the impossible poem

Well, I’m 39 today and that just makes me giggle. Oh, not because I find the aging process funny or anything. Just that there comes a time….. maybe it’s an age…..

For The Impossible Poem, the end is ever drawing nigh. It has been a blast interacting with searchers for the last 10 months or so. Since this blog was started, we have had 4,414 views and 1,356 unique visitors.   I congratulate all 1,356 people for taking a glimpse into the impossible. 

Some may be aware and some not- I created a Forrest Fenn discord a little over a year ago. That community has swelled to about 800 users. On the discord, I have a channel for the impossible poem (feel free to find the link over at the Finding Fenn’s Gold Reddit). Over the last 10 months or so I have offered anyone whose birthday it is three questions that I have to answer honestly. Considering today, April 14th , is my birthday….. I suppose I’ll conclude the final scrapbook by asking myself three questions about The Impossible Poem. It seems like the fair way to do it.

Question One: What is, if anything, the significance of the numbers on 3D Bronze’s chest for the impossible loot?

Answer: I have a feeling, if someone were to find the loot, they would then understand the significance of at least one of those numbers….. if they haven’t already.

Question Two: How can I help myself find infinity between the fives?

Answer: Use your eyes.

Question Three: Can I make the final choice from home?

Answer: No….. But you should know what to do before you get there. 

I hope you appreciate my honesty and candor with myself. And because it’s such a special day, why not a bonus question?

Question 4: Why did you do this, Ben? Was it always planned this way?

Answer:  First off, Ben….. That’s two questions. Secondly,  I do think one bleeds into the other.  I did this because those flies meant everything to me, and I only earned them by winning a poker tournament. That’s not enough. We are a community that fell in love with an audacious old man who did an audacious thing (one that I STILL don’t think we understand yet).

The real answer though….. I fear death.  I think about it constantly. Too much. It ‘s quite paralyzing at times. Crippling. I don’t want to die at my spot. I want to live life there. I want you to live life there too. The first time I sat down there and truly listened, I understood that we are all our own pilots. And we make our own destinations. The emotional thrill that comes from the search is irreplaceable. And as long as we keep searching, the promise of other discoveries always becomes fulfilled. 

It’s a foot race now. I can confirm we have more than one searcher within five hundred and five feet of the loot’s hidey spot. I am monitoring this year’s snowpack for flooding issues. On May 1, I will put out a notification on when to expect the loot to be re hidden. I want to make sure it’s as safe as we can make this. IF flooding makes this hunt impossible to start in May, I will push back the end time accordingly.

It has been my privilege to play a small role in keeping something of the chase alive. These are not my fishing flies yet. They will belong to the person who finds them. But if no one does, they’re all mine.  Alexander the Great once said “There is nothing impossible to they who will try”.

Good luck….. and to the lead searchers, let’s share ‘just one’ when all is said and done.