Dovi Meets a Frog

A Strange Little Sound

It was a bright and peaceful morning in Dovi’s world.

The flowers were opening to the sunshine, the leaves were dancing in the gentle breeze, and the little pond near Dovi’s home sparkled like a blue mirror.

Dovi was walking beside his daddy, Povi, when suddenly he heard a strange sound.

“Ribbit!”

Dovi stopped.

His little blue tail became perfectly still.

“Ribbit! Ribbit!”

Dovi looked left.

He looked right.

Then he looked toward the pond.

“Daddy, what’s that?” Dovi asked.

Povi smiled and pointed toward a big green lily pad.

“That’s a frog!”

Hello, Frog!

Dovi’s eyes grew wide.

Sitting right in the middle of the lily pad was a little green frog.

It had big round eyes, tiny toes and a very serious-looking face.

Dovi leaned forward.

“A frog?”

The frog looked at Dovi.

Dovi looked at the frog.

For one quiet moment, neither of them moved.

Then—

“RIBBIT!”

Dovi giggled.

“Ribbit, ribbit!” he answered.

Povi laughed.

It seemed Dovi had already learned how to speak frog.

Drip, Drop, Hop!

Just then, a tiny raindrop landed on the pond.

Plip!

Then another.

Plip! Plip!

Soon a soft little rain began to fall.

Tiny circles danced across the water.

The frog lifted its head.

Then—

HOP!

It jumped from one lily pad to another.

Dovi’s mouth opened in surprise.

“Hop!”

The frog jumped again.

HOP!

Dovi tried it too.

Hop!

Povi joined him with one funny little jump.

Hop!

Soon the pond was filled with splashes, giggles and happy little hops.

Hop, hop, hop!

The Frog’s Funny Surprise

Suddenly something tiny buzzed through the air.

Bzzzzzz!

Dovi followed it with his eyes.

It was a little fly.

The fly passed right in front of the frog.

The frog became very still.

Dovi became very still too.

Then—

ZIP!

The frog’s long tongue flashed out and the fly disappeared.

Dovi’s eyes grew HUGE.

He looked at the frog.

Then at Povi.

Then back at the frog.

Povi smiled.

Dovi burst into giggles.

“What a funny frog!”

A New Friend

The rain slowly became lighter.

The frog hopped back onto its favourite lily pad.

Dovi crouched beside the pond and gave his new little friend a wave.

“Bye, frog!”

“Ribbit!” answered the frog.

Dovi smiled.

Today he had learned a new word.

Frog.

He had learned a new sound.

Ribbit.

And he had discovered something even better:

sometimes a new friend can be waiting in the smallest, splashiest corner of the world.

Dovi took Povi’s hand and they started walking home.

Behind them came one last little sound.

“Ribbit!”

Dovi turned around and waved.

“See you soon!”

A new friend!