Charlie The Singing Catfish

I must have the strangest group of friends in the world.  Among my best friends are talking and singing critters including Jiminy Cricket, Billy the Bullfrog, Cindy Cicada (who plays the blues), and a pacifist spider who just wants to buy his kids shoes and teach them how to dance.  This past summer, I made a new acquaintance; a talking and singing Catfish named Charlie.  All of them have helped me out with various songs that I write, but I really think Charlie has more personality than the rest of them combined.  On top of that, he has a heart for kids, which I really admire in a fish.

I met Charlie over the summer during a fishing trip with my buddy Egor from Ukraine.  Egor was eight years old at the time and wanted to go fishing in the worst way.  Maybe I should clarify that.  He wanted to go fishing and actually catch something.  Boy, do I know what that feels like.

Egor spent a few weeks in Minnesota this summer, vacationing on a lake full of fish, who evidently were quite shy when it came to biting his hook.  He tried and tried to catch a fish, but there was no cooperation, so he came back to Roanoke fishless and frustrated.  I’ve been there a few times too.  But I knew I had to try to change his luck, so I asked his mom Jenya if I could kidnap him for a day.  She said OK, and we planned a certain day in early August. It was supposed to be a secret, just in case the weather was bad or I had to cancel.  

The day before the fishing trip, we had several inches of rain. That meant all of my usual fishing holes on Smith Mountain Lake would be a muddy and debris filled mess - not the best for fishing.  I went to pick up Egor across town and he was ready for action.  We drove down to the far southern end of the lake, where the water would be clear.  I didn’t know any good honey holes, with big fish to catch, on that end of the lake.  On the way out to the lake, Egor and I sang “bug songs” - the ones I like to write.  He knows all the words and loves to sing.  That boy has good taste in music.

I own a little red, old school fishing boat, possibly the ugliest thing on the lake (if you don’t count my truck).  Egor didn’t mind a bit, so we launched it off a public boat ramp at the crack of 11 AM.  The sky was robin's egg blue, the sun was hot and the steady breeze was kicking up some pretty big surface waves. In other words, perfect conditions for a fishless afternoon.  Undeterred, we started the motor and took off.  There wasn’t a bit of shade to be found and the wind was blowing us off every spot I tried.  I needed a plan.  My plan was to pray. 

I prayed - “Lord, please let Egor catch a fish.  Any fish will do, even tiny Bluegill.”  With the boat rocking wildly from huge waves, I looked at Egor and said “we need to try fishing off a dock”.  There was a little set of docks at the State Park.  It’s totally illegal to fish off them and I knew it.  Sometimes, you have to ignore the law and put all of your faith in God.  We tied up the boat and cast our bait into the only patch of shade on the lake that day.  And just like that, God served up a miracle.  

Myself with Egor and Charlie the Catfish
Summer 2023, Smith Mountain Lake, Virginia

That was the day we first met Charlie the Catfish.  He was the second fish of the day and, at about 4 pounds, the largest.  Charlie pulled so hard that Egor thought he’d rip the fishing pole right out of his hands!  We fought that fish with all of our strength and it took at least 5 minutes to pull him in.  That’s when God served up another miracle - my wife Denise and her iPhone.  She just happened to be at the park, heard all the commotion and raced over to get most of it on video (click here to watch).  As Charlie finally came up to the top, I told Egor “That’s Charlie The Catfish!”  The name stuck and Charlie and Egor got to meet.  After we exchanged greetings, I put Charlie back in the water to swim away and perhaps come back someday.  No one could ever have had more fun than Egor and I that day, and that’s no fish story!

Egor and Jenya went back to live in Ukraine a few weeks after that, to rejoin their family and defend their country.  I hope that the war soon ends and they can rebuild their lives and country.  I hope Egor and I get a chance to go fishing again.  He turned nine years old a few weeks ago and, as a present, Charlie and I got together and wrote him a birthday song.  You can listen to it here.  As it turns out, old Charlie really knows how to sing and dance.  He’s quite a fish.

If you’ve hung with me this far, thanks.  Please consider liking or sharing this post and hitting the blue FOLLOW button to receive new posts, typically one per month.  If you have a similar experience, or other thoughts, please leave a comment for Jenya, Egor or myself.  I’ll be sure to let you know I’ve seen it.  One last thing - please pray for Ukraine.  There’s a lot of good people just like Jenya and Egor and they deserve our prayers and support.