Clara has an old book of stories, and sometimes, when there is not much time, she reads a shorter version. This is a gentle retelling of The Fisherman and His Wife, a traditional fairy tale collected by the Brothers Grimm.
The Fisherman and His Wife
A poor fisherman lived with his wife in a small, humble hut near the sea. Each day, he went out to fish, and one day he caught a strange fish that spoke to him.
The fish told him it was an enchanted prince and begged to be set free. The fisherman, kind at heart, let it go without asking for anything in return.
When he told his wife what had happened, she was not pleased. She told him he should have asked for something.
So the fisherman returned to the sea and called for the fish. The water, once calm, stirred slightly, and the fish appeared.
At his wife’s request, he asked for a better house. The fish granted the wish.
But his wife was not satisfied. She wanted more—a grander home, then a castle, then to be queen. Each time, the fisherman returned to the sea, and each time, the sea grew darker and more restless.
Still, the fish granted the wishes.
But the wife’s desires did not stop. At last, she demanded to become ruler over all things.
When the fisherman returned once more, the sea was wild and stormy. The fish rose from the dark water and listened.
And then, everything was taken away.
The fisherman returned home to find himself and his wife back in their small hut, just as they had been in the beginning.
And that was the story Clara read that afternoon.