Just a Fish and Some Water
February 25, 2025
Within these last 7 days, my daughter was But, it was given a fish. Initially I thought ‘oh cool. She’ll love it.’ But it was just the fish. Inside a small plastic bowl with a lid and a bottle of food. I was ignorant to what was needed so that this fish stood a chance at living.
Is this the next best gift for a child to receive other than a drum set? After purchasing a small fish tank with a motorized filter, Cinderella, the fish, is living a pretty good life. Our daughter loves it and has fully embraced the job of caring for her.
Except this morning she asked if someone could feed Cinderella for her and she was promptly met with & "no. The fish is yours and you said you would take care of it." Basically the response of any parent in this scenario, so completely unoriginal, but factual. And without hesitation, our five year old fed her fish.
At the onset, yes, you think of the fish being cute and helping a child learn responsibility. Bigger than that, is the moment we can share in just watching a fish in water. Our favorite thing to do so far is watch Cinderella eat. This fish has brought a new way for us to be still. Present. In the moment, in quiet. I've loved fish tanks as long as I could remember but this time its different. Turning off all the lights and allowing the LED fish light to take over.
Skeptisism arrived first when my wife told me our little one was given a fish. Then a little excitement followed by more skepticism. I admit, too much thought and time was given on whether this would work or not so we just went with it and so far, its been a real treat.
See Cinderella above.