As a child growing up in Brooklyn, author Fatimah Basir and her siblings took swimming lessons every week at the SUNY Downstate Health Sciences University pool. During those lessons, her father, who took them there every Friday, would call his children, "big fish."
When Basir got older and struggled with a speech impediment, she would come home upset after being teased at school. But her parents would remind her what she was. "My father and mother would be like, Fatimah, you're a big fish," said Basir. "Don't ever let people stop what you are doing."
Years later, the same words of encouragement led Basir to write her first children's book I'm a Big Fish, Not a Guppy!
While working as youth mentor around the city and now as a school administrator and a home economics instructor at the New York Junior Tennis & Learning, Basir came face-to-face with children struggling with mental health issues. Some were bullied and others had suicide ideation, she said.
Basir often told those children what her parents said to her, which inspired her to write this book. Self-published on Amazon in September, I'm a Big Fish, Not a Guppy! tells the story of a fish named Bee, who is determined to swim out to the big sea despite her tiny size and self-doubt. Throughout her journey, Bee learns the power of helping others to become a big fish.
The book is based on many aspects of Basir's own childhood, including her parents' words of support. Bee refers to the first initial in her last name and her favorite insect. Bee's glasses are also a nod to the pair Basir wears, and the hair bow was inspired by one of her nieces.
Basir said children need to be motivated to rise above criticism. "You are big fish, not a guppy," Basir said. "The guppies swim in a pond. [There] are people who attempt to tell us what we can and cannot do. Big fish swim in the sea, where the possibilities of what you can do are endless."
Since the book's release, several schools around the city have bought the book in bulk for their classrooms, according to Basir. The author has also visited schools to read her book to the students. One parent told Basir her daughter reads the book almost every night.
Although Basir is not in direct contact with the children she once mentored, some parents have sent her photos of their children at their high school graduations. For Basir, this shows the impact of her work, but also what is needed in schools today: more educators who truly care about their students.
In the coming year, Basir said she will promote her book in Philadelphia and Washington, D.C. Meanwhile, she is writing the sequel, which will depict an older version of Bee.
"The biggest message I have is don't stop," Basir said. "Those high tides are going to come, continue to swim, because when you finally make it to where you want to make it to, you're only going to remember how you felt from before. I know it may seem like you can't see past what's outside of the window, but always dream for more, and never let your dreams die. Ever."
