by BobA. Troutt
*****
Giggle Book Three
The Last Dinosaur
Boom, boom, boom sounded the powerful footsteps of the mighty dinosaurs, a long, long, time ago in the land time forgot. High in the sky the Pteranodons flew; they circled around and around while the Tyrannosaurus Rex roared loudly…grrrr! As the thunderous sound roared, the earth shook and the sky turned a fiery red. The angry volcano spewed lava and ash like a rain of fire into the sky. In the far off distance, you could hear the frightening roar of the dinosaurs as they tried to escape the wrath of the volcano.
Ogg and Ugg, two cavemen, dwelled in the valley where the Triceratops and the Stegosaurus lived. Ogg and Ugg were good friends; they had been through a lot together. Throughout the years, they worked hard to survive the Stone Age. But, times were changing. The world was changing and the Stone Age was all but gone. The Mamenchisaurus and the other dinosaurs were few in numbers. As the years passed, the dinosaurs were all gone. There were only a few cave families that still lived in the valley. Ogg and Ugg were among them. One day, as they lay under a giant tree, Ogg was thinking of ways they could get ahead; move up in the new world and get rich. Unfortunately, all they had between them were a few pebbles, high hopes and dreams.
Ogg turned to Ugg and said, “There’s bound to be a way we can get rich.”
“Yeah, but how?” questioned Ugg. “Someone has already discovered fire.”
“And the wheel has already been invented,” stated Ogg.
“What else is there?” asked Ugg.
Ogg just dropped his head in his hands.
“Yep, keep on looking down, Ogg, and we’ll never get ahead. We may have only a few pebbles between us but there’s one thing we still have,” Ugg said.
Ogg raised his head and sighed, “What’s that?”
“We have our hopes,” cried Ugg, “and our dreams!”
Immediately, they jumped up from under the tree.
“Ouch!" yelled Ugg when he hit his head on one of the tree limbs.
Ugg rubbed his head as the two took off in search of their fortune. Ogg kept reminding him of their hopes and dreams. They walked for miles and miles through the thick forest. They talked about their dreams, hopes and everything they were going to do when they got rich. They crossed the scorching hot and dry desert in search of their answer. Days had passed when they suddenly came upon a forest at the edge of the desert.
Low and behold Ogg screamed, “That’s it! That’s our ticket out of this world.”
“What is it?” yelled Ugg.
“Look!” screamed Ogg. “It’s a deserted dinosaur egg. Man o’ man, how lucky can we get. We have found the answer to our fortune. The key to all our dreams! Hello, new world!” screamed Ogg.
“What do you mean?” asked Ugg.
Ogg replied, “Think about it, Ugg! If we hatch this egg, we will have the only living dinosaur in existence. People will come from all around the world and pay big money to see it. We are going to be rich.”
Ugg looked over at the egg and then back at Ogg and asked, “But will it hatch?”
Ogg looked at the egg, then at Ugg. A big smile crossed his face.
“We’ll have to try,” he replied. “Opportunity is knocking!” cried Ogg. “Let’s go for it!”
“I don’t know,” Ugg said. “It sounds too easy.”
“But, what have we to lose?” asked Ogg.
“Nothing I guess,” replied Ugg.
“Don’t worry, Ugg. Trust me; it will work out,” encouraged Ogg.
“How are we going to get it back to the cave?” asked Ugg.
Ogg scratched his head and patted his foot for a few minutes as he thought of what to do.
“We’ll roll it back!” he shouted.
Quickly, the two cavemen started pulling and tugging on the egg. However, it wouldn’t budge.
“I’ve got it!” yelled Ogg. “Let’s try this.”
They pushed and pulled; they pulled and pushed.
“It’s beginning to rock,” cried Ugg.
“Keep it going!” yelled Ogg.
Finally, the egg broke loose and rolled over on its side.
“Be careful,” Ogg cried. “We don’t want to crack it.”
Over and over, around and around, they pushed and pulled as they headed back home with their fortune. They rolled the egg back through the patch of forest. They traveled across the hot scorching sand of the desert. Day after day, they pushed and pulled. They dreamed of what they were going to do with all the money. After many days of traveling across the thick forest, they were almost home. Finally, days later, Ogg and Ugg rolled the giant dinosaur egg into their camp. Triumphantly, they collapsed on the ground from exhaustion.
“Now, how are we going to hatch it?” Ugg asked Ogg.
Ogg lay on the ground for a minute or two and tried to catch his breath. Slowly, he turned to Ugg.
“We will sit on it,” he whispered.
Ugg shook his head and uttered, “Oh!”
Every day, Ogg and Ugg took turns sitting on the egg. They dreamed of being rich and having the luxuries of the modern day cavemen. Daily, Ogg and Ugg rolled the egg to the right and then to the left. Each day they would roll the egg over and over, trying to help it hatch. Ogg and Ugg sat on the egg for weeks at a time. The neighbors would come by every day. They poked fun at them and laughed. But, Ogg and Ugg paid them no attention. Their minds were made up; they were determined to hatch the egg and get rich. They knew they would get the last laugh. Through harsh winds and frightening storms, Ogg and Ugg continued to sit on the egg. As lightening flashed and thunder roared, they patiently sat and waited for it to hatch. In the late night hours, they would change shifts to sit on the egg. Sometimes, both of them would sit on it. Then one day, without warning, it happened! The earth shook and trembled. Ogg and Ugg ran and hid. They watched the earth shook and the giant egg cracked.
“It is payday!” yelled Ogg. “We have hit the jackpot.”
Ugg pictured the finer things of cave life, the easy living, the travel and all the luxuries of the new world.
“We are in the MONEY!” he jumped and screamed.
Ogg turned to Ugg and yelled, “No more bone soup, dirt floors, or cold damp caves. It is going to be nothing but the best, a TENT!”
Ogg and Ugg watched the egg quickly crack from top to bottom and from side to side. Suddenly, the egg crumbled into a million pieces. Cautiously, Ogg and Ugg walked over to the hatched egg. With puzzled looks on their faces, they reached down and picked up the crumbled pieces. Calmly, Ogg turned to Ugg. Ugg looked at Ogg with disappointment in his eyes.
“It’s a rock,” he mumbled.
The neighbors gathered around the pile of rocks. Everything was quiet; nobody said a word. Ogg began to softly giggle. The more he giggled, the louder he got. Then Ugg started to snicker. Both of them laughed so hard they cried. The neighbors just stood and watched in amazement. They would look at Ogg and Ugg and then at the pile of rocks.
“If you can’t laugh at yourself, then what can you laugh at?” belted out Ogg.
“The egg was a rock!” shouted Ugg.
The neighbors began to giggle and snicker along with Ogg and Ugg. Soon, they were all laughing and rolling around on the ground.