Tuesday August 28, 2012
The frog prince
By OH TEIK THEAM
HELEN, dear, why is there a frog on the chair next to you?” the king, who had just sat down for the midday meal, asked his beautiful daughter.
With downcast eyes, the princess shifted uncomfortably in her seat and kept quiet. The little batrachian creature with shiny eyes and a green mottled coat explained: “This morning, the princess lost her golden ball when it rolled into the pond, dimpled its surface and disappeared completely.
Diving into a pond to recover things is my strong point, and I was delighted when the princess gave me her word of honour that I could live with her if I retrieved the plaything for her. But she reneged on her promise, Your Majesty. She said to me, ‘Buzz off – I have other fish to fry.’”
“Is that true?” the king asked the princess.
She nodded, and said, “I wouldn’t be seen dead with a frog.”
Placing an arthritic arm over her shoulder, the king said, “Promises should never be broken.”
With a grim expression, the princess invited the frog to jump onto the table.
“What’s this in the golden bowl?” the frog asked, as glutinous saliva dribbled from his mouth.
“Vegetable soup,” said the king. “For an amphibian, it could be an acquired taste.”
As the frog slurped his food, making swishing sounds like water purling between rocks, the princess said to her father, “For crying out loud, our tablemate doesn’t care that it is bad manners to break your bread or roll in your soup!”
After lunch, the princess reluctantly invited her guest to her room. When he hopped onto her bed, she couldn’t control herself anymore.
Gritting her teeth, she picked him up and deposited him on the floor. And the frog turned into a wispy cloud of smoke, which instantly metamorphosed into a handsome prince dressed in his best bib and tucker!
The princess smiled in relief when the prince told her that a wicked witch had cast a spell on him that could only be broken by the touch of a princess. Her brow corrugating, she asked, “Will you turn into a frog again?”
“Definitely not!” said the prince. “What is more, I intend to ask a beautiful princess to marry me!”
> Adapted from a fairy tale by the Brothers Grimm.
One’s strong point: Something at which one excels.
Word of honour: A sincere promise.
Buzz off: Go away.
Have other/bigger fish to fry: To have more important matters to attend to.
Wouldn’t be seen dead: Would have nothing to do with; strongly dislike.
Acquired taste: Something one learns to like over time.
For crying out loud: An exclamation of irritation or exasperation.
One’s best bib and tucker: One’s finest clothes.
What is more (Also, What’s more): Furthermore.
■ The writer wishes to become a big-name writer – with a pseudonym that contains 50 letters.
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