frogs

The sound outside the house right now is the peaceful peeping of the northern spring peeper. The little tree frogs are just peeping their hearts out. To me, its one of the best sounds in the world. Not because its the sign of winters end, or that kayak season is on its way, but because of my Dad.

My mom never enjoyed the sound of the little guys, so my father and I bonded over it, and would sit outside and just listen to them when I was little. The first spring after I moved out, my Dad called me and said "listen" and would bring the cordless phone out to the pond behind their house and hold it up so I could hear them. It then became a game. Whoever heard them first each spring would call the other one. He won each year until his last spring. I was on my way home from work and as i pulled up to a stop sign, i heard the unmistakable sound. I was so excited! I pulled over and called him with my cell phone. "Listen" I said, and stuck the cell phone outside the truck window. We talked abit after, then I went on my merry way.

I heard them this year on my way home from work, just as I turned onto 208 last week. It was amazing how such a little creature, the size of a pencil eraser, could evoke such an emotional response from me. I was caught off guard. The amount of sorrow and loss I felt was astounding. I cried the rest of the way home.

The next night, when I heard them, I was with Gilday. We were driving back from town and he slowed down next to a field. He opened the windows of the jetta and said "listen". It was great. The smile on his face and compassion in his eyes was everything I needed. He's never going to really know how much that meant to me. Well, maybe now.

It's pretty safe to say that I'll be going through the same thing every year. But knowing that there is someone there, by your side, getting you thru it, means the world.