"I hope we get a fish this time, Mummy,' said my five year old son Sam, his blue eyes serious. We were camping on an isolated hill in a national park and were about to head down to the river.

'Me too,' I said, trying to keep my voice upbeat. Every time my boys had gone fishing the result had been the same: no fish. They would march off enthusiastically and return disappointed. My husband frequently declared fishing was a waste of time but the boys were so keen, it was hard to say no.

'Why don't we pray God helps you catch a fish?' I said.

Sam nodded and dashed out a prayer before running down to the water's edge. Jimmy, his older brother, was already casting his fishing line under the supervision of my husband.

Then Sam's fishing rod was set up too.
Soon seven year old Jimmy's line got snagged. He tried to reel it in but it flicked back and the bright red three-pronged lure caught in his chin. He tried to pull it out himself, but only embedded it further into his flesh. My husband jiggled it, as Jimmy tried not to cry, but it was wedged so deeply that the prongs were not visible.

So we abandoned everything and scrambled into the car, driving to the nearest hospital. Jimmy was calm, seeming almost to enjoy the distinction of having a lure in his chin and looking forward to telling all the kids at school about it.

Once at the hospital, the staff took over, numbing Jimmy's chin before pulling out the lure. Meanwhile, I revelled in the small luxuries available: air-conditioning, a flush toilet and liquid soap.

When Jimmy emerged, his wound was glued and he was clutching a specimen jar containing the extracted lure.

We drove back to camp. Once there, the boys remembered the fishing lines left in the lake. They ran down excitedly to check, dragging my husband with them. They were always hopeful despite all experience to the contrary.

My husband began to reel in Sam's line and there was a tug at the other end. There was a fish on it! A real fish that flapped around in the water. The boys were ecstatic and shouted for joy. Samuel had caught his first fish, his hope had been justified and his prayer had been answered.