Russ

The Shark Who Brought a Thank-You Gift I helped a shark removing a hook from his mouth. I was sitting in my yellow kayak when he came up beside me. A big shark, his mouth open, a silver hook stuck in his jaw. I took my pliers and removed it. He swam away. I thought that was it. But he kept circling back to me. He wouldn't leave. He kept circling my kayak, again and again. Like he wanted me to follow him. So I followed him to see where he'd take me. That's when I saw a smaller shark caught in a net. Buoys floating above it. The little one thrashing, tangled in green netting. I couldn't reach him without getting in. I was terrified, but I couldn't leave him like that. Honestly, I wasn't sure I could do this. I put on my mask and slid into the cold water. Underwater, I could see him clearly. Wrapped tight. I had to wait for each chance to make a cut. The scissors were small. The net was thick. I waited. One cut. Waited again. Another cut. And after a few tries, he was finally free. He swam away into the sand, then disappeared. I thought that was the end of it. I paddled back, loaded my kayak onto my truck. While I was packing my stuff, I saw them coming back. Two fins on the surface, coming straight to the boat ramp. I walked down to the concrete edge. He had something in his mouth. A silver fish. He pushed it onto the ramp in front of me. Looks like it's their way to say thank you.