Is wealth like frogs?

I spent the day hiking around a lake in central California with two male friends. One was 38 years old and the other was 24 years old. Both were professionals like me, looking for a peaceful afternoon away. It was amusing watching both of them fascinated by catching live frogs with their bare hands. It was almost like watching over two little boys on a Sunday afternoon. Although each caught a young frog, they would let the young one go in hopes of catching a larger frog. Each crept up behind larger frogs, only to have the frogs jump away just as they approached. The 38 year old declared excitedly that he caught one in his hand but it immediately jumped out. It seemed they had no fear jumping into the mud and wading through water with socks and sneakers on. They were focused on catching the larger frogs for a full 2 hours as we walked the perimeter of the lake. As I thought "Boys will be boys" and stared out to the peaceful woods and serene lake, I entertained the thought of an allegory at hand. Frog hunting was very similar to the way men treat objects of desire, like wealth, women, and prestige. Generally, men are always looking for the bigger pay off, the more attractive women, and the more prestigious titles. They are more willing than women to risk what they have to get what they want. Most women would not risk getting mud and dirty water all over themselves to catch a frog. Women want stability and an exit strategy, so they are content with watching the time and making sure the men didn't do stupid things to catch it. But if a woman did catch a young frog, she wouldn't throw it back into the water if she wanted to catch a bigger one. Instead she would probably put it in a cup of water, and take it home to nurture it into a bigger one.

It was an amusing thought that outlined my underlying belief system of the differences between men and women. I'm not saying it's bad or good or absolute. I'm just saying it's there, and it's only a tendancy. People probably don't like to admit shallow generalizations that don't promote individualism, but perhaps acceptance of tendancies makes us less angry with the world and more at peace with what's around us. A little understanding goes a long way towards happiness.