| A tale from "back in time" of kids using their | | | | 9 years old and got along pretty good for a boy and |
| imagination to while away a lazy summer afternoon. | | | | a girl. He had his own fishing pole and neat looking |
| As a young girl, the only other kid in the | | | | lures, and I had none! There was an old fishing pole |
| neighborhood I had to play with was a boy my age | | | | that his Dad had that I was barely allowed to use |
| that lived down the road from me. We lived in the | | | | and when that fishing pole broke-I had nothing to fish |
| country in a quiet neighborhood with a sheep farm | | | | with!! |
| down the road that had winding stream that ran | | | | My friend didn't feel sorry enough for me to let me |
| behind their property and my neighbor's house as | | | | use his fishing pole, so he and I started poking |
| well. Needless to say, I learned to play with "boy | | | | around in his Dad's work shop and found a long stick |
| toys" such as his farm toys, cars ,etc, and played | | | | and some string which we tied to the end of the |
| Cowboys and Indians (that should give you a hint of | | | | stick. Then for a hook, we used a nail and hammered |
| what era!), and I was always the Indian for some | | | | it into a shape that we thought made a good hook. |
| reason!! For some reason, he never wanted to | | | | There it was…my homemade fishing rod! |
| reciprocate in playing "house" or dressing dolls!! | | | | I actually got a worm onto that nail and cast my line |
| However, we discovered a hobby that we both | | | | out into the creek at the deepest point I could find. |
| enjoyed! Fishing!! The creek behind his home was our | | | | Believe it or not…I actually caught a fish on |
| playground and we spent hours wading, swimming, | | | | that homemade fishing pole! Our parents were |
| catching crawdads and fishing together. I never | | | | amazed! It wasn't a keeper; in fact it wasn't much |
| touched those crawdads! They had pinchers and | | | | beyond the minnow stage, but hey… I caught |
| looked scary! Ewww! | | | | a fish!! That's what it was all about for us! We have |
| Once I got past touching those nasty squirming | | | | went our separate ways in life and I often wonder if |
| worms, and baiting my own hook (he wouldn't let me | | | | he remembers the home-made fishing pole we made |
| use his lures!), I really had fun fishing. We were about | | | | that hot summer afternoon all those years ago. |