MIRROR LAKE
AND
THE
FISH KING
MIRROR LAKE AND THE FISH KING
ALVINNA EDWARDS NWOKO
COPYRIGHT Eco 26 MAY 2014
1-1461200402
Hey Ronnie! What are you doing over there? My brother Deshazier asked me as he was walking along the bank of Mirror Lake after school on his way home. Mirror Lake was given its name because the lakes bed was almost completely black from the dumping of tar from the roofer’s leftovers. It was a manmade lake with no natural currents to keep it clean, so when the wind wasn’t blowing and the water was very still you could see your reflection just as clear as if you were looking in a mirror. I don’t know if that was the real name for the lake, but that’s what we kids called it. Every time we played in the lake we got tar on our skin, and it would take days for mama to scrub the tar off of us. Oh I almost forgot, that would be after she whipped the tar out of us for playing in the lake with the possibility of gators in it.
I’m waiting I replied. Waiting for what Shazier asked. Waiting for the Fish King to come and tell me another story. Another story, another story are you crazy? Fish can’t talk silly girl. How long have you been waiting on this Fish king girl? Since I got out of school today, I said. The Fish King said he would come back today when I got out of school and tell me another story. You’ve been out of school for three hours and not been home yet, my brother asked.
Nope not yet I replied. Mama’s going to whip you good for not going home first, I swear, for a seven year old you’re very strange you know that? That’s what you tell me all the time Shazier. I called him Shazier because when I was a baby I couldn’t pronounce
De-shazier. Shazier was the only boy out of six children and only one year older than me, he was my best buddy and I loved him dearly and he got on my nerves constantly. Because of me everyone in the family call him shazier. I’ve always liked the name Shazier better than Deshazier, De-bus, De-foot, De-school, always sounded like the word thee to me, De, hated it, Shazier suited me just find.
Anyway here I was lying on the bank of Mirror Lake and wishing Shazier would go home so the Fish King and I could talk and he could tell me another story. What do you know of fish any way Shazier, other than dropping your line in the lake and coming up with a cat?
Catfish Shazier corrected me with pride. Catfish, and anyway you like catfish fried in hot oil with mustard and hot sauce. I like everything fried and smothered in mustard and hot sauce, but not the Fish King, I replied angrily at my brother.
Gee I wish you would go home!
Nope, I think I’ll wait here with you so when the Fish King comes I’ll grab him and we can have him for dinner.
You’ll do no such thing you mean evil dope, just go home please!!!, you make me sick, you all ways have to ruin everything, why can’t you just leave me alone, I argued as I was getting ready to cry.
Don’t cry now brat, Shazier said, cause you are not supposed to be out here by yourself anyway, and you know that, you know you can’t swim, what if the Fish King pull you in thinking you could swim. You would drown, die, and bloat up like unflushed doodoo. You’ll fall to pieces as soon as they tried to drag your body out of the lake. That image gave me something to think about, maybe it wasn’t a bad idea to let Shazier stay with me for a while. My brother continued with Mama would cry for weeks cause you died, you want that on your conscious little stupid girl.
No! I said, why would I want to turn into dodo and die.
Well then I’m staying right here shazier insisted, to make sure you don’t, and to see this Fish king that tell stories. Then please be quiet I pleaded, he’ll never come if you keep talking so loud.
Okay, okay Shazier said I’ll be quiet but it will cost you a catfish sandwich, just kidding Shazier said as he winked his one eye at me, just kidding.
We sat quiet for another twenty minutes and then the water of the lake began to swirl and swirl and swirl. We both jumped to our feet in anticipation, went closer to the water’s edge, fell down on our bellies and put our faces as close to the water as we could without getting wet. Never minding we were getting our good school clothes dirty from lying in the soft dark wet soil hidden by the short grasses of the lake’s bank. Shazier! Shazier! Look, he’s here! He’s here! Look!
That’s not a King Shazier shouted, that’s Old Mr. Henry the giant catfish everybody been trying to catch. That thing must have weighed no less than thirty pounds and whiskers as long as four inches, at least, and at least two feet long. I’m going home. You got me out here for nothing Shazier said. I didn’t stay out here with you to see Old Mr. Henry, I wish I had my fishing pole right now, Shazier said in disgust, pick up his school books and told me to come on and let’s go home.
