In a lecture I heard, the speaker told about being in a fish store and seeing a huge goldfish. Upon expressing surprise at its size, the proprietor told him that it grows as big as its tank. The speaker found this remarkable and wondered how this works, how does the fish know (see below *).
Regardless as to the explanation, the speaker derived the following interesting lesson from the phenomenon:
You grow as big as your vessel, like the clothes growing with the people in the desert. What is a person's spiritual vessel? If a person does a lot of mitzvos, attends a lot of classes, etc. he has created a vessel around him. If he never exposes himself to anything he can only go so far, which is not far at all. As much as you expose yourself to things, the broader your horizons, and the larger you can grow.
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* Upon doing some research on the subject I read: When properly cared for, goldfish will not stop growing. Most fish are in fact what are known as indeterminate growers. This means that, unlike humans, they grow until they die. What really stunts a fish’s growth is poor water quality and improper care. In smaller aquariums or bowls, water quality is typically very poor. With little or no filtration and infrequent water changes, goldfish suffer. The stunting that results is not a good thing. Rather, it is a sign of ill health. It is important to know what size your fish will attain before purchase and to make sure you can provide it with the proper care it requires.
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