A Sweet Remark - by Bob Fringer

This story was posted a couple of years ago, but it is a great story for father's day, especially if you are a grandfather.



Bob Fringer - October 11, 2003


Last spring my daughter, Cathy, her husband, Chris, and their three children, Erin, Rachel and Jessie, came down to Colerain for a short visit.

Usually when the grandchildren are visiting I’ll take them fishing somewhere nearby. This year I took them down to Saunders Pond, a beautiful body of water, located in the woods behind our house. Saunders Pond is kind of special because there is a small cabin, which sits on the shoreline, and has a back porch that extends out over the water. It’s a nice place for children to fish. Usually, the bream (sunfish or blue gills) are cooperative and provide fun for all.

Equipped with a bucket of crickets and a handful of long slender fishing poles, we drove down to the pond. Shortly after we walked out on to the cabin’s back porch I noticed the telltale movement of a water moccasin as it swam across the pond toward the cabin. I didn’t want the snake to come over to our side of the pond because of worry about my grandchildren, even though the porch was three feet above the water.

Apparently, the snake didn’t particularly didn’t care what I wanted because he kept swimming toward us. When he swam close enough, I hit him on the head with the tip of a fishing pole. He recoiled from the impact but kept coming. I hit him again but he kept swimming and finally went under the porch. I was worried until a few minutes later I saw him swim along the shoreline.

We went back to our business of catching fish after that minor distraction. I baited all the hooks with crickets and the grandchildren took control of the fishing poles. Soon, a number of carpenter bees began to buzz around our heads. These large insects fly around like a helicopter or large cargo plane. They don’t sting but can be a real pain as they buzz around your head. They bore holes in old wood and lay their eggs in the wood tunnels. Apparently, the back porch serves as one giant condominium to those big bugs. I began to swat them with my cap when they came close enough to hit. I managed to knock a few into the water but really didn’t put much of a dent in the population.

Soon afterward, Rachel remarked that ”Grandpa is the bravest man in the whole wide world. He hit that snake and was swatting those big bugs with his cap.” I chuckled. You know, it’s not every day that your grandchildren think you’re the “Bravest man in the whole wide world.”

Is there anything better than being a Grandpa?