Paddavissie by Dave Freer

Author:Dave Freer [Freer, Dave]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: Scotland, coming of age, SS
Amazon: B00P5YR2V6
Publisher: self-published
Published: 2014-11-02T00:00:00+00:00

CHAPTER 5

I AM A FISHERMAN

There was silence. They all looked at me. They looked… shocked. I was ashamed. Then I was mad. I was only a kid! Why couldn’t the grown-ups do what had to be done? It was not my problem. I was only a kid. Then I understood that they hadn’t thought of me as a kid. They had thought of me as a fisherman. Part of the crew. Part of the boat. If I wanted to be a fisherman, I would have to do what had to be done. I couldn’t be a fisherman when I wanted to be, and become a kid again when it was too hard.

My Dad said, “Well, at least you tried, boy.”

I bit my lip. Looked at the faces of the crew. I knew what I’d have to do. “Give me five minutes. I will try again.”

The Skipper looked at me. I was still shivering. “Make little Abie some coffee. Make it hot and sweet,” he said to one of the crew. Then he sat down next to me. “Listen. I’ve got another idea. Can you bring the other end of the rope, the end with the hoop-net on it, up to the top?”

I nodded. He gave me a slap on the shoulder. “Bring it up. I’ll make a plan.”

So a little later, with the hot coffee still splashing around inside me, I went over the side again. I didn’t jump this time. I was lowered down on the float. I found myself pulling my toes up to try and stay out of the water. Then I was in the sea again, as the float rolled me into the water. It seemed even colder now. Letting go of the float and taking hold of that hoop-net rope was the hardest thing I have ever done.

I swam down for the third time. This time I was shivering before I got to the propeller. I felt rather than looked around the big propeller blades, until I found the rope going down. I pulled at it.

It didn’t move. I pulled harder, and suddenly it came towards me. I started swimming for the top, pulling the rope. The net, with its heavy iron hoop dragged me down. I had to try harder just to move. I was shivering and my teeth were chattering so badly that it was hard to swim at all. But I knew I could get out. That gave me the extra strength I needed.

Half a minute later I was out from under the boat, and then my head was back in the air. But I was so cold! I was sure I could not pull myself onto the float and hold onto it. I was also too scared I might drop the rope I had dived to fetch, and the weight it was pulling down, so I had to struggle to swim. I didn’t want to have to do that again.

“Gaff!” I yelled. Someone lowered it down to me. I put the rope over the big hook, and fed rope up as they pulled it up onto the deck.

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