Archie the Pigmy Hippo

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About Mr. Jim:

Hi! I'm Jim Jacob, a South Carolina based creator. I started as a podcaster by accident. Our first real episodes on the internet were me trying to find a solution to help tell my sons stories as I was traveling for work. I recorded some stories and hoped that by uploading them to a podcast app, my wife and kids could have easy access to listen. What started as a fix for our family’s bedtime routine interruption has grown into a worldwide audience with hundreds of thousands of listeners. My wife Jocelyn and I have 3 kids and love inspiring others towards greater imagination and curiosity.

Welcome to "Kids Short Stories," the unique podcast where your child's imagination becomes the star of the show! Dive into a world of adventure, mystery, and fun as Mr. Jim brings to life exhilarating tales inspired by story ideas submitted by kids from around the globe. Whether your child dreams up a story about space-traveling aliens, underwater adventures, or magical forests, "Kids Short Stories" transforms their creative sparks into captivating audio experiences.

Each episode of "Kids Short Stories" is a new journey, tailor-made for young listeners who love to explore, learn, and imagine. With a special emphasis on kids' stories, this podcast is not just entertainment—it's a platform where children's voices and ideas lead the narrative. Listen as kids' stories about heroes, mythical creatures, and everyday challenges come to life, fostering a love for storytelling and enhancing listening skills.

"Kids Short Stories" is more than just a podcast; it's a community where children are encouraged to be creative and where their stories are valued and celebrated. By focusing on kids' stories, we aim to inspire a generation of young thinkers, dreamers, and storytellers. Join Mr. Jim every week for a new, exciting kids' story that ignites imagination and brings joy and laughter into your child's world.

Parents and educators love "Kids Short Stories" for its commitment to delivering engaging, thoughtful, and age-appropriate content. Each kids' story is crafted with care, ensuring that it's not only entertaining but also educational. If you're looking for a podcast that enriches your child's day with fantastic kids' stories and a healthy dose of imagination, you've found the perfect listen with "Kids Short Stories."

Don't let your child's imaginative ideas stay untold! Tune in to "Kids Short Stories" and embark on a storytelling adventure where kids' stories come to life. Subscribe now and be part of a podcast that celebrates the power of children's creativity through mesmerizing kids' stories.

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Episode Transcript

Speaker 1 (00:04):
Hey friends, it's mister Jim and welcome back to kit
Short Stories. I was just reading through this five star
review from Beckham, Olivia and Millie says, you're so grateful
for a new story every day. The whole family enjoys
listening and we love the conversations that stemmed from the episodes.
Even our eighteen month old has an evil laugh she
does whenever doctor Sinky Breth has mentioned that's hilarious. Well,

(00:26):
thank you so much for sending that review. Are you
guys ready for today's adventure? Me too, Let's go. It
was a very rainy day in the jungle as our
friend Archie the pygmy Hippo was walking along squishing and

(00:50):
squashing in the mud. Archie, as a pygmy hippo, was
a very small hippopotamus, so small in fact, that he
was often afraid of many other things. He had to
look around everywhere he went and keep his eyes open
just to make sure that there wasn't anything scary up

(01:11):
around the next corner. But today, something pretty amazing would
happen to Archie as he would need to choose to
be brave to help out a new friend. Oh, I
just love a good rady day. It makes it so
great to splash it splash in the mud. I just
I love it? What what? What? What? With each step

(01:35):
he took, it squished and all in between his toes.
Wait a second, do hippos have toes? Oh, of course
they have toes. And so as he squashed and squashed
his way through the mud, his toes got very muddy,
raw raw. Archie turned around and looked in the world.

(02:00):
Did that terrifying noise come from? Must be someone trying
to eat me. I gotta get out of here. Archie
the pigmy hippo started running as fast as he could,
which was not very fast because he had very short legs.
His four little feet tried to go as fast as
they could, and then all of a sudden he tripped

(02:22):
and fell and slid right in the mud. Wh help me.
It was in all the pandemonium that he had actually
started running towards the big noise, not away from it.
He closed his eyes and pushed his face deeper into
the mud. I think he was trying to hide from

(02:44):
whatever terrible, scary creature that was really close to him.
Somebody there, I need help. I got stuck in all
of this mud, and I could really use a hand.
It's gotta be a trap. There's no way I'm picking
my head up out of the mud. It's gotta eat me.

