Hansel and Gretel - German

My name is Gretel, and my big brother is Hansel. We lived with our father, a poor woodcutter, and our stepmother in a tiny cottage at the edge of a great, green forest. One year, food was so scarce that our tummies were always empty, and our parents grew very worried. They decided they had to leave us in the woods, hoping someone kind would find us. This is the story of Hansel and Gretel. The first time they tried, clever Hansel was prepared. He had filled his pockets with shiny white pebbles and dropped them one by one to mark our path. When the moon rose, its light made the pebbles glitter like silver coins, and we followed them all the way home. But the second time, our stepmother had locked the door, and Hansel only had a crust of bread. He dropped breadcrumbs to mark the trail, but the little birds of the forest were hungry too, and they ate every last crumb, leaving us truly lost.

We wandered for three whole days, and our hunger felt like a giant hole in our bellies. Just when we thought we couldn't walk another step, we stumbled into a clearing and saw the most wonderful sight. It was a little house made of gingerbread, with a roof of thick cake, and windows made of clear, sweet sugar! 'Hansel, look!' I whispered, my eyes wide with disbelief. We were so hungry we ran right up and started nibbling on the delicious walls. Suddenly, the door creaked open. An old woman with a wobbly voice appeared. 'Hello, my dears,' she said with a sugary smile. 'You must be hungry. Come inside!' She seemed so kind, offering us fluffy pancakes with sweet syrup and tucking us into soft, warm beds. But her kindness was a trick. She was a wicked witch who built her candy house to lure children in so she could eat them! The next morning, she grabbed Hansel and locked him in a little cage to fatten him up. She made me do all the chores, from scrubbing the floors to fetching water. Every day, the witch, whose eyes were very dim, would shuffle to the cage and say, 'Stick out your finger, boy, so I can feel if you are plump enough.' But I was clever too, so I found a little chicken bone and gave it to Hansel. He would hold out the thin bone, and the witch would grumble that he was still too skinny.

After a few weeks, the witch grew impatient and decided she would cook Hansel anyway. 'Gretel!' she screeched. 'Crawl into the oven and see if the fire is hot enough.' I knew right away that she planned to push me in and bake me too. My heart pounded like a drum, but I had an idea. 'I don't know how,' I said, pretending to be confused. 'I'm too small. How do I get in?' The witch grumbled, 'Silly girl! You are big enough. Just look, I'll show you.' As she leaned forward and stuck her head into the big brick oven, I gave her a great big PUSH with all my might and slammed the heavy iron door shut. We were free! We explored her cottage and found chests overflowing with pearls and sparkling jewels. We filled our pockets until they were bulging and then ran from that terrible place. The forest seemed friendlier now, and soon we found a path we knew. It led us all the way back to our cottage. Our father cried with joy when he saw us; our cruel stepmother had gone away. We poured the treasure onto the table, and our father knew we would never be hungry again. This famous story was first written down in Germany by two brothers, Jacob and Wilhelm Grimm, on December 20th, 1812. It teaches us that even when you feel small and lost, being brave, clever, and sticking together can help you find your way home.