A Frog's Hero

A Frog’s Hero‍‍

All I was doing 
was sitting there. 
And then the crushing, 
almost 
unbearable 
weight came. 
The horrible 
pain. 
It left almost 
as quickly 
as it had come.
I am Scraw, the toad, and this is my story 
of how bad things you least expected to happen, 
can be made right. 
This story is of 
forgiveness.

After I had dragged myself out of danger, 
I rested. 
My legs were beginning to go numb, 
but whenever I moved, 
it still hurt. 
Like 
  fire 
    stabbing 
      into 
        my back. 
Then I heard a familiar 
roar. 
I struggled vainly, 
trying to escape the 
terrible memories 
that 
haunted me. 
But by the time I 
realized it was 
no use, 
the roar had 
disappeared. 
A few moments later,
a huge monster 
leaned over me. 
A Bigfoot!
I had only heard 
about these great, 
two-legged 
creatures 
that 
roamed the land. 
They killed plenty of 
toads 
and 
frogs, 
our 
distant and slimy 
cousins, 
so I had a right to be 
terrified 
when the thing saw me. 
It must have been surprised, too, 
because then, 
the Bigfoot jumped. 
I struggled even more, 
trying to hop, 
or run. 
I immediately regretted it as 
pain shot through me. 
The Bigfoot, 
and later the pain, 
creeped away s l o w l y. 
But unlike the pain, 
the Bigfoot did not return.

After some time of struggling and resting, 
I heard the strange bigfoot voices. 
And huge hands reached 
d
  o
    w
      n 
to pick me up. 
I thrashed and bucked, 
but the hands held tight. 
I was lifted high off of the ground. 
My stomach flew into my throat. 
I had only ever been in the air when i 
hopped, 
but I had heard stories of the flying feeling. 
And then we began to move. 
As we raced over the ground, 
I realized 
my 
rescuer. 
The Bigfoot! 
The same one that had found me. 
I was very grateful, 
and I 
wished 
I could tell it that. 
I knew it would never understand me, 
so instead I 
remained 
silent 
and tried not to lose the 
dragonfly 
I had enjoyed 
yesterday 
for 
lunch.

I was in a peaceful place, 
grassy 
and 
safe. 
The Bigfoots had 
brought me here. 
Funny, 
how the same things that almost killed me, 
carried a 
glimmer of 
hope. 
I sat, 
wondering 
and 
pondering, 
when I felt a 
final peace 
come over me. 

The floating sensation 
returned, 
but no hands held me. 
I looked down, 
and saw my body. 
At first I was frightened, 
but then I knew. 
I turned and looked up. 
There, waiting for me, 
were hundreds of 
frogs 
and 
toads. 
I couldn’t wait to 
join 
them.

Author’s Note
This tale is based off of a true story when I was in third grade. My friend Allie and I rescued a toad that we think was hit by a car. In third grade I wrote a narrative piece about it, and now I have turned it into a longer story from the frog’s perspective. This story is very meaningful to me and my friend Allie that helped me save him.

Becoming a Hero

Kate wrote this story in the fall of her 3rd grade year and it has a number of illustrations with it that I will try to include in the coming days.  She has been working on a piece related to this one which I am planning to share next.

I groaned as I crawled out of my seat.  Right, school I thought.  A moment later I poked my head out of our van.  The air was cool and crisp but I didn't care about the weather.

After several seconds I reached back in and gripped my backpack, then I hopped out reluctantly.  While swinging my backpack over my shoulder I began to wander around, waiting until my mom finished helping my sister, too.  Ppphhh, I signed and continued my wander.

Then, suddenly I caught sight of movement.  I paused before peering closer.  I checked again.  I was right!  A frog!!  I crept closer a few inches but the frog did not move.  Then I saw the reason.  The frog's back legs were squished.  "Momm!" I yelled loudly.

"What?" my mom called calmly back.

"I found a frog, and it looks hurt." I replied a little more quietly.

"Ok, come over here," my mom said, "and we can talk over ideas."  I jumped up and the frog jerked at the sudden movement.  I paused and the frog stopped it's struggle.  I slowly relaxed a few seconds later.  Carefully I backed up.  Then I raced to my mom to talk.  And talk we did!  I was getting bored soon!

Finally, my mom gave me one last hug and kiss and I walked slowly across the bus lane to school.  Seconds after I set my backpack down my friend Alli appeared.

"Brrriinng!!"  The sound of the bell made me jump slightly.  I had explained to Allie about the frog and ideas my mom gave me.  Blinking back to the present, I hurried to the line and waited to go in.

