ONCE upon a splashing time
a little fish wished he could rhyme.
But 'Wish the Fish' lived in the sea
and brought so much calamity.
---
Oh, Grandpa Koi liked serving folks.
He lent a helping hand
to clients, neighbors, churches -
but did they understand?
He helped because they needed him.
He helped all those he could.
He helped the poor and rich alike
because he knew he should.
For years and years he served them all -
four decades plus, in fact.
He had a real joy in it.
It was a Godly act.
Then one day something bad occurred
that took all that he had.
And that's when Koi could help no more -
so then they thought him bad.
So Grandpa Koi, now penniless,
was nowhere to be found -
but they demanded he come forth -
and stop fooling around.
They had new cars and houses too.
They had high paying jobs.
They had each gadget they could buy.
They acted just like snobs.
While they were living for themselves,
with gossiping abuzz,
the talk 'round town was Grandpa Koi
and it was all because...
...things got so bad that what they had
was rusting all away.
If Grandpa Koi was still around
they'd have some words to say!
But Koi could not afford to stay.
He moved from the grandeur
into a place with many needs -
the 'least of these', the poor.
Away from greed and selfishness,
away from beast and witch -
where friendships grew in peace and love,
that thrived despite the rich.
The Sunfish was a caring nurse.
The Trout and Koi were cooks
preparing food that Flounder grew -
while Wish wrote children's books.
Respect had crossed all racial lines
from one fish to another.
Then love and joy had filled their hearts
with smiles at each other.
The fish that Koi once lived with were
now frightened and subdued -
entangled in earth's mortal nets...
while fighting over food.
Oh, Grandpa Koi liked serving folks.
He lent a helping hand
to clients, neighbors, churches -
but did they understand?
He helped because they needed him.
He helped all those he could.
He helped the poor and rich alike
because he knew he should.
For years and years he served them all -
four decades plus, in fact.
He had a real joy in it.
It was a Godly act.
Then one day something bad occurred
that took all that he had.
And that's when Koi could help no more -
so then they thought him bad.
So Grandpa Koi, now penniless,
was nowhere to be found -
but they demanded he come forth -
and stop fooling around.
They had new cars and houses too.
They had high paying jobs.
They had each gadget they could buy.
They acted just like snobs.
While they were living for themselves,
with gossiping abuzz,
the talk 'round town was Grandpa Koi
and it was all because...
...things got so bad that what they had
was rusting all away.
If Grandpa Koi was still around
they'd have some words to say!
But Koi could not afford to stay.
He moved from the grandeur
into a place with many needs -
the 'least of these', the poor.
Away from greed and selfishness,
away from beast and witch -
where friendships grew in peace and love,
that thrived despite the rich.
The Sunfish was a caring nurse.
The Trout and Koi were cooks
preparing food that Flounder grew -
while Wish wrote children's books.
Respect had crossed all racial lines
from one fish to another.
Then love and joy had filled their hearts
with smiles at each other.
The fish that Koi once lived with were
now frightened and subdued -
entangled in earth's mortal nets...
while fighting over food.
---
The moral of this poem's great,
if this whole world would love, not hate,
charity!
©2015 louis gander - ALL RIGHTS RESERVED
-------
Wish the Fish (introduced in story 01)
Big Mouth Bass (introduced in story 03)
Trout (introduced in story 04)
Sunfish (introduced in story 05)
Spark the Shark (introduced in story 05)
Grandpa Koi (introduced in story 08)
Farmer Flounder (introduced in story 08)
Sunfish (introduced in story 05)
Spark the Shark (introduced in story 05)
Grandpa Koi (introduced in story 08)
Farmer Flounder (introduced in story 08)
