Old Order Mennonite Memoirs

Having been forbidden from the attraction of the fish pool in their front yard, my grandson Logan, age 6, folded his arms over the top of the small woven fence around it and began to imitate a toad's springtime song. Instantly one of the toads sitting on the surrounding rocks, responded. We saw the homely songster inflate his throat to amplify his beautiful song.

Being a toad, he was allowed to be in the cool water where my grandchildren also wished to be. Unaccustomed to 80-degree weather, they begged for release from shoes and socks and were happy for a pail of water to cool their soft,...