Star Money
A Grimm Brothers Tale
Once upon a time there was a girl. She was poor; she had no family, no home, and no money. She had little food: just one piece of bread.
One day she was walking through the forest. Then, she saw a sad old man. He had no food and he was very hungry. He said, “Please, can I have some money?” “Oh no! I have no money,” said the girl, “but I do have a piece of bread. Would you like a piece of bread?”
“OH! Yes, please,” said the man.
The girl gave the man the bread…her one piece of bread! “Thank you,” said the man. “You are very generous. Someday the heavens will be generous to you.”
The girl kept walking and walking finally she came to a little boy. The sad boy trembled in the cold. The temperature was -10 degrees.
He said, “Please, can I have some money?” “Oh no! I have no money,” said the girl, “but I do have a coat. Would you like my coat?”
“OH! Yes, please,” said the cold little boy. He was not sad, but very happy to have a coat!
The girl gave the boy her coat. “Thank you,” said the boy. “You have a generous heart. Someday the heavens will be generous to you.”
The girl walked some more. She was very cold with no coat. She was very hungry with no food. But she was sad to see an even colder teenage girl. The girl was hiding behind a tree. She was hiding because she had no clothes. She was crying and embarrassed.
“Oh no, you are crying,” the girl said. The teenage girl was terrified but responded, “Yes. SHHHHH… I’m hiding. The forest is a terrible place. I was attacked. Now I have no clothes. Please help.” The girl had pity for the older girl.
“Of course I will help,” she said. She took off most of her clothes and gave them to the terrified girl.
“Thank you! But now you have little clothing and you will be very cold!” said the older girl.
At that moment, there was a flash. Something small and mysterious fell from the heavens. “Stars!” cried the girls. The stars fell from the heavens. The girls touched the stars. They transformed into beautiful diamonds. “The heavens are generous!” said the girls. “Yes, but we must go now! These stars can help two people I saw,” said the younger girl.
In the opposite direction, the girls walked and walked. They came to the cold boy and invited him to come with them. They walked to the hungry man too. To the boy and the man, they said “Please come to the village. We will take care of you.”
The group was hungry and poor, but when they got to the village, they used the diamonds to pay for a large, beautiful house. They had all the food they wanted to eat. The girls had beautiful clothes and the boy had a collection of coats. They thanked the heavens.