“Can’t you hurry up your thinking, Jackal?” Monkey asked impatiently. “The water is even higher now!”
But Jackal was silent while he thought and thought. We waited and waited.
“Hurry up, Jackal!” Monkey cried out in despair.
“Yes, hurry up, Jackal!” we all cried out. Jackal stared off into the distance, took a deep breath and then he bounced to his feet.
“Here’s what we will do! Here is the plan!” he shouted.
“Ooh, tell us! Tell us, Jackal!” we all shouted.
“Hippo!” Jackal called. “You can hold your breath for a very long time, can’t you?”
“Yes, Jackal,” Hippo said proudly. “I can hold my breath for a very long time.”
“Then go down under the water and check that the rocks at the bottom are solid and smooth. The path through the river must be even and clear,” he ordered. Hippo took a deep breath and went down to check that the bottom of the river was solid and even.
“Elephant, you are the strongest!” Jackal declared. “You would be able to walk through the river even when the water flows strong and fast, won’t you?”
“Yes, Jackal,” said Elephant. “I am stronger than the river, even when it runs very fast like this.”
“Then you will carry the Storyteller across the river,” Jackal said.
“Yes, I can do that, Jackal!” Elephant was proud to be able to help. “Come on, Mouse, let’s carry the Storyteller across the river.”
“No!” cried Jackal. “You cannot take Mouse with you!”
“But he is my best friend, Jackal,” Elephant objected. “He always comes with me wherever I go!” Elephant was adamant.
“Think about this, Elephant,” Jackal said patiently. “When you come back across the river, the water will be even higher.”
“Mouse always comes with me,” Elephant repeated.
“When you come back across the river, your head will be under the water and you will have to stick your trunk out to be able to breath.”
“Mouse always comes with me!” Elephant said stubbornly.
“There will be nowhere for Mouse to sit!” Monkey couldn’t help it anymore, he had to shout. “The water is rising, you have to hurry!” But Elephant just shook his head and muttered.
“Mouse always comes with me.”
~~***~~
“I think I can help,” Giraffe said quietly.
“How, Giraffe?” Monkey said. He was jumping up and down with impatience. “How can you help? Tell us!”
“I am taller than Elephant,” Giraffe explained. “But I am not as strong as Elephant.”
“Yes, we know that, Giraffe!” Monkey interrupted. “How can you help?”
“I can cross the river with Elephant. We can walk side by side,” Giraffe explained. “If he walks on the side from where the river flows, then his strong body would protect me from the strength of the current.”
Monkey didn’t understand and wanted to interrupt Giraffe again, but one look from Jackal kept him quiet.
“Then, when we return and Elephant’s head is under the water, Mouse can sit on my head,” Giraffe continued.
“That is a very good plan, Giraffe,” everyone agreed happily.
“Yes, let’s go!” shouted Monkey and jumped onto Elephant’s back.
“Monkey, it is too dangerous!” I protested. “How will you get back across the river? There won’t be space on Giraffe’s head for you as well.”
“I’m going along,” Monkey said adamantly. “I’ll cling onto Giraffe’s neck!”
“There’s no time to waste!” even Jackal was getting antsy. “Help the Storyteller to get onto Elephant’s back!”
Monkey bent down as low as he could and offered me his little hand to help me up onto Elephant’s back.
“Jump, Storyteller!” Monkey urged. I tried to jump, but I could not jump high enough.
“You Human Animals are really not very good at anything, are you?” Monkey said.
“Hurry up!” Hippo shouted. “The river is rising!”
“Jump!” they all shouted.
Elephant tried to help me up with his trunk, but I was clumsy and tumbled down again.
“You dropped the pictures!” Monkey shouted down from where he was sitting. Elephant picked up my backpack with the tip of his trunk and passed it on to Monkey.
Then Zebra came to the rescue.
“Get onto my back, Storyteller,” he urged, “then it is not so very far for you to get onto Elephant’s back!”
