Watered down!

Fins flail. Gills inflate. Scales shimmer. And my eyes grow rounder and rounder. What’s it with me and fish, I wonder as my face stays plastered to my latest acquisition – a tank full of glorious goldfish.

It’s true. Nothing has a more calming effect on me than watching fish peacefully swimming about. I can do it for hours without feeling even an inkling of boredom. Yet what is there to fascinate me so much?

As bubbles erupt from the buzzing air filter and a snail misses its footing on the slippery glass and gently falls to the gravel, the questions gently float away. They dissolve in the clear water as water weeds wave gently at me. This aquatic kingdom is the domain of desire. I realize that this peace and tranquility is what everyone seeks. This is indeed what everyone is toiling towards. No mythical mermaid taught me this lesson – self-assailed yet no less true, my eyes were opened. I could feel myself slipping into liquid utopia, slowly drifting away, moving weightlessly through the water like the multi-hued goldfish until… until the cold hard glass partition of reality brought me out of the water and back to solid earth with a bang.

Sighing, I rolled up my sleeves, pushed the bucket closer and readied the pipes and nets – and settled down to the rigour of an hour’s hard work cleaning the tank for the watery denizens to frolic in. As sweat rolled down the side of my face, I finally saw the tank for what it really was – an illusive utopia!