Night Fishing for Monster Bluegill

Gabe loves fishing with his dad and they go on a fishing vacation with the same group every year. The lake where they fish is very special and just how special it is becomes witness to a miracle

Night Fishing for Monster Bluegill

By Allan Cook

1.     Chapter one

     My name is Gabe and I’m a fisherman. The fact that I am only going to start first grade next year should not distract from my prowess as a fisherman. You see, I come from a whole family of fisherman and I can’t remember a time when I wasn’t coming home from fishing, actually fishing or planning a fishing trip. It would only make sense that our family vacations would center round our passion for fishing. And it does! Again, I can’t remember a year that we did not take the three hour drive north from Quantum City, Ohio to Lake Violet, Michigan. It was as though God himself had commanded that we spend one week there every summer.

     We love the place! Lake Violet is surrounded by a spectacular old growth forest of poplar, birch, oak, maple and countless other species of plants and trees. The forest rings the lake like a beautiful necklace of Emerald Green. Where the forest ends, the clean, soft, sandy beaches begin then end abruptly at the water’s edge. Lake Violet is fed from underground springs. The spring water is cold and crystal clear. Even in the deepest parts of the lake, the multicolored stones and deep green water plants are clearly visible and seem only an arm’s length away.

     The crystal clear water provides an opportunity to spy on the vast and wondrous variety of fish that inhabit the lake. There are catfish, largemouth bass, small mouth bass, crappie, bluegill and sun fish. There are northern pike, rock bass, carp, chub, darters, eels, gar, herring, perch and minnows. That’s not all.  There are also pickerel, salmon, shad, trout, white fish and the mighty muskellunge.

     Two fish that are notably missing from this list are Monster Bluegill and Dogfish.

     The Native Americans, living near Lake Violet, tell the story of the Monster Bluegill and Dogfish. They tell us that as God was filling the lakes of Michigan with fish, he spent long hours watching and marveling at all of the different species of fish he had created. God truly admired by how well they all got along with one another. God took special note of the beauty, kindness, and gentleness of the Monster Bluegill. He was greatly moved by this and made the pronouncement that, from that day forth, they would be God’s representatives in the lakes of Michigan. To set them apart from all others, he gently pinched the head of every blue gill present, Monster or otherwise, leaving a blue circle on each side of the head.

     God was also impressed by the wisdom displayed by the Dogfish and charged them with the responsibility of watching over his Monster Bluegill.

      Hundreds and hundreds of years went by and the fish of Lake Violet thrived. They lived in harmony with one another and with the Native Americans.

     Then one tragic and fateful day the white man came to Lake Violet. The harmony of the lake was immediately and forever broken. The Native Americans were driven away and in their place white settlements arose. The settlers took fish from the lake without regard for species, sizes or numbers. The population of Lake Violet was decimated!    

    

      They were especially enchanted by the majesty of the Monster Bluegill and fished for them relentlessly. This enchantment was matched in fervor only by the disgust and revulsion they had for the Dogfish. They saw the Dogfish as loathsome and vile creatures. Both species were fished to near extinction until there only remained one pair of Monster Bluegill and one Dogfish in the entire lake. The wise Dogfish recognized how grim their situation had become and, remembering God’s decree, led the two remaining Monster Bluegill to a remote and hidden area of the lake where they would be safe from the white man’s onslaught.  

     When God became aware of what was happening he became enraged by the plundering and pillaging the white man was inflicting upon this special place. The settlers were driven from the area by disease and pestilence inflicted upon them by God’s wrath.    

     No one has seen a Monster Bluegill or a Dogfish in Violet Lake since that day.

 

Chapter Two

     After an eternal three hour ride, we finally arrived at the lake. We quickly unloaded the car and put everything into our cabin. I was anxious to start fishing but Mom insisted that we all eat lunch before starting out on the day’s activities.

     I could tell that my Dad was as excited about fishing as I was but when we are here there is an unwritten rule that everyone abides by; Mom is in charge. You see my Mom is a teacher and is really good at planning things and controlling situations so that they don’t turn bad. She is also very smart.

      The cabins are made from logs and are rock solid and sturdy. The quickest way to enter it is through the back door. The backdoor opens onto the parking area. The front door is on the opposite end of the cabin and leads onto a large covered porch. On the porch are chairs, tables and a swing. Three carved rock steps lead to the boardwalk which is only 20 feet from the water’s edge and the beginning of the fishing dock. Dad says that if it were just a little closer to the water, we could fish right off the porch.

     At night when dad and I are night fishing from the dock, Mom and Emma like to sit on the porch and feel the soft cool lake breeze. They watch the lightning bugs flashing and listen to the crickets and spring peepers chirping and croaking. Above the lake you see an uncountable number of beautiful white, blue and red stars. From one end of the lake to the other you can see the reflection of the thick white belt of the Milky Way on the water. On calm nights, when the moon is in the sky and the lake is still, you can actually make out the face of the man in the moon in the reflection. We often return to find mom with tears of happiness in her eyes.

     Inside the cabin there is a large, red brick, wood burning fireplace that dominates the front wall of the living room. The only furniture is an old sofa, in front of the fireplace, a pair of hardwood end tables, a coffee table and a large oak frame rocking chair next to the porch door. Next to the living room is the kitchen and breakfast nook. In the kitchen there are all the comforts of home; a refrigerator, a dish washer, a garbage disposal, an electric range and a double sink with hot and cold running water.

     By the time mom had lunch ready, Dad and I had sorted through our gear. We put all of our fishing tackle on the porch and everything else in either the living room area or in one of the bedrooms.

     The cabin has two bedrooms, each with a double bed and a bedside table on each side of the bed. On each bedside stand there sits a small lamp, with a simple well-worn shades. The beds are made with linen and blankets supplied by the cabin owner but Mom will strip each one and make the beds with our own linen.

     Between the bedrooms there is a full bathroom, complete with a shower.

     When the day’s fishing is done and bedtime arrives, I will sleep on my own cot in my parent’s bedroom. Emma sleeps alone in the other bedroom in her port-a-crib. She has to sleep alone because if anyone is in her room, or even enters it while she is sleeping, she wakes up and cries. Mom monitors her closely with a closed circuit television system, so she really isn’t alone.

     For lunch Mom prepared a platter of ham sandwiches on wheat and rye breads. I like mine on wheat but Mom and Dad like rye bread.  Emma doesn’t get a choice, she gets wheat bread, broken into small pieces so it is easier for her to handle. Everyone agrees that there has to be Mayonnaise on their sandwich. Emma, Mom and I drink water with our meals. Dad usually has a cold beer.

     Finally it was time to start fishing!

 

Chapter 3

     It just occurred to me that some of you may not be fishermen and don’t automatically assume that we take a boat with when we go on a fishing trip. For those of you who are in that category, you need to know that sitting on a trailer, attached to the rear of my dad’s truck, is a seventeen foot bass boat with a powerful, sixty horsepower, out board motor.

     Fishing from the bass boat is a lot of fun and contributes greatly to mine and Dad’s success as fishermen. Dad can take the boat to anywhere on the lake he thinks the fish will be biting. The big outboard motor gets us to those places really fast. When we get to where we want to fish, he turns off the outboard motor.  We then have two choices, he can either drop the anchor so we stay in one place or turn on the electric trolling motor so we move slowly through the area. Sometimes it may take a while before the fish start biting so Dad will set up seats at the front and back of the boat, we say fore and aft, and we fish from these chairs until the action starts.

     Unfortunately, the bass boat requires Mom and Dad to launch at the launch ramp and Mom is busy putting things away and trying to get Emma to take a nap.

     For fishermen like me and Dad, fishing from the dock is the next best thing.  We are away from the trees and bushes on the shoreline and the water is deep. Dad says that certain fish live around the base of the dock and catching them requires a different technique than we use when fishing from the boat. I learn something new about fishing almost every time we go out.

     Before we can even start fishing though, we need to get some bait. I only use worms for bait. Dad sometimes uses worms but, more often, uses artificial bait like lures, spinners, jigs and things like that. Someday I will probably use those things too but for now, I use worms.

           There are no cities within an hour’s drive of Lake Violet so we depend on Edwin’s General Store for anything that we were unable to, or forgot to bring with us. Mr. Edwin always seems to have exactly what we need. He lives in a small house behind his store and is at the lake the year around. No one knows exactly how long the store has been here but no one can remember a time when it and Mr. Edwin were not here.

      It’s only about a five minute walk from our cabin so dad and I walked there. We bought a couple dozen night crawlers. Night crawlers are big fat worms about seven inches long. Dad is friends with everybody, including Mr. Edwin. While I wandered around the shop, Mr. Edwin and Dad tried to figure out where the best places to fish would be this time of year and what kinds of fish we were likely to catch.

     Once we had our bait, we headed straight for the dock. The wooden fishing dock is old, worn and in dire need of painting but it is also solid and strong. We went to the very end of the dock and Dad found a place that he thought looked promising. I sat down on the edge of the dock and let my legs dangle. The water level of the lake is high this time of year and only about two feet from the deck of the dock. Without any warning Dad handed me a brand new rod and reel that he’d been hiding from me. He told me that I was ready to use higher quality equipment.  I knew that I had to be dreaming! It was the most beautiful spin casting outfit I had ever seen! I asked him to get it ready for me but he just kept looking for something in his tackle box. I asked again and he acted like he didn’t hear me.

      Finally I began to plead with him, “Please Dad!”

      Looking up from his tackle box and smiled. “Oh! You want to fish with it now?” he asked.

     We both laughed and took the rod from me. Before I knew it my dad had, deftly, tied a small lead steel sinker to the end of the line. About four feet above it he tied what we fishermen call a 3/0 size hook.

     “Do you want to bait the hook or should I do it for you?” he asked.

     I’d never baited a hook before but had watched Dad do it hundreds of times over the years. This was the first time I’d ever been asked to do it myself though. He must have thought that it was time for me to get my hands dirty. Even so, I didn’t feel ready to undertake the task quite yet. Reluctantly I answered, “You do it Dad.”

     Moments later my hook was baited with a big, juicy night crawler. I took the rod from my dad got ready to cast. “Are you mad at me?” I asked.

     He looked at me and asked, “Why would I be mad at you Gabe?”

     Hesitantly I answered, “Because I wouldn’t bait my own hook.”

