Communicating With Fish

Animals have been trying to communicate to me all my life as they try to do with most people, we just don't get it. I guess one of the first times they really got through was when I developed a relationship with my goldfish, Romulus. Yes, it was rather a shock to get communication from a fish, that was the last place I expected it to come from. But it made sense, really because these fish were kept as pets for centuries by the Chinese and I was just discovering why.

The first thing I noticed about Romulus after he had grown rather large were his soulful eyes. Then I would notice his reactions to the music I played on my piano. He showed a distinct preference for some types of music which when played he would stretch his fins out and 'yawn' as fish do when they are supremely content.

Romulus dances to the sounds of Chopin He seemed angry, too, when I would make a mistake or play a type of music that did not have a flowing quality to it, like Bach. Sometimes, if the mistake was particularly displeasing or the music very choppy, he would slap his tail on the water's surface and splash me! It is hard to deny that interspecies communication is going on here!

Romulus became ill one year with tuberculosis and required lots of medication and careful water changes. He survived but spent much of the time hunched in a corner. I would sit by this corner and put my face up to the glass and wave a finger at him. He would wave a fin back at me.

There was now no question in my mind that we were 'talking' to each other. But I had no idea what we were saying. I just knew he could see me and recognize me and would wave to me. I also became fond of petting him. Yes I would put my hand down into the tank and as he swam by, I would gently touch his scales. He didn't really react to this, he didn't try to avoid the contact though. His scales felt slimy of course but also smooth as silk and this fascinated me.

I became very attached to this fish and his mate, Rhiannon, and my memories of them will be ones I always treasure. Romulus lived 13 long years and before he died, he went back to his corner until the end. After he was gone, Rhiannon spent a lot of time in that corner too, grieving for her companion, a fish.