How Lost Lake has Influenced My Life :: Observation Essays

How Lost Lake has Influenced My Life One day when I was five years old I recall my grandfather asking "Steve, why don't, you go with us to Minnesota next week?" My grandfather was a very important person to me, until he died in 1986. I spent every possible moment of my life either with him or thinking about him. Everything he loved, I loved, and vice-versa. Being bored with my present lifestyle in Peoria and excited about traveling with my grandfather, I took up his offer. After a day long car ride with my father, uncle, and grandparents, I arrived at the location that would forever influence and inspire my life: Lost Lake, Minnesota. I first remarked on the cabin we were going to stay in, for it reminded me very much of the cabin on Log Cabin pancake syrup. I was also surprised at the trees: along with the beautiful pines were these trees with white bark. I asked my grandfather what kind of trees they were, and he told me that they were birch trees. I thought he said "perch", figuring that the trees were named after a species of fish common in the lake. When we went out on the lake to fish I caught a bass on the first cast of my fishing career. My excitement was colossal. While we were fishing I heard a sound I had never heard before: the call of the loon, the state bird of Minnesota. This haunting sound is the trademark of the North Woods. Its sound is quite similar to a moan in a horror picture. Since I experienced all of these new things while having the time of my life, I fell in love with the fish, the loons, and the birch trees. These feelings would stay with me forever. Many of the things I witnessed on my first trip to Lost Lake closely reflect primary interests in my life now. That smallmouth bass introduced me to one of my very favorite hobbies: fishing. I now go fishing at every possible opportunity. Unfortunately, central Illinois is not blessed with fishing lakes, so my fishing is limited to local farm ponds and creeks. I try to go fishing at least once a week. After seeing those mysterious white trees I became very interested in studying trees. Today I can identify any tree anywhere in the United States.