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How Having a Fish Keeps Me Sane at College

And Fun Facts about Fishies

By Hayley WinterPublished 6 years ago 3 min read
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Not my fish, he was hiding in the plant and I'm a terrible photographer.

College, or university, is something over two thirds of all high school graduates will attend, and I think it is safe to assume that close to a hundred percent of college students struggle with the requirements of college at some point or another. Whether it be at the very beginning as a freshman, or your junior year after you've finally picked a major, or maybe it waits until your final semester as a senior as you come to terms with that fact that it's almost time for you to be a real adult. Life can be difficult, but this is how having a fish helped me manage it.

I have a beta fish; a small, solo, fish that has been specifically bred to have bright, large, and colourful fins.

Fun fact: In the wild, beta fish live in puddles and are naturally a dull green or grey colour. This is why they are happy to be kept in those small, plastic containers you see them in at stores, so don't worry—I, too, thought, Oh my gosh, those are way too small for them to be living in! Until I googled the fish and found this out. I had a beta fish, or a Siamese fighting fish, as they are also commonly known, at home before I left for college, and he really loved the little plastic plant I had in his already small tank, and coincidentally, so too does the fish I have now, whose name is Blu, by the way—named after the beautiful colour of his fins.

Anyway, enough about the fish themselves. Here is how Blu is helping keep me sane. You're probably thinking something along the lines of, there's no way a fish is really helping her. What on earth do they do other than swim around their tanks all day? And you're right, that is pretty much all they do. But it isn't what my fish does himself that helps me, it's what he makes me do and how he makes me feel. Blu gives me a sense of accomplishment. This is because not only am I working my ass off to get good grades as well as putting in the time as a division one athlete, I am also keeping another living, breathing creature alive, and that is something anyone who has had a pet can agree with; it is not always an easy thing to do.

Fun fact two: Fighting fish are one of the few species of fish that actually use the oxygen in the air for respiration rather than the oxygen in the water. As a result of this, they will spend a lot of time at the surface of their tanks, so don't worry, he isn't floating at the top cause he's dead, quite the opposite actually. He's breathing!

My fish helps keep me sane just by being a fish. After a tough day at practice, or after doing some hard preparation for an exam, relaxation is key, and I find watching my little fish do little fish things super duper relaxing. Watching him swim around gives me a chance to get out of my own head. I begin to wonder what he's thinking. Does he know I am the one dropping the little balls of nutrients into his tank every second day? Does he know that the bright thing out the window he's right next to is the sun? Probably not—he is just a fish, but it's nice to occupy my mind with trivial and easy thoughts after a long, straining day.

Having Blu keeps me sane by making me happy. Every time I look at him, I get a pang in my heart because my parents bought him as a gift because we hadn't seen each other in over six months. He also brings me joy because I know he brings others joy. When people visit my room and see him, a smile is the automatic response. Along with, "you have a fish!" The most common reaction to seeing his little tank on my window sill. I'm no doctor, but I'm pretty sure happiness brought on by the sight of animals is a good way to keep healthy. So go ahead—I know you all want one now. Get a fighting fish, just don't steal mine.

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About the Creator

Hayley Winter

Just a young chick experiencing what the world has to offer 🌈🌼🦋

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