2021 Gumbo final - Book - Page 210
210
trapp
“Living in Houma is like living in most small towns in that everyone knows
either you or your family. It’s in that small-town bubble, pretty removed from
everything else going on outside of it. I think what distinguishes Houma from
the rest of Louisiana is the culture. Something I love and really appreciate about
my hometown is that you can still hear French being spoken from some of the
older residents. The restaurants and businesses try to keep a hold of that Cajun
heritage too. When I have downtime, I also like to visit Grand Isle with my
friends. Grand Isle may be one of the best places in the world. It’s a tiny strip of
land surrounded by water, packed full of camps and marinas that always make
for a good time. It’s Louisiana’s own beach destination, so it may be a little
rough around the edges, but there’s no better place to just relax with family or
go fishing with your friends. My favorite fishing memory has got to be watching
some of the phenomena that happens out in the Gulf. To sit on the back of the
boat and watch Porpoises pass by or to see a Blue Marlin jump out of the water
while trying to reel it in is really something special. The coolest part is when
you’re reeling up and you see the flash of the fish from deep under the boat,
and you watch its colors get more clear as it nears the boat. It really is a special
experience to go fishing in the gulf. I think if I could go fishing somewhere
outside of Louisiana, I’d really like to go try and reel in a Goliath Grouper in
Florida. If you’ve never seen clips of people fighting this fish, it is a bruiser of
a creature and looks like a Volkswagen getting pulled out of the deep blue. I
think I’d have a decent shot at getting it in, but even the chance at a fish like that
would be really cool.”