Back in the day when I was in 8th grade, I was fishing at my local lake when I saw a gigantic American bullfrog. Much to the dismay of my father, I wanted nothing to do with fishing and everything to do with catching that bullfrog. I was super close on that first day, but I learned that bullfrogs are very fast and slimy and they are extremely hard to catch by hand. But the split second that I touched the bullfrog instilled a sense of wonder into me and I knew it was my duty to hold him and get a picture. 

The next time we went fishing, I made sure to bring a net. Of course, I caught no fish, but I did find the bullfrog. I was able to scoop him a few times into my net, but he always managed to hop out and escape my clutches. The worst part is that the American bullfrog is an aquatic frog and can spend up to several months under water since they breathe under water through their skin. So once I saw my friend disappear in the water, I knew I was going to have to call it quits and come back another day. 

This cycle of me visiting my bullfrog friend and unsuccessfully trying to catch it continued for months which probably made the fish very happy.

One night, I saw Mr. bullfrog chilling on a rock. He seemed to be vibing to the noise that the crickets were making in the distance. Not wanting to disturb his meditation, I crept up on him very slowly with my net raised above my head. It might have been the longest I’ve taken to travel across a few stones, but soon I was right behind the bullfrog, his eyeballs glistening in the moonlight. Heart racing, I prayed to the frog-catching gods, and with one swift motion, I scooped the frog in my net and put him in my lunchbox. I wasn’t trying to eat him, I just needed to google if they were poisonous or not. Thankfully, Mr. bullfrog was a good sport and continued to vibe in my lunchbox while I was freaking out – I wonder if he liked the smell of the hotdogs I kept in there earlier to catch the bluegills with. 

After verifying with many sources that American bullfrogs are indeed not poisonous, I gently reached into the lunchbox and pulled my slimy friend out. Smiling back with his kind and wise face, I could tell he was very proud of me.

(Note: the frog in the picture is not Mr. Bullfrog, but maybe they are related…)