The Tiger and the Frog’s Gems

(Published in Kaplan Readers' Workshop Grade 7)

A long, long time ago, along the banks of the Brahmaputra River, lived a frog. This frog had an uncanny talent. His nose was so sensitive, he was able to smell even the slightest difference in the soil along the riverbank, and could tell where rare gemstones and minerals had been buried. Because of this, over the years, the frog had amassed an incredible collection of silver, emerald, gold, and even diamonds.

News of the frog’s riches spread throughout the land, reaching as high as Mount Everest. There, on the mountain, lived a tiger who was jealous of the frog’s wealth. “Just because some lucky frog has a good nose, he gets to collect the finest riches? It’s not fair. I am much faster than a frog, and much much stronger. The jewels should be mine.”

The tiger journeyed to the river, where the frog was asleep on a pile of gems. “You. Sir frog,” purred the tiger. “As the king of the high mountain, I challenge you to a race, for possession of your riches. And if you win, I will carry you to my mountain, where you may dig for as much gold as you could ever dream of.”

“But King Tiger,” said the frog, “With your size, a race on land would hardly be fair. How about we race in the water? You still have your size, speed, and strength – but I am better suited for swimming, so the odds will be at least a bit more even.”

The tiger pondered this for a moment, and agreed to the frog’s terms, lowering his powerful neck in a nod. “Then I will accept your challenge, King Tiger. We race to the other side of the Brahmaputra and back. Whoever arrives back on this shore first, will become the rightful owner of my jewels.”

The two crouched down on the bank of the mighty river. On the count of three, the tiger dove into the water with all of his might. Plowing through the swift current as if it were a gentle breeze, the tiger’s mighty paws tore into the water at a frantic pace. But while he was focused intently on putting every ounce of his strength into this race, the tiger hadn’t noticed that the tiny frog had grabbed hold of his tail with his mouth.

As the tiger swam against the raging river with all his might, the frog was casually climbing up the tiger’s tail, and onto his back. By the time the tiger had reached the far bank, the frog was resting comfortably in the folds of the tiger’s fur. The tiger paused for a moment on the shore, then kicked off and headed back in the other direction. The uninvited passenger began to climb up to the top of the mighty tiger’s head.

When the tiger was nearly three-quarters of the way back to the shore, he paused again to catch his breath. He had become exhausted from the swim, and barely had enough energy to move his paws for one more stroke. Looking around, he didn’t see the frog anywhere, and said to himself “Poor frog didn’t stand a chance. He’s not even within fifty feet of me. I’ll just rest, and let my momentum carry me to the shore.”

As the tiger figured, his forward momentum did carry him towards the riverbank where the race had begun. But when he was just a few feet from the goal, the frog made an enormous leap from the tiger’s head, and landed next to his pile of gems. The tiger, with his eyes shut from exhaustion, didn’t even notice.

“What took you so long, King Tiger?” asked the frog, a giant smile on his face.