Also Born Free

Today, after Ian found a toad, Daniel found a frog. The boys set up shop under our cherry trees, digging in the dirt, in search of wildlife (I think). Madeleine joined in on the excavation, from time to time, and by the end of the dig, they were caked in dirt - especially Ian - even though two out of three of them had just had their bath following our session with an awful plastic water device known as a "slip and slide". But the good news is that the project bore fruit: Daniel found a frog.

Daniel's frog - probably a toad, but since both boys pronounced it a frog, I'll go with that - in any case, the frog was brown with a swath of black across the right side of its back. Daniel had an instant attachment to the frog, and announced his intention to keep it. Ian and I mentioned the standard rote about how animals live longer in the wild (if they're not eaten, but we didn't mention that). So Daniel was wishing that we could catch his whole family (yes, Daniel thought it was a "he"); I think the idea was that, this way, he would have his family with him. He also took at least one picture of him, holding the frog with his other hand.

But eventually Daniel solemnly announced to me that he had let the frog go - right on the rock where he had found him. I was very proud of Daniel; Ian is used to this act of sacrifice, but it's probably pretty new to Daniel.

But the one good, lasting thing to come out of the frog adventure was that Daniel gave the frog a new name: Dirty.

(August 27, 2011)