A WHITE THUMB TACK
?
A WHITE
THUMB TACK SEEMS LIKE A SILLY THING TO WRITE A STORY
ABOUT BUT THERE IS A TALE BEHIND THIS TACK. LET ME TELL
YOU ABOUT IT.
WHEN I WAS
SIXTEEN YEARS OLD DAD TOOK OUR FAMILY TO CADDO LAKE FOR
A WEEK WHEN HE WAS ON VACATION. WE STAYED AT BUBBA
HANER’S CAMP IN ONE OF HIS RENTAL CABINS. HIS CAMP WAS
CALLED BIG LAKE CAMP AND HE HAD A LITTLE CAFÉ AND
SEVERAL ONE ROOM CABINS. ALSO A BAIT HOUSE AND A BUNCH
OF WOODEN RENTAL BOATS.
I LOVED TO
BASS FISH AND THOUGHT THAT WAS THE ONLY KIND OF FISHING
WORTH WHILE. DAD AND I WOULD GO OUT BASS FISHING EARLY
IN THE MORNING, THEN COME BACK IN AND MOTHER WOULD COOK
BREAKFAST FOR US.
AFTER
BREAKFAST DAD AND MOTHER WOULD GO BREAM FISHING. I FELT
LIKE BREAM FISHING WAS BENEATH A BASS FISHERMAN SO I
WOULDN’T GO WITH THEM. ON THIS DAY WHEN THEY LEFT TO GO
BREAM FISHING, I WAS SITTING ON THE BOAT DOCK WITH MY
FEET DANGLING OFF. I WAS WATCHING A LITTLE FISH SNAKE
SWIMMING ALONE BESIDE THE DOCK LOOKING FOR HIS
BREAKFAST.
“WHY DIDN’T
YOU GO FISHING WITH YOUR MOM AND DAD?” THIS VOICE
ASKED. IT STARTLED ME SO BAD I ALMOST FELL IN THE LAKE
RIGHT ON TOP OF THAT SNAKE. I LOOKED OVER MY SHOULDER
AND THERE STOOD MR. HANER. “AW THEY WERE JUST GOING
BREAM FISHING AND I’M A BASS FISHERMAN.”
“WELL ARE
YOU A CATFISH FISHERMAN?” MR. HANER ASKED.
“SOMETIMES
WHEN WE ARE RUNNING TROT LINES.” I ANSWERED.
“YOU WANT TO
GO CATFISH FISHING WITH ME? I BET YOU HAVE NEVER BEEN
FISHING LIKE ME.” MR. HANER TURNED AROUND AND WALKED
TO HIS BOAT. IT WAS A SIXTEEN FOOT WOODEN BOAT MADE OUT
OF CYPRESS WOOD AND IT HAD A BRAND NEW TEN HORSE JOHNSON
OUTBOARD MOTOR ON IT.
I WANTED TO
RIDE IN THAT BOAT WITH A TEN HORSE MOTOR ON IT AS MUCH
AS I WANTED TO LEARN HOW MR. HANER CAUGHT CATFISH. I
JUMPED UP AND RAN TO CATCH UP WITH HIM AND WE GOT IN HIS
BOAT AND HE TOOK OFF DOWN THE LAKE. WE WENT ALL THE WAY
DOWN TO THE LOUISIANA SIDE OF THE LAKE WHERE THERE WERE
SEVERAL OIL WELLS ON PLATFORMS OUT IN THE MIDDLE OF THE
LAKE.
MR. HANER
PULLED OVER TO ONE OF THESE PLATFORMS AND SLOWLY CIRCLED
IT. THEN HE CAME BACK TO ONE OF THE CORNER PILINGS AND
SHUT OFF THE MOTOR. HE TOOK HIS PADDLE AND PADDLED THE
BOAT BACK ABOUT TWO BOAT LENGTHS FROM THAT PILING. HE
PUT DOWN HIS PADDLE AND PICKED UP A ROPE WITH A FOUR WAY
DRAG HOOK ON IT AND THROW THE HOOK OVER BOARD. WHEN THE
HOOK HIT BOTTOM HE STARTED SLOWLY RETRIEVING THE HOOK.
