It’s normal to see a couple of tiny bugs on your lettuce – all you have to do is rinse them off. But finding a frog at the bottom of your romaine? That’s a bit more rare.
And yet that’s exactly what happened to Simon Curtis, who promptly shared his experience on Twitter. Not only did he want others to know what had happened, but he also wanted to get advice on what he should do with the little guy.
“I found the cutest little frog in the bottom of my romaine lettuce tonight – it’s too cold to set him outside (27 degrees), but he’s been living in the lettuce in the fridge for several days now,” Simon wrote, “does anyone know what I should do so that he doesn’t die?”
he’s so adorable is this my starter Pokémon? 😰ðŸ˜ðŸ¥ºðŸ’– pic.twitter.com/knyhnCyqk0
– Simon Curtis (@simoncurtis) December 21, 2021
After looking through everyone’s suggestions, Simon landed on keeping him for a while longer, at least until it became warm enough for his new amphibian friend who, at this point, was officially named Tony.
In the meantime, Tony was growing quite a large fan base. People across the world fell in love with getting updates on how the little guy was adjusting to life with Simon. Some updates were simply all about showing off how cute Tony is, and not a single person had a problem with that.
Other times, there were more pressing updates, like the (first) time that Tony escaped! Thankfully, it seems that he only went missing for a few minutes before being found on a really tall door frame. Looks like someone is adventurous!
To make sure that Tony was as happy and as comfortable as possible, Simon did his best to find the perfect location for his home. Here, he would get fed lots of yummy worms, as he deserves.
“Moved him to the bathroom where the lighting isn’t as harsh and there isn’t as much activity,” Simon wrote. “Look at his little butt!”
As great as all of the Tony updates have been, one of the best ones centered around Simon.
When he was just 10 years old, Simon was given a 50% chance of surviving leukemia. Whenever he’d have to stay in the hospital because of it, he’d always keep a stuffed animal by his side for comfort. Four days into taking care of Tony, Simon remembered that the stuffed animal was a tree frog.
Needless to say, Simon became very emotional over this realization.
“I’m fully crying in the bathroom rn (right now),” he wrote.
As much as Simon loved taking care of Tony, at the end of the day, he wanted to do what was best for him. It was clear what his lovely followers thought he should do, but he needed to get an expert’s opinion, so he turned to conservation biologist Dr. Jonathan Kolby.
“After consulting with Dr. Jonathan Kolby, @MyFrogCroaked, and learning about the best, most environmentally ethical practices in a scenario like mine, I have decided to keep Tony,” he wrote on Christmas Eve. “Merry Christmas, everyone. May you all have a little miracle come your way soon as well.”
What a lovely ending, or rather, beginning, to such a serendipitous story! Who knew that something so happy and wholesome could come from finding a frog in your food?
Don’t forget to share Tony and Simon’s story with a friend.
Want to be happier in just 5 minutes a day? Sign up for Morning Smile and join over 455,000+ people who start each day with good news.