They rowed through the swamp, deeper and deeper. It got to the point where the sun just barely poked through the trees. Lucy began to get a bit nervous as she got closer to nature. "Bernie, are you sure you know where we are going?"

"Oh, yeah," Bernie just laughed it off. "We will get there soon." Eventually, though, even he was sidetracked. The plants got lusher and thicker, and the swamp showed no sign of end. Things were not looking good. "Uh, ladies," he moaned. "I think...maybe we are lost."

But their fears were not present for long, soon, Bernie and Kylie rowed into a clearing. A rainbow was breaking out and they began to hear soothing banjo music. "Oh, a banjo." Bernie turned the boat in that direction. "You know what that means, Kylie. That means business."

"Yay!" At last, they were about to meet someone special.

-

Together, the party kept rowing until they started to hear a song:

Why are there so many songs about rainbows
And what's on the other side?
Rainbows are visions, but only illusions
And rainbows have nothing to hide
So we've been told, and some choose to believe it
I know they're wrong, wait and see
Someday we'll find it, the rainbow connection
The lovers, the dreamers, and me

Though they couldn't see him yet, the mystery singer was none other than Kermit the Frog. A simple frog in the swamp, he just liked sitting back and playing banjo. His happiness and contentment was nothing but satisfaction playing his special song:

Who said that every wish would be heard and answered
When wished on the morning star?
Somebody thought of that, and someone believed it
Look what it's done so far
What's so amazing that keeps us stargazing
And what do we think we might see?
Someday we'll find it, the rainbow connection
The lovers, the dreamers, and me

All of us under its spell
We know that it's probably magic

Have you been half asleep, and have you heard voices?
I've heard them calling my name
Is this the sweet sound that calls the young sailors?
The voice might be one and the same
I've heard it too many times to ignore it
It's something that I'm supposed to be
Someday we'll find it, the rainbow connection
The lovers, the dreamers, and me

La-da-da, de-da-da-do
La-da-da-da-da-de-da-do

-

The crew rode in right then, meeting Kermit for the first time. Bernie held up his hand, trying to get the frog's attention. "Help! This is a call for help!"

"What?" Kermit looked over.

"You there, with the banjo. Can you help us? We've lost our sense of direction."

"Have you tried Hare Krishna?" Kermit suggested.

"Very funny. Ha-ha," Lucy snapped back. That was one of the oldest jokes ever, and she did not appreciate it at this time.

"No, we are seriously lost," Kylie explained. "We were rowing through the bayou and we kind of got sidetracked."

"One second," Kermit tried snapping at a fly, but could not seem to catch it. "The first thing to go from a frog is his tongue. The tongue goes and you can't catch flies."

"Sorry about your tongue," Bernie responded. "But we have to get out of this swamp."

"Why's that?"

"My niece and I have to catch a plane."

"With that tongue? No way?"

Brief pause as Lucy giggled at the joke.

"Anyway, there's a boat dock just downstream," Kermit nudged his head a bit to his right.

"Thank you," Jeanette gave the "okay" sign.

"Just watch out for the alligators," Kermit warned.

"Alligators?" Jeanette trembled.

"Read my lips," Kermit continued. "AL-i-GAY-tors."

"Cool," Lucy smiled and pumped her fist. "We have lots of alligators where I'm from. This is going to be great."

"Well I'm not used to alligators where I come from," Bernie said. "Remember, I'm an agent. Not a gator wrangler."

"Where are you from?" Kermit asked.

"I just winged in from Hollywood."

"Did you say Hollywood?"

"Read my lips: Hollywood," Bernie used Kermit's words against him.

"You know," Kylie added. "The dream factory. The magic store."

"Don't you ever go to the movies?" Jeanette asked Kermit.

"Of course. They have a double feature in town every Saturday," Kermit answered. Jeanette smiled, herself being a regular attendant of the event.

"Wait a minute," Kylie fiddled around in her backpack. She reached downward and pulled out a newspaper clipping. "This seems relevant to you Kermit." She pointed to an ad in the classifieds. "Feast your eyes on this. World Wide Studios announces open auditions for frogs...looking to become rich and famous."

Lucy felt a rush of joy. This was her mission; to ensure Kermit got to Hollywood. She would help him live his dreams and it would be great. But Kermit did not seem interested. "Thanks, but...I'm really pretty happy where I am."

Lucy would have none of it. She began to demand Kermit go on the mission so hers was not worthless. "If I were you," she tried to sound polite. "I would give this audition careful consideration. You see, you've got a lot of talent..."

"Singing. Telling jokes," Bernie affirmed. "I mean, if you got your tongue fixed, who knows? You could be making millions of people happy."

Kermit sat back and pondered this last thought. "Millions of people happy..."

Bernie leaned over and handed Kermit his business card. "If you ever do come out west, look me up. I'm Bernie the agent." Kermit took the card and smiled.

"I'm Lucy," Lucy shook Kermit's hand. Jeanette and Kylie also introduced themselves, happy to meet Kermit.

"Pleased to meet you," Kermit smiled in return. "But now, I want all of you to meet Arnie the Alligator."

Right then, a large alligator breached the water. "Hi, Arnie!" Lucy waved, delighted to see her favorite reptile. However, the rest of the group was not as happy. Kylie screamed as Bernie rowed away faster.

Though as the gator followed, Kermit tried to keep him in place. "No, Arnie. Stay! Stay!" He beckoned the great beast. "Leave them alone. Bernie is from Hollywood. Don't hurt him." Soon, though, Bernie rowed with the girls away from Kermit. Though if he had listened in, he could have heard Kermit sigh in contemplation. Sitting back on his rock, Kermit began to think about their offer. "I'd miss the old swamp. But...millions of people happy." He looked back where the group once was. He seemed ready to go on his journey.

Following Kermit's instructions, Bernie parked the boat and the three ladies disembarked with him. "Well, this is it," Bernie told them. "Plane leaves for Hollywood in thirty minutes."

Lucy decided to stick around. Jeanette walked up to her. "What are you doing, Lucy?"

"I'm waiting for Kermit," Lucy smiled.

"But you heard him. He wasn't interested."

"I know he'll be back," Lucy insisted. "I give it a few more hours tops."

"If you say so," Jeanette sat by her side. "I can wait too. Maybe we can still both audition."

Kylie looked at her uncle. "Actually, Uncle Bernie, I kind of want to stay with them."

"You sure?" Bernie laughed. "Seems kind of boring."

"But I liked the frog. I want to see him come back," Kylie sat down. "But I'll see you in Hollywood when we get there."

Bernie laughed. "Well, if that's what you want, I don't see why not?" And Bernie headed off to the airport, leaving Lucy, Jeanette, and Kylie at the dock waiting for Kermit.