“But we were made to be happy. The Serpent—God rather, meant us to be so.”
“God meant us to be happy eventually,” said the frog gently. “But like all things else worth having, it takes a great deal of fighting for. Contentment and peace are the nearest approach to it one generally gets the other side of heaven.”
“I don’t like the word ‘peace.’ It reminds me of a fat woman, and a dinner of suet dumplings.”
“You’re prejudiced, or else you’ve mistaken it for lethargy.”
“Well, is not contentment a state of lethargy?”
“No; when you’re most contented, you’re least so. The two things naturally go together, and keep up a constant flow of action that does away with torpidness.”
“How long do you think it will be before my work is finished here?”
“I don’t know. It’s rather a foolish question to ask. No one knows. It depends upon what time the seed takes to ripen and the bent of your mind.”
“And in the evenings must I study?”
“It is your only time. But what you want is plenty of hard work and plenty of deep thought.”