Once upon a time, there was an exceptionally rich merchant. How much money did he have? If you spread his silver coins on the ground, they could fill a street, and there would still be enough to pave another alley. However, he never did that because he was always thinking about how to make his money grow.
He was very careful with his money and always thought of ways to earn more for every dime he spent. In this way, he amassed a large fortune through his cleverness. Unfortunately, he died later.
The merchant had a son who inherited all his money. At first, the young man had a great time. He went to dances every night, dressed up as different characters for fun.
He once made kites out of paper money, took gold coins, and played a game of throwing stones into the water to make them jump. Slowly, he spent some of his money.
By the time he had spent it all, leaving him with only four coins, an old pair of slippers, and a torn pajama top, he began to have a hard time. His friends ignored him because he no longer had money to spend with them.
One day, one of his friends saw how poor he was and gave him an old suitcase, saying, “Pack your things in it.” It sounds like a kind gesture, but he didn’t have anything valuable to pack, so he got into the box himself.
A magical chest
The chest looked ordinary, but it wasn’t. With the simple press of a lock, it could fly with a person inside!
That’s right—it flies! With a whoosh, the box went up the chimney, flew onto the roof, and rose higher and higher into the sky.
The young man sitting in the box was terrified because the bottom was making a clattering noise, as if it would fall apart at any moment. He thought, “If the box breaks, I’ll have a terrible fall!” Luckily, the box stabilized and carried him all the way to a strange place—it was the country of the Turks.
He hid the box under a fallen leaf in the woods and went into the city alone. He was dressed in slippers and pajamas similar to what the natives wore, so no one thought him strange.
In town, he met a nanny holding a child and asked her, “Hey, who lives in that palace over there with the high windows?”
The nanny answered, “That’s where the king’s daughter lives. They say she’ll have bad luck because she’s in love with someone, so no one can visit her except the king and queen.”
When the young man heard this, he had an idea. He went back to the woods, sat in the box, pressed the switch, flew up into the sky, stopped directly outside the princess’s window, climbed in, and entered her room.
The princess woke up.
She was lying on the bed, sleeping and looking especially beautiful. The young man couldn’t help but kiss her and ended up waking her up.
Startled, the princess saw that it was a stranger. But the young man said at once, “I am a Turkish god. I have flown from Heaven to see you.”
The princess was happy to hear this. So, the two sat down and talked.
The young man told her many stories. For example, he said her eyes were like beautiful lakes with clever little fish swimming in them and her forehead was like a snow-covered mountain with a beautiful palace on top.
He also told stories about storks. Did you know that? It’s said that these big, long-legged birds fly over from the south in the spring and build their nests in the eaves of houses. It is also believed that they bring lovely babies from Egypt.
The princess was so mesmerized that she finally agreed to marry him.
She said, “Then you must come to my house for tea on Saturday. My parents would like to meet you, too. My mom likes educational stories, and my dad likes funny ones.”
The young man nodded and said, “No problem. I’ll bring a story for the meet-and-greet.”
With that, they parted ways. Before leaving, the princess gave him a gold-encrusted sword, a treasure to him.
Making up stories is no easy task.
When the young man flew back home, he changed into new pajamas and sat down in the woods to think of a story. It had to be funny and meaningful and please both the king and queen.
Time went by quickly, and before he knew it, it was Saturday.
That day, the king, queen, and ministers came to the princess’s room and waited for tea and the story.
The young man was invited in, and everyone received him warmly.
The queen said, “Please tell a story, preferably an educational one.”
However, the king smiled and said, “I like stories that make people happy and laugh.”
The young man nodded and began to tell the story. What follows is the story he told:
A Party in the Kitchen
Once upon a time, there were bundles of firewood that thought they were marvelous because they used to be part of a big tree. The tree was tall and lived in the forest for many years.
Then, the tree was cut down, its branches split into firewood, and some of that firewood became this bundle. Now, they lie on a shelf in the kitchen next to an old tin can and a lighter box.
One day, they started talking.
The firewood said, “We used to be so beautiful! When we were in the tree, we drank dewy tea every day. When the sun came out, we basked in it. The birds sang to us.”
“But then the lumberjacks came, and our home was torn down.” Some branches were turned into masts for ships to sail around the world, while others went elsewhere. But us? We’re only here to burn in fires and cook.”
The old tin can heard this and said, “What a bitter life you have! As soon as I was born, I was used for cooking and stir-frying, and I suffered from the heat every day. But I am quite proud of myself because I have been useful.”
The lighter box interjected, “Can you guys stop talking about how great you are and have a lighter conversation?”
The firewood said, “Why don’t we have a party?”
The old tin can replied, “Sure, I’ll tell a story.”
It began to tell a story that took place in a seaside town. There were beech trees and quiet families. The floors were scrubbed clean and the curtains were changed once a month.
Everyone was happy to hear it. The chicken broom ran to get a green celery stalk and made a flower crown for the tin can to wear.
The fire poker danced, too. Even the old chair cover in the corner was amused.
The teapot would have sung, but she said she had a cold and could only sing when she was boiling. This was just a ploy to get people to notice her.
Quill chimed in too, saying that the nightingale in the cage outside sang well even though it wasn’t professionally trained.
Everyone was talking to each other and making a lot of noise. The atmosphere was hilarious.
Suddenly, the door opened and the maid walked in. Everyone fell silent immediately, not daring to move.
The maid took the firewood and lit the stove. As soon as the flames rose, the faggots thought, “Look how important we are! How brightly our light shines!”
But it wasn’t long before they were all burned out.
After the story was told,
The queen smiled after hearing the story and said, “I feel like I’m in the kitchen, and it’s so much fun to see the woodstoves fighting and dancing. We can marry our daughter to you.”
The king nodded and replied, “Then let’s set the wedding for next Monday.”
In this way, the young man finally won the princess’s heart.
On the day of the wedding, the whole city was decorated with lights. The streets were full of sweets and treats, and children cheered and whistled with their hands in the air.
To celebrate, the young man bought lots of fireworks and firecrackers. He stuffed them into a box, flew up into the sky, and set them off.
“Pop, pop, pop!” The fireworks exploded in the air, colorful and beautiful.
The common people of Turkey were amazed. They had never seen such a sight before and said, “This man must be a god. How else could he fly?”
The young man flew back to the woods to hear what people in the city were saying about him. As he walked down the street, he heard everyone telling his story and adding to it, making it more and more exaggerated.
Some said, “I saw that god with my own eyes. His eyes were like stars, and his beard was like foam.”
Others said, “He flies in a fiery coat, and he hides angels in his clothes.”
The young man was happy to hear this. He felt that he would soon be on his way to getting married.
Unfortunately, the chest was gone.
He went back to the woods, prepared to fly back in the suitcase, But the box was gone!
It turned out that, when the fireworks were set off, the sparks had fallen and ignited the box. The box had turned into a pile of ashes.
Without the box, he couldn’t fly. Even worse, he couldn’t visit the princess anymore.
She waited on the roof all day, still waiting for him to come and get her. To this day, she is still waiting there.
And what about the young man? All he could do was wander the world, telling people children’s stories. Since then, no one has ever heard a better fairy tale than “The Story of the Firewood.”
Summary:
This story is about a young man’s journey from wealth to poverty, love, and loss. It teaches us that money cannot bring true happiness and that sincerity and wisdom are the most important things.
At the same time, it reminds us that some opportunities can never be recovered if we miss them. Like that Flying Trunk, once it burns down, it can never fly again.
If you enjoy this story, share it with the children around you. They may learn something from it, too—or at least enjoy it as an adventure story.