     With that, he looked at me and smiled. Then his face took on a serious look and he said, “Of course I’m not mad at you buddy. You’ll bait your own hook when you are good and ready. I just wanted to let you know that I think you are ready. Now fish”

     I was ecstatic! I stood up, swung the rod back over my head and then forward, releasing  the line as the rod passed over me.

“CRACK!”

    Suddenly, one half of my new rod was in my hands and the other half was sinking to the bottom of Lake Violet. My beautiful brand new rod had snapped right in half!

     Dad quickly grabbed the line and pulled the sinking half out of the water. He looked at it with disgust and told me that it looked like a clean break. I could tell that he was upset.

       I started to cry so he put his arm around me. He reminded me that my old rod and reel were still in the cabin. Without another word he began, half walking and half running, back down the dock towards our cabin. I stopped crying and waited there for him to come back. He returned with my old equipment in a matter of minutes and in no time, I was fishing.

     Dad and I sat there for what seemed like an hour, staring at the tips of our rods, waiting for a bite or even just a nibble. It was really only a couple of minutes but it seems like time slows to a crawl when you are waiting for a fish to take your bait.

     An instant later the wait was over! Dad’s rod tip bent straight towards the water. He quickly jerked the rod up and toward him to set the hook. The reel gave off a soft whirr as the line rapidly unwound. The fish was heading for deeper water in a valiant attempt to escape.  Dad just let the fish run. In just a very short time it stopped running and Dad began to reel it in. He employed a fisherman’s cadence that he had perfected by years of practice. He let the tip drop towards the water, reeling in line all the while. Then, slowly and steadily, he pulled the rod tip back up, bringing the fish closer to being landed. This cadence was repeated for several minutes until the fish was brought close enough for us to get a glimpse of it. Dad had hooked a great big cat fish. The fish’s broad head and whiskers were clearly visible through the crystal clear water. When the cat fish was almost to the dock, I handed Dad the net.  In a single, practiced motion, he reached down and swept the fish into the net and out of the water.

     While Dad was landing his catch, my night crawler wasn’t going unnoticed. When I finally remembered that, I too, was fishing, the tip of my rod was bouncing up and down like mom shaking her finger at me when she is mad. I grabbed the rod and yelled, “Something is messing with my bait!”

     I did exactly like my dad had done and jerked the rod up to set the hook. My jerk was met with a violent tug as the fish headed for the deepest parts of Lake Violet, as fast as it could swim. The ferocity of the fish’s reaction stunned me for a moment and I just stood there watching and hearing my line being, relentlessly, unwound from my reel. Once I regained my composure, I attempted to employ the cadence that my dad had used so successfully earlier to land the cat fish. To say that this wasn’t working for me would be understating things greatly. Every time I lower the tip of the rod, the fish fled anew.

     I could tell that my dad was as excited as I was because I could hear him yelling to me, “Hang on Gabe! You’ve hooked something big!”

 

     I didn’t realize it at the time, because all my strength and concentration was centered on the fight at hand, but my friends had gathered at the end of the dock and were energetically cheering me on.

     While I fought with the leviathan of Lake Violet, my dad was preoccupied with the process of releasing the cat fish back into the lake. He wanted to be by my side but not at the cost of the cat fish’s life. Quickly and carefully he took it from the net, removed the hook and gently returned it to the water. As soon as the catfish touched the water it made a small splash with its tail, and headed straight for the bottom of the lake.

     All the while, I was trying to do what my dad had taught me. I kept trying, unsuccessfully, to get into some sort of rhythm with the pulling and reeling in. As I was still a few days short of eight years old, this was proving to be an epic struggle for me.

     Dad was now standing next to me, giving me instructions and encouragement. I could now hear my friends in the background. Things seemed to be getting a little easier and I started to relax a little. That was a huge mistake! Again, without warning, the beast began ripping the line from my reel and getting even farther away. The longer it ran though, the slower it got. Surprisingly, I was gaining the upper hand in this battle. Dad said that the fish is tiring itself out. I wondered who was more tired, me or the fish.

      He was right, reeling it in was now taking a lot less effort. I was afraid to relax though because of what had happened earlier so I just stayed at it with all my might. A few moments later we got our first look at what I had hooked as it broke the surface for a brief instant. It was still too far away for Dad to identify but it created a prodigious splash.

     This fish was starting to wear me down!  Dad’s encouragement and my friend’s support helped a lot to keep me going. With great relief, I finally got the monster to the dock and dad was about to catch it in the net. But he didn’t! Instead he put the net down and reached for the fish. He grabbed it by the mouth, pulled it out of the water and held it up for me to see. It was the biggest largemouth bass I had ever seen!

     Dad agreed that it was a special catch so he weighed and measured it. It was twenty-two and a half inches long and weighed eight pounds and seven ounces. Dad took out his smart phone and took pictures of me holding it up. Then one of my friends took a picture of me, Dad and the fish. Then Dad took a picture of me, my friends and the fish. It went on and on, everyone was excited and wanted a picture.

     “Time to get it back into the water now Gabe,” Dad warned.

      I could detect the concern in his voice so I hurried to get my fish back where it belonged. Very gently I placed it into the water. We were all shocked to see it just floating there on its side. I must have kept it out of the water too long and killed it. Tears were welling up in my eyes as I just stood there watching   that beautiful fish floating there.  As sport fishermen we have a sacred duty to the fish we catch. That duty is not to harm the fish anymore than necessary and always return it, alive, to where it came from. Until now those were just words that adults told children because they always had to have rules for everything. I never took it seriously and now the most glorious fish I had ever caught was paying the ultimate price.

     I thought to myself, “Please God! Save this fish. I am so sorry for what I have done!”

     Just then the largemouth’s pectoral fins moved just slightly.

     Someone yelled, “Look!”

     As we watched the movement became greater and it started open and closing its mouth. The tears in my eyes were flowing now. An instant later my trophy fish flipped its tail and was gone.

     I am sure that we were all relieved but I had just learned a very powerful and personal lesson about the sanctity of life.

      As I wiped the tears from my eyes and cheeks, I told my dad that I didn’t want to fish anymore. I asked Dad if I could go with my friends. He looked at me with an expression that told me that everything was going to be ok and calmly said, “Sure, go ahead.”

      My friends and I slowly headed for the shore. Dad stayed behind to do some more fishing.

     One of the best things about coming here, besides the fishing of course, is being with five special friends. Each year I get to spend a week with Caroline, Liam, Aiden, Janai and Nathan. We were all born within a few months of each other and first met as toddlers in diapers. We all share an almost mystical bond and feel as though we are together year around instead of just one week a year. I can’t explain it but it makes me happy.

     We talked and laughed for a while then decided to go swimming. We said we’d meet at a beach in fifteen minutes and then went to our cabins to get ready. The swimming beach was just a short walk from the dock.

         When I entered the cabin I saw that Mom had already put everything away and was busy getting Emma ready to go swimming. I told her about the big largemouth bass I had caught. She said she wished she could have seen it. I let her know that we had plenty of pictures. I didn’t mention that taking all the pictures almost cost the fish its life.

      I was thirsty so I got myself a bottle of water from the refrigerator and drank it. I told her that all my friends were here except Nathan.

     “We’re all going swimming now. Where’s my suit?” I asked.

      She told me where it was in the bedroom. I went into the bedroom and poked around until I found it. I put it on and then grabbed towel from the linen closet.

    When I came back out Mom and Emma had their bathing suits on too. Emma is only a year and a half old so part of her bathing suit is a diaper. Mom was busy rubbing sun screen all over Emma’s body. Where ever there was exposed skin she slathered on some sun screen. Then she turned to me.

     She said that she couldn’t believe that I had been out in the sun all that time without sunscreen and then proceeded to smear the stuff all over me too. I have learned that some things just aren’t worth complaining about and this was one of them. She was going to make me wear sun screen no matter what I said or did. Before we left, Emma put on a pair of sunglasses. I thought she looked goofy and laughed but Mom assured me that she was actually cute and that is something else you don’t argue about.

     As we were about to leave, Dad came back in. He opened another beer and took a long drink of it. He told us that he had caught a couple more good sized catfish but nothing else. I asked him to show Mom the pictures of the fish I caught. He took out his cell phone a showed them to her.

     Mom was totally impressed. “You landed that fish all by yourself?” she exclaimed.

     Before I could open my mouth, Dad answered, “Yes he did and it wasn’t easy!”

    Mom rushed over to me and gave me a big hug and kiss. “I am so proud of you!” she said with a big smile.    

        Mom explained that we were all going swimming and invited Dad to join us but he declined. He told her that he wanted to take a nap and then launch the boat.

     “Let me know when you are finished with your nap and want to launch the boat,” Mom told him.

     “I should be ready in a couple of hours,” he replied. “I’ll come down to the beach and get you.”  

     With that settled, Dad stretched out on the sofa and was asleep before we got out the door.

     My dad is a policeman on the Quantum City Police Force. He’s only about average height but very strong. He likes to keep his dark brown hair cut short and always keeps it well groomed. For as long as I can remember he has never had a beard or moustache but Mom has shown me pictures of him with both. He works out a lot and has really big muscles!

     Emma, Mom and I walked down to the beach together, on the boardwalk. The boardwalk begins at Edwin’s General Store, passes by all the cabins then passes the beach. It ends at a long pier where all of the boats are docked. The boardwalk is in just slightly better condition than the fishing dock.

     In my eyes my mom is the most beautiful woman in the world and I am not alone in that opinion. You see, every place we go I notice men pretending not to look at her. They don’t pretend very well though because it’s obvious even to a young kid like me. It was no different as we walked to the beach. Mom was attracting a lot of attention from men pretending not to be looking. 

      Last year I realized something strange about the beach. Sometimes it’s larger and sometimes it’s smaller. That made no sense to me so I asked my mom about it. She told me something about tides and the moon but I had no idea what she was talking about. Since she is the smartest person in the world, I knew that she was right and figured that I’d understand it too some day.

     The beach isn’t far from our cabin so it just took a couple of minutes to get there. It wasn’t very crowded yet. Mom found a spot she liked and claimed it by spreading out her and Emma’s beach towels. The towels had emerged from a seemingly magic canvas beach bag that Mom carries with her on these occasions. The bag is Navy Blue and has the words “Lake Violet, Michigan” printed in gold lettering on both sides. It’s not really magic but sometimes it seems that way. It always contains exactly what we need for any situation that we could possibly encounter on the beach. Over the years I have come to realize that if I need anything, anything at all, I just have to tell Mom. She then reaches into the bag there it is!