(03:06):
It sounds like a crocodile, said Archie. Well, maybe I'll
just take a little peek. Archie poked his eyes up
out of the mud and blinked them to wipe the
mud off. Blink, blink. As he scanned the horizon that
was in front of him, you realize that he had
slid all the way back towards a lake that was

(03:28):
right there, and right in front of him was a
ginormous crocodile. But that crocodile had sunk down very deep,
deep deep into the mud and looked like it couldn't
move an inch. Archie, the pygmy hippo, raised his head
up out of the mud to take a better look. So, uh,

(03:50):
how'd you get stuck in the mud like that? Hah
Ooh you scarred me, oh, said the crocodile. Yeah, I uh,
I got stuck in the mud. My feet just sunk
right into the mud, and now my tail can't even
move and I don't even know what to do. I
thought someone could help me, but just a little hippo

(04:12):
like you. There's no way you could help me get
out of here, said the crocodile. Oh yeah, you want
to see me tray, said Archie. Ha, there's no way.
Archie was always up for a challenge, and so because
the crocodile thought that Archie couldn't do it, it kind
of made Archie want to prove him wrong. Have you

(04:34):
ever felt like that before? Someone ever told you, oh,
there's no way you can do that, and it deep
inside maybe you feel like, wait a second, I totally
can and I'm gonna prove it to you. Step aside. Well,
that's exactly what Archie, the pygmy hippo felt inside. He
wanted to prove that crocodile wrong. You should have seen

(04:55):
how fast Archie could move around in that deep mud.
He was an expert mud swimmer. Have you ever gone
mud swimming before me? Neither. Just imagine if you were
tossed into a deep pool of mud and you had
to swim around. Oh, that would be so disgusting. But Archie,

(05:17):
to pigmy hippo, loved it more than anything. Well, he
swam and swam until he was underneath the crocodile's belly.
That's an interesting place to be. At least he's not
inside the crocodile's belly, because that would be a very
different situation. But thankfully, Archie was outside of the belly,
just underneath it, and he thought, maybe, just maybe he

(05:40):
was strong enough to push and push with all of
his might to help the crocodile get unstuck from the mud.
Hey be careful down there, it's kind of ticklish on
my on my belly, said the crocodile. All right, at
the count of three, I'd gotta push with all my
might and you just gotta and stand right up out

(06:01):
of the mud. Are you ready? Huh? Of course I'm ready.
But you're not gonna be able to push me out
of the mud, said the crocodile. Archie breathed in deep
to gather all of his strength and all of his muscle,
and on the count of three, one, two, three, Archie

(06:22):
pushed and pushed with all of his might on that
ginormous crocodile's belly. Even though Archie was small and his
legs were short, he was very very strong. Wait a second,
what is going on? I'm stirring up out of the mud.

(06:44):
How did you do that, little guy, said the crocodile.
All right, well, just keep moving. I can't hold you forever.
Just step up out of the mud and get back
out of the water, said Archie. Oh oh yes, oh okay.
Squish squash, squish squads. The crocodile picked up each step
and squashed it back into the mud and slid right

(07:05):
back into the lake. Ho. Wow, you got a big
belly there, mister crocodile. Wow, you're pretty strong for a
little fellah. What's your name. My name's Archie. It's great
to beat you. What's your name? My name is Lenny.
But uh huh, I've never been friends with a big

(07:28):
me hippo. But today is a new day, and you
happened to help me get unstuck from the mud. Would
you like to come on over to my house and
I can make you a delicious dinner? You mean have
me for dinner or make me a dinner? Oh no, no,
I don't eat hippopotamuses. I would love to have you

(07:50):
over and make you something delicious to eat. Please, it's
my pleasure, said Lenny the crocodile. And that was the
day that Archie the pigby hippo who used to be
very afraid of a lot of things learned to be brave.
And it was all it stems from when Lenny the

(08:11):
crocodile told him that he didn't think he could do it,
but Archie proved him wrong. And so even though this
is the end of the story, maybe you can prove
somebody wrong. Maybe you'll be like Archie one day and
help a crocodile up out of the mud. Well maybe
not exactly that, but maybe, just maybe you'll find something

(08:32):
amazing that you'll be able to do. The end a
great job. You listened all the way to the end,
and you know what, tumm it is. It's time for
kid shout out. I want to say he to Ali
from Georgia, I Sley, Brooklyn and Luna from Alberta, Canada,

(08:55):
Evelyn from Massachusetts, Fielder from Colorado, Harper from Brisbane, Australia,
You'd from Illinois, Aden from Montreal, Alexandra from Romanian alex
and Abbe from Saint Paul, Minnesota. I'm so glad that
you're all in the Kid Short Story's family. And Don
the spy team. We could not stop Doctor Stickybread and
his crew, without you, my friends. Will you have a

(09:17):
super duper day And now I'll see you next time. Bye.