Chat with J: 12/06/2020

Hey there family and friends, I appreciate all of you and hope you all are having a great day. 

I was reminiscing about fishing and my short time fishing commercially with my Grandpa back in the day. Looking back, I loved my time with him on those trips but it's needless to say, commercial fishing can be hard, dangerous work, and takes years to learn how to be any good at it even in the best situations. I grew up with some of the best examples of the trade-in my life with my Dad and my Grandpa doing their best to install some of their knowledge in me.  I look back now and feel very blessed to have had the opportunity to enjoy a few seasons with Grandpa in Oregon, Alaska, and even California where I learned some valuable lessons in most cases despite my impatience.  

Grandpa was a master net mender and seemingly knew every conceivable way to make a net fish better.  I remember being in Kodiak and Grandpa attempting to show me how to cut out a bad section and sew in a new section of webbing for shrimp season.  I never took to net mending very well as a kid even if this was one of the only jobs I could do at such a young age on the docks. I’m pretty sure it was hard work putting up with me but my Grandpa had the patience.  Throughout the years my Grandpa would attempt to show me his net mending ways here and there but I always would try to find other things to do in order to avoid sitting there with him with those darned nets.  Fast-forwarding to where I was finally old enough to be a deckhand for him on the Saint Joseph; a 75’ steel-hulled trawler out of Astoria,  I was once again in that familiar time of trying to understand why I had to sit with my Grandpa mending nets all the time.    

I thought I knew enough now to work the nets with Grandpa without him having to repair my mistakes but usually after 15 minutes he would come on over and show me where I went off and showed me how to fix it.  He would tell me that the nets were not fishing well and we would have to change the layout in order to make them fish better.  Still,  I would always question him about changing the layout.  Why, WHY were we doing this?  I did not want to be there working on that stinking net and in my view, changing the net layout would not be any better for us on the next trip.  I wanted to go watch a movie with my friends, not net mending.  Sheesh, I was out for 5-7 days and all I wanted to do was go hang out instead of go to the shop and work on those nets.   I was not necessarily disrespectful but I wasn't nice about it and I’m sure my Grandpa would hear me grumbling as I worked.  He would never get mad at me or show disappointment in me but I remember as I would always storm out of the shack after my job was over, he would be there sitting on a chair with webbing over his lap whistling away as he would take his old Buck knife and pop out a few feet of webbing.   I loved my Grandpa, so I would always end up following his orders about the nets or commercial fishing in general and would always end up the better for it.  All that net mending, it paid off in big ways for us on the next trip and made me realize that even though I would grumble and complain about doing things on the boat the way my Grandpa wanted them done we were always better off. 

Luke 5: 1-6

5 One day as Jesus was standing by the Lake of Gennesaret,[a] the people were crowding around him and listening to the word of God. 2 He saw at the water’s edge two boats, left there by the fishermen, who were washing their nets. 3 He got into one of the boats, the one belonging to Simon, and asked him to put out a little from shore. Then he sat down and taught the people from the boat.  4 When he had finished speaking, he said to Simon, “Put out into deep water, and let down the nets for a catch.” 5 Simon answered, “Master, we’ve worked hard all night and haven’t caught anything. But because you say so, I will let down the nets.” 6 When they had done so, they caught such a large number of fish that their nets began to break. 7 So they signaled their partners in the other boat to come and help them, and they came and filled both boats so full that they began to sink.

In the Bible, Luke chapter 5 teaches us that Jesus had asked a fisherman named Simon to take Him out a little ways from shore so He could teach the people from there.  Later Jesus told Simon to row into deep water and let down the nets for a catch. Simon likely thought that it was a mistake to do this as he figured the night time was the best time for fishing.  But after explaining they'd fished all night and caught nothing, he muttered, "Because you say so ..." and obeyed. The result was amazing. They caught so many fish that the nets began to break.

I encourage you to read the whole chapter if you have a chance but for me, I’m reminded of a time when I was with my Grandpa mending those nets and thinking I knew better but just like Simon, I did as I was told and the results were always for the better.  Cherish those who offer wisdom to you as they have been there and done that.  We all think from time to time that we know better and believe our way is the right way but don't shut yourself out of listening to those who have experience and knowledge. You never know, you just may cast you nets out for a record catch.  

Love you Cap. 

J.