Storytelling Week 3: Tommy the Frog

"I'm Perd Haply, live on the streets. We are here today covering a reported sighting of a human sized frog living in this shed behind this suburban home" said Perd.

*Camera on the shed, there appears to be a huge creature inside bumping around. Neighbors are peering over the fence and a crowd has gathered out front of the home*

"It sure looks like somethings in there... Let's see if the homeowners are home to comment on these allegations" said Perd.

*Camera shows Perd walking up the front steps and knocking on the door*

*A boy answers, he's 11 years old*

"Hi son, are your parents home?" said Perd.

"No..... theyre at work" said Ben. And then he saw the cameras behind perd... "Is this about Tommy?" Ben asked.

*Perd turned back to the camera with a suspicious look and then back to Ben*

"Whose Tommy?" asked Perd.

"Tommy is my frog. He lives out back in the shed" said Ben, with a glow in his eyes.

"Interesting.... Can you introduce me to this frog of yours Ben?" Perd asked.

"Uhhh I don't know.... mommy and daddy think I got rid of him so I'm not sure if he should be on TV" said Ben.

"That's fine, son. Why don't you just tell me a little more about Tommy... maybe like what size is he?" said Perd.

"I can do that. Well, he's big... really big. He eats a lot." Said Ben.

"You don't say... like human size big?" asked Perd.

"Umm yeah I guess so, maybe more like elephant sized." said Ben.

*The camera turns to the nosey neighbors listening to the conversation in the street, they are shocked and whispering about the monstrous claims*

"Now Ben, I don't know if I believe that one... How does a frog get to be so big son? Where did you find this frog?" questioned Perd.

"My daddy and I like to go down to the river behind the square the do a little fishing, and one day I found a frog. I asked if I could keep it and daddy said yes but that I could never forget to feed it" said Ben.

"So you must have fed the frog a lot then?" questioned Perd.

"Well yeah. He was always hungry, at every meal I pretended to eat and then snuck the food to Tommy. But he was still hungry so I started grabbing mommys groceries out of the back of her car and taking them straight to Tommy. I would go out and see him a couple times a day, he was a fast grower" said Ben.

"Do youre parents know you took all the food son? asked Perd.

"Well for a while they did... mommy told me to get rid of him because he ate too much. But I couldn't because Tommy is my friend, he is a good listener and he's good at bedtime stories" said Ben.

"So you kept the frog... and the frog talks to you?" said Perd in a doubtful tone.

"Yes!" exclaimed Ben.

"Alright son that's enough. I cant believe another word of this unless we see proof" demanded Perd.

*The camera backed away and focused on the growing crowd of people and reporters.*

"No wait, don't go! I can show you" said Ben.

*Ben darts down the front steps and grabs Perd's hand. He leads him to the shed, the camera follows*

"Okay I'm gonna open the door, but everyone needs to be quit" said Ben.

*Ben slides the door open, and walks in, when he walks back he is holding Tommy's hand. Tommy is a giant green frog standing at 7 feet tall*

"Good gracious" exclaimed Perd as he started to back away from the shed.

*Screams started coming from the neighbors pearing over the fence*

"Hes a monster" "That aint right" "Eww its green" "Kill him, save the children" "What a terrible creation"

"Stop it, stop yelling at Tommy" yelled Ben.

"There you have it folks, the giant frog is real.... Now run for your lives!!" Yelled Perd.

*camera man drops the camera, people are seen running in every direction*

"Ben, we must go. It is time" said Tommy. *He carried Ben to the forest and sat him down on a pathway

"Since you have showed me good favor, and have done as your father said- never letting me be hungry- I shall repay you threefold" said Tommy.

*Tommy turned to speak to the forest* "All you who fly, crawl, walk, come forth with gifts for my boy" said Tommy.

*Animals of every kind appeared and left fruits, vegetables, herbs, roots, stones, and jewels at Bens feet*

"There my boy, I the fairy frog have fulfilled my task" said Tommy

*Ben gaped at the pile of things in front of him. When he looked up again he saw the frog walking away and shrinking with every step*

Later that evening, Ben appeared in his backyard with a wheelbarrow full of goods and his parents were there trying to calm down the many people that were still running around.



The day that Ben caught Tommy in the river. Source

Author's Note: In the original story, a King and queen die from illness but before passing the father says to his son "go to the market 7 days after our death and buy the first thing offered to you." The son did this and came home with a box with a frog in it. The frog ate everything in their home and grew huge, eventually the son's wife cried because they were starving. The frog led them to the forest and repaid them all the food they had given him, plus more, plus he granted them each a wish. Then he disappeared into the river. I took this ending and decided to make my story of a continuation. I wanted a little boy to pick up that same frog from a river in the present day. Then I saw news reporting as a storytelling style and thought it would be the perfect fit. I tweaked the storyline a bit but stuck to the same main points.

Bibliography: "The Fairy Frog" by Gertrude Landa, from Jewish Fairy Tales and Legends (1919). Web source