     The sand on the beach is very soft. As you walk the sand envelopes your foot assuring that the “No Running on the Beach” sign is obeyed. The summer sun beating down and the lack of any shade makes the sand very hot. At times it can be unbearably hot. If you didn’t wear shoes or sandals you could surely burn your feet. The sand gets much cooler closer to the water.

     The swimming area is clearly marked by ropes with red and white floats attached to them. It’s about a hundred feet from the beach to the rope marking how far out it safe to venture.Its about two hundred yards wide. The water is about five feet deep at its deepest point. There are four lifeguards on duty during swimming hours. I really don’t know what the swimming hours are. I just know that if Mom says yes, swimming hours are on and if Mom says no swimming hours are off. No amount of argument can change those swimming hours.

   This year something new had been added to the beach. There were now three water slides. Each one started on the beach and ended in the water. The highest was about thirty feet high and the lowest only about six feet high. The third slide was about half the height of the tallest.

     The moment Emma saw the slides she ran towards them. She was headed straight for the highest one until Mom cut her off and directed her toward the small one. I saw that my friends had just shown up and I told Mom that I was going to play with them. She gave me the obligatory warning to be careful and to stay in the shallow water. I, of course, agreed and left to be with my friends. It took me less than a minute to reach my friends and look back. When I did, Emma had already reached the top to the slide and Mom was rushing to the bottom of to catch her as she slid into the water. One thing that can be said for my little sister, she is fearless.

     My friends and I splashed around and played in the water for a couple of hours. Someone had brought a beach ball and we hit that back and forth for a while. We were having a lot of fun. We always have a great time when we’re together.

     We finally started to get tired so we got out of the water and started digging in the sand. We couldn’t dig very deep because after just a foot or so the hole began to fill with water from below. It’s hard to believe that digging a hole can be so much fun.

     We had built a large sand castle and were starting to build the moat around it when I saw my dad walking down the boardwalk towards the slides where Mom and Emma, were still playing. By now, Mom was just letting her slide down and splash into the water. Every time she hit the water Emma would let out with a loud laugh. It didn’t seem as though she was ever going to get enough and she was still wearing her sunglasses.

     I watched as Mom and Dad talked for a few seconds. Mom then took Emma by the hand and walked with her over to where the towels had been spread on the sand. She dried Emma with a large beach towel and then wrapped her in it. Dad saw me watching them and he waved for me to join them.

     I didn’t want to leave my friends so screamed no and started to stamp my feet. Had I thought this through, I would have known that it was going to end badly for me but, as I said, I’m not even eight years old yet. I just continued on with my tantrum. The predictable happened. Mom came running over to me, grabbed my both arms and put her face inches from mine. She was using her angry teacher voice as she spoke to me but I wasn’t listening. I was too busy wailing. She let go of one arm and pulled me over to an empty part of the boardwalk with the other. She ordered me to sit there until she said I could leave. She calls this a time-out and I really have a strong dislike for time-outs. I started pleading. I told her that I was sorry and that I wouldn’t do it again.

     “Please Mom! Let me get up! I’m sorry!” I cried.

      By this time I was crying. All I got for my effort was a repeat of the order to sit there until I was told that I could get up.

     A few minutes later I again pled my case, this time in a calmer and more controlled manner. I told her that I was sorry. She gave me some sort of warning and then let me get up.

     By this time my friends had all left. Dad said the he and Mom we’re going to go put the boat in the water. Mom explained that Emma and I were going to spend some time with Caroline and her parents until they got back. I wanted to help with the boat and was just beginning to protest again when Dad cut me off. He told me that if I was good, he would take me out on the boat after dinner, to do some more fishing. I ceased my protest immediately.

     Caroline’s family had the cabin on one side of ours. The cabin on the other side was empty. Mom dropped us off with Caroline and her mother and went to join Dad.

     Caroline is smaller than me. My mom says that she is petite. She has red hair, green eyes and wears glasses. We met when I was about a year and a half old and I had never seen anybody with freckles before. She has freckles all over her face and I remember trying to touch them to see what they were.

     When we got there she was sitting on their couch reading a book that she had brought with her. She reads a lot of books and is very smart. Janai and her both take gymnastics lessons and are very athletic. Lots of times they will both start doing cart-wheels and flips and things. I’ve tried to do a cart-wheel but all I do is make people laugh.

     Emma and I were only there for about an hour before Mom came back to get us.  She said that they got the boat in the water and that I was going fishing with Dad on it after dinner. She then thanked everyone and reminded me to do the same. So I did. Emma said something that sounded like thank you and was, of course, given credit for it.

     Dad was sleeping on the couch again when we got back to the cabin. Mom left him alone and made dinner.

     Once dinner was over Dad and I got ready to go fishing again. Fishing from the boat, out on the lake takes a little more preparation than fishing off the dock. It was now dusk and a lot cooler than during the day.  Also, it gets a pretty chilly when you’re racing around the lake in a boat, especially at that time of day. I put on a pair of brown cargo pants and a long sleeved denim shirt to keep me warm. The deck of the boat is usually wet so I wore my high top deck shoes. The traction I get from those shoes helps me move around the deck safely. Finally I put on my life jacket. Dad was dressed similarly to the way I was except that he also had a nylon wind breaker under his life jacket.

    Mom stopped us as we were about to leave and handed each one of us a small plastic box. It was olive green and had a clip on the back. A closer inspection of this unexpected gift revealed a lattice grill on the front, a battery compartment on one side and an on/off switch on the other.

     “What’s this thing?” Dad asked, with a very quizzical look on his face.

      With pride Mom announced, “Those are mechanical mosquito repelling machines. I bought them today from Mr. Edwin.” “ He said that they work great and highly recommended them,” she went on to explain.

     Mr. Edwin rarely recommends anything so when he does he is taken seriously.

     “I see” Dad replied skeptically as he clipped one to his life jacket and put a can of mosquito repellant into his tackle box. “Plan B,” he added with a smile.

     I clipped mine to my life jacket too and didn’t say a word. I am very sensitive to mosquito bites and Mom has tried all sorts of sprays and lotions to protect me. This was the first machine she ever gave me though and, deep down inside, I hoped it worked. If it didn’t, I was going to have a really itchy time.

     Dad and I, both, switched on our new mosquito repellers, picked up our gear and exited the cabin through the porch door.

     I heard Mom yell, “Be careful, both of you!” as the door closed behind us.

     The excitement of going out on the boat was getting to be too much for me so I ran ahead. I love going fishing on our boat! I got there ahead of my dad by a couple of minutes. The boat was tied to the dock, fore and aft. Five red, white and blue bumpers hung from the side of the boat and protected it from scraping against the dock and causing damage. I’m not allowed to get on the boat alone so I had to wait for my dad to catch up. I put my gear down on the pier and started walking back towards Dad. I was so excited that I couldn’t stand still. He was just a short distance away so we got back to the boat quickly.

     Dad put down his gear and stepped down off of the pier and into the boat. I then handed him our stuff and he put it away. When everything was stowed away properly, I took my dad’s hand and he helped me step down into the boat. Dad then untied the ropes from the pier and pulled them into the boat. As we started to drift away from the pier, I pulled the five bumpers in and Dad started the motor. Dad was sitting at the helm and I sat down in the seat next to him. Once he was sure that I was settled, he pushed the throttle lever forward a little and we started to move. He steered the boat along the channel between the rows of boats and headed for the lake. As soon as he got passed all the other boats and into the lake, he pushed the throttle all the way forward. The motor roared to life, the boat lurched forward and the bow rose out of the water as we sped off into the lake.

     Our destination was a total mystery to me but I didn’t care. My dad knows this lake as well as he knows our backyard so I was certain that we were going to end up exactly where the fish that we wanted were hanging out.  I just enjoyed the wind and mist in my face as the boat cut a path through the clear blue water of Lake Violet.

     We were about a half of the way across the lake when Dad turned to me and said, We’re going after northern pike. I know a spot where they should be biting.” He had to raise his voice to be heard over the engine’s roar.

     With that announcement my mind immediately raced back to last year when I caught my first, and only, northern pike. I remembered fighting with it until Dad was able to catch it in the net and drag it aboard. As it flopped around in the bottom of the boat snapping the air, I was absolutely stunned by all the sharp teeth in its mouth. Dad warned me to stay away from it until in quit fighting. It only took a minute or so for it to stop and when it did Dad picked it up by head and body. It was so big that it took two hands to hold it. He handed it to me and I promptly dropped it. When it hit the deck of the boat it started thrashing around again. I got as far away from it as I could. Dad just picked it up again and handed it back to me again. This time I held it a lot tighter while Dad took a couple of pictures with his cell phone camera. We didn’t weight it or measure it but it was about two feet long and not very heavy. As soon as the pictures were taken I threw it back into the lake. I wanted it out of the boat. Dad admonished me about being so rough with the fish and I told him that I was sorry. I told myself that if I caught one today, I wasn’t going to be afraid.

     The trip to the spot Dad had picked out took about twenty minutes to get to. It was on the opposite side of the lake almost directly across from our cabin. He stopped the boat on the edge of a large marshy area. The site contained a combination of bulrush, cattails and water lilies all interwoven in an impenetrable web. As we approached I saw a half dozen, or so, Red Winged Black Birds fly out of the tangle and into the surrounding forest. The whole area was alive with swarms of insects, including a number of different species of dragonflies.

     Dad turned off the motor and dropped the anchor. With the motor now silent, we could hear frogs croaking and crickets chirping; nature at its finest.

     “This is where the northern pike hide” he told me with the firmness and conviction of someone who knew exactly what they were doing.

     Dad quickly set up the seats for us while I un-stowed our equipment. Everything we need is packed away in compartments located in various parts of the boat.

     I suddenly realized that we didn’t have any bait. In my excitement about going out on the boat did I forget to bring the bait? I couldn’t remember if Dad had told me to bring it or not.

     Nervously I said, “Dad, I think I forgot the bait.”

     I guess he could tell how upset I was getting because he just smiled and said, “We aren’t going to use live bait this time. We are going to use artificial lures.”

     I was so surprised by his statement that I wasn’t sure how to react. After a long pause I stammered, “I never used a lure before Dad.”

