The Patience of a Frog

Why do some children run and scream when they see reptiles and bugs, but others scoop them up and get real close?  I believe that the more you are exposed to what you don't know, the more you understand it, or are more comfortable with it.

It's the season for frogs and toads.  They are hopping about underfoot while we play, little movements seen out of the corner of our eyes, until one of my boys scoops one up....then it becomes a free for all to see who can collect the most.

It wasn't always this way.  My older son was timid, and almost just as jumpy as a frog when he touched one, or if one landed on him.  His dad gave him tips, and showed him how to catch them without hurting them.  He was curious, and wanted to check them out.  The more he handled them, the more confident he became.  It took a lot of effort and patience to catch them, a journey that has evolved over several years.  Now he teaches his two year old brother how to catch and handle them, and he is just as eager, and able the more he does it.

Each time a toad gets away is another opportunity to be patient... 

another opportunity to practice being gentle... another opportunity to inspect their bulging bellies... 

and another opportunity to learn more about them.  

If it weren't for the patience of those toads and frogs being caught, poked, prodded, and squished (for an unfortunate few) over and over again, children wouldn't be as patient with them.  Children wouldn't know as much about them.  Children wouldn't appreciate them for what they are, and what they do... because nothing is cooler than watching a toad eat a bug!

Many times, it is the smaller things that teach us big lessons in life.  Patience is a virtue.

"Every journey begins with a single hop."  -Kermit the Frog

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