Waiting for Tiny Toads

The monsoon rains are fully upon us. The lightning is so close you can feel the earth rumble like a hungry monster that hasn't eaten for a year. Spadefoot toads are waking from their year-long underground slumber to call for a mate across the damp desert. When they meet, they create the precious eggs for which they have been waiting so patiently. The parents are hopeful that the puddle in which the eggs have been so carefully placed will persist long enough for their children to emerge--tiny legs, tiny toads, a miracle made by water in a dry desert.

spadefoot toad image from wikimedia