A Fish Named Wabi Sabi

There is a corner of the internet which preys on your soul: animal welfare.

My father, Lewis Berman, was a veterinarian and he cared for creatures, great and small. I told the story in “Finding More” about setting free the sea turtles that were being held for soup in St. John’s. There wasn’t an animal that he didn’t want to support, and he passed that trait along to me.

If you have tendencies of any kind, the algorithm will suss it out. I cannot ignore an animal in need, and now these creatures follow me through social media. Horses, dogs, and now a fish named Wabi Sabi.

Wabi Sabi – inspiration for today

This little betta fish was in a pet store, sitting in a tiny plastic cup, since July 2024. A woman saw that his intake form was almost two years earlier and decided to take him home. She spent a week preparing a tank with little fish friends and lots of leaves and things for him to play with.

She named him Wabi Sabi, which is a Japanese term for finding beauty in imperfection. After spending so long in a Dixie cup, Wabi Sabi did not grow his fins and gills to a proper size. He was literally dwarfed by by his circumstances.

Today, he is adapting nicely to his new life, in a large tank, with tiny fishies, and lots of good food. It is unknown at this time if he will continue to grow, or even if he will survive. But there is hope, and that’s most of the battle.

I do not know anything whatsoever about fish, so if all you take from this story is that I am woefully ignorant about how to care for a betta fish, then fine. But there are others who will recognize metaphor when it slaps us in the head.

There is beauty in imperfection, and grace in embracing our flaws.

Furthermore, we will only grow as big as our dreams, or the water tank, will allow.

Thank God this woman saw the spirit of a little, underdeveloped fish and decided to give it a chance. My own horse has a crooked leg, and we work every day to develop his muscles so he may also have a chance to thrive. Working with his limitation is so inspiring to me, to see what he can do and defy the odds. In fact, nurturing my horse was the last, best project I did with my father before he passed.

I wish for you a new year of brilliant perfection and abundant growth. But if you fall short, I hope you see the beauty in what is left, which in the end, is all we truly have.

Michelle Marchildon is the yogimuse. She is the author of four books on yoga and life, and teaches movement in Denver, Colorado. You can find Wabi Sabi on Tik Tok, if you also want to become emotionally invested in a tiny fish.