John Fischer The Catch

Some say He was an outlaw, that He roamed across the land
With a band of unschooled ruffians and a few old fishermen
No one knew just where he came from or exactly what he’d done
But they said it must be something bad that kept him on the run
                      from “The Outlaw” by Larry Norman

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Just look at the titles of a few of our Catches a couple years ago during the pandemic and look for a trend.

“Jesus is the answer”

“The truth about Jesus never gets old”

“It’s still all about Jesus”

“In the presence of the Lord”

“Jesus unscathed”

“Do you know Jesus?”

“Looking unto Jesus”

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There is a bar in my town that in pre-COVID days was a celebrated biker hangout every Sunday afternoon. There was always a live band playing and rows of gleaming Harleys on either side of the street, with people inspecting them as if they were in a showroom.

The riders all would leave their helmets out with their bikes, and I’ve found the helmets to be a study all their own. The most popular look like they are from World War I — some with a spike and various kinds of rebel markings — and a few have little stickers that serve as a sort of biker bumper sticker. One I saw particularly caught my attention because it said, “JESUS LOVES YOU.”

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I often like to write at my friendly local coffee bistro. It’s a cozy place and creates its own steady buzz which helps me concentrate. For some reason writing has always worked better for me in a public place like this. Maybe it’s just being surrounded by humanity that keeps things more real. I know it keeps me awake; that’s one of the main reason I go.

There’s one kid who works here who is convinced I am Steven Spielberg. I tell him that Steven Spielberg has hair, but he keeps calling me Steven anyway. (Actually with a baseball cap on and my current goatee, there is a slight resemblance.) So I humor him.

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While on an errand in town today I noticed a number of American flags up and immediately wondered what the deal was. It took me about half minute until I finally realized it was September 11. Twenty-two years ago, and I had forgotten. The flags were there to remind us not to forget. I’m sure they didn’t forget what day it was in New York.

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