Ed the Salmon

It was a normal Tuesday morning. The sun shone in shimmering beams down through the trees, creating beautiful sparkles in the river. Ed the Salmon had left a little early to head upstream to work. Traffic had been a little more difficult in the last week because part of a tree had fallen into the water and some small debris had gathered around it, narrowing the river.

Ed looked to his left and right, seeing a lot of the regulars that were part of his morning commute. He had contemplated getting a new job downstream from home, but didn’t want to have the hard swim after a long day at the office. He had even put off breakfast that morning in hopes that there would be something in the break room.

The river shallowed a bit as he made his way across some low, smooth stones. There was a sudden sparkle and a snack dropped into the water right in front of him. His hunger pang took over before his brain could process the situation. He bit down on the fly and felt a sudden tug, lodging a piece of metal between his teeth.

He began to flail and pull, doing his best to fight against the steady pulling coming from somewhere near the bank. He hadn’t slept well to start with, so this extra exertion was wearing him down quickly. He would pull and swim against the strain for a few moments before being drawn closer to the muddy slope at the edge of the water.

Finally, when it seemed he was going to lose the battle, he remembered that he had rushed that morning and not put on the normal amount of denture cream. In fact, he felt his top denture coming loose. He made a quick grinding motion between his teeth as the pulling sensation drew him to the surface of the water.

Ed’s eyes broke through the surface of the water to see a man standing on the bank, heaving up on a long stick. The top denture, which held the bent piece of metal, broke loose and went flying through the air. The bottom denture had also come loose, so he spit it out. In an instant, he was free. He wouldn’t be able to eat his normal lunch that day, but at least he wasn’t lunch.