The Fire’s Gone Out

Remember yesterday, the fish with the fungus?

Well, I’m sorry to report that the fungus was too aggressive.  I kept checking on Fire through the day, and the fuzzy white areas kept appearing.  By the end of the school day, he was hanging out at the bottom of the tank, sort of leaning against the side.  He was still breathing, but he wasn’t doing well at all.

Anyway, this morning I will bury Fire in the compost bin where we buried Bluey a few days ago.

It has not been a good week for fish here.  Or for Alex.

He is, understandably, sad.

But…he’s been through this before, so it’s not the same as the first time a pet died.  He understands that this happens.  That pets die.  That that’s part of the deal with living creatures.  You have the joy of them…but then there is sorrow, too.

No tears…but he said to me “Mom, this stinks.”  I agreed.  And then he thought about it some more and decided a stronger word was needed.  Cautiously, because there are permissible words and non-permissible words in this house, he looked me in the eye and said, “But really, Mom?  This…….S…..U…..C….K….S.”  He spelled it out, watching me to see if it was okay to reference the word without actually saying it. 

“Yes, Alex, you’re right.  It does.”

He knows plenty of words, plenty of officially bad words.  He knows what he can say and what he can’t say.  And I think he knows that sometimes the words you shouldn’t say are sometimes the most accurate in certain situations.  That they’re meant to be used sparingly.  Like nutmeg. 

Anyway, this is where we are today.

I’ve dumped a whole bunch of anti-fungus medication into the betta tank and will let that sit for a day or so, then we’ll wash the tank and the colored glass and plastic plant and let them dry out for a while.

Eventually there’ll be another fish, but we’re going to wait a while this time, just to make sure any bits of fungus are gone.

Oh, and by the way, Julia wants her own non-mammalian pet, too.  

So, in a few weeks or so, she’s getting her own pair of pets, which will reside in a tank in her room, probably.

Stay tuned….