National Adult Literacy Database

May 4, 1998

Colin Brett

My name is Colin and I am originally from Fogo Island, Newfoundland but I am presently living in St. John's. I came to Rabbittown in September 1997 and I am now ready to move on to an A.B.E. program . I have many hobbies but my favorite pastime is playing the accordian.

 

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When I Was a Kid

by Colin Brett

When I was kid about seven or eight I can remember being in my grandfather’s stage as my grandfather and his brother and my father would be doing their fish. I can see the old men coming down the flake when they would be coming in from fishing. The older men were looking for a fresh fish. I remember listening to the men talking about when they were fishing and how big the fish were then. The men would pick through the fish for a big one and there are some lovely fish there my grandfather would say. Grandfather and my brother would wash the fish and put it in the pound to be salted. I remember sometimes when they were late getting in, there would be so much fish to do that mother would have to help with the catch, me and my brother would have to get out of bed and go with mother to the stage. Mother would not leave us in the house by ourselves late in the morning, they would have to get the fish done as fast as they could so they could get some rest for the next day. Sometimes it would be so late, like twelve or one in the morning before the fish would be done, then father would sleep until four o’clock and they would be fishing again. I liked going to the stage, my friends and I would spend a lot of time there. We would chase Tom Cods on the stage head and sometimes in the boat tide onto the stage head. We would play in the trap store. My grandfather had two big trap stores. On some days when it was nice grandfather would let us have the rowboat to go for a row, we would row to Copper Island and there would be gulls nesting there. We would pick up baby gulls that was there then we would row around the harbor. We would also, row to Duck Island and to Everidge’s Point to dig some cocks and hens to see who would dig up the biggest one. By five we would have to be back, grandmother had a good view of the harbor and she would be watching us from the window in their house.