On the morning of our fishing trip I was filled with anticipation and trepidation. It was my first time really going off on my own there without Sarah there to give me constant moral support. As I've alluded to in previous posts, conversation doesn't flow freely from me, so Sarah is always keen to encourage me to strike up a conversation with these kids even if it's about something rather mundane.
After breakfast, Misha and I headed down to what I thought would three or four teenage guys waiting for us in the bus. But it was only Andrey and the bus driver, Vovo. I asked Andrey if the other guys were sleeping. He said that they couldn't come because they were working (chopping wood and other odd jobs around the village). As it turns out, the other boys were sleeping. No one had woken them up. I don't know if Andrey had anything to do with it or not, and I didn't press the issue later after I found out.
After about a thirty minute bus ride on Russian country roads we got to a small lake with a surrounding village. We had three fishing poles and four people so I chose to observe at first. Andrey and Vovo had their own poles so Misha and I had to alternate. Vovo caught a fish almost immediately, and he pretty much kept up that pace the entire time. A few minutes later Andrey caught one, too. Misha and I didn't do so well--we didn't catch many fish and the ones we did catch were too small to eat. Vovo told us that the orphanage cats could eat what we caught. I knew this was probably a joke at my expense, but since I like cats I decided it was a nice thing for me to do.
When I wasn't manning a pole I just sat there and took in the nice view. I can see why people like to fish--it's pretty relaxing and fish are yummy. But the best part of our morning came when Andrey caught the biggest fish out of all of us. When he started to pull it in Vovo nearly tripped over his own pole getting there to lend a hand. We all made a big deal about it and I could tell that Andrey was quite proud. The next day, Misha and I overheard him telling someone the story of how he caught the biggest fish.
Maybe that's why Andrey didn't wake the other boys--he wanted all of our attention. It might sound base but it's perfectly understandable considering that for most of his eighteen years he has been ignored and abandoned by adults. Even though I was disappointed that I didn't get to spend more time with the other guys, I was glad that Andrey got to feel important for a morning.
After breakfast, Misha and I headed down to what I thought would three or four teenage guys waiting for us in the bus. But it was only Andrey and the bus driver, Vovo. I asked Andrey if the other guys were sleeping. He said that they couldn't come because they were working (chopping wood and other odd jobs around the village). As it turns out, the other boys were sleeping. No one had woken them up. I don't know if Andrey had anything to do with it or not, and I didn't press the issue later after I found out.
After about a thirty minute bus ride on Russian country roads we got to a small lake with a surrounding village. We had three fishing poles and four people so I chose to observe at first. Andrey and Vovo had their own poles so Misha and I had to alternate. Vovo caught a fish almost immediately, and he pretty much kept up that pace the entire time. A few minutes later Andrey caught one, too. Misha and I didn't do so well--we didn't catch many fish and the ones we did catch were too small to eat. Vovo told us that the orphanage cats could eat what we caught. I knew this was probably a joke at my expense, but since I like cats I decided it was a nice thing for me to do.
When I wasn't manning a pole I just sat there and took in the nice view. I can see why people like to fish--it's pretty relaxing and fish are yummy. But the best part of our morning came when Andrey caught the biggest fish out of all of us. When he started to pull it in Vovo nearly tripped over his own pole getting there to lend a hand. We all made a big deal about it and I could tell that Andrey was quite proud. The next day, Misha and I overheard him telling someone the story of how he caught the biggest fish.
Maybe that's why Andrey didn't wake the other boys--he wanted all of our attention. It might sound base but it's perfectly understandable considering that for most of his eighteen years he has been ignored and abandoned by adults. Even though I was disappointed that I didn't get to spend more time with the other guys, I was glad that Andrey got to feel important for a morning.
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