Big Bear loved eating fruit. He went to the market and bought a bag of strawberries, a bag of bananas, and a bag of apples.
Carrying a basket full of fruit, Big Bear started walking home. Not far along the way, a hippopotamus beside the road was laying a foundation to build his house. He called out to Big Bear, "Hello, this stone is really heavy. Could you please come over and help me move it?"
"Sure, no problem!" Big Bear placed the fruit basket on a flat stone and walked over to help.
Under the stone lived a frog. He hopped out and spotted the basket of fruit sitting on the stone. Delighted, he leaped into the basket and crawled into the strawberry bag, where he began gorging himself.
A while later, Big Bear returned. The frog was shocked and tried to jump out, but it was too late. He quickly burrowed deep into the strawberries, burying himself beneath them.
Big Bear picked up the basket and continued home, completely unaware. When he arrived, he put the fruit in the refrigerator.
Suddenly surrounded by cold, the frog scrambled out of the strawberry pile. Looking around, he realized he was inside the fridge and shouted, "Let me out! Let me out!" But no one outside could hear him. Unable to withstand the cold, the frog fell asleep and entered a state of hibernation.
That evening, Big Bear wanted to eat some fruit. He opened the refrigerator and pulled out the bag of strawberries. To his great surprise, he exclaimed, "Oh! How did a frog get in here?" He quickly wrapped the frog in a clean, warm towel. "I see," he said, "it must have been that heartless fruit vendor who put a frog in the bag and sold it to me as strawberries!"
Soon, the frog warmed up and woke up. Big Bear immediately apologized, "I'm so sorry! I had no idea the fruit seller could be so wicked, selling me a frog as if it were strawberries! I'm truly sorry you had to suffer like this!"
The frog's face flushed with embarrassment. "N-no, it's okay, really, it's okay."
"I'll go make you a bowl of hot ginger sugar water to warm you up!" Big Bear said, heading toward the kitchen.
A moment later, he brought a steaming bowl of ginger sugar water to the frog. "Drink it quickly while it's hot—that's how it'll warm you up!"
After finishing the drink, the frog thanked Big Bear and left his house.
The next morning, Big Bear opened the door and found a bag of strawberries sitting at his doorstep. Puzzled, he wondered, "What's this?" Then he suddenly slapped his forehead. "Oh, of course! It must be the fruit seller making amends! At last, he realized his mistake..."
Behind a large tree nearby, a frog watched as Big Bear picked up the strawberries and carried them inside. Then, quietly, he stepped out and walked away...