Sky Trout - A True Story
When a fish falls from the sky and you cook it for dinner, it’s kind of like eating roadkill - or is it? This is a story about a gift. It was a typical Saturday evening amidst a seemingly interminable pandemic when I convinced my husband that we had nothing better to do than clean the house in preparation for a lazy Sunday. With reluctance, he agreed and wandered outside to empty the vacuum bag before getting started. Moments later he shouts asking me to join him. Normally I would debate his request to leave my enthralling chores, but there was something about his tone. So, I finished scrubbing my last dish, pulled on my boots, and headed to our small side yard where my husband was standing pointing to the ground.
We live in a beautiful part of Florida about ½ a mile from the Gulf Coast. Our community is lush with trees, teeming with bird life, and full of beautiful parks and lakes, not to mention an expansive coastline. I often venture outside in the mornings, before the city awakes, to see what flowers have bloomed overnight, what new berries may have emerged from my Mulberry tree, and to listen to a symphony of bird songs as Mockingbirds, Finches, Tufted Titmouses, Bluejays, and Cardinals flutter about collecting breakfast. Wild parrots sometimes come to visit. Ibis and Great Blue Herons walk elegantly through the yards, and hawks chase osprey in a hunt for their latest catch.
My gaze follows his and low and behold, lying peacefully in the dirt, covered with a couple of leaves, is a beautiful Spotted Seatrout, fully intact, and still cool from the sea. Confused, my husband asks, “How did he get here? He didn’t swim into the yard.” Without thought or pause, I responded excitedly that he must have been dropped from the talons of an Osprey flying overhead. It was dusk, dinner time, and we often see Osprey carrying home a fresh catch. “Of course!”, my husband exclaimed joyously - a huge smile spreading across his face. And then almost in unison, “So, what do we do now?” Before options could be explored, it was decided - my husband picked up the fish and declared we would eat him for dinner. I didn’t exactly share his enthusiasm.
After bouts of food poisoning while traveling in India and parts of Africa, I have a healthy skepticism of what I put in my mouth. Exactly how long had this fish been lying there? Suddenly, I felt as if we may as well be having roadkill for dinner. My cynicism did not deter my husband’s enthusiasm and as I grappled with doubt, he cleaned and prepped two perfectly sized filets. His child-like persistence left me little choice but to consider what I would be missing if I chose not to embrace this experience.
This beautiful fish was a gift, delivered perfectly on time, fresh for dinner. It was something out of a fairytale - of which I dream - where we humans communicate directly with all the life and animals with which we coexist. In this world, we put in an order with the Osprey for a fish dinner and it arrives at our doorstep at a quarter to seven.
In the week prior, out of nowhere, my husband began expressing a desire for fried fish. We eat a lot of fish - baked, grilled, curried in a stew, but not fried. So this fried fish fascination was new, but serious enough that just days before, he purchased batter and oil to make it happen. All that was missing was the light, flaky, white fish. The Salmon and Mahi Mahi in the freezer just wouldn’t cut it for this dish. So, when that fish fell from the sky, it most certainly felt like a gift. Knowing that I could not let such a sweet and precious life go to waste began to outweigh the trepidation I felt of getting sick.
For me, this is a story full of lessons on life, spirit, and connectedness. By shifting my perspective from the fear of a roadkill dinner to the gratitude of a gift from the sea, delivered by the sky, I could see the magic that I long for - the kind of magic that I read in books and watch in my favorite shows. It exists all around me, all around you, all the time! If we open our eyes to unfathomable possibility, that world that we wish to see is there - just believe. In the words of my husband, “This is one of the most amazing things that has ever happened to me.” And I agree.
