Milliron Monday: The Morning the Toad Sang

Milliron Farm & Clinic from the Federal Creek bridge 2021

Abbott "Pete" Smith D.V.M.

June 16, 1938 - February 22, 2010

Welcome to Milliron Monday where every Monday we celebrate the legacy of Pete Smith, D.V.M., and  Milliron: Abbott “Pete” Smith, D.V.M. The Biography (Monday Creek Publishing 2017), including his wife Jody (1938-2021). 

"Each voice has its own melodic and rhythmic life, 

independent of others."

―Jody Smith, Listening to Baroque Homework Notes 1957

 

There is a pile of typewritten stories on yellowed paper from the Milliron farmhouse. The thin paper holds scenes of dirty dishes, woodlands, and kids. Many stories through many years, this one is from Jody's at-home Famous Writers School writer's course:

The Morning the Toad Sang

by Jody Smith

    Early this summer as I was attacking a kitchen with dirty dishes climbing out of the sink and overflowing the counters, my little girl, Jessica, came running in.

“Come now, Mommy!”

Her brother, Pat, was pursuing a toad across the yard. She was sure he would get warts on his hands. I was sure the toad would get injured either by the boy or the two dogs who had joined in the chase.

I scooped up the toad. It soon settled, cupped in my hands. We all lay down on the fresh grass; the children’s faces were alive with eagerness to see the toad closeup. I put my hands on the ground and then stroked the toad’s rough back. He ducked his head, blinking his eyes, but remained calm. Gingerly, Jessica stroked the toad as I explained away the “wart story” she had heard from a child on the school bus.

Pat was eager to hold the toad in his over-zealous, four year old hands. He demanded “his toad” immediately. I watched fascinated, as the toad hopped casually from my hands across a few inches of grass and a tree root onto Pat’s hand, pressed palm up in the grass. His face lit up with joy. He ventured cautiously to stroke the toad. He held his breath and began to caress it. He talked to it quietly.

Jessica and I watched from outside his world. Then, in the hush of the warm May morning, the toad began to chirp. “Listen, Mommy, he’s singing us a song.” Pat’s round brown eyes shone. I was transfixed. The moments stood still until the toad hopped slowly from Pat’s hand. Pat explained, “He’s got to go home now.” He hopped into a drain tile and out of sight. This was the first of many gentle meetings which highlighted our summer with “Pat’s toad.” I wish we could execute a “piaffe” and have this marvelous age of four just “trot in place.” But, as it already rushes onto five, the memory of the morning the toad sang remains.

 

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Through captivating, powerful, and emotional anecdotes, we celebrate the life of Dr. Abbott P. Smith. His biography takes the reader from smiles to laughter to empathy and tears. Dr. Smith gave us compelling lessons learned from animals; the role animals play in the human condition, the joy of loving an animal, and the awe of their spirituality. A tender and profound look into the life of a skilled veterinarian.