Atondido Stories
"But, you foolish frog," she said, "how can I be godmother to
your babies? I can't go down in the water."
"Yes, you can!" the old frog croaked. "Come on! Come on!
Come with me!"
It began swimming upstream and Lidushka followed, walk-
ing along the shore and feeling every moment more frightened.
The old frog swam on until it reached the mill-dam. Then it said
to Lidushka:
"Now, my dear, don't be afraid! Don't be afraid! Just lift that
stone in front of you. Under it you'll find a flight of stairs that
lead straight down to my house. I'll go on ahead. Do as I say and
you can't miss the way."
The frog disappeared in the water and Lidushka lifted the
stone. Sure enough there was a flight of stairs going down under
the mill-dam. And what kind of stairs do you suppose they
were? They were not made of wood or stone but of great solid
blocks of water, laid one on another, transparent and clear as
crystal.
Lidushka timidly went down one step, then another, and an-
other, until halfway down she was met by the old frog who wel-
comed her with many noisy croaks.
"This way, dear godmother! This way! Don't be afraid! Don't
be afraid!"
Lidushka picked up courage and took the remaining stairs
more bravely. The frog then led her to its house which, like the
stairs, was built of beautiful crystal water, sparkling and trans-
parent.
Inside everything was in readiness for the christening. Li-
dushka at once took the baby frogs in her arms and held them
during the ceremony.
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