The Hou, or the Snoring Fish

The Hou, or the Snoring Fish

In the warm shallow waters near the Hawaiian Islands lives a small colourful fish called the hou.

By day it is hardly different from other creatures of the sea. It swims among the stones, hides in the shade, and glitters with coloured scales when sunlight shines through the water.

But at night something funny happens to the hou.

When the sea grows quiet, the waves barely touch the shore, and the water becomes still, the little fish falls asleep in the shallows.

Then you may hear:

“Snrrr… snrrr…”

Very softly. Almost too softly to hear.

As though someone very tiny were sleeping just beneath the water.

One such night, the moon hung over the sea and the surface of the lagoon was smooth and still. Even the waves seemed to speak in whispers.

A crab hid beneath a stone. Nearby, a small school of fish drifted slowly past.

Then, suddenly:

“Snrrr…”

The little fish stopped.

“Did you hear that?” they seemed to ask one another, flashing their sides.

Again:

“Snrrr… snrrr…”

The crab peeped out from beneath the stone.

The sound came from very close by.

The sea creatures moved nearer and saw the little hou. It was sleeping peacefully in the shallow water, and with each soft breath came that funny sound.

“Snrrr…”

No one woke it.

Instead, they all moved a little farther away so as not to disturb it.

For if someone sleeps so soundly that even the sea can hear their dream, their day must have been a long one.

The moon moved slowly across the sky. The water gently rocked. Hou slept, and its quiet snoring mingled with the night sounds of the lagoon.

An old source even mentions that in shallow water, similar sounds can sometimes be heard from certain sleeping sharks. But the little hou became especially memorable because of its strange night-time voice.

At dawn the sea grew light.

Hou woke, moved its fins, and swam among the stones as though nothing unusual had happened.

And the shallows filled again with the ordinary sounds of day.

But when a quiet night comes and the water is perfectly still, it is worth listening.

Perhaps somewhere very close, a little colourful fish is already dreaming its sea dream:

“Snrrr… snrrr…”

May this story leave a little light in your heart ✨