The Princess and the Fish

My child is only a little royal blood away from being a Disney princess.

Here's Roni modeling her mermaid collection.

I don't mean that in a "she's vapid but beautiful, and she means well" kind of way. Yes, Roni is kind, and sweet, and she does have an affinity for sparkly pink things. What I mean is that the kid has an unusual charm with animals.

She's been like that since birth. When we first brought her home, we had 3 dogs and couple of cats. And they all adored her. She would sit in her high chair, and sneak them bites of her food. They would sniff and lick her face, and she would just giggle with delight. And she's always been very gentle with animals, remembering that she's still a small child. Even some of the most skittish animals I know of at least stick around at a safe distance to watch and admire her, because something about her is simply entrancing to them. I suppose it stands to reason. Ask anyone who knows me, and they'll tell you - I'm an animal person, through and through. But her easy grace with so many creatures far outshines my own.

Where we live currently, we aren't allowed to have a dog or a cat. We could have a small animal that would live in a cage, like a hamster or ferret, but Roni isn't even 4 yet. Small animals would require more care and discipline than I feel comfortable forcing upon her right now. But she has been pleading for a pet of her own for a long time now.

I recently went out of town with a dear friend to an amazing concert. (We saw Ben Folds perform with the Louisville Symphony Orchestra at the Kentucky Center in Louisville, KY, and it was simply amazing. In case you were curious.) While I was out of town, Roni spent the weekend with Trey's grandmother (Mamaw), and Trey got a couple aquariums from his dad (Pops). He spent his day alone scrubbing out the tanks, adding decorations, and filling the 10 gallon tank with water and chemicals. When I got home in the wee hours of the morning, we had an adorable aquarium in our living room, waiting for fish to fill it. We went over to his dad's house the next day, Super Bowl Sunday. We came home with Roni, and about 10 swordtails from Pops' tank. She promptly gave them very unique names: Thomas, Simon, Butch, Gerdie (sounds like Gur-dee), Felix, and the mysteriously named Brightson Hole. I have no idea where those names came from, but they were her fish to name. She wouldn't name the little fish. She said they were babies, and it wasn't time to give them names. I didn't press the subject.

I would never have imagined that those little fish would make Roni so incredibly happy. She is very dutiful, and makes sure they eat when they're supposed to, and that the tank light gets turned off before bed, and back on in the morning. She has amazed me, with the devotion she has to those fish. I took Roni with me to Walmart the next day, and I let her pick out a beta fish. He was almost named Filthy, but she quickly decided upon Phillip. Thank you, Sleeping Beauty, for the name inspiration!

A couple days ago, I noticed that Roni had propped up her Elsa and Anna figurines from the movie Frozen up against the fish tank. It looked like they were watching the fish, and it was adorable. So, I took a picture and posted it to my Instagram. I didn't realize Roni saw me take the picture. I put my phone down on the table, and went to finish washing the dishes I had left in the sink. When I returned a few minutes later and picked up my phone, I noticed that it was open to the camera, and there was a blurry preview of a picture in the corner. Roni had used my phone to take pictures of her Little People princesses in front of the tank. Some were blurry action shots that she probably didn't realize she captured. But now, she enjoys leaving her small toys there for the fish to "play with". I'm just glad I haven't had to fish them out of the actual tank yet. I'm pretty sure that's coming.

I know we set the tanks up for Roni, and it's no question that they are her fish. But an unexpected side effect of having that tank in the living room? I have found a new place of comfort. I never realized how much I missed the therapeutic effect that animals have on me. Even creatures as small as fish in an aquarium, they calm me. When I start to feel stressed, instead of rolling up my sleeves and cooking up a storm of a country feast (and adding some inches to mine and Trey's waist lines in the process), I find myself in front of the aquarium, lost in the bubbles and fins. I can feel my pulse slow down. The mad thumping in my chest softens back to the barely noticeable dub-dub of a calm heartbeat. My breathing becomes deeper, less rushed. And the hot mercury pressure in my temples fades into tranquil admiration for our little aquatic ballerinas. I was reluctant to pick up my laptop to blog. I don't even have the TV or radio on. All I can hear right now is my fingers on the keys, and the bubbling gurgle of the filtration system. My home feels like a sanctuary again, and it feels wonderful.

It won't be long now until I get dressed to pick Roni up from her weekly slumber party with Mamaw. She'll be anxious to get home and check on her fishy babies. There are still ponies and princesses lined up along the front of the tank, so they can keep an eye on her fish while she's away. Roni has an eye for beautiful things. But she also has an eye for finding the beauty in things other people might take for granted, or overlook.

I really hope that's something she got from me.