In this touching story by Khamsing Srinawk, a Thai farmer must leave his dying son in the hands of faith-healers and herbalists to grovel in front of local officials for a 200 baht government handout. He gets the money but, contrary to what other villagers say, it’s not his lucky day. Major themes are the harshness of nature on farming communities, and the abuse of power by the Thai authorities of the day (the late 1950s) in dealing with them. Other themes include family, poverty, suffering, helplessness, survival, superstition, social class, and “luck”.
The factors mentioned above create an environment where farmers, powerless to shape their destiny, are forced to accept whatever comes, including birth and death, as matter of course events.
The significance of the title lies in the fact that, even today, Thai farmers consider finding anything rare or different (such as the yellow frog pictured above as opposed to the common brown field frog) as a sign of good fortune. This superstition adds an extra touch of irony to the last sentence, which implies that the man’s “luck” in gaining the 200 baht somehow outweighs the loss of his son.
Original Text / PDF / Audio (1,550 words)