“That is a very clever plan, Zebra!” I gave him a quick hug and then got onto his back. From there Elephant’s back was not too high.
“Thank you, Zebra.”
Zebra gave me a very wide smile. “You’re welcome!” he said.
Then we went into the water. Elephant and Giraffe were walking side by side. Elephant walked on the side from where the water flowed. I was sitting on Elephant’s broad back, looking out over his head. Mouse was sitting on the top of Elephant’s head, as he always does. Monkey handed me my backpack. There was no time to put it on my back, so I hugged it close to my chest. Monkey was sitting behind me, with his back to mine. I could feel his sharp little backbone through my shirt.
“Hurry up!” Hippo urged. “Hurry up!” the other Animals shouted.
Elephant was walking slowly and carefully. He lifted one foot at a time, testing the rocks underneath before he put the foot down carefully. Then he lifted the next one, testing the rocks before he put that one down. Then the next and then the next …slowly, patiently.
Giraffe walked with us, very close to us. He was also very careful every step of the way.
It went very slowly. I could see the water rising. It kept on rising. Giraffe’s legs were already all the way under the water.
Then suddenly, right in the middle of the river, Elephant stumbled…
Elephant lurched forward as a loose rock slipped from under his one front foot. I bumped my head on the back of his head with the forward force. I grabbed onto Elephant’s ears to keep myself steady.
Mouse slid down Elephant’s head. He was sliding down on his tummy, trying frantically to grab onto Elephant’s thick skin with his little fingers.
“Help!” Mouse cried as he slid down between Elephant’s eyes. Elephant could see his best friend’s face, twisted in fear!
“HELP!” Mouse screamed as he slid down Elephant’s trunk.
“Help…” he spluttered weakly when he splashed into the water.
~~***~~
“Mouse!” cried Elephant. He tried to grab hold of Mouse with the tip of his trunk. But he could not find him!
Then I felt Monkey scrambling over my back. He was fast, like lightning. He jumped over my head and then onto Elephant’s head.
“Elephant! Hold still!” Monkey shouted. But Elephant was frantic. He was straining forward, trying to find Mouse. Giraffe almost lost his footing when Elephant bumped into him.
“Hold still, Elephant!” Monkey shouted.
“My friend!” cried Elephant. “My best friend!”
Monkey scrambled down Elephant’s trunk.
“Hold onto my tail, Elephant!” Monkey ordered. “Hold on tight!” Then he went head first into the water. He was down for a long time. Eventually Elephant couldn’t stand it anymore, and he lifted Monkey up, out of the water, to see if Monkey had found Mouse.
“Put me back in, Elephant!” Monkey shouted.
“We have to find Mouse!” Elephant sobbed loudly and then he plunked Monkey back into the water. Monkey was down for a very long time again until Elephant couldn’t stand it anymore. With one pluck of Elephant’s trunk Monkey was up in the air, dangling by his tail.
And there, dangling from Monkey’s little hand was Mouse…
~~***~~
We made it across the river just when the water reached Elephant’s ears. There was no easy way to get off Elephant’s back and there was no time to waste. I slid down his side and fell to the gro
und in a lumpy heap.
Monkey helped Mouse to grab onto the little horns on Giraffe’s head. Then Monkey clung tightly onto Giraffe’s neck before the four of them turned around and went back across the river.
The water was very deep by then and I could see only the tip of Elephant’s trunk above the water. Monkey was already halfway into the water and I held my breath.
Then I saw Elephant slowly emerging on the other side of the river, with Giraffe at his side.
They were safe.
The End
###
Other Books by Salome Byleveldt
African Fable Series:
How Giraffe came to be at the Pyramids
How Ostrich came to climb Kilimanjaro
How Hyena came to cross the Namib
What’s the matter with Elephant?
How Hippo helped the tides
Monkey Trouble!
Smartykidz Series:
Olivia and the Giant
Robyn and the Black Rabbit
Liam’s Superpowers
Author’s Page
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