     He responded with, “I guess it’s time you learned then,” and gave me another smile.

     He took my rod and removed the hook and sinker that I had used earlier to catch the largemouth bass. They were replaced by a wooden lure, about six inches long and an inch wide. It had an orange head and yellow body with gold and black eyes. Two rows of black dots ran down both sides of the body. Attached to it were three frightful looking treble hooks. Two hung from the body. The other was attached to the tail area. He said that he always had good luck with that lure and hoped that I would too. He then baited his hook with a long, orange, plastic worm.

     He then showed me how to cast the bait to the edge of the marsh and slowly reel it back in.

      “Now you try it,” he instructed.

      I hadn’t done much casting but I gave it a try. To my amazement, it wasn’t that difficult. I slowly reeled the lure back in and prepared to cast again.

     He then said, “Just keep doing that until a northern grabs hold of it.”

     With that said, he turned away to concentrate on his own fishing.

     I sat in the rear of the boat casting out and reeling in, over and over. Dad was doing the same thing in the front of the boat.

      Suddenly I heard “Gotcha!”

     I turned and saw Dad fighting with something pretty big and pretty strong. I immediately forgot what I was doing and became fascinated with what was going on. It was obvious that Dad was having a great time and I was totally engrossed watching him. My preoccupation with what my dad was doing quickly turned into a big mistake as my rod was jerked right out of my hand. I scrambled after it and was able to grab it before it fell into the water. I jerked on the line to set the hook but it was now slack. Whatever had been there was now gone.

     I turned my attention back to my dad when, abruptly and totally unexpectedly, there was another great tug on my line. This time I was able to keep hold of the rod and I, again, jerked the rod back to set the hook.  I had him this time! To my surprise I had little trouble landing this fish. It was, indeed, a northern pike but it was only a little over a foot long.  Even though it was small, its teeth were menacing.  I remembered the promise that I had made myself not to be scared if I caught another northern pike. I took a deep breath and picked it up by its head. I removed the hook and gently turned it loose. I was quite pleased with myself.

      Dad, on the other hand, was struggling. The fish was putting up a Herculean fight but, in the end, it was no match for my dad. It was the largest northern pike I had ever seen and even Dad was amazed at its size. Even in the cool evening air Dad was sweating from the battle he had just taken part in. Naturally we took the obligatory pictures with Dad’s cell phone and then freed the behemoth to fight another day.

     The Sun was now below the horizon and it was getting dark fast. With the boat’s running lights shining brightly we sped back across the lake. As we neared the pier Dad eased back on the throttle and the boat slowed down. Once the boat was lined up, he pulled the throttle all the way back and we coasted slowly and gently as he steered right up next to the pier. I threw a rope around one of the posts and secured the boat. Dad got out of the boat first and I passed him our gear. After I got out we picked up our equipment and headed back to our cabin after a successful outing.

     When we got back to the cabin, Emma was already in bed sleeping and Mom was watching a movie on her laptop computer. 

     “Are you guys hungry?” Mom asked.

     She already knew the answer to her question and was up and on her way to the kitchen before we could say a word.

     She asked me, “What would you like Gabe?”

     A peanut butter and jelly sandwich was my, almost, automatic reply. I love peanut butter and jelly sandwiches!

     Then she asked my dad what he wanted.

     He replied, “I think I’ll cook myself a steak.”

     “That sounds good. How about making me one too?” Mom asked as she started making my sandwich.

     “Two steaks, coming up!” was Dad’s response.

     By the time I had finished my sandwich the events of the day had finally caught up with me and I could barely keep my eyes open.

     Mom saw how tired I was and told me, “Go brush your teeth and get into bed. I’ll be there in a minute to tuck you in.”

     I did as she instructed and was almost asleep by the time she came into the room

     “Good night’” she said quietly as she kissed me on the forehead.

     I was asleep in seconds.

 

Chapter 4

     The next morning I was awakened by someone tugging on my arm. It was Emma trying to wake me up. I looked around and saw Mom and Dad were not in bed. I must have been really tired because I am usually the first one up but today I was the last one.

     Mom heard me because, as I was still waking up, she was in the doorway.

     With a melodic tone and a smile, she greeted me with, “Good morning sleepy head.”

    “Good morning Mom,” I answered. I was much more alert now.

    “Breakfast is almost ready,” she added. Then, almost robotically she instructed me to, “Go wash your face and brush your teeth.”

 

      When I came out of the bathroom I went back into the bedroom where Mom had laid out some clean clothes for me. I got dressed and went into the living room. Mom was busy making pancakes and Emma was, sort of, helping her.

     I didn’t see Dad so I asked, “Where’s Dad?”

     Mom hesitated a moment and then said, “He’s out on the porch talking to Nathan’s father.”

     I went to the porch door and opened it just as my dad and Nathan’s father stood up. They shook hands and Nathan’s dad left. He looked sad as he left the porch and walked back to his cabin.

     “Is Nathan here Dad? I asked as Dad came into the cabin.

     Just then Mom announced, “Breakfast is ready!”

     Dad looked down at me and said softly, “We can talk about that after breakfast.”

     On the way to the table Mom and Dad made eye contact and I immediately knew that something was wrong and it scared me.

    “What’s wrong?” I asked timidly.

    Mom just looked at Dad and said, “Eat your pancakes.”

     Now I was both scared and upset. Without considering the possible consequences I shouted, “I don’t want any pancakes! I want to know what is wrong!”

     It then occurred to me that I had probably just earned myself the mother of all time outs and I prepared myself for the worst.

     To my utter amazement Mom and Dad just looked at one another for a long moment and then Mom said, “Ok, I’ll tell you. Your friend Nathan is very sick with a disease called Leukemia.”

     I was relieved to find out that nothing was wrong with our family and I innocently asked, “What is Leukemia?”

     My relief quickly turned to dread when Dad explained that it was a very serious disease.

      I blurted out, “Is he going to die?”

     Dad told me in a calm but firm voice, “Yes Gabe, there is a very good chance that he is going to die.”

      I was stunned. I didn’t know what to say or do. Then I remembered what Mom told me to do when I didn’t know what else to do. Pray to God.  

     “We have to pray right now!” I exclaimed with great urgency.

      They agreed and we held hands around the breakfast table and prayed for Nathan’s health and soul.

      As we prayed, the dread that I had felt earlier turned  into compassion for my friend.

     I wasn’t sure what I wanted to do so I went into the bedroom and laid down to think.  While I laid there I could hear Mom and Dad talking.

     “Why did Nancy and Jim bring such a sick child out here in the middle of nowhere?” Mom asked.

     I assumed that Nancy and Jim were Nathan’s parents.

     “I asked Jim about that,” Dad replied. “And he almost started crying!” He added.

     “I can’t even imagine what they are going through,” was Mom’s response.

     Dad continued, “Jim said that after his last chemotherapy treatment Nathan had a dream about this lake and Monster Bluegill.”

     “Are there Monster Bluegill in Lake Violet?” Mom asked.

     “No, and Jim knows that,” Dad answered. “He said that he told Nathan that but Nathan insisted on coming here to see Monster Bluegill! They told the doctors about it and they said that some patients get delusional after chemotherapy.”

     Mom said, “I think I’m going to cry.”

     Dad continued the story, “He said that the doctors told him that the chemotherapy wasn’t working and that Nathan only had a couple months to live. He and Nancy decided that if this is where Nathan wanted to go, they were just going to try to make him as happy as possible.”

     I could hear Mom crying now.

    “I have no idea what I would do in that situation,” Mom said between sobs.

    “Me neither,” Dad agreed.

     After that they stopped talking.

     I laid there for a little longer, trying not to think about what I had overheard but that was all I could think about. I couldn’t lay there any longer because I just got sadder and sadder. I got up and went back into the living room. Mom and Dad were sitting on the sofa. Mom had her head on Dad’s shoulder and Dad had his arm around her. She was still quietly crying. Emma was on the kitchen floor playing with her toys.

     “I’m going outside and see if my friends are around,” I announced, trying to sound normal. It is really hard to sound normal when you are as sad as I was.

     Dad looked over his shoulder at me and I thought that I saw a tear in his eye too. He said, “Ok but don’t go too far.”

     I told him that I wouldn’t and left the cabin. I felt a little better once I was outside.

Chapter 5

     I found Liam, Janai, Aiden and Caroline sitting silently on the edge boardwalk in front of Caroline’s cabin. I could tell immediately from the looks on their faces that they had heard the news about Nathan.

     I sat down next to Liam and said, “Did you hear about Nathan?” I didn’t know what else to say.

     They all said that they had heard the news and then we all sat there in silence. No one knew what to say or how to act.

     We always seemed to feel good when we were in Edwin’s General Store so I suggested that we go there instead of just sitting here. No one answered verbally. We all just got up and silently walked toward the store.

     Even at the slow pace we were walking it didn’t take us long to reach our destination. I got there first and opened the door. The bells above the door jingled as it opened. For some reason the silly jingling of those bells lifted everyone’s spirits just a little.

          Edwin’s General Store is unlike any store in Quantum Hills or any other place that I have been. In simple terms it can be described as a very large, windowless, hand hewn log cabin. The entry is reached by ascending three steps from the boardwalk onto a wide veranda. The veranda is enclosed with a split log railing. From four points along the railing, large poles protrude upwards to give support to the veranda’s roof. One pole is located at each end of the front railing. The other two are positioned on each side of the steps. Strewn across the deck are several, Early American style, rocking chairs. In the evenings Mr. Edwin sits out on the veranda and entertains guests. A ten foot by three foot sign hangs from the roof of the veranda, right above the steps. The white background is faded and worn from years of weathering. The underlying wood is exposed in several small areas. Also faded and worn, the words “Edwin’s General Store” are printed across the length of the sign in plain, black, block letters.

     It is difficult to describe the feeling that overcomes me and my friends once we pass through the door and are inside. The one word that comes to mind best describing the feeling is, “happy”, but it is much more than that. There is also a sense of calmness. It’s like the whole world has slowed down to a pace that allows the senses to take in and process the enjoyment that permeates from the surroundings. It is something that must to be experienced to be understood.

