The Seafood Dinner

The pale skeletal anatomy of a small jellyfish wrapped in toilet paper floated above the sapphire blue surface of water.  Her vibrant, high pitch screams echoed across the vast Mediterranean Sea, scaring the young children around her.  She had only been in Israel for a week and finally had the opportunity to go fishing with her mysterious uncle and heroic father.

            She and her father drove for over an hour in a cramped rusty car to visit family she had never met before, and partake in a ritualistic seafood dinner.  They finally arrived at a small home enshrouded with flowers and fruit trees, and the young girl felt sincerely welcomed by her aunt and uncle’s embrace.  She could not understand either relative, but their actions proved them to be loving and gracious.

            After being toured around the home and becoming acquainted with the live chickens in the backyard, her uncle decided it was time for the three of them to embark on a fishing adventure.  They piled into the rusty car like a package of salty sardines waiting to be eaten.  The drive was thrilling, but after the first hour went by, the girl had a blasé attitude towards the scenery around her.  She tried to amuse herself by playing games with her imagination, but the lines of rich emerald olive trees soon wore her out.  She opened her window and allowed the fresh air to dance around her, making her feel like an escaped convict breathing in the smell of freedom.

            After the car was parked, the three began to walk towards the sea, passing awe-striking mountains and getting lost in their beauty and mysticism.  The ocean soon lay before their naked eyes and the young girl was shocked by the purity and innocence before her.  She held tightly to her bottle of Coke and knew it was time for the adventure to begin.

            Her father and uncle began walking towards the shallow end of the sea, when she realized she needed to catch up.  The men held their fishing poles with pride as if they were prepared to battle for a king.  Small fish floated by the girl’s feet as they continued to walk.  Seaweed wrapped around her ankles, as she struggled with Mother Nature to break free from their hold.  As they walked, the shallow end of the sea dropped magnificently, forming a small waterfall.  The two 6’4 men threw their fishing rods into the deep sea and waited until a fish would bite.  Massive waves came crashing through, but they stood their ground, holding their heads with pride.  A red bucket stood between them, having one fish in its possession.  The girl enjoyed watching her family catch fish as though it was part of their history.

            Waves kept coming, getting higher every time.  A few more fish were caught and the bucket filled up nicely.  The girl walked over to the edge where the sea fell, looking down with anxiety at the drop before her.  Her father and uncle had to scream at one another to be heard over the waves creating a symphony of devastating sounds.  She watched the waves roll with a sense of boredom, until she saw the biggest wave in her entire life.

It was moving fast.  There was nothing she could do.  She stood there with apprehension.  It was higher than her dad and uncle.  Faster and faster it came, until it hit.

            The two men were completely knocked over from the severe weight of the wave.  The fell straight back and on top of the girl.  She had the weight of two grown men on her fragile ten year old body.  They both felt a sense of shame and embarrassment for not holding themselves against the wave, but they soon rose up, regaining their dignity and poise.  The girl was told it was too dangerous to be around them, banishing her to the shore.

            She was exiled into the world of the mundane and boring.  Her father was supposed to be her hero, but he wouldn’t even allow her to try her hand at fishing.  She finally thought she had the chance to prove she was worthy, and as she sat solemnly on a rock thinking, all the colour faded from her face.

            Soon, a man in short blue shorts and a white t-shirt walked to her place of misery holding a dirty Styrofoam cup.  He dipped the cup into the small section of water beneath her feet, pulling up little grey minnows in one shot.  She was captivated.  The man filled up several cups of small fish, and eventually left without a remark.  She sat bewildered and decided it was her chance to fish.

            She picked a cup floating beside her, and dipped it into the water in the same manner as the fisherman.  She lifted the cup with a big grin on her face, only to find that the cup was empty.  She tried again.  No fish.  She decided to try again.  Still no fish.  The man had to have taken all of them.  A sense of disappointment swept over her, but she put her cup in one last time, hoping for something worthy.  When she lifted it back up, it was heavy, and she knew she gained her prize.  A small, transparent crab was stuck inside the cup.  She had made her first catch. 

            Her father returned with her uncle and she ran to show them her catch.  Her dad took the crab out of the cup and ripped off the claws with his bare hands.  This reminded her of her father’s gallantry, and considered him her hero once again.  He apologized for not letting her fish with them, but told her another day they would go to a safer place to fish.  She let her crab go on marble stone beside her, and the three gathered into the cramped car once again.

            That seafood dinner was the most wonderful meal she had in her whole life.  Although eating that fish reminded her of her almost perilous fate, she felt a sense of joy in how her father handled the situation even if it made her feel unwelcome.  She looked at her father with pride for being so brave when the wave came and when he ripped the claws off that crab so she wouldn’t be hurt.  Her father may have grown up in a different culture than what she was used to, but she knew he would always be a victorious hero.