My father, Paul Andrew Figura, was a die-hard fisherman. In my 1 , we went out fishing in all kinds of weather, catching and missing nearly every fish in countless waterways.
Whenever we 2 , Mom would ask: "What time will you be back?" "When we can't see the 3 ," Dad would respond. He often 4 it. Sometimes Dad would ask me to 5 some food and water and we'd fish the entire day. I observed firsthand his insistent, rapid-ire casting technique, to which he credited as a 6 factor behind his success. It was one 7 after another after another.
The greatest life lesson that Dad taught me involved dealing with those times when the fish weren't 8 Days when the weather was awful, when the mosquitoes were biting, when my hands were cold. Times when I just wanted to 9 and go home. Dad's 10 ? "Son, you're not going to catch any fish unless you 11 your line. Keep casting," he'd say.
I learned early the importance of 12 and willingness to keep trying different fish food if you wanted to catch them. Sooner or later they'd 13 I took that same attitude into my school work. 14 , I got many awards at college. I applied it 15 to whatever job I had as an adult and it made me the person that I am today.