THE LINE GOT
REAL TIGHT AND MR. HANER SAID, “THERE IT IS.”
I ASKED HIM,
“THERE WAS WHAT?”
“OUR
CATFISH” HE ANSWERED AND PULLED UP A BARREL NET. IT WAS
FULL OF CATFISH. HE UNTIED THE CORD AT THE BACK END OF
THE NET THAT OPENED THE END AND POURED ALL THE CATFISH
INTO THE BOAT. THEN HE REACH IN AND TIED ANOTHER CLOTH
BAG OF BAIT ON THE INSIDE OF THE NET. AFTER THAT HE
TIED THE END BACK CLOSED AND DROPPED THE NET BACK INTO
THE LAKE.
THERE WAS A
TOE SACK UNDER MY FEET AND MR. HANER TOLD ME TO HOLD THE
SACK IN THE WATER UNTIL IT WAS GOOD AND WET. THEN HE
HAD ME HOLD IT OPEN WHILE HE PUT ALL THE CATFISH IN IT.
WHEN HE HAD PUT THE LAST FISH IN THE TOE SACK HE TIED A
CORD AROUND THE NECK OF THE SACK SO THE FISH WOULDN’T
FALL OUT.
I ASK MR.
HANER HOW HE COULD FIND HIS TRAP WITHOUT A FLOAT OR
SOMETHING ON IT? HE PICKED UP HIS PADDLE AND PADDLED
BACK TO THE CORNER PILING.
“SEE THAT
LITTLE WHITE THUMB TACK THREE FEET ABOVE THE WATER.” HE
SAID AS HE POINTED HIS FINGER. “I ALWAYS MARK THE
PILING WHERE MY TRAP IS WITH A WHITE THUMB TACK, AND
THEN JUST TO BE SURE NO ONE ELSE CAN FIND IT I BACK OFF
TWO BOAT LENGTHS BEFORE I DROP IT IN.”
WE WENT BACK
TO CAMP AND ON THE WAY AS WE PASSED TWIN ISLANDS I SAW
MOTHER AND DAD BREAM FISHING. WHEN WE GOT BACK TO CAMP
I TIED MR. HANER’S BOAT TO THE DOCK AND HE HANDED THE
TOE SACK FULL OF FISH UP TO ME. THEN HE CLIMBED OUT OF
THE BOAT AND TOOK THE SACK OF FISH INTO THE BAIT HOUSE
AND TOLD WAYNE, HIS HIRED HAND, TO TAKE THEM TO THE FISH
CLEANING TABLE AND START CLEANING THEM. HE SAID HE
WOULD GO UP TO THE CAFÉ AND GET A BIG DISH PAN TO PUT
THEM IN.
I WENT TO
OUR CABIN AND MADE ME A PEANUT BUTTER SANDWICH AND
PROPPED UP ON THE BED TO EAT IT. THE LAST THING I
WANTED WAS TO STAND AT THAT FISH CLEANING TABLE FOR AN
HOUR CLEANING CATFISH.
BY THE TIME
I FINISHED MY PEANUT BUTTER SANDWICH AND DRANK A BIG
GLASS OF MILK TO WASH IT DOWN WITH, I HEARD MOTHER AND
DAD COMING IN. I WENT BACK OUT ON THE DOCK AND WAITED
FOR DAD TO PULL UP TO THE DOCK. I TIED OUR BOAT TO THE
DOCK AND HELPED MOTHER OUT OF THE BOAT. THEN DAD HANDED
ME A FIVE GALLON BUCKET HALF FULL OF BREAM AND TOLD ME
TO TAKE THEM TO THE FISH CLEANING TABLE AND CLEAN THEM.
OH WELL, BREAM ARE EASIER TO CLEAN THEN CATFISH.
NOW I WOULD
TELL YOU ABOUT MY BASS FISHING TRIP THE NEXT MORNING OR
I COULD TELL YOU ABOUT THE NEXT TIME I SAW A WHITE THUMB
TACK BUT THOSE ARE WHOLE NOTHER STORIES FOR
DIFFERENT TIMES.
TUNE PLAYING . . . PRETTY PAPER
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