In a small fishing village in Cuba, there lived an old fisherman named Santiago. He was very poor and had not caught a single fish for eighty - four consecutive days. But he was not disheartened. There was still a firm glint in his eyes because he had faith in his fishing skills.
On this day, Santiago went out to sea early as usual. He rowed his dilapidated small boat towards the deep blue sea. The sea was vast and boundless, and the waves gently lapped against the boat. Santiago sat on the boat, gripping his fishing rod tightly in his hand, staring intently at the sea surface as if having a conversation with the sea. He was waiting for the fish to take the bait.
Suddenly, the fishing rod twitched, and Santiago was overjoyed. He knew it must be a big fish. He started to pull on the fishing rod with force, but the fish was so powerful that it dragged the boat all the way out to the open sea. Santiago held onto the fishing rod tightly. His hands were marked with bloody grooves from the strain, but he still refused to let go. As it turned out, he had caught a huge marlin.
In this way, the old fisherman Santiago and this large marlin were locked in a stalemate at sea. One day passed, two days passed, three days passed... The old fisherman's body grew more and more tired, but his eyes remained firm. He knew he couldn't give up. This marlin was his hope. And the marlin was also struggling desperately, trying to break free from the hook and return to the embrace of the sea.
After a long battle, the old fisherman Santiago finally subdued this huge marlin. He was panting with exhaustion, but his face was beaming with a victorious smile. The marlin was so big that it was almost as long as the boat. Santiago tied the marlin to the side of the boat and prepared to return to the fishing village.
However, on the way back, misfortune struck. Sharks smelled the blood of the marlin and swam over one after another. The old fisherman Santiago picked up his harpoon and fought with the sharks. Although he killed a few sharks, more and more sharks kept coming.
Eventually, the sharks ate the marlin until only a skeleton was left. The old fisherman Santiago watched helplessly and sorrowfully as his trophy was snatched away by the sharks. But he had no regrets because he had done his best.
When Santiago rowed his small boat back to the fishing village, the villagers gathered around. They saw the huge marlin skeleton by the side of the boat and were all shocked by the old fisherman's experience. Although Santiago did not return with a complete marlin, his courage and the spirit of never giving up will always remain in people's hearts.
