ANANSI AND ALLIGATOR

One day a long time ago, that one, Anansi, called upon Big Alligator. "I'm out late, brother," Anansi spider told him, "and I need a place to sleep the night."

Alligator says, "All right then, come into my house. Stay the night."

Anansi tells Alligator back, "I don't want to bother you. I don't need to sleep in your house. I can sleep in your kitchen.".

(In those days, there was a stone-built kitchen off in the yard. Anansi was thinking about getting by hmself into the kitchen outside of Big Alligator's house.)

"All right, brother," Alligator tells Anansi. "You sleep in the kitchen."

Of course, Anansi was up to something. Big Alligator's daughter, Ama, knew. She'd been listening behind the door. Ama heard every word between Anansi and her father.

At once, Ama went out to catch many scorpions, very carefully, and then she put them in empty kitchen pots in the kitchen. Ama knew that Anansi loved looking in food pots.

Big Alligator slid to the kitchen to say good night. "Well then," he says to Anansi.

"Then, too", says Anansi

"Sleep well my brother" Big Alligator tells him.

"Well, brother, I will do that." says Anansi

Everything became quiet as everybody went to sleep. Even the palm trees were swaying a soft rustling.

Anansi went to bed. He lay down until he thought that everybody was asleep. Then he got up, skittered across the floor, and found the pots.

He put his hand into a pot, thinking that he was going to get something tasty. And he did find it. He knew which pots were the scorpion pots, and he did not dare go near those. He ate and ate, and had himself a good time.

After he was full, he started hollering and yelling and msucking his hand.

Big Alligator hears him and comes crawling fast.

"What is the matter?" Big Alligator asked.

"Brother, I am eaten alive!" yells Anansi. "The flease here are biting me so bad! Your kitchen is full of fleas! I have to go!" And with that, Anansi the trickster scurried out of there.

Of course, Anansi knew that there were no fleas, but that there were scorpions.

Ama went into the kitchen and saw that all the eggs that were in the other pots were gone. She knew who did it. "Daddy, help!" she cried out. "Anansi has eaten all of our eggs!"

So Big Alligator ran out after Anansi.

Anansi was by the sea, but he could hear Big Alligator coming and shouting at him.

At this time, a boatman was sailing by in his boat. Anansi told him "If you take me across the water, I will give you half of my land."

The boatman agreed, and Anansi got in the boat. Big Alligator tried to follow them by going into the water, but he could not catch the boat.

When the boat reached the other side, Anansi told the boatman "I'll go tell my father you have come for the land." The boatman waits.

Anansi found his father, and told him about Big Alligator and about the boatman. Anansi told his father that if either of them came looking for him, to say that he did not know where Anansi had gone. And with that, Anansi climbed a tree.

A few minutes later, the boatman came asking for Anansi.

"I don't know where that one, Anansi, be."

After the boatman left, Anansi climbed another tree, and he saw Big Alligator coming. Big Alligator slid under the tree. Anansi called out to him asking if Big Alligator could see him.

Big Alligator looked and looked, and said "If I can't find you, I'll never live in a house again. I'll go live in the water."

He kept looking...did he find Anansi? (where does an Alligator live now?)

KidZone