Our First Aquarium

In the process of making our spare room into an office/study, there were some major changes to be made. The walls had to be painted, the carpeting installed, additional internet access obtained, the computer desk and bookshelves moved. As of this morning, all those tasks were accomplished. The biggest move, however, was to come today.

Moving our 55-gallon aquarium from the living room to the office was a major undertaking. The water had to be drained, but a small amount (several gallons) had to be preserved so the ecosystem could be duplicated. The large landscaping stones and driftwood had to be removed, as well as all the plants. When the water level was low enough, I gave Jason the go-ahead to capture the fish and put them in a smaller vessel until everything was in place, the water cured and the temperature an even 80 degrees. Some of the fish didn't want to cooperate, so it became necessary to mound up the pea gravel to cut off an avenue of escape. One of the fish thought he was pretty smart, jumping the levee we had built, but the errant swimmer was finally caught and moved to its temporary home. The behavior of that fish prompted Jason to recall the times when he had found a flopping fish on the floor of the living room and rescued "Flipper" to return him to his aquatic habitat. The very same thing happened to me as a child, when my father brought home our very first aquarium.

It was a 20-gallon aquarium, set up in the basement of our first home in Calumet City, Illinois. It was a brand-new adventure, and as Dad was setting it all up, he was telling me about how important it was not to make sudden changes in water or temperature, and to feed the fish regularly. I don't know whose idea it was to get the aquarium, but I know who had to take care of it... ME! But I loved it. There was a bottom filter, with two tubes, one on each side, and at the top of the tubes were extensions with bits of charcoal. There was a grid-like top to each of the extensions, so air could escape. The air resembled playful bubbles to me! I loved watching them.

Dad wanted real plants in the aquarium, and did all he could to get their roots plants firmly in the gravel. There were also some stowaways that came with the live plants. Snails were a common site, and if you couldn't dispose of them, they would multiply rapidly and eat the plants! My Dad used to take the snails and crush their shells between his fingers and then deposit them back into the tank, where they became free food for the fish. The first time he did that I was horrified! How could he do that, knowing they would be eaten? It was then that I learned the law of nature. The strongest survive. And Dad was always on the side of the fish anyway.

When all was ready, Dad disappeared to the pet store, returning with fish of the most beautiful colors! He explained that in order to reduce the shock to the fish, we had to let the bag float at the top of the aquarium for a half hour, while the water in the bag was allowed to become the same temperature as the water in the tank. I couldn't wait! It was so exciting to see the project come together. The magic moment finally came, and the fish were released into the tank. I sat for hours watching them. (Looking back on this, it wasn't a bad way for my parents to get me to settle down for a while.)

In the mornings, I couldn't wait to get downstairs to the aquarium. It was my job to feed the fish every day, so I would hurry down the stairs and watch them eat. There were quite a few mornings when I found find a half-dried up swordtail on the floor. As I ran crying to tell my father about the fish, he came and put it back in the tank. In a few minutes, the fish came alive and swam away! Of course, putting the fish back in the water didn't always work. Swordtails are notorious jumpers and we didn't have a top to the aquarium, so there were always a few casualties along the way.

This memory surfaced while my family and I were putting our aquarium back together in the office, and I tucked this away in my heart, noting that this was something they would always remember, just as I remember my first "fish tank", and the care of it made my love of the aquatic world grow.

Nazdrovie'

Paczki Puta