A Fish's Point Of View

• Kaylee Jesnoewski, Grade 11
• Short Story
• 2022

My runty, silver fin flaps through the water, creating a little current, as I swim through my ocean home. Not too long ago, this was an incredible place in which I felt privileged to live. It was full of colourful coral, beautiful white sand, and so many plants to feast on with my fellow marines. I had been gifted with so many joyous things, giving me such a positive outlook on life. But the only gift I received was misery.
After the humans started overpopulating, all other species began to dimmish. First it was the coral. Once assorted in a variety of colours, from blues to green, and reds to pinks, the coral now appears bare. Every single piece is the same colour. Vile, khaki brown. The sand is a perfect match in shade, consisting mostly of these coral remains. But this coral is not the only life form that has suffered from the humans’ actions, they all have. For as I search around me, circling the pile of decay which remains, I see nothing. My home is vacant of all forms of life. All except me.
It is crazy to think about how much the actions of humans has affected the ocean. They only come here for recreation; to swim, bathe, and as sport; to capture us for food. Yet they are the cause of this dramatic increase in heat. They are the reason that my reef is now too acidic for any life form to survive. I can’t even imagine how horrible their home is, up on the land.
I have no choice but to flee. I must find another reef, one that hasn’t been affected yet. But I am too weak. I try to swim forwards, but my body keeps falling downwards, hitting the crunchy debris below.
Reaching what I know to be the next reef, it seems as if I never left my own. Containing the same brown coral, and dead detritus, this reef, I realise has died too. I fall to the ground with weakness. My body has given up completely. My time has come. I must die.
But now that the thought is floating through my mind, I envisage what is to come next. I mustn’t fear death but relish it. I have been so miserable, trapped in the baron reef that in reflection, I question why I wished to stay. But whether it was the memories, or the remains of my friends and family, I didn’t need to worry anymore. I had my answer. The solution to my problem. Death. I am to re-join my family soon. And as if voluntary, I collapse to my side, the life draining from my body, and numbness flowing in from behind. I wonder what adventures await?