The Fisherman and his Wife

A poor fisherman lives with his wife in a small hut. One day, he catches a strange fish that can talk. The fish says, "I'm not a fish. I'm a magic prince." The kind fisherman lets the fish go back to the sea. When he tells his wife, she gets angry. She says, "You silly man! A magic fish can help us. I want a nice cottage. Go and ask the fish!" The fisherman doesn't want to ask, but his wife makes him go.

The fisherman goes back to the sea. The water is green now. He calls the fish and asks for a cottage. The fish says, "Go home! She has it." When the fisherman returns, his wife is happy with their new cottage. But after one week, she says, "This cottage is small. I want a big house." The fisherman doesn't want to ask again, but his wife makes him go. The water is purple now. The fish gives them a big house.

The wife is happy with the big house, but only for one week. Then she says, "I want a castle!" The fisherman is sad but asks the fish again. Now the water is grey. The fish gives them a castle. But the wife is not happy for long. After one week, she says, "This castle is small. I want a palace and I want to be queen!" The fisherman asks the fish (now with brown water) and gets her wish.

Now the wife is queen in a palace, but she still can't sleep at night. She wants more. In the morning, she says, "I want the world! I want to be emperor of all the world!" The fisherman says, "No! You can't have all the world." But she cries and makes him go. The sea is black now. The fisherman calls the fish and asks for the world. The fish gets angry and says, "Go home and don't come back!"

When the fisherman goes home, he sees their old hut again. All the big houses and castles are gone. His wife says, "Look at this hut! It isn't very nice... but it's our home." The fisherman asks, "Can we be happy now?" His wife thinks and says, "Yes, I think we can." They learn that wanting too much can make you lose everything. It's better to be happy with what you have.