The Discontented Fish Novel 🐠🐟

This story is based on a folk tale from Senegal, on the west coast of Africa. It's a story about fish, but it contains an important moral for humans, too.

Once upon a time, in a small pool isolated from the main river, lived a colony of little fishes. It was a still, muddy pool, stony and weedy, and surrounded by scraggy trees and bushes.

It was, nevertheless, a happy pool. Most of the fish were friendly and content. But there was one fish, bigger and stronger than all the others, who kept himself to himself. He was aloof and haughty whenever the others came near him.

'My good fellows,' he would say, balancing himself with his long, graceful tail as he rippled his fins gently, 'can't you see I'm trying to rest? Do please stop the commotion and respect my peace.'

'I wonder you manage to put up with us at all,' said one of the older fish, who was becoming irritated by the big fish's constant gripes. 'I wonder a beautiful creature like you doesn't go off to the big river and mix with the other big and important fish,' he added sarcastically.

This prompted the big fish to think further on how much too big and important he was to be living in such a small pool, and after a few days he decided to leave.

"My friend is quite right,' he thought. 'I should be far happier if lived among fish of my own size, beauty and intelligence. How trying it is to live among these stupid little creatures! With all the rain we've been having of late the floods will soon be here, and then I'll allow myself to be swept down into the big river and out of this little pool. Then I'll be able to mix with my equals the other big fish."

When he told the other fish in the pool, they all agreed what a splendid idea it sounded. With solemn faces, the older fish congratulated him, saying how clever he was to think of such an idea.

There followed more days of heavy rains, and sure enough, the floods arrived. The waters swept over the little pool, and whilst most of the fish sheltered in the bottom of the pool, the big fish rose to the top and allowed the waters to sweep him downstream to the river. Once there he noticed how different the water tasted, and how much larger the rocks and weeds were. He sighed with anticipation of the good life that lay ahead.

He was resting for a few moments beside a large rock when he became aware of the water swirling behind him. Four or five fish, much bigger than he, passed over his head. 'Out of the way, little fellow! Don't you know this is our hunting ground?' they exclaimed harshly, as they drove him away. He escaped into a clump of thick, tangly weed. Anxiously he peered out from time to time, not having expected this so soon after his arrival. 'They obviously didn't realise who I was,' he comforted himself, somewhat uncertainly. Presently two large black and white fish came rushing straight for him, with their fearful jaws open wide. They would surely have devoured him had he not wedged himself into a crevice in the bank, just out of their reach.

All day long he dared not move, but when night came he gingerly swam out into the black water, hoping to find some supper. Suddenly he felt a sharp nip in his tail. It was a large tiger-fish, also looking for its supper. He was about to give himself up for lost when a massive dark object (a canoe - though the fish didn't know this) passed overhead, distracting the tiger-fish just long enough for the little big fish to effect his escape.

'Alas!' he said to himself, 'why ever did come to this terrible place? If only I could get back to my little pool I would never grumble again.' And there and then he decided to try to find, before the floods receded and it was too late, the place where he had come into the big river. Slowly he wriggled along the muddy bottom of the river, anxious not to be noticed, until he came to the point where he had first arrived. With a leap he was out of the river and into the expanse of flood-water which was surging past him. How he struggled as he tried to force his way against the swirling torrent, until at last, with his strength almost gone, he found himself back in the pool again.

There he lay-panting. Too tired to move he looked around at the familiar landmarks, "If only I'd known what the big river was like I would never have left the safety, comfort and friendship of our pool,'

The tiny fish continued to play and splash all around him, but never again did the big fish complain or say he was too grand to live among them - even though he may still have thought so!