     The inside of the store is dominated a beautiful wood counter that extends from one side of the store to the other. I don’t know what type of wood that it is made from but it stained a dark brown and is highly polished. In some parts you can actually see your reflection. Directly across from the door, sitting on the counter is Mr. Edwin’s large, old fashioned manual cash register. It is made of brass and is also highly polished. Half the fun of buying something there is when you get to hear the “cha ching” that emanates from the very soul of the instrument. The sound fills the room. The counter also holds several fishing publications that are free for the taking. Other than those things, the counter is bare.

     The area in front of the counter is anything but bare. Display cases and racks full of fishing lures, rods, reels, hooks, nets, fishing line and all sorts of other fishing tackle line the walls and crowd the floor space making moving around a thoughtful process.  On the wall behind the counter hang boating supplies and equipment. Anything that you want but don’t see on display is either under the counter or in the store room behind the rear wall. I have never seen nor heard of Mr. Edwin not having exactly what someone needs.

     A favorite spot for my friends and me is on the far left wall. It is a freezer with a glass window. Inside the freezer are two tubs of ice cream, chocolate and vanilla. On a small table behind the freezer there is a package of cones. Although Mr. Edwin only has two flavors of ice cream in the freezer, there is a sign that says “We have all flavors. Please ask”. When someone requests a flavor other than chocolate or vanilla Mr. Edwin goes into the back room and gets it. Again, I have never seen nor heard of an occasion where anyone was disappointed.

     As we entered, Mr. Edwin was standing behind the counter, next to the old cash register, reading a magazine. He knew we were upset the moment he saw us and asked, in his soothing, low pitched voice, “Why is everyone so sad?”

     All at once we all started crying and we continued to cry for some time. We were crying so hard that none of us could speak to answer his question. I was the first to regain a modicum of control over my crying and between sobs was able to tell Mr. Edwin about Nathan. I told him how sick Nathan was and about the Monster Bluegill. I told him how his parents didn’t know what to do so they just brought him here. Mr. Edwin listened quietly to everything I told him. Then ,when I finished the story, we all started crying again.

      The combination of crying and the good feeling inherent with being in the store had us all feeling a little better. Mr. Edwin handed each of us a tissue to dry our eyes. While taking the tissue I looked up into his eyes and saw that they were glassy from tears he was attempting to hide from us. He saw me looking and quickly turned away. I was puzzled by my discovery and uncertain how to react. I chose to say nothing.

     Mr. Edwin gave us each a single scoop ice cream cone. As he scooped the ice cream into the cones I watched him. He smiled and engaged us in small talk, as he always did, but the shine in his eyes was gone. None of my friends seemed to notice the difference or, at least, didn’t let on if they did. There are things that you never expect will change and, for me, Mr. Edwin was one of those things. It suddenly occurred to me that seeing him each year was a large part of why I looked forward to coming here.

     We started leaving to eat our ice cream outside when Mr. Edwin asked me to wait. I was shocked and just stood there as my friends filed out the door, leaving me behind. The events and realizations of the past few minutes paralyzed me and I just stood there facing the door.

     Finally, after what seemed an eternity, he said, “I heard that your brand new fishing rod broke before you even had a chance to use it.”

     This is not at all what I expected even though I didn’t know what to expect. I turned and saw him looking at me from behind the counter. His eyes were bright. He seemed like his same old self. After a long pause I was finally able to mutter, “Yes it did.”

     He said, “Come over here, I have something to show you.”

     I was beginning to regain my composure as I walked over to the counter.

     “I want you to try this,” he told me as he reached under the counter and brought out an old, brown suede leather bag. The bag was about four feet long and, maybe, a foot wide. The only markings on it were two dime sized blue dots toward the bottom of the bag, one on each side. The bag was closed with a leather drawstring.

     “What is it?” I asked. Then events of the past few minutes were completely forgotten as I focused my attention on what was in the bag.

     Mr. Edwin carefully opened the drawstring and reached into the bag. What he took out left me speechless and enthralled. He held two halves of a rod and reel unlike anything I had ever seen or imagined. It was ageless and beautiful. Carefully he put the two halves together. They fit together so perfectly that the connection was invisible. The rod was now about six feet long and the blackest black imaginable. I couldn’t tell what it was made of. Spaced evenly along its length were five gold line guides held on with wrappings of fine, gold wire. The spindle shaped handle was an extension of the rod. Attached to the rod was a gleaming gold spinning reel. How the reel was attached to the rod is a mystery. It just seemed to be part of the rod. The reel’s handle was made of cream colored pearl with round, shiny gold inlays. Wound on the reel’s spool was, what can only be described as, fine silver thread.

     Mr. Edwin handed me the rod and I, hesitantly, took it from him. As I held it, the rod and the reel handle seemed to glow. The glow was subtle but real. The rod and reel were perfectly balanced. The rod handle looked solid but when I grabbed it, it was soft and molded to my hand. I just stood there staring at it.

     I was suddenly jolted back into reality as Mr. Edwin asked, “Would you like to try fishing with it?”

     I just blurted out, “Yes!”

     “Fine, then take it with you,” he responded in a much calmer voice than mine. With that settled he took the rod back from me, disassembled it and put it back into the bag. As he pulled the drawstring tight, I noticed him pinch the two blue dots. He handed back to me and said, “Good luck!”

     I took the bag from him, and ran out of the store. As I ran out the door I shouted back over my shoulder, “Thank you!”

     When I got outside my friends were sitting on the rockers waiting for me. I ran past them without saying a word and kept running until I reached the cabin door.

     I rushed into the cabin and my dad was lying on the sofa. “Dad!” I shouted. “Look what Mr. Edwin gave me!”

     He took the leather case from me and looked inside. He then closed the case, got up and told me to wait there. He left the cabin with the leather case and its contents.

     Just as the door closed behind my father, my mom came out of the bedroom. “What is all the noise in here? I just put Emma down for her nap.”

     I told her what had happened. I explained that Mr. Edwin had loaned me this fancy rod and reel to fish with because my new one broke. I then told her how Dad just took it and left without saying a word.

     “I imagine he went to see Mr. Edwin and ask him about what you said,” was Mom’s response.

     “I didn’t steal it! He gave it to me!” I protested.

     Mom replied calmly, “I know. Let’s just wait until your dad gets back.”

      I seem to always be waiting for something and here I was again, waiting. Dad wasn’t gone very long and when he returned he had the leather case with him. He told me that he had spoken to Mr. Edwin and that it would be alright for me to use the rod and reel if I promised to be very, very careful with it.  

    Trying to sound as positive and trustworthy as I could, I blurted out, “I promise!” I don’t know what he expected, I would have agreed to anything at that point just to have a chance to fish with that fantastic rod and reel.

     “Come on Dad, let’s go fishing!” I said eagerly.

     Before Dad could say anything Mom stepped in. “You can go later Gabe. Right now I think we should go next door and see Nathan.”

     I was about to protest when she cut me off. “Nathan is your friend and that is what you do for friends when they need you!”

     I looked down at the floor and said, very quietly, “I’m afraid.”

     She walked over to me and put her arm around my shoulders. “What are you afraid of?” she asked in a way that only a mother can ask.

     I began to cry and just said, “I don’t know.”

     She turned me toward her and hugged me until I stopped crying. She then said, “I understand that this is a situation that you have never encountered before but Nathan needs all the support he can get now. He needs his friends.”

     I still didn’t want to go but said, “Ok Mom.”

     Mom and I left to go see Nathan while Dad stayed behind with Emma.

     When we got there Mom knocked on the door. We were both surprised when Liam’s mother opened the door to greet us. Through the open door we could see that all my friends were there with their families. I suddenly felt much relieved! 

     “Come in,” Liam’s mom told us and stepped aside to let us in.

     The cabins aren’t small but when you get all these people into the same one, it is very crowded. I could see Nathan on the opposite side of the room and told my mom that I was going to go over and see him. She agreed and as I worked my way through the crowd toward Nathan, she went to talk to Nathan’s parents.

     Nathan was sitting in a wheel chair with his legs were covered by a blanket. He was wearing a Cleveland Indians baseball team sweat shirt and baseball cap. The sweat shirt hung loosely from his disease ravaged frame. He had lost so much weight!  His skin was pasty white with almost no color. Liam, Janai, Caroline and Aiden were sitting on the floor in front of the wheelchair. I worked my way through the crowd of people until I reached Nathan.

     “Hi Nathan,” I said shyly.

     His response took me completely by surprise. He looked right at me, smiled and excitedly asked, “Did you catch any Monster Bluegill yet?”

     I didn’t know how to answer so I just stood there staring at him. Finally I just said, “No.”

     His smile faded into a disappointed frown.

     My initial shock had now worn off and I said, “I don’t think there are any Monster Bluegill in Lake Violet Nathan.” He looked up at me but before he could speak I added, “I caught a really big large mouth and a northern pike and my dad caught some catfish.”

     The conversation got very awkward after that. No matter what anyone said, trying to change the subject, all Nathan wanted to talk about were Monster Bluegill. This may sound callous but I was relieved when finally Nathan began to get tired. His mom picked up on this immediately and stood up.

     “We want to thank you all for coming but I Nathan needs his rest now,” she announced to everyone.

     Everyone started to leave, giving their good wishes and blessings as the departed. We did the same and went back to our cabin. I was feeling a little guilty about the relief I felt that we were out of there.

     Dad and Emma weren’t in the cabin when we got back so I went out onto the dock to see if he was fishing.  There was only one person fishing, way out at the end of the dock, and it wasn’t Dad. Not finding him there, I went back into the cabin.

     “Are you hungry?” Mom asked.

     “A little,” I replied.

     Mom gave me some cheese and crackers to eat and some water to drink.

     “Where’s Dad?” I asked.

     “I don’t know,” she answered, not at all concerned.

     I finished eating and threw the plastic bottle into the trash can. Not knowing what else to do without Dad there, I took the rod and reel Mr. Edwin had loaned me and tried to put it together. I put the two halves of the rod, one end into another and was amazed at what I thought I saw. It looked like the two ends just melted together when they were joined. It was as though the rod was one continuous piece. As I stood there just staring at the rod, my dad walked in carrying Emma and a bait bucket with him.

     “Where were you Dad?” I asked.

     “Emma and I went to the store to get some minnows. I’m going to try them instead of night crawlers,” he answered. He then added with a big grin, “Are you ready to try out that rod and reel you have?”

     I nodded my head wildly and just about shouted, “Yes!”

