Most Unusual Friends
From Farmer Pete’s Pond
by
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“I told Don’t Touch what I had heard at the feed store and how we needed to warn Eek about the fire,” said Sal.
“Yeah,” said Don’t Touch. “By then I could smell smoke, too. So, I offered to carry poor hurting Sal on my back and hop as fast as I could to warn Eek,” said Don’t Touch.
“That was an excellent idea!” exclaimed Truth.
“Well, uh, not really,” said Sal. “Have you ever had to hold onto a glowing horn with sore feet? Not too much fun and the light from his horn was blinding!”
“It really wasn’t a great idea because—well, if you’ve noticed, Sal has eaten a lot of tasty bugs lately, and he is—uh—quite heavy! No offense, Sal,” said Don’t Touch.
“None taken,” smiled Sal as he rubbed his belly. “A chubby man-deer is a happy man-deer, don’t you know?”
If you say so, Sal,” replied Don’t Touch with a tad-bit of skepticism. “Anyway, back to my story. Every time I hopped with him on my back, I lost my balance and landed where I didn’t want to go. I was out of control!” exclaimed Don’t Touch.
“Yeah, it was pretty funny watching Don’t Touch hop around like he had been drinking some bad pond water,” laughed Sal.
Truth and Eek joined in the laughter while being careful not to hurt their friend’s feelings. They didn’t want to make his horn glow!
All the little pond creatures giggled too. They knew first hand what bad pond water could do. Once they saw a weasel drink from the pond during drought season when the water was low and stagnant. That weasel has not been seen since! Some say they can hear him howl at the moon when it’s full. So, bad pond water can cause strange things to happen.
The laughter died down and Don’t Touch began to speak, “I tried with much difficulty to regain sound footing so I could do the unthinkable.”
“The unthinkable? What do you mean?” asked Truth.
“I told Sal to hold on tight because I was about to make a real power-hop,” said Don’t Touch. “I wanted to jump twice as far. You know, kinda like doing double time so we could get to Eek before it was too late. I dug my feet in the dirt, steadied myself, and then jumped high in the air.”
“So, what was so unthinkable about that?” asked Truth.
“Well, when I jumped, I went way off course and missed my target due to the, uh . . . extra weight I was carrying,” said Don’t Touch. “And I went side-ways instead!”
“What are you saying?” asked Truth who looked very puzzled.
“I jumped up, went side-ways and jumped directly under a tree branch where I hit my head, knocking myself unconscious!” exclaimed Don’t Touch.
“Don’t forget the little detail about knocking me off your back in the process,” cried Sal. “You know that landing was a little rough even for a man-deer.”
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About the Book
Most Unusual Friends is an exciting, humorous story about three exceptionally different little pond animals, Don’t Touch Froggy, Eek the Snake, and a hearing-impaired salamander named Sal the Man-Deer. Don’t Touch Froggy and Sal the Man-Deer are faced with grave uncertainty in a rescue attempt to save their friend Eek the Snake from imminent danger. Farmer Pete is about to burn his cornfield where Eek is asleep in the scarecrow’s jacket pocket. The situation looks bleak. Then out of the blue, some supersized toads attending a nearby toad convention come to the rescue and help the two friends reach Eek just in time.
Later that evening, the three friends meet with a butterfly named Truth who listens to the happenings of their day. Truth parallels their day’s adventure with the Bible story about the Good Samaritan. He teaches them to be kind to others and to love all their neighbors who are different from them.
The story is a unique blend of fantasy with Biblical truth—a modern-day parable for children of all ages to enjoy.
About the Author
Linda Derby is an R.N. with a Master’s Degree in Administrative Leadership. She is the mother of three, grandmother of eight, and great grandmother of one. Linda has spent 25 years in children and adult ministries teaching Bible and Biblical principles through drama and story telling. She has also spent 25 years in contact evangelism to diverse people groups in the United States. She is a published author of Christian books and articles; she enjoys writing Christian historical plays for production. Linda delights in teaching her grandchildren Bible lessons through storytelling and has found a theme venue that holds the attention of her most intimate critics. Linda and her husband Dale live in Owasso, Oklahoma, and are active members of the Rejoice Church.