Well, today mom gave me some Easter presents! I was so excited I woke up from my nap and I swim over and spazed my fins really fast and swam towards it and then ran into the side and so I circled around and approached again. So I wouldn’t run into the side I sank down onto a plant and just stared. What is it? One of them she called Mr. Paddles, which is a kinda dumb name, but she said it was the name on the name tag. The name tag was small and circular with a rainbow background. In white it reads “Hello, my name is: PADDLES.” Mr. Paddles is a stuffed black and white cow that sits outside my tank and stares at me. Well, mom said he is a cow. I’ve never seen a cow before so I will take her word for it. I also got a…what did mom call it?…a pinwheel! It has a long green stick and purple thingys that spin when she blows on them. It is so cool!

Like I said, I was asleep when she came over with my presents. “Finley!!!! Where’s my fifi??? Come here fifi, I brought you presents!” Since I love her I got up and swam over. I’m just that nice. Usually after we travel home I am super tired. I just want to sleep so I find a nice spot in the back above the heater, perch on a nice leaf and sleep and sleep and sleep. One time I had a dream where I was chasing a blood worm and caught it and it was the most delicious worm I’ve ever had. What were we talking about? Traveling, that’s right. When I’m in that little cup my fins get ripped up and then mom freaks out and thinks I’m going to get sick or something and keeps shining a flashlight on me to investigate and I’m like “MOM I”M FINE CALM DOWN CRAZY LADY!” I guess I should feel lucky she cares so much. But still, if she is one day late on cleaning the tank she sits there and peers into the water for like five minutes, apologizing over and over again. Such a silly mommy! It is only one day! I’ll be fine!

I also got a bunch of worms and brine shrimp! Thanks, mom! I love food!

Finley and I traveled home for Easter.

Purple wild flowers (some people say they are weeds, but I’m going with flowers) sprung up all over the yard at home. I knelt down and began picking a handful. The cold wet ground froze my knees and covered them in mud.

Sun shone all around, burning the back of my neck and soon the scent of sweat overpowered the flowers. I kept picking those little purple flowers.

Once I had a nice bouquet tightly grasped in my hand, I walked down to the tree.

The painted brick serving as his headstone had fallen over, face first. I straightened it, and with my bare hands began trying to wipe away the accumulated dirt and grim.

Then I leaned it against the brick wall so it wouldn’t fall over again and placed the little bouquet of flowers between the brick and the wall. I had wanted to bury him right at the base of the tree, like in the movies. But the real world doesn’t work that way. The roots grow too close together and too close to the surface. So, I buried him as close to the tree as I could, up against this brick wall which forms a step into a lower part of the yard in which the tree stands.

I know that in a matter of days the flowers will wither away. All that will remain will be a decaying mass of green and purple–the only sign I was ever there–all of it failing to lie where I really wanted it to be.

I worry that each time I travel with Finley I am moving him closer towards this end. The stress can accumulate in fish, shortening their lifespan. I talk about doing the best for my fish, but maybe I am just a hypocrite. All I really know is I already dread adding another brick to this somber site of withered love.

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So, Sunday night mom was watching this scary show with dragons in it. Apparently, one of the dragons is named Drogon. But you know, that dragon is not that much bigger than me. He is on this screen. So, you know, how big is the difference, really? I think I could take him. I mean fire vs water and all that! What can he do? Boil the water????? lolololol What if he does? Nah, there is no way! If I am in a big enough body of water, he couldn’t boil all of it! See, I can totally win against this Drogon character! You may roar dragon, but I will flare my fins and bite you!! Also, I can breath air and water. Can you? You couldn’t even chase me under water forever! I could stay there much longer than you. Yep, I would totally win.

Watch Finley react to food here

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