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handshake.
When the deckhand circled by their end of the boat and saw Claudia's handiwork,
the young woman muttered loudly while taking the pole from Claudia s grip.
"I'll buy you a new one," Claudia offered weakly to the deckhand.
"Don't worry about it. Happens all the time," the young woman said, obviously fed
up with having spent the last several months coddling tourists. "Here's a bucket of
new bait. I'll get you another pole in a minute." She handed Claudia a small metal
pail and was off to tend to the other novices.
Claudia held the pail up to get a closer look at its contents. Then she gingerly
reached in to retrieve a sample. "Oh for god's sake," she said when she realized she
was holding half a tiny blue crab between her fingers. Instinctively, she flung it to
the deck.
Laurel laughed out loud, along with a few of the other passengers. "It's just a crab,"
she tried to console Claudia.
"I thought you were supposed to eat crabs not spear them with a fishing hook."
Lilly picked up the crab her mother had tossed aside and handed it back to her.
"Here. It's only half a crab anyway, and it's quite dead, I promise."
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"I don't think I want to catch a fish that's capable of eating half a crab. You take it."
Claudia pushed her daughter's hand away.
Lilly baited her hook. "You're such a city girl," she said, shaking her head.
"So, where did you learn so much about fishing?"
"I went to camp every summer in Maine, remember?"
"Right," Claudia nodded. "Well, why don't you teach your old Mom the tricks of the
trade." Claudia s eyes were full of love and laughter for her daughter.
Laurel watched as Claudia leaned over the railing on one arm, the other draped
loosely around Lilly's shoulder as Lilly instructed her mother in the art of waiting
for a bite. They seemed so easy and comfortable with each other, and Laurel thought
that despite Claudia s faults as a parent, it was this special love between mother and
daughter that would guide them safely through the rough waters of life.
"You look so pensive," Claudia said when she noticed Laurel staring into the rolling
horizon.
Laurel s eyes filled with emotion. "I was just thinking how much I love you both. It's
a little overwhelming at times like this."
"You mean times when you're trying to catch a fish in order to eat it, but the bait
you're using is something you would never consider eating in the first place?"
Claudia's eyes communicated a message much more tender.
Laurel laughed and said, "Yes, that's exactly what I mean!"
Lilly handed her Mother the fishing pole and went over to Laurel. She wrapped her
arms around Laurel's neck. "I'm sorry for what I said yesterday," she whispered into
Laurel's ear. "I know you'll always be my friend."
"Always." Laurel affirmed, returning Lilly's hug. Then they heard a loud yelp and
turned to see Claudia clutching onto a wiggling pole, fully bent, and clearly out of
her control.
"Now what?" she asked frantically.
Lilly rolled her eyes at her mother. "See that little handle? It's what you use to wind
the line back in."
"You do it!" Claudia tried to pass the pole off to her daughter, but Lilly backed away.
Claudia turned to Laurel. "Aren't you going to help me either?
Here, let me show you," Laurel said, standing behind Claudia and reaching around
her waist to help her reel in the fish.
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When it came close to the surface, Laurel moved out of the way and let the
deckhand do her job. In one swift motion, the young woman had the fish gaffed
through its side."
"It's huge," Claudia gawked as deckhand brought the fish onto the boat. "What kind
is it?"
"Turbo," the young woman muttered as she carted the catch off and dumped it into a
large wooden bin.
"Can't we keep it?" Claudia said, her gaze lingering on the bin.
"What do you want with a dead fish?" Laurel asked, amused by Claudia s apparent
disappointment that the fish had been taken away from her so soon.
"I don't know. I though we could get it stuffed or something."
Laurel and Lilly looked at each other and laughed. When the boat arrived back at
the dock, Claudia and Lilly went to get the car. Laurel stayed behind, saying she
wanted to thank the deckhands for all of their help. When she got the attention of
the young woman who had gaffed the fish, Laurel asked if she knew a good
taxidermist.
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