Magical story for children: The Mysterious Gift
Once upon a time, there was a very poor farmer who lived with his wife in a small wooden cottage deep in the forest. The cottage was surrounded by blooming flowers.
This couple had no children, so they devoted all their care to the little animals in the forest.
Every day after finishing their farm work, they would clap their hands and call the animals to come and eat.
As they watched the animals, the farmer and his wife sighed and said, “If only we could have a child who was as gentle as a fawn, as agile as a squirrel, and as lively as a little field mouse!”
One evening, as they sat on a bench, sighing deeply as usual, they suddenly heard a loud crash. Then, in a thick cloud of smoke, a forest witch appeared!
She had red eyes and long gray-white hair, looking terrifying.
The witch seemed very angry. She banged her broom on the ground and shouted, “I’ve had enough! Every day, I hear you sighing over my head! You’ve been wishing for a child like a fawn, a squirrel, and a field mouse. Well, I’ll grant all your wishes! I will give you a child who will be a girl during the day and turn into an animal at night. I don’t want to hear your voices ever again!”
A few months later, the farmer’s wife gave birth to a baby girl. The couple named her Claire.
They decided not to sleep at night so they could watch over their daughter and prevent the witch from turning her into an animal.
But soon, the couple couldn’t resist the urge to sleep and dozed off.
When they woke up, only the baby’s clothes were left in the cradle. A trail of tiny deer footprints led all the way to the garden gate.
In the morning, the baby was back in the cradle, with a few tender blades of grass between her fingers.
Night fell again, and the farmer and his wife continued to keep watch, but eventually, they fell asleep once more.
When they woke up, the cradle was empty again, and a trail of squirrel footprints led to the window.
In the morning, the baby was back in the cradle, holding half a hazelnut in her small hand.
Night fell, and the couple fell asleep again.
When they woke up, the cradle was empty yet again.
A trail of field mouse footprints led to a small hole in the wall.
In the morning, their daughter was back, her tiny hand clutching three grains of wheat.
The couple decided to cherish their daughter and spend their days happily with her.
Claire was very lovely; she was as gentle as a fawn, as agile as a squirrel, and as lively as a little field mouse!
As Claire grew older, one day, when she turned fifteen, she said to her parents, “I’m so tired of transforming every day!”
Her parents sighed, “But what can we do?”
Claire thought for a moment and said, “Only the forest witch can lift the curse on me. I’ll go find her and explain everything to her!”
Claire tied her hair back with a scarf, hugged her parents, and set off on her journey alone.
She knew the forest paths well—after all, all the animals in the forest knew that the witch’s cave was hidden deep in the oak woods.
After three days of walking, Claire finally arrived at the witch’s home and asked the witch to lift the curse.
The witch told Claire to knit her a pair of socks out of wool in return.
The door closed, leaving Claire alone in the witch’s cave.
Claire felt like crying, for the witch’s feet were huge, and the wool was as thin as hair!
Luckily, night fell, and Claire immediately transformed into a field mouse.
With her nimble little paws, she swiftly knitted all through the night.
By morning, when the witch returned, the socks were finished!
The witch then asked Claire to clean the cave.
Claire wondered how she could clean such a rough, uneven cave.
Luckily, night fell, and she turned into a squirrel.
She used her fluffy tail to sweep every corner of the cave until it was spotless.
The next morning, the witch asked Claire to wash her bedsheets.
Poor Claire wanted to cry again, as the tub for soaking the sheets was far too tall for her!
Luckily, night fell, and Claire turned into a fawn.
She used her small hooves to tread on the sheets until they were clean.
The next morning, the witch was very satisfied. She had never lived in such a clean cave, used such white sheets, or worn such fine socks.
She lifted the curse on Claire and even gave her three gold coins as payment.
Claire was delighted, but the coins were too big for her to carry.
So, she rolled them along like iron hoops as she walked.
All the little animals watched her pass by and whispered among themselves:
“This little girl is as gentle as a fawn, as agile as a squirrel, and as lively as a little field mouse.
How happy we are to have her in our forest!”
Thank you for reading! ” Sitestorys “
