FISHY FACES

Setting up a simple aquarium was all that we ever wanted. We were not inexperienced and although we had aquariums 30 years ago, the little details had been tucked away in the very back of our mind. We hoped to start a hobby that would help us to relax during the evening. There is something about fish swimming in an aquarium that is soothing and with all the stress of the past few months this hobby seemed just the thing we both wanted and needed.

I guess I should probably blame my youngest son for all that follows. We had an oak entertainment center and purchased a new television that wouldn’t fit into the opening. Our son had decided to go “shopping” at our home, looking for anything that might fit into his home. We did have extra furniture but when he asked about that piece, the answer was “No”. It was solid wood with beveled glass doors and I planned on that being at my house for quite some time. His query then was, “Whatever could we find to fit into the opening?” Without missing a beat I replied that it would be ideal place for an aquarium.

It took some time to find an aquarium that would fit into the opening but before long we found one that worked perfectly. We purchased it and brought it home and got it ready to set up. We decided to use this as a tropical fish tank. We decorated the tank, filled it with water and bought an assortment of small fish. We loved the colors of the gourami and its graceful motion through the water. It seemed like the perfect selection. Everything was going perfectly and our hobby was now ready for our enjoyment.

It wasn’t too long before we found the fish floating at the surface or dead on the bottom of the tank. It was always the bright red gouramis that seemed to die. Frustrated, we went back to the pet store and bought some more. Eventually they met the same fate. In the past I had never had to worry about pH but this time I bought a kit and checked the pH just to be sure. It was a little low, just low enough that the sensitive gourami succumbed to the bad water quality. It was disappointing but not enough that we would quit. We decided to stay on track and work towards having a fish tank between two rooms so that the fish could be seen from both rooms.

With very little hesitation we began to set up another small tank on the countertop near the dining room. We headed to the store and purchased a complete ten-gallon tank set. Our goal was to set up a small tank of tropical fish. If we were successful we had a seventy-five gallon tank in the basement that our son had left behind. We wanted to put that tank between the family room and the dining room so that the little swimming fish could be seen from either room. The ten-gallon tank was set up easily and we had it stocked with small tropical fish like neon tetras and swordfish.

After a couple of days my husband decided to head to another pet store to purchase some very brightly colored fish. He wanted to add some color to the tank and try his hand at something new. We never wanted to try our hand with saltwater fish and these bright colored fish were pretty and a lot cheaper than any saltwater fish. He chose two bright orange fish and two beautiful purple striped fish. Into the tank they went. Watching them adjust to the tank was fun but after a while I noticed that the new fish were chasing the tropical fish. There was some fast dashing about and then came the fin nipping. My husband had bought African cichlids and he didn’t realize that they were aggressive and would wipe out the whole tank we had worked so hard to set up.

I called my husband at work and gave him an account of what was going on. I gave him two choices: get rid of the African cichlids and flush the other fish down the commode or possibly set up another tank. It just didn’t seem right to throw away the money we had already spent. He really wanted to keep the African cichlids so he asked me to set up another tank. Now we had two ten-gallon tanks of fish and a twenty-five gallon tank in the room. One ten-gallon tank had mainly small fish; the second ten-gallon tank held four African cichlids. It wasn’t too long before the African cichlids began to attack each other. Although a ten-gallon tank seemed adequate to us it was really too small for that many fish. We lost two fish in that experiment.

Undaunted and after reading more hints about aquariums we started to set up the seventy-five gallon tank. It wasn’t hard at all--we did have experience with three tanks. I really wanted the seventy-five gallon tank for tropical fish. My husband agreed to that IF he could set up a fifty-five gallon tank for just African cichlids. Now we have four aquariums. I figured that I could handle that easily. Cleaning and maintenance didn’t seem overwhelming.

We read more literature on aquarium set-up and checked out a couple of forums devoted to aquariums and setting up tanks. We discovered that the African cichlids required a higher pH than other tropical fish so we started on a search to see how to keep the pH high. One pet store recommended purchasing white crushed coral and placing it beneath the regular aquarium stone. The advice he gave us was that you only had to wash the coral once or twice and then put it into the tank. He also informed us that the coral could also be used in a tropical tank with no problem.

Finally feeling that we had mastered the basics of aquarium set-up, we set about cleaning and preparing the seventy-five gallon tank for fish. Getting the ten-gallon Cichlid tank set up by adding some crushed coral didn’t take very long. The water appeared a little cloudy but the tank filter quickly removed the cloudiness. The set-up of the seventy-five gallon tank proved to be a little more work than we thought it would be. Our first attempt was to fill the tank with water. Seventy-five gallons of water is a lot of water. We carried water from the bathroom and then finally figured that a garden hose could help get the job done earlier. We treated the water to remove any chlorine, washed the coral again and then put a layer of the coral on the bottom and a layer of regular aquarium stone on top. The water was very cloudy but we were sure that the filter would remove any cloudiness. The next morning the tank was still cloudy but we decided to wait another day or two before making any decisions.