     While Dad got ready, Mom put sunscreen on Emma.  Once ready, Dad picked up his tackle box and rod, and headed for the porch door. As he walked out he yelled back over his shoulder, “Grab the minnow bucket.”

      I grabbed my rod and the minnow bucket and started to follow him out the porch door. Just as I reached the door Mom’s voice stopped me dead in my tracks, “Wait Gabe. You need some sun screen too”.

     “No, I don’t want any!” I yelled. But she came over to me and just started splashing it all over my arms. I tried to get away but she held me tightly. At times like this she turns into a mother vise. She just kept covering me in sun screen. I struggled and yelled and cried and just threw an obnoxious tantrum. All I wanted to do was fish!

     The next thing I knew, I was sitting on the couch in the middle of a time out. Dad had left to go fishing, Mom was talking to someone on her cell phone, Emma was playing with some toy and I was doing nothing. Well, maybe I wasn’t really doing nothing if you call being punished for an obnoxious display of disrespect and bad behavior, doing something.

      I really need to learn to play this punishment game better because I sat there and kept yelling, “I want to go fishing! I want to go fishing!”

     Mom shook her finger at me and said, “You just sit there until you calm down young man. Then we will talk about you going fishing.”

     Once I realized that I wasn’t being very smart and that mom wasn’t going to change her mind, I calmed down and said that I was sorry. She told me that there was no way that she was going let me go outside in the sun without sunscreen and if I had just let her put it on me I would be outside fishing right now, instead of sitting on the couch. She told me that I had to sit there for ten more minutes and think about how I behaved.

     She looked at me and I gave her my best pouty face look.  I curled my lower lip over my upper lip and looked sad. I detected a little weakness in her eyes and kept it up. Finally she said, “Ok, five minutes.”

      I sat there, on the couch with my mouth shut, as each minute took an hour to pass.

     After the longest five minutes of my life, Mom came over to me and, to add insult to injury, started spreading sun screen on my face. I almost started to protest but was able to stop myself in time. I sat there and let her apply all the sun screen she wanted to apply.

     Then I heard the words that I had been waiting five hours to hear, “Ok Gabe, you can go fishing with your father now.”

     Without saying a word I grabbed the new rod, rushed out of the door, jumped down the porch steps and ran out onto the dock.

      Dad had picked a spot about two-thirds of the way down the dock. On one side of him sat his open tackle box and on the other side was the minnow bucket and what was left of the night crawlers we had bought earlier.

      When he saw me he waved and yelled, “Let’s go Gabe! Let’s see what you can do with that fancy rod and reel.”  

START HERE

     I rushed out onto the dock to join him. As I stood there next to him the sun’s refection off of the reel was blinding. I had to turn my head away. Dad was wearing sun glasses so the glare didn’t bother him but he could see that I was having a problem. He reached into the tackle box and took out his extra pair of sunglasses. “Here, put these on.”

     I did as he said and the difference was almost surreal. Now, instead of a bright glare, there was a soft glow emanating from both the rod and reel. The glow from the gold inlays pulsated slowly from bright to dim and back to bright again, over and over. Perhaps the strangest thing was that Dad didn’t seem to notice any of it. He took the rod from me and threaded the fine silver line through the gold line guides. After pulling about six feet of line through the last guide, he tied on a single hook. About four feet above the hook he attached a one and a half inch in diameter, spherical, red and white bobber.  Finally he baited my hook with a large night crawler and handed the rod back to me.

     He told me, “I think you should use a bobber with this reel. It takes a lot of practice be able to cast with it without tangling the line”

     I was fine with that. I just wanted to start fishing.

     I held the end of the rod out, opened the bail of the reel and let the line unwind until the bobber hit the water. I then closed the bail and took up the slack. The hook, with the night crawler attached, sank slowly. Then things got strange!

     The moment the bobber touched the water, the handle of my reel started too glow the purest white imaginable. The inlays stopped pulsating and began to glow a bright, steady gold. I just stared at the handle, transfixed by what I was witnessing.  Then, out of the corner of my eye, I detected movement in the water. My bobber was, gently and methodically, bobbing up and down. I felt as if it was trying to get my attention. I lifted the rod tip and felt a slight resistance. I had never seen a bobber act that was so I decided to reel in the line. Maybe there was a fish on the end. As the hook reached the surface I could see that I had, indeed, hooked a fish. It was a really big fish but it took almost no effort to reel it in. As the head of the fish broke the surface it became almost weightless and seemed to just float onto the dock. The hook was in its mouth but it had not pierced the flesh. It was as if the fish was simply holding on to the hook with its mouth. It, gently, settled onto the dock directly front of me and looked straight into my eyes. The fish was light brown with a white belly, about three feet long and as big around as a football. A long dorsal fin started at about the middle of its back and ended at its large, fan shaped tail. It had a large black spot on its body between where the fin ended and the tail began. I had never seen anything like it.

      As I stood there, eye to eye with this very unusual fish, its eyes started to glow a deep orange color and I could suddenly hear it talking to me. I didn’t hear it with my ears. I heard it inside my head as if I was sharing its thoughts; something else that I had never experienced. It explained to me that it was the only remaining dogfish in Lake Violet and that it had been chosen by God to look after the Monster Bluegill living there. It recounted to me the story of how God had chosen the Monster Bluegill to be the lord’s representative in the lakes of Michigan and how humans had almost destroyed the entire species. He explained how the Monster Bluegill had taken refuge in a place where they could no longer be harmed. He confided in me that there was now a large population of Monster Bluegill living in Lake Violet, out of the sight of all humans.

     I had many questions but this was a one way communication. I could only listen.

     He then told me that he was aware of Nathan’s serious health problem and of his passionate desire to see a Monster Bluegill as his last wish. I was told that God had heard my prayers and that Nathan’s wish would be granted. In order to fulfill the wish though, Nathan must be on this dock tonight. When he was here, the Monster Bluegill will also be present. I will be permitted to catch one Monster Bluegill with this magic rod and reel. His eyes then turned from orange to bright red and cautioned me that the Monster Bluegill are somewhat unpredictable and that others may also find themselves catching them. I was then issued a stern warning, emphasized with now glowing red eyes. The voice in my head began to get louder.

     The admonition that, “All Monster Bluegill caught must, without exception, be released!” thundered in my brain.

     With that said, the dogfish leapt from the dock, into the lake and was gone.

          I was immediately aware of my surroundings again and yelled to my dad, “What kind of fish was that?”

         He gave me a funny look, rolled his eyes and answered, “What are you talking about Gabe? We haven’t had a single bite in over an hour.”   

     I was about to speak when I heard Mom’s voice from behind me, “How’s the fishing?” she asked. She and Emma were on the dock about half way between us and the shore.

     “Not even a nibble” Dad complained.

      Without warning, Emma ran over to the minnow bucket and knocked it into the lake with a single kick. We all looked at her with shocked disbelief. Finally Dad asked her, “Why did you do that?”

     I don’t think he was expecting an answer but Emma pointed to the lake and said a word that sounded like, “fish.”

     Mom immediately came to Emma’s defense. She surmised that Emma had seen us releasing all the fish we caught and when she saw the minnows, she released them too. We all laughed.

     We collected our gear, minus the minnow bucket, and went back to our cabin. All I wanted to do is go tell my friends what had just happened but Mom made me eat a sandwich first.

 

Chapter 6

     The only one of my friends that I could find was Janai. We were all on vacation so it made sense that the others would be off someplace with their families. Janai was Asian from a mixed family. Her mother was Japanese and her father was American. Both her parents were some kind of scientists and didn’t stop working for very long, even while on vacation. They had taken time out from their work to attend the gathering at Nathan’s cabin so they must be back at work now.

      Janai was lying in a lounge chair on her cabin’s porch when I found her. She was so engrossed in the book she was reading that she didn’t notice coming.

     When I saw her I yelled, “Janai! You won’t believe what just happened!”

     She was so startled that she her head snapped up from the book and she sprung upright in the chair and dropped her book. Her arm hit the glass of lemonade that was sitting on the table next to her, knocking it over and sending the contents splashing across the porch deck. There were small spaces between the floorboards and the deck slanted slightly forward so most of the lemonade ended up either in the sand underneath the porch or in the sand in front of the porch.

     When I saw the mess I had caused, I was mortified! I rushed up the porch steps and over to where Janai was now standing. I fervently began apologizing, “I am so sorry Janai! I didn’t mean to scare you! Are you alright?”

     The mess on the porch and the shocked look on my face must have struck her as funny because she suddenly started laughing. Not the “tee hee” kind of laughing either.  Thunderous laughter  from deep within her.

     I laughed with her for quite a while and then stopped. She continued to laugh a little longer; longer than the situation called for. I got the feeling that there was more going on than just laughing about spilled lemonade but, as I said, it was just a feeling and none of my business.

     Finally she regained control and asked, “What’s wrong Gabe? What’s going on?”

     We sat down on the porch steps and I tried to recount, accurately, everything that had just happened and how my dad hadn’t seen any of it. As I verbalized the events I realized just how fantastic all of what I was saying must be sounding and I stopped. I didn’t expect her to believe me. I wasn’t even sure that I believed what happened.

     “Don’t stop Gabe. Tell me the rest,” she said in a friendly but demanding manner.

     She listened intently to everything I told her and when I was through she just looked at me. After a very brief moment she declared resolutely, “We have to get Nathan on to that dock tonight!”

       Her response took me completely by surprise. I was expecting a bunch of questions and a lot of skepticism.

      “Uh, right, I know” I stammered. “How can we do that?”    

     “We’ll have to figure something out,” she stated defiantly.

      We sat there for the longest time trying to come up with a workable plan. We devised a great number of schemes but none of them seemed likely to work. We then noticed, to our horror, that they all had the same central theme. They all depended on tricking Nathan’s parents and taking him when they weren’t looking.  That would be a terrible thing to do! We were ashamed that we even contemplated doing anything that might hurt Nathan or upset his parents more than they already were.

     We just sat there in silence looking at one another.  The same thought seemed to occur to both of us in the same instant as, almost in unison, we both declared, “We have to ask his parents!”   

 Chapter 7

      Self-assured that we were doing the right thing, Janai and I stepped onto the porch of Nathan’s cabin and I, confidently, knocked on the door. Nathan’s mom answered and seemed genuinely happy to see us. She invited us in and offered us something to drink. We thanked her but said that we weren’t thirsty. For me that wasn’t quite true. Now that we were standing there in front of Nathan’s mother, my confidence was rapidly melting away and my mouth and throat were getting dry.

