Rainy day magic
The legend of the green giant is one every parent in Briarwood has told their wee ones on rainy days for as long as can be remembered. By the age of five, each child can tell the story with the same ease Granny Mae makes her famous potato brew that can put hair on a man's chest, and with which Fr. Bailey gives his well-worn blessing to the newly born and the swiftly dying.
It isn't a cautionary tale. No, indeed, the green giant isn't an evil fellow, bellowing curses as he crushes the bones of men while devouring their crops and livestock. On the contrary, he's a jolly fellow who slides down a vibrant and colorful rainbow at every opportunity to play with the children of Briarwood.
Sadly, rainbows aren't all that frequent, so Frederick, as his parents named him, or Freddy as the children call him, has to depend on luck, the good kind, and a well-danced jig to open the door between his home in the clouds and Briarwood. And it can only be opened by the magical jig once every hundred years or so. And only during times of blight or drought. Other than that, rainbows are the thing.
For Freddy has a special gift to share, but special is only special so long as it's rare, they say. Freddy need only pat the ground (it is more like a thundery thump and it can be heard - and felt- for miles around), and all that has been brown and withered becomes green as clover. Well, a lot was clover, the four-leafed kind to be sure, but there were also sweet, plump berries all the colors of the rainbow to fill Briarwood's famous bursting berry pie, and yummy green veggies like green beans, green peas, green onions and green leaf lettuce (in addition to spinach, broccoli, kale, and collard greens). And, of course, potatoes (for stew and for brew).
And thus it is that the children of Briarwood never bemoan a rainy day as they are always hopeful it will end with a glorious rainbow and a visit from the best piggyback ride giver ever.