Poetry on the Water

From our just completed Arkansas Retreat, participant Charles wrote this beautiful poem that perfectly capture the magic that happens at our Retreats:

“Full Circle: Where the Broken Bend Back Toward Light”

 Reel Recovery Arkansas

Norfork, Arkansas.

A river I’ve waded so many times before — but this time, it was different.

Twelve men. Twelve stories.

Different paths, same current.

Each of us carrying the weight of survival, of loss, of what cancer has taken — and what it’s given back.

At first, the silence was heavy.

Broken recognizes broken.

We didn’t need to explain.

We just stood together — wading, casting, breathing.

Then, somewhere between sunrise and the next cast, something shifted.

The fog lifted, laughter returned, and life — fragile, messy, beautiful — started flowing again.

Men who barely spoke began swapping stories, tying flies, sharing coffee, and hope.

Someone caught their first trout.

Someone else caught their first deep breath in months.

It’s hard to describe what happens out there — when pain, purpose, and grace all meet in moving water.

The river doesn’t fix you.

It just reminds you that you’re still here — still capable of feeling, forgiving, and showing up.

I'm about to turn my truck around and head west to Dairy Hollow, with my heart cracked open and full — reminded that life isn’t about trying to not die. It's about living. It’s about now.

So wherever you are:

Say the thing.

Make the call.

Take the trip.

Cast the line.

Love harder.

Live slower.

Do what matters most — today.

Charles (l) and Arkansas Buddies