Over time I learnt how to avoid coming into contact with frogs, at least the basics. Avoid wet or moist areas, especially when rain falls. Most importantly, frogs bloom at night, so pick your pathways carefully. On the other hand, I’ve come to terms with the notion that the idea that the world will be better without them is hogwash, and that’s coming from someone who would rather bathe with a hog than touch a toad. In a world plagued by uncertainty and discontent, there remains a permanent ambitious purpose for the frog. As tadpoles, they commit to the moralizing act of feeding on algae, which works towards filtering and maintaining our clean water supply. Furthermore, one cannot understate how much thanks we should give to the frog family for easing our lasting burden by feeding on the most annoying insect known to man, the mosquito. In what I like to call trickle down protection, the frog feeds on the mosquito and as a result keeps the insufferable insect from spreading diseases such as Zika and Dengue. The frog has its own investment in the state of the world, it beats to its own drum, and in any band all drums have purpose no matter how unrecognizable and minuscule the sound may be while the orchestra plays. I’d like to believe that just like the frog I also march to my own drum, some days more intentionally that others.
Purpose simplifies us to commit to a common chore, being alive together despite our fears and differences, whether it be the zebra to the lion or the human to the frog[2], the purpose of our fellow earth keepers should always place any innate fears on a back burner. So for now, I have promised myself to appreciate the frog from afar, but we need not touch; consider my acknowledgement of their usefulness a baby step in the right direction.
[1] “Ranidaphobia” The Free Dictionary.com
[2] Every day a Zebra is eaten by a Lion somewhere in the world. Frog legs are a delicacy in various parts of the world, the taste is often described as chicken-like.
Akhim Alexis is a writer born and raised in Trinidad and Tobago. He holds an MA in Literatures in English from the University of the West Indies, St. Augustine.