He hand-caught a Rainbow Darter… it was about 4-6 inches long. A cute, shinny silvery thing. Of course, it was dead. But he wanted to “Plaque” it. We explained that it costs hundreds of dollars to do that to a fish, and it was better reserved for “big” catches. So, he decided to save his money up until he could afford to plaque it.
So, he kept it in a ziplock freeer bag in the freezer. And I let him. Because, you know, he has that face. He would open the freezer every morning to check on it… before going out to play.
This is his artist rendering of the specimen.
Then, in the process of packing to leave the lake, I found it again, among the frozen bread and marshmallows that were tumbling out of their bags. The fish was still encased in his ziplock home. I promised the boy I would pack it in the cooler and bring it home.
He just asked me about it a few days ago… I know it was in the cooler… but I have no idea where it is. Is it in the freezer upstairs, downstairs? Who knows? But someday, I think I might find a surprise waiting for me when I pull out a package of steaks to thaw.