The Guy Who Always Catches the Biggest Fish

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One of the kids my Dad took fishing was my brother, Mark. It took. He has been one of the more accomplished fishermen in our family. Some of us may know more about certain aspects of the sport, but Mark has always been the one who just goes out and catches the biggest fish.

He just moved out here. To stay. The first thing we did was go fishing. Since Jeremiah and a friend wanted to go to the bass lake again (to celebrate the fact that today was the last day of school) that's where we went for our first fishing trip together in many years. Mark and I went out in the canoe while the boys messed around on the dock.

Mark has learned a few things about bass back in the Midwest, and so...he just went out and caught the biggest fish. Again.

We're really happy to have him here. But I have to say, before he showed up I was the one in our family who caught the biggest fish in Washington. Of course, I was the only one of the family here, but, well, you know what I mean.

The Boys See the Elephant

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There was an expression in the Old West to describe what it was like for a tenderfoot to come west and see firsthand the grandeur and enormity of the country, and of life in it. He was said to have "seen the elephant." And once you've seen the elephant, well, it puts everything in its proper perspective.

Sunday was warm and beautiful, and the boys were aching to get back to the bass lake. It was business as usual: a little fishing, catching those jewel-like Bluegill that swarm around the dock in clouds...

And a lot of swimming.

Then it happened. They saw the elephant. This guy came in with his buddy and hoisted up a nice bass for all to see. This is the biggest bass the boys have seen taken out of this lake, and it proves that they're in there.

The boys were all eyes. So I'm wondering whether they'll be content after this with those tiny Bluegill, or whether they might get the sudden urge to venture out and find their own elephants. Especially after learning that these guys had caught a mess of little Bluegill, too, which they were going to use that night as bait for catfish that run way bigger than that bass.


Once you've seen the elephant....