Wayne got bit with the fishing bug quite a long time ago. In fact, he's been anxious to fish since he was a little guy, visiting his grandparents who homesteaded in Seward. Papa Luke told Wayne and his older brother David they could all go fishing and the boys were so excited. The problem was it was winter and it would be tough for the boys to wet a line.
Grandma Jo, on the other hand, told Papa Luke he couldn't take her grandsons
fishing in the winter, but she didn't want to disappoint them, so Grandpa rigged up a fishing pond in the basement.
The boys spent hours catching one right after another.
To us their fishing pond might have looked like an old galvanized washtub with some painstakingly slow-thawing hooligan floating about, but to the boys it was Resurrection Bay. They took turns catching the fish using a high-tech setup of string with a safety pin tied on.
"Get the net, brother," Wayne told David, who held up a salmon net larger than the washtub to help Wayne land his trophy-sized hooligan.
Wayne, who I've seen catch the biggest fish and take his line out of the water, generously offered Papa Luke his "rod."
"It's your turn Papa Luke," Wayne told him, "I showed you how." Finally the young Norris boys had to quit fishing. It was time to go to bed.
Four o'clock that morning, Wayne snuck through the house and went to the only person he knew would wake with a smile. "Grandma, go fishing," he repeated softly to her. Grandma Jo said yes and off they went to the basement again.
We lost Grandma Jo this spring and she is missed dearly. She lives in our hearts now, where we keep these amazing memories of a special person who influenced us both positively. It's these special moments we remember when we think back on our lives.
Alaska is a place filled with opportunities to build memories. Smiles frozen in time, reeling in fish, laughter abounding. Almost everyone who grew up in Alaska has stories of their families sharing the outdoors together, and many more people make new memories each summer.
My husband remembers fondly this moment with his grandparents. He always will. And although his gear is a little more sophisticated than the string and safety pin rigging that slayed the hooligan that winter day over 30 years ago, Wayne is still that bright-eyed boy waking up to go fishing at four in the morning.
Have an amazing summer full of happiness. Cherish every moment with your family and friends because it is absolutely the most important part of life. Fishing is the Alaskan way to do it.
-Melissa Norris
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