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Toad and Frog Are Doing Nothing
Sarah Stieglitz

I’m wearing my new Frog and Toad shirt as I write this. It features the quote: “Toad sat and did nothing. Frog sat with him.”  I’m a big fan of Frog and Toad, the beloved series by Arnold Lobel. If you are not a member of the Frog and Toad fandom club, and you are faculty at The Saint Constantine School, my advice is that you keep that to yourself. Or become a member. Your choice. 

But I digress. There is something so deeply innocent and real about Frog and Toad.  I work my way through all of their stories each year with my students, who never tire of hearing of their very ordinary adventures. The Frog and Toad story that is my constant companion this fall is “The List.”  In this tale, Toad lists all the things that he must do that day. He starts his day well — completing tasks and crossing them off.  But alas, the list is lost. Dejected, Toad decides that he cannot continue his day because he doesn’t know what to do next. Thus, Toad sits and does nothing for the day. Frog, his dearest friend, sits and does nothing with him. 

I find that I am very much like Toad. I am driven by a list of things that I feel I must complete each day. In my roles as wife, mother, daughter, sister, aunt, friend, teacher, Dean, church member, there is a plethora of to-dos hanging over my head.  Sometimes the sheer number of tasks to complete feels immeasurably large, and I can feel anxiety rearing its head. Someone once watching me navigate my life remarked, “You can’t eat that hamburger in one bite. You’ll choke.”  What a stark reminder that much of my stress is self-induced. The list takes on a life of its own, when in reality, I just need to do one thing. Then I move on to the next thing. To do one thing and to do it well, before moving to the next. That is all that is required of me.  

But what if the unexpected happens? What if my list “blows away”? When my day takes a turn, I am often distressed and overwhelmed by my perceived lack of forward movement on the things I deemed essential. But God in His mercy has provided for that in one my favorite Orthodox prayers: “…O Lord, allow me to greet the coming day in peace. Help me in all things to rely upon Your holy will. In every hour of the day, reveal Your will to me. Bless my dealings with all who surround me. Teach me to treat all that comes to me throughout the day with peace of soul, and with the firm conviction that Your will governs all. In what I do and say guide my thoughts and feelings. In unexpected events, do not let me forget that all things are sent by You…” What comfort there is in these words. 

Let us return to Frog and Toad, sitting silently, companionably together. I imagine that Toad, once overwhelmed by the loss of his list and therefore his day’s purpose, has been calmed and comforted by the quiet and patient presence of his friend Frog. The day ends, as days will do, and Toad suddenly remembers what was last on his list. It is time to rest.