Girl Philosophy: Why Crying Over an Anglerfish is Biblical and Beautiful
Femininity At Its Finest
This week the online world descended into a cryptic frenzy over the mystery of an anglerfish appearing at the surface of the ocean. You may remember what an angler fish looks like from that scene in Finding Nemo but in case you’ve forgotten, National Geographic shared this photo of one fine-fishy submitted for a GQ model casting call:
Sensational pose, my guy.
Anglerfish are deep-sea dwellers, meaning, they do not often (up to this point in history) appear near the surface of the ocean. So, when one diver captured this serene video of what seems to be a lost anglerfish swimming towards the beaming sunlight, viewers wondered why:
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Soon after the video uploaded, empathetic comments flooded in, unifying girls across the world. Since the science of this situation cannot be explained, girls collectively searched for a solution through a process I am deeming as “girl philosophy.”
For the purposes of this essay, girl philosophy is defined as: using a common outwardly-expressed emotion to conclude and infer logical reason to the conclusion of a case.
Here’s an example:
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At 7.7 million views and almost 1 million likes, this TikTok and its comment section is the epitome of girl philosophy. I’ll share some screenshots of my favorite comments in a minute— but before that—I want to set the scene for how this online phenomenon is a beautiful, biblical endeavor.
The Divine Feminine
To reinstate, the united empathy of women across the internet became so incredibly strong, we emotionally connected to a fish. Not just any fish, a fish notorious for its grotesque, practically evil aesthetic. Who does that? And why?
Women do. And we do this because it’s one of the beautiful ways God designed the feminine personality.
1 Peter 3:4-6 encourages this Godly design of women:
“but let your adorning be the hidden person of the heart with the imperishable beauty of a gentle and quiet spirit, which in God's sight is very precious. For this is how the holy women who hoped in God used to adorn themselves, by submitting to their own husbands, as Sarah obeyed Abraham, calling him lord. And you are her children, if you do good and do not fear anything that is frightening.” (English Standard Version).
Our ability to empathize with an ugly fish is a symptom of a “gentle and quiet spirit” which God views as “very precious.”
Now, does this emotional connection to a fish impact God’s kingdom in a profound way? Probably not. But, exercising our feminine qualities to the extent this international girl philosophy has, points to a deeper realization that our feminine qualities yield purpose.
In this case, through the Lord’s beautiful design of femininity, women made this seemingly tragic incident, beautiful.
See below:
Girl Philosophy
The conclusion of the girl philosophy you just read is that this fish came to the end of her life and decided to have one last, grand adventure. Shortly after “seeing” or “feeling” the sun, this saltwater baddie passed away.
How beautiful is it that women made this fish’s life mean something incredibly extraordinary?
Cessation
To conclude, I would like to add my own girl philosophy as to why this fish found herself at the top of the sea. Psalms 46:5 states:
“God is in the midst of her; she shall not be moved; God will help her when morning dawns.”
Perhaps the Lord used this little fishy-friend to illustrate the profound, simple truth that God grants protection and hope for the path He sets before us?
What’s your girl philosophy for this fish-friend? (Brothers-in-Christ are welcome to conclude their assumptions as well :).
I want an angled fish now.