This is an essay I wrote for my Language Arts a while back about a story of
Abraham Lincoln as a boy. I experimented with writing it in the present tense, which is
quite a bit out of my comfort zone- and though I still prefer to stick to past tense it was
a fun experiment!
Young Abe skips along the path. He is in a fine mood this morning- he is about to go fishing.
“Catch a huge fish for dinner!” his sister, Sally, had called out after him as he left- and Abe
plans to do just that.
He is glad to be outside and done with the chores that occupied him just a few minutes
earlier- gathering firewood, weeding, and hauling water. Now Abe is free for a few hours
to fish by the tranquil stream that winds its way down the hill near his cabin. As he walks,
Abe notices the gentle breeze that is playfully ruffling his dark hair. It is a pleasant feeling,
but the sign of falls’ coming is not welcome. The crops have not done well this year, and
fall means the end of the growing season. However, Abe forgets his worries for a moment
and grins brightly, seeing a flock of geese in the sky above him. When he comes to the
stream, he makes himself comfortable on the bank, folding his ill-clad legs under him, then
searches around for a worm to use as bait. A worm isn’t hard to find in the soggy ground,
and soon Abe casts his line into the water. A gentle “plunk” is heard as it hits the water, and
then all is still. Abe’s mind wanders as he patiently waits for a fish to bite.
He thinks of dinner- though he has just eaten, fast-growing and scrawny Abraham is
hungry. He also thinks of the war his mother and father have spoken of- he knows very little
about the conflict that is taking place in this year of 1812, except that his mother has told
him stories about the bravery and devotion of the soldiers fighting in it.
“Now, Abe, remember that you must always be kind to soldiers. They are risking their
lives to protect this country.” She often reminded him after finishing one such story.
Suddenly, Abe is pulled from his wanderings when he feels a sharp jerk on his line. He
leaves his thoughts of war behind him and struggles with the pole. The fish is a huge
silvery shape in the water, and soon he is able to wrench it out. First comes the head, then
fins, and lastly even the tail is thrashing out of the water. It is massive, at least in Abe’s eyes,
and he proudly sets off for home to show his mother his fine catch.
Walking back along the path, he sees a figure that is heading in his direction. Abe stops,
and watches it get closer. Soon it takes the shape of a young man, not more than twenty,
with dirty blonde hair and sad grey eyes- and a rumpled soldier’s uniform. Abe realizes
with delight that this must be one of the soldiers his mother told him of, and, thinking of
how she had instructed him to always be kind to soldiers, Abe ran up to the young man,
holding out his large fish.
“I want you to have this.” he says, gazing up into his face.
He stares at the fish, then looks at Abe- the boy could use a fair meal himself, fast as
he’s growing, the soldier thinks. “I can’t take this.” he says, looking sorrowful and hungry,
but handing it back. “It’s yours.”
“Please, I want you to keep it.” Abe replies, and with a grateful smile, the soldier walks
away, whistling like a man who is thoroughly content.
Now Abe’s hands are empty, and his prize fish is gone, but Abe is happy. He could well
have thought that his fishing trip was wasted- and yet, he ponders, was it not all worth it
to make another happy?
He finishes the walk home, still hungry, but excited to tell his family of the soldier.
It isn’t long before the dinner bell is rung and Abe’s mother, father, and sister are
all seated on crude three-legged stools around the poor little table, outfitted with bread,
potatoes and cheese, their largest meal of the day. Abe’s father says the blessing,
thanking God for the family’s blessings, small as they may be. Then he turns to Abraham.
“Didn’t you catch anything?” his father asks.
Abe nods. “Sure I did,” he replies stoutly, “and it was awful big too.” And then he recounts
the story of how he had given his catch to the soldier. His father just grunts disapprovingly,
but Abe’s mother looks at him proudly with her beautiful hazel eyes.
With that kind heart, she thinks, he will be a great man.
She has no idea how right she is.
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