Ignatius “Iggie” Idlewilder of Idlewood, Idaho

When Ignatius “Iggie” Idlewilder heard that the mayor of Idlewood, Idaho, said citizens could not fish in the city’s lake during winter because the ice might not support their weight, the youngster was indignant. Every winter, he sawed a hole through the ice and caught fish for his family to eat. He had always fished in winter, no matter how cold the weather, and rarely returned home without a nice catch.

Iggie knew the best spot, located above a sunken boat that served as a winter home for different types of fish, such as amazing amber arrowfish, brown-bellied bottom bumpers, charcoal-crested cricket crunchers, deep-diving devilfish, evil-eyed everything eaters, green-gilled grub gobblers, mealy-mouthed minnow munchers, ruby-red rapid racers, tiger-toothed troublemakers, and unbelievably ugly underwater undulators.

Dressed in warm clothes and fur-lined boots, he placed an Indian teepee around the hole to protect against the wind, built a small fire, and was quite comfortable despite the cold. One day, a policeman came to the teepee and told Iggie that he was violating the mayor’s rule, but Iggie persuaded him to at least let him finish this last fishing trip. The policeman agreed but said that he best not be caught on the icy lake again.

Then, an idea popped into Iggie’s head, and before the policeman walked away, he asked him if the mayor enjoyed eating fresh fish. “Why, yes,” the policeman answered. “He likes all kinds of fish, but his favorite of all is the brown-bellied bottom bumper.” As soon as the policeman waved goodbye, Iggie searched in his tackle box for a lure that no fish except the brown-bellied bottom bumper would ever strike: the pretty plastic pink plug. Hurriedly, he tied it to his fishing line and lowered it all the way to the bottom, where brown-bellied bottom bumpers always were.

Shortly after the lure reached the bottom, the fishing pole almost snapped. Iggie doubted that he could hold on, but when the reel was almost out of line, he noticed that the fish seemed to be getting tired. Slowly, he reeled in the line, and when the fish was about to break the surface, he grabbed his net. Oh my gosh! The fish was so big that Iggie could barely lift him out of the water. It was the largest fish that he had ever caught. Gathering up his fishing gear and tepee, he headed to the mayor’s home.

“Good afternoon, young man,” the mayor said and invited him in to warm up beside the fireplace. When the mayor asked Iggie to open the large bag he was carrying, he gasped, “Wow! That is the biggest, most beautiful brown-bellied bottom bumper I have ever seen. How much money will you take for him?” Iggie replied that if his honor let him continue to fish in wintertime, he would bring him more of the delicious fish each week — for free. Thrilled, the mayor agreed and said goodbye to his new friend: Ignatius “Iggie” Idlewilder of Idlewood, Idaho.

NOTE: Jimmy Reed is a retired college professor and author of several books. This story is from his latest, a children’s book entitled FROM A TO Z, TO YOU FROM ME. Each story in the book maximizes the use of an alphabetical letter, enhanced by alliteration and assonance. The book is available on Amazon, or can be purchased directly from the author. His email address is jimmycecilreedjr@gmail.com.