Slowly the void evaporated and Stanley first heard the river around him, long before he ever knew where he was.
Shadows darted past his hazy vision and something cold sucked and pulled at him, the noise of the river was all around him.
The realisation of his predicament soon dawned on him.
As a Salmon ova, his first 3 months were so exhilarating, he never had time to question his re-incarnation as a fish.
There had been no soft introduction to life this time round.

He had to learn how to swim, in order to breathe.
For a time his entire world clung to his body in the form of a yolk sac.
This was his nourishment.
His tiny fins were no match for the pull of the river and so he was confined to the slow water near the reeds.
He learned the ways of the river along with his new family.
Stanley learned to use his tail, and fins along with a thousand brothers and sisters.
One vast nursery.
His mother stayed with the brood for only a short time, and no sooner was she gone, than the eels were amongst them, scattering the young.
Stanley learnt quickly, as did his brothers and sisters.
The slow water around them was their entire world.

He eventually found that the river had it's own particular rhythm and soon learned to move with the beat and tempo of the many differing currents.

At first, each was as awkward as the other.
They collided continually during the daylight, and squabbled and fought for their own space.
During the night they clung together for warmth and security.
It was a fellowship and warmth that Stanley had never before experienced, such a closeness, it warmed his spirit against the cold water.

He found his control in the water improved daily.
His tail and fins were firm and strong, his body forged by the river's relentless push and pull.
His idea, his very understanding of time changed.
He learned to respect the cover that nightfall gave him and he found that after some time, he could feel the presence of other fish, through changes in the water pressure around him....

In a matter of months his yolk-sac disappeared and Stanley’s leaner, larger frame and growing appetite led him into faster, deeper water.

Stanley transcended the first part of his apprenticeship and grew - from fledgling to Parr.