the terrible Under Toad

just started re-reading the world according to garp by john irving
while not my favorite of irving's books, it still packs some of the most memorable scenes and symbols, one of my favorites being the Under Toad.

the Under Toad is a really creepy notion that was born out of a simple miscommunication between a child and his parents. at the beach, this child was constantly warned by his parents to beware of the undertow, which was warped and twisted into this terrifying creature...

 "Garp...realized that all these years Walt had been dreading a
giant toad, lurking offshore, waiting to suck him under and drag
him out to sea. The terrible Under Toad."

this wonderful fictional misunderstanding reminds me of one
of my own... when i was growing up, there was this family that
lived two doors down from us, they were a young family with
2 young kids. these people were very pure and health conscious,
and maybe even vegetarian. but all of this was insanely foreign
to me as a child. so when they would offer their son this strange,
squishy white substance they joyfully called "toad-food" i was
repulsed. little did i know that twenty-odd years later i'd be eating
toad-food several times a week!