     Nathan was sitting on the sofa in the living room watching a movie on TV when we entered. “Hi Janai, hi Gabe” he said with a big smile on his face.

     “It is so nice of you to stop by. Nathan can’t go out and he doesn’t get many visitors,” she told us.

     “It’s boring”, Nathan interjected loudly from across the room.

     He had turned off the television with the remote and was starting to get up.

     “Let me help you!” his mom exclaimed as she rushed over to help him.

     “I can do this myself Mom,” Nathan whispered to her under his breath. It was pretty clear that he didn’t want any help and would rather do it himself.

     “Alright honey, but be careful,” she warned as she backed away, just a little.

     Nathan got up, stood there for a moment and then, slowly, walked over to us.

     This seemed like as good a time as any to get to the reason for our visit. Timidly I told his mother, “We are all going fishing off the dock tonight and wanted to know if it would be alright with you if Nathan came too.” 

     There it was, out in the open!

     Janai added, “Even if he can’t fish, we would love to have him there because he is our friend.”

 

   

    

     Nathan’s mom looked at him and then at us and finally answered, “Oh, I don’t know. Nathan is very weak and the strain might be bad for him”.

    “Aw, come on Mom! Let me go,” Nathan begged. “I’m stuck in here, alone, all day! I want to go!”

     “I don’t know if that would be a good idea”, his mom said, strengthening her resolve.

     She was now visibly upset and we didn’t know what to do or say. Our straight forward, honest approach wasn’t working and we had blown any chance of getting Nathan to the dock that night.

     Just then, Nathan’s dad entered the cabin. He recognized the distress on Nathan’s mom’s face and immediately demanded to know, “What’s going on here?”

     “Dad, Gabe and Janai want me to go watch them fish tonight off the dock,” Nathan answered. “Can I go Dad? Please!”

     “I told you that I don’t think that is a good idea,” Nathan’s mom quickly replied.

     Nathan began to plead with his father, “Please dad! Let me go! I haven’t done anything fun since we got her! I want to go!”

     Nathan’s dad stood there looking first at Nathan, then at his wife and then back to Nathan.  His face was a tragic mask of despair. He then walked over to his wife and took her in his arms. He hugged her gently. He then said, calmly and quietly, “I think we need to let him go with his friends. We didn’t bring him here to keep him locked in this cabin for a week. He needs to be with his friends.”

     Nathan’s mom burst into tears and began crying uncontrollably. Nathan’s dad held her tighter as he began to cry along with her. He reached out his hand to Nathan, who was now in tears, and he joined in the hug. This family catharsis must have been long overdue. Not knowing what else to do, Janai and I stood there with tears streaming down our cheeks.

   After a few moments, Nathan’s dad looked at us and sobbed, “We will bring Nathan to the dock tonight.”

      Janai and I turned slowly toward the door and quietly exited the cabin.

     A couple of hours later, the rest of our friends returned from their family outings and we got together to discuss what had gone on while they were away. As I had with Janai, I explained to them about my encounter with the dog fish. Janai told them what had happened with Nathan and his family. The skepticism that I had expected earlier from Janai was now present in all its glory. I don’t think they believed a single word of what I told them. Caroline got teary eyed as she listened to Janai. As unconvinced as they were about my story, they did all agree to be on the dock tonight when Nathan arrived. I guess that’s what friendship is all about. This time of year the sun set at about 8:30 and we agreed to meet on the dock at 8:00.

 

 

Chapter 8

     It was nearly 6:00 pm when I got back to the cabin. Dad was sleeping on the couch. He must have been watching the baseball game that was being televised and dozed off. Mom was sitting in the rocking chair. She was rocking and reading a book. Emma was already in bed. It was a little early for her to be in bed but I suspect she was over-tired from the busy day.

     Mom asked how I was and I confessed that I was a little confused and upset about Nathan being so sick. “Why did that have to happen to him?” I asked.

     Mom put her book down and called me over to her. She then took both of my hands into hers and looked into my eyes. She said, “Gabriel, only God knows his own plan for each of us. If this is God’s plan for Nathan, we must accept it”.

     “Then why do we pray for things if God already has a plan for everything?” I asked.

     “Oh dear sweet Gabriel” she said as she stared deeply into my eyes. “No one can answer that question because it is a matter of faith between you and God.” She continued, “I choose to have faith through Jesus Christ that God answers all of our prayers. The difficult part is accepting that sometimes his answer is no.”

     I really didn’t understand Mom’s explanation but didn’t want to talk about it anymore. So I changed the subject. I told her that Nathan was going to come out with us tonight while we did some night fishing of the dock.

     Dad must have been listening because he sat up and asked, “Did his parent agree to that?”

      I explained to both of them what had gone on earlier and Dad seemed satisfied. As he lay back down he mumbled, under his breath, “That whole thing is so sad.”

Chapter 9

     I had no idea what I was going to do for the next two hours. I was a bundle of energy and nerves. I tried watching the baseball game, reading, lying down, going for a walk and anything else I could think of but the time just crept along. I’d do something for what seemed like ten or fifteen minutes only to look at the clock and see that one minute had passed. This waiting was pure agony!

     Finally eight o’clock arrived. Mom wasn’t very happy with me because in my quest to pass the time I was not always very quiet. At some point I woke Emma up and she wouldn’t go back to sleep.

     “Let’s go Dad!” I exclaimed, probably a bit too loud.

     “Slow down Gabe! Take it easy. We’ve got plenty of time.” He cautioned me. He knew how excited and anxious I was though so he didn’t hesitate and make me wait.

     Dad picked a spot about a quarter of the way down the dock. All he had left for bait was what was left in the box of night crawlers. We hadn’t used more than a couple, so there were plenty remaining. He also had the artificial stuff in his tackle box. The only other person around was the same man that I saw earlier, fishing at the end of the dock.

     As we readied ourselves for a night of fishing, other people started to come out on to the dock and strategically position themselves where they expected the best fishing to be. My friends showed up, right on time, with their parents and siblings. Some had fishing tackle with them while others were just out for an enjoyable evening. There air was balmy and a soft breeze was blowing onshore from the lake. The breeze created tiny ripples in the water. The crescent moon was just setting below the western horizon and it would soon be so dark that the only things you would see would be the reflections of the colorful stars and the Milky Way on the water. As I looked into the sky above me, the stars seemed a little brighter and a little more colorful than I had ever seen before. To my astonishment, a shooting star flew across my line of vision.  Others also commented on this. It was indeed a special night. There was a real party atmosphere!

     I still had the bobber and hook on my line so I asked Dad to bait my hook. He baited it with one of the remaining night crawlers and I dropped my line into the water. I sort of expected something to happen and was a little disappointed that nothing did.

     At about 8:45 p.m., the sun had fully set and the only light was that radiating from the lanterns and the flashlights people had brought. Nathan’s parents had just reached the foot of the dock with Nathan. He was in his wheelchair and was still wearing his Cleveland Indians sweat shirt and ball cap. His legs were covered with blankets. He was grinning from ear to ear. Several people offered to help Nathan’s parents wheel Nathan out on to the dock. They declined any assistance and carefully wheeled Nathan right in behind me and my dad. They locked the chair’s wheels and waited to see what was going to happen next.

     I reeled my line in and stood up to talk to Nathan. Liam, Janai, Aiden and Caroline also came over. “How are you feeling?” I asked.

     “Great! It’s so nice to finally get out of that cabin,” was his response.

     We all talked a little longer and then it was time to get back to the fishing. As far as I could tell, no one had caught anything yet.

     I picked up my rod and the excitement began! Sudden everyone with a line in the water had a fish on it. As others got their lines wet they immediately had a fish too. Once the fish started to be landed, the level of excitement on the dock increased tenfold. To everyone’s astonishment, every fish was a Monster Bluegill. It made no difference what type of bait was being used; if you were fishing you caught one, and only one, Monster Bluegill. Even my dad had one.

    As would be expected, everyone was talking about Monster Bluegill. Upon hearing those words, Nathan sat up straighter in and raised himself up on the arms of the chair. Nathan strained to see if what he heard was true. His father soon realized what was happening and, with tears, once again, flowing from his eyes leaned down and quietly told his son, “Your wish has come true.”

     I was so awestruck by what was going on around me that it hadn’t occurred to me that I still hadn’t put my hook back in the water. I was jolted back to reality by my father’s words, “You’d better start fishing son or you’ll miss the chance of a lifetime!”

      I looked around the dock. Some people were holding up their Monster Blue gill for others to see. Others were getting their pictures taken with their catch. Some were just sitting there looking at what they had caught. I seemed to be the only person there who had not yet caught a Monster Bluegill.

     I was still a little stunned as I went over to the edge of the dock and looked into the water. As if waiting for me, there swam the largest and most beautiful Monster Bluegill of all of them seen today. Swimming right next to it was the dog fish that I had caught earlier.

     As I looked into his eyes I again heard his voice in my head, “Gabriel, it’s time for you to fulfill Nathan’s wish. Lower your line into the water now.”

     In all the excitement, something had happened to the night crawler that I had been using for bait. The hook was empty but, somehow, I knew that didn’t matter. I began to let out my line out and the hook got closer and closer to the water. It all seemed to be happening in slow motion.  Finally the hook touched the water. The instant it did I felt a gentle, almost imperceptible, tug on the line. I looked over the edge of the dock again and saw a very soft, white glow emanating from where my line had entered the water. I slowly reeled in my line. The Monster Bluegill I had just seen in the water was on the end of my line and was now surrounded by a soft white aura.

     I slowly and carefully reeled my line back in, bringing my catch closer and closer. Once it was within arm’s length, I took hold of the line near the hook and held the fish in this manner. I then put down the rod and took hold of my catch with both hands. As I held it, the hook just dropped out of its mouth and onto the dock. I stood there holding it, unsure of what to do next.

      It was then that I again heard that voice in my head. The voice commanded, “Take the Monster Bluegill to Nathan!”

      I turned toward Nathan and, as I did, the soft white aura changed. It got brighter and began, brilliantly radiating all the colors of the rainbow, one right after the other. It changed from red to orange then to yellow and then green. After green came blue, indigo and violet. Then back to red. The pattern repeated continuously.

