Not long ago, in a crystal-clear river, near a small town lived two very big fish. In fact, they were so big that they were not afraid of anything. They swam anywhere they wanted.
They tangled the lines of children fishing in their river. They ate when they were hungry and splashed anyone sitting on the bank. They were the big, brave rulers of the crystal-clear river.
One day, a large bullfrog and his family moved into the area. The bullfrog saw the two big, brave fish in the crystal-clear river and wanted to talk to them. But he was afraid.
He didn’t know a lot about the crystal-clear river,or the big brave fish that lived there, and was afraid of being eaten.
For a long time he watched the big, brave fish, the crystal-clear river, and everything around him to make sure it was safe. The bullfrog was very smart and used his common sense to guide him. Then, with a mighty hop, he jumped into the crystal-clear river to introduce himself.
"I’m Kroaker, the biggest and smartest bullfrog in the world." he said. "Is that so?" replied one of the fish. "We are the biggest and bravest fish in the crystal-clear river." The other fish looked at Kroaker and said. "If you are nice we may let you share our water." The three talked and over time, the two big, brave fish and Kroaker became friends. Every day the three of them would meet at the same spot in the crystal-clear river to eat, talk, and play.
Late one evening, as the three were talking, two fishermen passed by. Kroaker saw them, and common sense told him to hop into the water and hide under the bank. The two big, brave fish slowly swam in circles so the fishermen could see just how big they were.
One of the fishermen saw them and said, "This crystal-clear river has some really big fish. Let’s come back tomorrow morning and catch them." As the fishermen turned and walked away, they discussed what type of bait might work best to catch big, brave fish.

"Worms." said one. "No,sausages." said the other, and they continued their discussion as they walked the twisty path along the crystal-clear river’s edge.
The two big, brave fish and the Kroaker overheard the fishermen. "My friends," said Kroaker. "Did you hear what they said? You should swim away and hide. I am afraid they may catch and eat me, so I will take my family to a nearby pond to be safe."
The two big, brave fish bubbled out laughs as they jumped in and out of the water. One said, "My dear bullfrog friend, don’t be frightened of their mere talk." Kroaker looked at the two brave fish and said, "I would rather be safe than sorry."
"From what I heard they might come back so I will leave with my family to the safety of the pond." Kroaker left and the two big, brave fish swam to the bottom of the crystal-clear river.
The next morning, just after sunrise, the two fishermen returned to the crystal-clear river where the day before they had seen the two big, brave fish. They walked slowly and quietly so as not to disturb them. "Look," whispered one of the fishermen, "there they are."
The fishermen gently cast their bait and let it slowly drift in the current to attract the big, brave fish. It worked! In moments, each had hooked one of the big, brave fish. Then the battle between the fishermen and the fish began.
The big, brave fish used all their tricks to free themselves. They dived deep, swam fast, and leaped from the water, thrashing their tail and head in an attempt to get free. The battle raged for over ten minutes but in the end, the big, brave fish were no match for the fishermen. They were caught!
Kroaker watched from the safety of the tall grass that separated the pond from the bank of the crystal-clear river.
Oh, the anglers were excited! Each had caught a big brave fish on their first cast of the day. What a story they had to tell when they returned home!
Kroaker carefully hopped back to the pond and told his family what he had seen. "Both my big, brave fish friends were very talented, and still they were caught. But I, with only common sense, saved my family. I will miss them."
"We have to learn a lesson from this," said Kroaker to his family. "At the first sign of danger, use common sense and act quickly to save yourself."