After our trial tank set-up proved to be unsuccessful, we proceeded to start over again. If you ever have had the opportunity to drain the water from a seventy-five gallon tank you know that this is a large amount of water. Filling the tank the first time was a major task, now we had to empty the tank and refill it. Slowly the water level in the tank reached within one inch of the bottom layer of gravel. We rinsed the coral again and layered the stone on the bottom of the aquarium. Now it was time to refill the tank again and wait for it to clear up so that we could add our fish. Another seventy-five gallons of water went into the tank. Although the water was still cloudy, it wasn’t nearly as bad as the first time. Confident that we had completed everything correctly we waited again. But just like the first time, the tank remained cloudy. Again, we had to drain the tank (seventy-five more gallons) but this time we were going to spend more time rinsing off the coral. This time we actually had clear water and we gave a sigh of relief. Success! Hooray! It’s about time!

We traveled back to the pet shop, selected more fish and came home. By now the owner of the pet store was a friend and we were on a first name basis. He was ecstatic to have a new customer, one that was spending money and giving his business a boost. After acclimating the fish to the temperature and new water, we successfully transported them into the tank. It had been a lot of work but the decorated aquarium actually looked quite natural and like a realistic water scene. It had been a lot more work than we ever anticipated but now it was time to sit back and watch and enjoy the fish. Thinking that everything would be peaceful for a while, we enjoyed our new “television”.

We soon discovered that African cichlids needed at least thirty gallons of water and it was really better to have a fifty-five gallon tank. My husband really liked the African cichlids and their bright colors. He wanted a tank of just African cichlids for his enjoyment. A fifty-five gallon tank just happened to appear in my family room. This time we had really read up on care and maintenance of African cichlids so setting up the tank was a rather easy task. We stocked the tank with a variety of brightly colored fish and actually got a chance to enjoy them without any mishaps.

One day when I was feeding the African cichlids I noticed that one of the fish would come to the top of the tank and wanted to eat but never attempted to eat. What was going on now? It’s back to the handbook and visiting the fish forums. Aha! We have a fish that is holding eggs. As the other fish began to harass the mother, we decided to remove her from the tank. Since the fish from the ten-gallon tank had been given a new home in the fifty-five gallon tank we had an empty ten-gallon tank.

We had never been fortunate enough to watch baby fish in our tanks so we decided to separate the fish that was not eating because she was carrying “fry”, The African cichlids lay eggs; the eggs are fertilized by the male and then fertilized eggs are carried in the mother’s mouth for approximately two weeks. The mother seemed to appreciate the opportunity to be in a tank with no other fish to hassle her. The tiny fish survived and to our surprise we counted over twenty fish. A majority of the fish lived but some succumbed to their inability to stay away from a filter. Now we had a new problem. More than one mother was in the fifty-five gallon tank. We tried to separate at least two more mothers to watch the “fry” swim and grow. Before long we realized that we just couldn’t keep all those cute little fishy faces. Also, when we returned the mother to the main tank her fellow tank mates decided that she was fair game so they chased her. Almost out of breath and sporting some nipped fins the mothers eventually died one by one.

At that point the hobby had become more than just a little experiment. It was now a major part of our life and an obsession that overtook our life. It was a good diversion and kept our mind off the personal problems that we were facing. The family problems seemed to begin to take of themselves and we felt more relaxed in spite of the long process of setting up the tanks and the mistakes and failed attempts. Somehow we were able to concentrate and focus on the task at hand. We were too restless to read or do much of anything else but the work with the aquariums helped us to focus on something specific. During this time I could pray and talk to God and ask for His guidance as long as I was busy with something else.

There are times in everyone’s life when things seem overwhelming and it seems like God is far away. I knew He was there right beside me but my emotions kept getting in the way. I couldn’t sit still and concentrate on much of anything else but the diversion of something else seemed to open a new door where I could talk to God and get peace. If He could make something as beautiful and graceful as a fish swimming in the water, then surely He could help me. Man is made in the image of God and is created to bring glory to His name. The trials we faced as a family during that time were eventually resolved. Time and time again through the twists and turns that occurred during the overwhelming problem we saw God answer our prayers. His hand was in the whole process and things that never seemed possible were resolved. We were able to draw closer to Him and rather than swim through the rough waters alone we could now glide gracefully through the calm waters that were quieted by God Himself.