      “Gabe, what is it?” Nathan asked. “Let me see it!”

      I started to walk toward Nathan holding the Monster Bluegill out in front of me. The closer it got to him, the brighter and deeper the colors became. The colors were magnificent and defied description!

     “This one is for you Nathan,” I told him.

     Nathan looked at it and became mesmerized. Slowly his hand appeared from under the blanket and reached out. Gently he touched the fish on its blue spot. The moment his finger made contact, the aura engulfed him. People screamed! He now glowed with the same vibrant colors as the Monster Bluegill. The screams were quickly replaced by hushed sounds of awe, disbelief and concern.

     Nathan sat in his wheel chair glowing, with a broad smile across his face. Then, slowly, the smile was replaced with a look of relaxation and total peace. I had never seen anything like it before or since. I don’t know how long this went on because, for everyone present, time had stopped. Eventually the glow began to dim and die out. As it did, Nathan’s expression became blank, his eyes closed and his head fell forward.. He was unconscious

     His parents rushed over to him, calling his name and beseeching him to wake up; but he didn’t. “What happened to my son?” Nathan’s mom demanded, screamed at no one in particular and everyone in general.

     At that moment we heard footsteps pounding on the boardwalk. As we watched, the running figure of Mr. Edwin appeared in the lantern light. He rushed from person to person exhorting each to immediately release the Monster Bluegill they had caught. Without hesitation, person after person released the fish back into the lake.

      When Mr. Edwin reached me I yelled, “No! Nathan might need this!”

     “No Gabe, you need to release it!” he shouted back.

     The voice in my head then said very calmly in a manner that I found reassuring, “You have completed your task admirably Gabriel and now you must release him.”

     All the confusion I was feeling vanished. I went over to the edge of the dock, bent over and dropped the Monster Bluegill back into the lake. I never heard a splash.

     When I turned back, Mr. Edwin was staring at Nathan. “I don’t understand,” he told us disconcertedly. “He should be awake.”

     I noticed something in my peripheral vision. I turned in that direction and saw the glowing eyes of the dogfish again. He was staring at me from just below the surface of the lake. His voice in my head told me, “All of the Monster Bluegill have not been released. There is one missing.”

     I quickly turned around and shouted, “Someone hasn’t released their fish!”

     I began to search frantically and everyone assured me that they had released their fish as instructed.

     Then I remembered the man who was fishing at the far end of the dock. I yelled to him, “Did you catch anything?”

     He reached into the bucket next to him a pulled out a huge Monster Bluegill. He held it up for me to see. “Yes I did”, he yelled back. “Isn’t it a beauty?”

     “You have to release it!” Mr. Edwin yelled to him.

     The man put the fish back in the bucket and replied, “Are you kidding? This is a Monster Bluegill! There aren’t even supposed to be any in this lake.”

     Mr. Edwin moved closer to the man and pleaded with him to release the fish.

      The man refused. “This is the first Monster Bluegill I’ve ever caught. I’m going to have it stuffed and hung on my office wall. My clients will love it!”

     With that, everyone began shouting at the man. Some were begging him to do the right thing. Others were threatening him with bodily harm. The scene was getting ugly and out of hand.    

     The man flatly refused to release his trophy fish. He was going to have it up on his wall and that was that.

     As if things weren’t bad enough, suddenly my mom began shrieking at the top of her voice, “Where’s Emma!”

     My dad rushed over to Mom. She was frantic by now!  She told him that she had heard the noise all the way into the cabin and that she and Emma had come out to see what was going on. During the excitement, Emma had pulled her hand away from hers. “When I looked down to see where she was, she was gone!”

     The dock lit up like daylight as every lantern, flashlight and any other available light was turned on.

     A frenzied search for Emma ensued!

     “There she is!” came a shout from the far end of the dock.

     We all turned to where the shout came from, just in time to watch Emma kick the bucket holding the last Monster Bluegill into the water.

     The man was furious and moved toward Emma!

     Dad rushed right over and snatched her up in his arms. He gave then man a menacing look as he  brought her back.

     Suddenly there was another scream from behind us. It was Nathan’s mom. “He’s awake! He’s awake!”

     Indeed he was. He was sitting, slumped down, in the chair but his eyes were open. He looked tired and confused. Without saying another word his mom started pushing Nathan back down the dock, onto the boardwalk and back toward their cabin. She seemed to have the strength of ten people as she sped away. Nathan’s dad, unable to keep up, followed her as best he could. My Mom and Dad, carrying Emma, were in close pursuit.

 

Chapter 9

     Back on the dock things had settled down as everyone just stood around in disbelief. No one was really certain about what had actually happened that night. It was something that will be talked about, and embellished, for as long as Lake Violet exists.  My friends and I just gather up our things and prepared to go back to our cabins.

     “Where’s my new rod and reel?” I yelled as I began a ferocious search the area.

      When I didn’t find it I right away my search rose to a even more feverish pace. My friends began to look with me. We searched the entire length of the dock but it wasn’t there. Aiden suggested that maybe it had fallen into the water during all the confusion. We shined our flashlights into the water. All around where I had been fishing. It wasn’t anywhere. I didn’t know what I was going to tell Mr. Edwin.

     Having exhausted all possibilities, we gave up the search and went to our cabins

     No one was there when I got to my cabin so just sat on the couch and tried to wrap my brain around everything that had happened this night.

     A couple of minutes later Mom came in, carrying Emma.

     “Where’s Dad?” I asked.

     “He is still with Nathan’s parents.” she replied.

     “How is Nathan?” I asked, even though I was afraid of what the answer might be.

     “I don’t know,” she answered softly. I could hear and feel the concern and empathy in her voice.

     I was lying on my cot in the bedroom when Dad returned, about an hour later.

     I was still afraid of the answer but I had to know. I summoned all my courage and walked out into the living room. “How is Nathan?”

     Dad was sitting on the couch so I sat down next to him and repeated, “How is Nathan?”

    Dad looked at me sadly and said, “He’s very weak. His parents are taking him home.”

     “I better go over and say good-by before they leave,” I replied as I stood up and headed for the door. “When are they going?”

      Dad grabbed me by the arm and stopped me. The anguish in his voice was clear as he said, “They are already gone.”

Chapter 10

      For me, my friends and our families, after that night, all of the fun was gone from this vacation. Janai’s parents left two days later. Aiden’s left the day after that. Caroline’s and my families stayed the rest of the week and tried to enjoy ourselves, but we were just going through the motions.

     We tried fishing but our hearts weren’t in it. If a fish got stuck on our hook we reeled it in, otherwise we just sat there. I’m not sure that I had bait on my hook half the time. Our boat remained moored to the pier.

     Swimming wasn’t any better. No one wanted to swim or play in the water. Even Emma was affected and didn’t want to go down the slides anymore. We just lay there on our blankets.

     Thankfully the day we were leaving arrived. It was also a day I dreaded because I had to go tell Mr. Edwin that I had lost his rod and reel. I had put this off as long as I could and now it was time for me to face Mr. Edwin with the bad news. I was certain that he would be angry with me. I slowly walked toward Mr. Edwin’s General Store. Along the way I picked up every piece of trash and put it in a trash can. I also examined several stones that looked intriguing to me. I did anything and everything to delay the inevitable.

     All too quickly I arrived at my destination. I began to rearrange the rockers on the veranda, moving them around like chess pieces on a chess board. I am really good at procrastination. My procrastination suddenly came to an end as Mr. Edwin opened the store door and stood there looking at me, quizzically.

      “Gabe, what are you doing?” he asked.

      I stood there staring at him like a deer in the headlights. I began to sweat and then cry! Suddenly my mouth opened and the words, “I lost your rod and reel!” shot out.

      I stood there with a grimace on my face and my eyes half closed waiting for something horrible to happen. But it didn’t! Mr. Edwin began to smile.

     “Come inside,” he told me as he motioned for me to enter the store.

     He held the door open for me as I walked past him. He then walked behind the counter, reached under and removed something. He placed it on the counter and declared, “It’s right here.”

     Sitting on the counter before me was the leather bag that contained the lost fishing rod and reel. He opened the bag and took out the contents, “See,” he said, pointing to it.”

     I was both astonished and greatly relieved. “Where did you get it?” I asked.

     He just smiled at me and said, “Don’t you worry about that young man.”

      “I have to go now Mr. Edwin, good-bye and thanks for everything,” I told him. We were both smiling now.

     “You are welcome,” he replied and added, “see you next year.”    

     “Ok, see you next year!” I responded but I wasn’t sure that I would.

     I left the store feeling a lot happy about the rod ad reel but sad that this could be th last time I ever see Mr. Edwin.

     He never told anyone how he got his rod and reel back and, with the way we were feeling, nobody really cared.

          While I was with Mr. Edwin, Mom and Dad took Emma over to Caroline’s cabin and then took the boat out of the water. When I got back to the cabin the boat was attached to the back of the truck and my parents were loading the rest of our stuff into the truck. Caroline and her folks came over to say good-by before they left. We all said that we hoped to see everyone here again next year. We all said the right words, in the right order but there was no feeling behind any of them. Everyone was still numb. After they left, we loaded the few remaining things into the truck and got in,

     Dad drove off.

Chapter 11

    

     About an hour into the ride home, Mom received a call on her cell phone. She read the caller ID and said, with concern and surprise, “It’s Nancy, Nathan’s mother.” Mom made the connection and said, “Hello.” Then she just sat there listening. Not saying another word. As she listened she began to sob silently, at first, and then uncontrollably. Tears streamed from her eyes and rolled down her cheeks. Still she just listened

     Dad pulled the truck to the side of the road and stopped.

     Finally between loud, hard sobs, she said, “Thank you for letting us know Nancy. Please take care! Our prayers will be with you.” She disconnected the call and put the phone on her lap.

    Mom sat there in silence, looking straight ahead, for several long, agonizing, moments trying to regain control of her emotions. All we could do is stare at her, waiting for her to say something.

     Dad finally broke the silence and gently asked, “What’s wrong?”

     Mom took in a deep breath, blew it out. She wiped the tears from her eyes with her hands. She looked at my dad and then to me and finally answered “They took Nathan to the hospital and the doctors were unable to find any sign of his leukemia. Nathan is in complete remission.”

     “They say it is a miracle.”

 

The End

 

 

 

    

   

    

     

 

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