my house is always full of childrens books because my mom works in a daycare. i can't help but look through them sometimes. the colorful covers always get me, sometimes they even catch my interest enough to actually read through them as well. and i'm not afraid to admit it. for their simplicity, some of them are really clever, and some have really impressive illustrations too. today i came across one called "tadpoles promise." the story is about a tadpole and a caterpillar who fall in love and promise eachother never to change. but as we all know, these creatures will eventually change into a frog and a butterfly. i figured this would be a cute little story about how if you love someone their physical appearance is of no importance. i was wrong. there's so much more to this than that. more than i think any child will comprehend when it's read to them. at least they won't get it for a while. here's the story:

where the willow meets the water,
a tadpole met a caterpillar,
they gazed into each other's tiny eyes....
and fell in love.
she was his beautiful rainbow,
and he was her shiny black pearl.
"i love everything about you",
said the tadpole.
"i love everything about you," said the caterpillar.
"promise you'll never change."
"i promise," he said.
but as sure as the weather changes,
the tadpole could not keep his promise.
next time they met, he had grown two legs.
"you've broken your promise," said the caterpillar.
"forgive me,"begged the tadpole.
"i couldn't help it. i don't want these legs...
all i want is my beautiful rainbow."
"all i want is my shiny black pearl.
promise me you'll never change," said the caterpillar.
"i promise," he said.
but sure as the seasons change,
the next time they met,
he had grown arms.
"that's twice you've broken your promise," cried the caterpillar.
"forgive me," begged the tadpole. "i could not help it.
i do not want these arms....
all i want is my beautiful rainbow."
"all i want is my shiny black pearl.
i will give you one last chance," said the caterpillar.
but as surely as the world changes,
the tadpole could not keep his promise.
the next time they met,
he had no tail.
you have broken your promise three times,
and now you have broken my heart," said the caterpillar.
"but you are my beautiful rainbow," said the tadpole.
"yes, but you are not my shiny black pearl.
good-bye."
she crawled up the willow branch
and cried herself to sleep.
(the picture shows the caterpillar is now a cacoun and the tadpole, already a frog, sits lonely at the bottom of the empty pond)
one warm moonlit night,
she woke up.
the sky had changed.
the trees had changed.
everything had changed...
except for her love for the tadpole.
even though he'd broken his promise,
she decided to forgive him.
she dried her wings
and fluttered down to look for him.
where the willow meets the water,
a frog was sitting on a lily pad.(the frog was obviously the tadpole)
"excuse me," she said.
"have you seen my shiny black..."
(the next page had one of the most shocking images i have ever seen. the frog is jumping in the air, the only part of the butterfly we can see are its wings sticking out of the frogs mouth.)
but faster than she could say "pearl,"
the frog leapt up and swallowed her
in one great gulp.
and there he waits...
thinking fondly of his beautiful rainbow...
...wondering where she went.
THE END

i hate girls so much. all women do this. they judge men for the problems that are out of his control. they play with our emotions, reject us and make us feel awful then simply expect us to love them when they finally feel like it. and we usually give in too, as long as we don't accidentally eat them. i guess what kids could get out of this is that if you want something, you can't sit around waiting for it. i really think this was an awesome way to get that message across. i think any great story, no matter what it's about, has to start with a simple theme like this before going into the details. whatever some crazy epic movie or novel is about, it's these hidden little ideas that really matter. the rest is just useless names and dates and nonsense.

anyone that took the time to read this, i'm sorry for wasting 5 minutes of your life. i should be drawing or painting, but i'm pretty sure i'm going blind. fuck you god. more silly shenanigans coming soon, i'm sure.