Page 41 - Dainfern Precinct Living issue 9 2022

Food for Thought

COUNTING

FISH

BY PETER STOFFBERG

ounting juvenile fish is harder than you think.
They’re small, constantly on the move, and
Chave no real distinguishing features to identify
individuals. Our family took turns over a number of
days to try to establish how many African Cichlid fry
had survived the three week brooding period in the
mouth of their mother Bethany. It didn’t look like
Bethany was counting though, she was too busy
eating. After weeks of no food, and only the taste of
baby fish in her mouth, who could blame her?

Bethany’s willpower isn’t the only remarkable thing
about her. Thorough and painstaking research has
revealed her species’ surprising ability to do just what
our family was struggling to do, count. The research
proves that they’re able to perform simple arithmetic
with numbers up to five, which is just more than half
of Bethany’s brood. They have no cerebral cortex
and no apparent need for arithmetic, yet they can
count. Perhaps that’s just what Bethany was doing in-
between bouts of binge eating.
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We tend to underestimate the complexity and abilities www.familychurch.online
of the creatures around us. It may be because they’re DAINFERN COLLEGE AUDITORIUM
small and simple, but maybe it’s just because we’re
too busy to stop and look - and think. Perhaps that’s
one of the casualties of our modern obsession with We might dwell on the knowledge that the earth
technology and instant gratification. How often do we continues its 100 000km/h path around the sun;
take time to look around, occupy the present moment that all around us spiders are selecting which of the
and just take it all in? When last did you lie on a shady numerous types of silk they produce is best for their
lawn identifying the shifting shapes in the clouds, current pursuit; and that fish like Bethany are doing
taking in the birdsong and the scent of spring on the sums. Maybe we’d begin to ease into the humble
breeze? Who has time for that? realisation that Someone is in control, and that we
don’t need to be.
We all do. We just don’t take advantage of those
opportunities, and we suffer because of it. If we did God delights in showing us His power and the
take time out, perhaps we’d realise that all around goodness in what He’s created. Why else would He
us, every moment, God’s creation continues with or give fish like Bethany the ability to count, and people
without our involvement or consideration. like us the ability to discover it? Yes, we still have
places to be and important things to do, but let’s
not do them at the expense of appreciating God our
Father and everything He’s done through Jesus Christ.

When we read verses like Colossians 1:16 and take
time to appreciate His creation, we find our proper
place, and we can enjoy the blissful peace of knowing
that He is in control of all of it.

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