Once inside, It seemed like a mad rush to get to our cubbies and get unpacked.  Alli and I chose the idea of telling Ms. Case our teacher the story and asking if we could help somehow.

We hurried to finish our morning jobs and we scrambled to Ms. Case's desk.  "Ms. Case," I began.  Ms. Case looked up from her paperwork and Allie took over from there.  I only added a few parts in. 

Ms. Case agreed that it would be nice to help somehow.  She told us that we could either take the frog to the prairie or the forest, which were both behind the school.  We decided the prairie was best.

Once outside, we rushed across the cross walk to where I found the frog.  It was still there but it had burrowed deeper into the grass.  I slowly, carefully lifted the frog and dripped him tightly.  Then I realized that I might choke the frog so I loosened my grip.

Allie and I scurried back across the bus lane and along the sidewalk to the giant field of grass next to the playground.  I was panting by the time we reached the prairie (which was on the opposite side of the field).  We wandered a little and argued a lot until we found the best spot to put the frog.  I slowly lowered my hands and slipped them out from underneath the frog.

I straightened and turned to Allie.  "Let's go," I told her.  So with one last glance at the frog we turned and skipped back to school.

As the day dragged on I still could not get that happy and proud feeling out of myself.  I will never forget that day I became a hero, but only to a frog.

SNAP

SNAP!

By Kathryn Mischnick

   As I skittered across the leafy lawn, my nose took in the many scents of my home. Finding food was a tough job, but I, mother’s eldest son, was up for the challenge. Finally, my nose found what it was looking for. Peanut! Yum! Mother will be so proud when I return home with a peanut! There it was, inches away. I didn’t even notice the looming black thing with blunt black fangs until it was too late to stop. I barreled towards the delicious treat, just what my mother deserved, and…

Snap!

   My brother did not come home last night, and mother said he probably was killed by a trap. Traps are horrible things, I hear, but I have never seen one myself. I expect they are shiny and huge, with glittering fangs. So now, I was given the honor to collect food for my family. The best time to go was the “chipmunk hour”, where the sun cast long shadows onto the grass. With my tail stuck straight up, to remind others I was here, I set out at a slow walk. But the good food goes quickly, and my family deserves only the best. Finally, I smell what I went out for. Peanut! Something in the very back of my brain tells me peanuts lead to traps, but there was no trap, only a dull black thing arching over the food. Everything was perfectly safe...

Snap!

   Food is easy to find. I don’t know why so many chipmunks die looking for it. Many of my own brothers have left and never come home. Caught by traps. Chipmunks who see a body in them are never the same. My own sister saw one and she threw herself into a well and drowned. It was disgusting, if you ask me. But I will be fine. For I already have caught the scent of a delicious peanut, my prize. I streak closer, closer, and…

Snap!

   No trap will stop me. I’m too fast to be caught by some slow, cumbersome beast. Hunting for a meal is a breeze for me. At least I think it will be. I’ve never tried it before, ‘cuz mother hasn’t ever let me out of the den. So here I am, zipping around a place I’ve never seen before and...hey! It’s a peanut!

Snap!

   The outside is amazing, you know. All I can do is stand there and stare. The wonderful shapes. Sharp edged stones, crumbling bark, round tree trunks, smooth peanuts. The colosoul colors. Leaves are brown and gold, grass is a crisp green, sky is ice blue, peanut is sandy colored. The extraordinary smells. The air smells crisp, the dirt smells rich, the trees smell of sap, the peanut smells salty. The great tastes. Sweet tasting sap, bark is chewy, and that peanut is…

Snap!

   My brothers, all five of them, died on their first hunt for food. But I am a girl, much smarter than any brother could be. Mother has finally realized that one of her daughters would be able to do a better job than all of her sons put together. That daughter is obviously me. I will do the job amazingly, and mother will realize how good girls can be, too. Because I am not easily distracted, unlike my brothers who knew nothing and probably are...cool...it’s a pretty orange leaf! And...hey…check out that tiny little peanut over there!

Snap! 

   I am mother’s final son. She said I was too young to find food, but after my sister died, I was her only hope. Out in the sun for the first time, I blinked and squinted. The world above ground was much more interesting than the world below. The colors are more vibrant, the smells are sharper, the sounds are clearer. But I cannot forget my job. The gentle breeze blows many smells my way, but I manage to pick out a tasty food smell. As I draw closer, I know my nose lead me true. Sitting on a little black thing is my prize. A peanut!

Snap!

Note from the mom: This humorous story was inspired by a conversation last summer around the picnic table as we watched a number of chipmunks racing around the yard.  We wage a mild war with these critters every summer so they don't undermine our foundations too severely or eat too much of our produce.