is falling out of the sky, l’m gonna go over... No. You’re there 24/7. You’re there with every ounce of what you’ve got. You want to save the child.“

James Cameron commented about the status of our oceans, “We’re not out of the game yet. We could still win this thing if we were about to turn it around. We’ve just got to get out there amd make the public aware of what’s happening. And make them care about what’s happening. We’ve gotta rewire the way human beings look at our relationship to nature.”

Sylvia closed her interview by stating, “If l could be born anywhere in time it would be now. It would be now because this is the time, as never before, that we know. We understand what we have years...opportunities we now have will be gone. This is the moment. Our decisions, our actions will shape everything that follows.“ Both statements were encouraging but only one source of true hope for the ocean and its awe inspiring creatures is #God’s Kingdom under the rulership of his precious son Jesus Christ. There is hope for individuals to be a part of this kingdom just like Sylvia Earle and James Cameron who love the beautiful ocean of the earth. Only Jehovah our Grand Creator can know our hearts. That is why he has made this wonderful promise at Psalms 37:11 “But the meek will possess the earth, And they will find exquisite delight in the abundance of peace.” Yes. Then and only then will meek or humble people live on the earth in a beautiful paradisaic setting. Where along with God’s holy spirit the earth and the oceans will be restored like they were previously. All thanks to Jehovah through the ransom sacrifice of Jesus Christ. What an amazing time that will be.

Fishing today on Captain Tyrone’s Island Queen is really like a luxury excursion. His boat is now about fifty feet and is also fiberglas. The Captain’s shipmate is his sister Vera. She is thorough and on top of things by assisting with fishing poles, untangling fishing lines and making sure the inexperienced and experienced are taken care of. This boat can comfortably accommodate more than 20 to 25 people. The inside cabin can maintain gatherings where women, men and children can enjoy a meal with their fellow fishermen. Captain Tyrone’s new boat really allows his customers to stretch out especially now during this #pandemic.

My sister and l along with my two brothers and a neice who came fishing for the first time on Tyrone’s boat enjoyed ourselves immensely. We caught perch, humpback spots, stripe bass and catfish. The fish were swimming in schools and we were very fortunate. My sister and l were tired as we caught more than fifty fish each of different varieties. It was an awesome day of fishing and we were tired once we got home. After arriving home we had to store the majority of these fish in our freezers. We put the fish in #alkaline water inside storage bags which keeps them fresh as the day you caught them. We look forward to our next fishing trip on the Island Queen with Captain Tyrone Charters.