TIGER AND ANANSI

Retold by Christopher Lamere (Age 7).

Narrator -Once upon a time in the jungle of Africa, there was a tiger who had all sorts of things named after him. One day, Anansi the spider wanted something named after him.

Anansi: Tiger, you have so many things named after you, may I have my name to be known too?

Tiger: (To Audience) Anansi is so weak and foolish I will fool him. (To Anansi) What do you want named after you?

Anansi: The stories that everyone tells in the jungle at sunset!

Tiger: Okay Anansi, You can have the stories except for one thing. Do you know the snake that lives down by the river? Well, I want him alive.

Narrator -Anansi thought and thought and thought. Finally he had an idea.

Anansi: (to the audience) I will make a vine trap covered with leaves and snakes favorite berries.

Narrator- The next day Anansi went near the river. Snake came sliding by. When snake went to get the berries snake broke the vine.

Anansi: Darn it! I lost my berries!

Narrator- Anansi went back home and thought some more.

Anansi: I know, I could build a slippery pit trap.

Narrator- Anansi went close to the river again. Snake came slithering by. He saw the bananas in the bottom of the pit. He noticed that the edge of the pit is slippery he wraps his tail around a tree and gets the bananas.

Anansi: Darn it! I lost my bananas and snake!

Narrator- He went home and thought and thought and thought and thought.

Anansi: I know, I'll build a fly up trap.

Narrator- He went close to the river. Snake saw the egg inside the fly up trap. He also noticed what would happen if he touched the fly up trap. He slowly and carefully picked up the egg without touching the fly up trap. Then, the next day, Anansi went to the river. Snake had his head out of his hole.

Snake: Anansi, I have a good mind to kill you. Yesterday, you built up a fly up trap to catch me. The day before yesterday, you made a slippery hole pit. The day before the day before yesterday, you built a vine trap for me.

Anansi: Snake, if you do kill me I'll never know that you are the longest creature on earth.

Snake: I certainly am bigger than bamboo tree.

Anansi: Not the one over there.

Narrator- Snake got out of his hole.

Snake: I most certainly am.

Narrator- He stretched him out on the ground and said...

Snake: See I am longer than that bamboo tree.

Anansi: Its too far to say that.

Snake: Then bring it over here.

Narrator- Anansi chopped down the tree and brought it next to snake.

Anansi: Whenever when I am at the top, sneak your head over the top. Whenever I am at the bottom sneak your tail down to the end of the bamboo tree so that you will seem longer than you really are.

Snake: I know than I am longer than the bamboo tree. Tie my tail to the end of the bamboo tree.

Narrator- Anansi tied some of his silk around the bamboo tree. Anansi started chanting...

Anansi: Stretch snake stretch, Stretch snake stretch.

Narrator- Anansi tied some of his silk to the middle of snake.

Anansi: Snake, my silk will keep you from sliding down in the middle. Stretch snake stretch, Stretch snake stretch.

Narrator -Snake knew if he stretched he would be longer than the bamboo tree. By then a crowd had crowded around snake. Saying...

Crowd: Stretch snake stretch, Stretch snake stretch.

Narrator -Snake went that one more inch and Anansi ran up to his head and tied it. Anansi had caught snake alive!

Tiger was just in time to see snake being caught alive. Tiger never again called his stories by his name.

The End!