3315. The sacrificial catfish © Bruce Goodman 1 September 2025

There was this fish pond in the middle of the forest. Once a year, on the September solstice, all the fish would come out of the water and hold a convention. They had to select one of their own to remain on land and make a sacrifice of their life to the hot sun god. It was the only way they could ensure a prosperous year in the pond. The surrounds of the fish pond were strewn year-after-year with sacrificial fish bones. As always, all were terrified they would get selected. Whew! A catfish that no one particularly liked was selected. All could relax. All returned to the pond. As it turned out, the catfish wasn’t entirely stupid. It fish-flipped it’s way to a creek where it lived happily for many a year. Meanwhile, the fish in the pond were happy too. They were convinced that the catfish’s sacrifice to the sun god had ensured a prosperous year. Contact Author Back to Index Next Story Previous Story