The Fish Fiasco

“Mom, Andy’s making that face again!” Eva whined.

“Dad, Eva’s tattling again!” Andy whined louder.

“It’s not tattling if you’re annoying me!”

“I’m not annoying. I’m a fish!” Andy went back to making his annoying fish face.

The Wanders’ big trip to the aquarium was not off to a great start. For the past month, Mom had taken a break from their normal homeschool science curriculum to lead the kids through a marine biology study which would end with this trip. Andy and Eva had been counting down the days to their aquarium visit, but now, all they did was fight.

“Hey, fish,” Mom said.

Andy turned with his fish face.

“Can I trust you with this?” Mom handed Andy an instant camera. Then, she pulled a checklist from her bag and handed it to Eva. “And this is for you.”

Eva furrowed her brow. “What’s this?”

“Your exam.”

“What?” Andy dropped the fish face.

“It’s a photo scavenger hunt,” Mom explained. “The checklist has 10 clues. The camera can take 15 photos. You have one hour to capture all 10 animals on film. This is a group project, so you’ll both share a grade.”

“But—” Eva protested.

“Go!”

The kids scrambled away.

“I’m like the moon, soft and round. Find the floater that makes no sound!” Eva read as they walked.

Click.

“Hey!” Eva squawked when she heard Andy take a picture.

“Got it,” Andy said. “Next.”

“What did you get?!”

The camera spit out a photo of a basketball floating in the otter tank. Andy shook the photo a few times, then held it up proudly so Eva could see. “Soft. Round. Makes no sound.”

“Mom wants us to take pictures of animals, not basketballs!” Eva said.

Click.

Andy took a picture of the otter.

“No!” Eva’s face started turning red. “An animal that floats!” She marched to the jellyfish display. “That one. It’s a moon jellyfish.”

Andy got down on one knee and tilted the camera.

“What are you doing?” Eva asked.

“Getting a cool picture.”

“We just need the picture. Doesn’t have to be cool.”

Andy lay on his belly for a better angle.

Eva stepped in front of her brother. “I said—”

Click.

Andy ended up with a cool photo of Eva’s face instead of the jellyfish.

Eva snatched the camera away from her brother and snapped a picture of the jellyfish herself. Then, she went back to the checklist. “My bark is loud, my flippers fast. Find the mammal that’s never last.” Eva started walking away.

“Wanna tell me where we’re going?” Andy asked.

Eva didn’t answer. Instead, she squeezed through the crowd in front of the sea lion habitat. She aimed the camera at a swimming sea lion and clicked. But by the time she got the picture, the sea lion had zoomed out of frame. She tried another take.

“Too fast for you?” Andy asked.

Eva gritted her teeth and tried again. This time, she got blurry bubbles.

“Let me try,” Andy said.

Click.

“I got this,” Eva replied.

Click.

“I can do it!” Andy tried to grab the camera, accidentally snapping two extreme close-ups of his arm.

When Andy finally wrestled the camera away, Eva burst into tears. “We’re gonna fail.” She sniffed.

“No, we’re not.”

“We’ve got four photos left for nine clues!”

Andy snapped a picture of the sea lion on his first try. “Now it’s eight clues.”

Eva sniffed.

“Hey,” Andy said. “I’m sorry.”

Eva folded her arms across her chest and slouched against the tank.

“No, really.” Andy insisted. “I’m sorry for being a jerk. I think we can do it if we work together.”

“Eight clues. Three photos. It’s literally impossible.”

Andy read from the checklist. “With my three hearts, I’ll love you so. Find the arms that won’t let go.” He glanced at Eva. “That’s an eel, right?”

“Octopus.”

“What about the next answers?”

Eva studied the paper for a second. “Penguin and dolphin.”

Andy smiled. “This is going to work.”

He led Eva to the gift shop and rounded up a stuffed octopus, penguin, and dolphin for a cute group photo.

Click.

“What’s next?” Andy asked.

Eva read the clues to herself. “Lionfish and alligator.” She sighed. “They’re on opposite sides of the aquarium.”

The kids walked over to the lionfish. Just before Andy took the picture, Eva gasped. “Look!”

A screen near the ceiling announced the new alligator exhibit.

“Can you get both?” Eva asked.

“Watch this.” Andy backed up, lay down, and tilted his camera at just the right angle.

Click.

Eva pulled the photo from the camera and laughed. “This is ridiculous.”

“But it worked.” Andy wiggled his eyebrows. “One more picture. Three more clues. We’re gonna do it!”

Eva shook her head. “These last three animals could never live together. But eight out of ten isn’t bad. At least Mom won’t flunk us. Whale shark is next.”

When the kids rounded the corner to the whale shark exhibit, their mouths dropped. There were far more than just whale sharks in here. A window the size of a basketball court showcased manta rays, Goliath grouper, sea turtles, and reef sharks, along with dozens of other species.

“Incredible, huh?” Dad walked behind the kids and gave their shoulders a squeeze.

Mom wandered over. “Did you do it?”

“Almost.” Eva showed Mom the photos. “We had a rough start.”

Mom flipped through the pictures. She raised an eyebrow when she saw Andy’s arm and laughed when she saw the stuffed animals. After she finished, she thought for a moment before nodding at the tank. “See those little guys around the whale shark?”

“They look like they’re about to be food,” Andy said.

“Those are cleaner wrasse. They actually get their food by cleaning the whale sharks.” Mom knelt and pointed to a little burrow in the sand. “A goby fish and pistol shrimp live in there. The pistol shrimp digs the burrow, and the goby fish watches for danger.”

The kids leaned in to catch a glimpse of the aquatic friends.

“Over 50 species live together in this one tank. They couldn’t be more different from each other, but God has given them the ability to form relationships so they can all live together in harmony. Think they can teach us a lesson?”

“Okay, okay, Mom, we get it,” Eva said.

Andy studied the checklist for a moment, then gasped. “The last three fish! They’re all in here!”

“No way!” Eva exclaimed.

“Why don’t I take the picture so you two can be in it?” Mom asked.

Eva and Andy gathered in front of the tank.

“Closer,” Mom said. “Act like you love each other. Three. Two. One.”

Click.

This time, Eva was the one making the fishy face.

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What’s the Point?

God’s creation is filled with ecosystems balanced in unique and wonderful ways. Though we live in a fallen world, God designed creatures to work together to thrive. He also created people with special talents and abilities that can glorify him when we work together.