Bleib tapfer [English translation]

I had a goldfish named Michael

Who swam around in his aquarium

And Mike was a good guy

Except that he was mute, sadly

For half a year I tried to teach him to speak

But unfortunately I had no success, he couldn't even sing.

Ohoho - Stay strong!1

Well then one time I had figured out

That it was cold in his aquarium

I took care of that without hesitation

And put it on the stove, because I ain't dumb.

And Mike soon felt better, and swam with his belly up

I handled that quite well, I'm still patting myself on the back

Ohoho - Stay strong!

Well then he apparently got used to

swimming around like that

And I didn't make anything of it

If it was more comfortable (for him), I didn't think it was so bad

Except after a few days he started to stink

And he no longer reacted to my calls and waves.

Ohoho - Stay strong

Well then recently

Our place burned down

But luckily no one was hurt

Everyone had run out

Only as I later looked for Mike in the rubble

I couldn't find him, but I'm sure that he got away somehow

Ohoho -Stay strong!

Stay strong!

1. "tapfer" can mean many things in German, such as stalwart, diligent, and brave. We say "Stay strong" in English in a way that I think fits here, since we use it to encourage people to keep at one their doing, or to have courage.