Sunil and Gator,
Thanks for the thoughts.
When I started the pond I never would have guessed all of the facets that were going to be involved. The degree of my emotional involvement was a big surprise to me. Feeding the fish, watching them grow, walking the edge and seeing the new babies, getting angry with a 6 inch tall king fisher when she took my babies to feed her babies.
Feeling good when I provided water for the village during a dry spell, or give fish away to my poorer neighbors, feeling bad when someone takes the fish or plants.
I mean, it is just a small body of water, stocked with store bought fish, whats the big deal?
