Knjigice
Fairy tale · Classic fairy tales
The Gingerbread Man
The tale of the little gingerbread fellow who ran from the oven
Also in: Medenjakec (Slovenian) · Medovníček (Slovak)
In a little house by the woods lived a little old woman and a little old man. One morning the old woman mixed a sweet gingerbread dough, rolled it out and cut out a little man. She gave him three sugar buttons, two candy eyes and a wide, cheeky smile. "You shall be our Gingerbread Man," she said happily, laid him on the tray and slid him into the warm oven.
1
When the kitchen smelled of honey, the old woman opened the oven door to see if the Gingerbread Man was done. But look! He winked, hopped off the tray, slipped between her feet and ran straight out of the door. "Stop, Gingerbread Man, stop!" cried the old woman. He only laughed: "Run, run, as fast as you can! You can't catch me, I'm the Gingerbread Man!"
2
The old woman ran after him, and behind her the old man in his straw hat. They ran across the yard, past the well, through the hens and out of the gate. But the Gingerbread Man was faster than the two of them. He whooped: "I ran from the old woman, I ran from the old man! Run, run, as fast as you can! You can't catch me, I'm the Gingerbread Man!"
3
In a flowery meadow stood a cow, munching juicy grass. "Moo, how lovely you smell!" she mooed. "Of honey and spice! Wait, let me crunch you up!" — "Not a chance!" laughed the Gingerbread Man. "I ran from the old woman and the old man, and I'll run from you too! Run, run, as fast as you can! You can't catch me, I'm the Gingerbread Man!" And off the cow galloped after him.
4
A little further on, a horse grazed by the path. "Neigh — gingerbread!" he whinnied. "What a sweet little snack!" — "Not a chance!" shouted the Gingerbread Man without slowing. "I ran from the old woman, the old man and the cow, and I'll run from you too! Run, run, as fast as you can! You can't catch me, I'm the Gingerbread Man!" And the horse thundered after him.
5
Now they all ran after him in a long line: the old woman in her striped apron, the old man in his straw hat, the cow with her bell and the horse with his flying mane. Dust rose to the sky, and down the valley it echoed: "Run, run, as fast as you can! You can't catch me, I'm the Gingerbread Man!" And no one caught him — however fast they ran, they came not one step closer.
6
Then suddenly — a river! Wide, deep, and not a bridge in sight anywhere. The Gingerbread Man stopped on the bank, hopping from foot to foot, for gingerbread men cannot swim. Just then a sly fox peeped out from behind a bush. "What a shame it would be if such a fine little fellow got wet," she said sweetly. "Hop onto my tail and I'll carry you across."
7
The Gingerbread Man did not think twice. He hopped onto the fox's tail, and she began to swim. In the middle of the river she said: "The water is getting deeper and my tail is sinking. Climb onto my back, you'll stay dry there." He climbed onto her soft red back, and the fox swam on, quiet as a shadow, smiling a very quiet smile.
8
"Oh dear, the water is up over my back!" said the fox after a while. "Jump onto my head and stay dry." The Gingerbread Man jumped onto her head. "And now onto the very tip of my nose," said the fox with a wink, "you'll be quite safe there." And he bravely stepped onto the very tip of her nose — the far bank was already close.
9
Then the fox tossed her head high, opened her mouth wide and — snap! In one single gulp that was the end of the Gingerbread Man, as so often happens to sweet and speedy gingerbread men. The fox licked up every last crumb, wiped her nose with her tail, waved goodbye and trotted off, well pleased, along the river.
10
On the far bank the old woman, the old man, the cow and the horse stood watching until the fox vanished among the willows. Then they slowly walked home. That very evening the old woman baked a fresh tray of gingerbread — and this batch lay nice and still on the plate, and with a cup of warm milk it tasted good to everyone. The old man ate three.
11The End
