Lilly's feelings get bigger than her words.
Lilly feels things all the way through. Joy. Worry. Frustration. Wonder. The feelings are real, even when the words are hard to find.
Sometimes what is inside comes out in a way she does not expect.
So many feelings. Not always enough words.
Lilly is not the only one.
Her father was carrying something too. Tiredness. Worry. Frustration. The pressure of trying to hold everything together.
Sometimes grown-ups want to help, but their own feelings get loud too. This story makes room for that.
Because listening is not only something children need. Sometimes grown-ups need it just as much.
The best part of being heard is being listened to.
Tog does not arrive to scold or fix everything. He helps Lilly and her father slow down long enough to hear each other.
In Tog’s world, a ribbit is not only a sound. It is a small way to say: I am listening closely.
A story for anyone who has ever wanted to be heard.
Some feelings arrive before the words.
Lilly has them. Her father has them. And so do we.
The kind that can fill a house with everything no one knows how to say.
Then, somewhere in all that noise, a small sound makes room for listening.
RIBBIT.
A hardcover children's book from the journals of Thaddeus Oliver Green, illustrated by Kristina Denadic.
Tog is listening.
Children can write. Grown-ups can write. Sometimes the first step is simply saying what feels hard to say.
Write to Tog