I wasn’t ready to go home, I had waited all this time to see the Fish King and I wasn’t leaving until I did. Still on my belly in the wet grass I took out the treat I knew the Fish King loved, peanut buttered bread. I placed a piece of bread with peanut butter on the water where my short arms could reach and the Fish King came to the surface where we were lying took the bread in his mouth and went back under.
Good afternoon your Highness I said nodding my head down in respect like they did in the movies. Shazier turned around came back to the water’s edge and fell on his belly beside me, not sure what he was supposed to do next.
I slapped my brother on the arm, gave him a piece of bread, nodded to the lake for him to do the same as I just did. Shazier rolled his eyes at me in disgust took the bread from my hand, laid it on the water and sure as shooting the Fish King again came to the surface took the bread in his mouth and went back under. I gave my brother another slap on the arm because he had forgotten his greeting.
Okay, okay Shazier said, nodding his head to the lake. Good afternoon Mr. Henry, I mean, your Highness.
Your Highness I asked, are you ready to tell me another story? My brother is with me and don’t believe you can talk. Bloop bloop, came the sound of bubbles, then the Fish King massive head came out of the water. This time it stayed out of the water, looked from side to side in our direction and went back under again. Bloop bloop, again the bubbles, and the Fish King big head out of the water again. The Fish King mouth open and closed as if he was talking to me, and Shazier crawled closer to the water to hear what the Fish King was saying.
We almost had our face in the water when the Fish King went under the water a third time. Bloop bloop back up again came the Fish King. Bloop bloop let me tell – bloop – you a story – bloop bloop – about why I’m - bloop bloop – so old – bloop- up and down the King Fish went telling his story. My brother and I found out through my interpretation that the King Fish was very old because he was responsible for the entire lake and all that lived in it. He could not allow himself to be captured by lures and hooks and nets because too many creatures that lived in the lake depended on him.
When I asked the Fish King during his story how old he was he said to our surprise bloop bloop fifty-one – bloop bloop – years old. The Fish King continued his story with how a young boy not so long ago had tricked him up to the bank of the lake with his favorite treat peanut butter and bread rolled in small neat balls, the young boy had sat there waiting for him to snack on it, when all of a sudden a jerk of the snack reveled a hook inside and caught in his mouth.
The Fish King fought the young boy with all his might, splicing and splashing left to right and right to left up and out of the water down and then up and out again, splashing and fighting pulling and tugging around the lake back and forth for no less than ten minutes, the boy started to tire a
nd the line went slack, it was at that point I the Fish King was able to break loose from the hook that was caught in my mouth.
The Fish King said he heard the little boy name called Shazi or Shaze something like that, and promised himself if he ever saw the little boy called Shaze swimming in his lake again he would make a meal out of his toes.
I couldn’t help but laugh at that part of the Fish King story because I knew he was referring to my brother Deshazier. As much as I loved my brother he deserved everything the Old Fish King threaten him with for tricking him with peanut butter and bread with a hook in it, and fighting him for ten minutes around the lake, after all Mr. Henry,, oops I mean the Fish King was my friend and I had seen how Shazier had fought him around the lake and I had pleaded with him crying to leave the Fish King, I meant Old Mr. Henry alone.
After hearing the rest of the Fish King story, and a quick good bye, bloop bloop the Fish King was gone, without saying if he would be back again for another story. Shazier got up from where he was laying on the ground, look me square in the eyes and only said, that was a good story sister, and I didn’t know you and Old Mr. Henry was such good friends. Don’t worry, he’s safe from my hooks, Shazier gave me the biggest smile and a wink that said okay you got me this time. We walk home quietly for a while until we got closer to our old shack of a house that we grew up in and loved, looked down at our dirty close and Shazier asked me okay sis who’s going for the switch this time.
Somehow we both knew as we always had, that when the two of us were together, the switch is only a couple of hours away.
When we reached the house and mama came to the door in a fury, all she could do was look at our dirty clothes and say, all right you two, which one of you is going to cut the switch. Shazier and I looked at each other laughed a little, and just a little because we knew within minutes the switch would be at our backs and legs and we would be screaming bloody murder for mama to stop whipping us. Still it’s not as bad as turning into dodo, or drowning in the lake.
Enjoy the story?
My brother and I went on many, many adventures together, and we always had fun on them.
There will be more adventures coming from
REVELATION WITH HUMOR:
Mirror Lake and the Fish King
Under the Mulberry Tree
Coming Soon:
My Daddy
The Egg Laying Elephant
Mrs. Dolphin Goes Back To School
Trash to Treasure
THANK YOU
AND
ENJOY