  "My life is so ordinary," said the toad, "All day long I sit on my lily pad, listening to the chirping of crickets, and the splashing of fish. " "What odd things for a toad to do! " he heard a voice say. It was the voice of a frog from beyond the thicket. "I say," the frog repeated, "Those are awfully strange things for a toad to do. How did you manage to get onto the lily pad, when your feet are not webbed?
" The toad replied, "A creature put me here, and if you care to listen, I will tell you the story. " "Certainly," answered the frog, "It sounds more interesting than the chirping of crickets and the splashing of fish in the water! " The toad continued, "It was about four days ago, my friend. There were giant creatures playing in the hedge, and there I was hiding beneath a toadstool, just as I should. "I heard the footsteps of a great monster and said to myself, 'Should I stay here beneath my toadstool and make not a peep, it will not notice me, and I will never learn what befalls a toad who is noticed by a great monster,' but -- horror of horrors! -- The thing found me and scooped me up from my cove!
" "How dreadful!," cried the frog, in shock, "Whatever did you do? " The toad cleared his throat, in order that he would not have to cough during the climax of his story. "I tried to get away, but it shoved me with its great long fingers, and I tumbled into the palm of its hand. This happened several times, and I came to the realization that it was playing a game with me! " The frog peered out at the toad from the plants, crawling towards him with excitement. "And then what?
" The toad thought for a moment, and spoke. "I decided that the only way to make it stop pushing me around was to make it not want to play the game anymore, and the only way I could make it not want to play the game was to bore it -- " "You mean, like with a stick? " said the frog. "No! By being boring. Look," the toad straightened himself, and cleared his throat again, "I'll explain: The monster was playing a game, but if he tired of the game, it would stop.
I made the game boring for it -- Too boring to play anymore. The way I did this was to stop letting it play. It wanted me to try to crawl out of its hand, so instead I curled up and went to sleep. "It was just then that I heard it say, 'Oh, this frog is tired. Lets take you home, frog, so that you can have a rest. '" "But you are not a frog!
" said the frog, revealing a tinge of resentment. "I agree! " replied the toad, sounding equally affronted, "But this creature was either senseless or ignorant, for it did solemnly take me as a frog, and I daren't speak up, for fear that it would come up with some new game with which to taunt me! "And I knew this would come to no good end," said the toad, " I can tell you in confidence that I knew this would come to no good end. " "Well, leave it to a toad," said the frog, "What happened next? " "Then he took me here," answered the toad.
"Here? Here in this pond? But why? " (If you have ever seen a frog in a state of utter astonishment, then you know how their eyes light up, and their oversized mouths gape in disbelief. This is how the frog looked now) "What good are you in a pond this size? " "Oh, but no good, my dear fellow, "lamented the toad, "No good at all!
It's too far a jump to shore, and I am a terrible swimmer. I believe that the monster thought well of itself, sending a frog to it's rightful home, but I am not a frog. " "Emphatically not," said the frog, and he hopped into the water. The toad thought that he would not see the frog anymore that night, and he heaved a deep sigh of resignation. Just minutes later, however, he heard a bubble pop, and a splash, and then sitting next to him was the frog, in all his green splendor. "My, look at you!," said the toad, "I thought you would be an ugly fellow, but you're almost as handsome as me!
" "I call that a grave compliment," was the frogs reply, as he made himself comfortable on the soft float, "Never the less, I should like to help you. Hop on my back, friend, and I'll swim you ashore. " "I will! " said the toad, and he leaped up and held onto the frog, who swam him safely to firm ground, just as he had said he would. The toad thanked him many times, and invited him out for malts and brandy, which the frog cordially accepted. "I wouldn't miss it for an instant," he declared, and because of this, the toad decided he must really be a winning fellow.
To this day, they are very good friends, although they now seem to have some disagreement about how they met. If you ask the toad, he will say that he saved the frog from the great monster in the hedge. If you ask the frog, he will act as though the toad was drowning when he met him, rather than just waiting for the opportunity to jump to shore. All in all, however, they have agreed to disagree, and don't let it get in the way. 
