Somewhere among the high mountains there is a small village. And at the end of that village, in a small hut, lived a poor boy with his mother. His mother was sickly, but she still tried her best. The family made a living by selling everything they could.
Hansel was a clever boy, he knew how to work in the fields and how to look after chickens, so they could always sell their harvest and some eggs at the market. And his mother collected wicker, from which she wove beautiful baskets. Hansel was happy when he had some extra work to do, such as helping someone with repairs or around the house, but that didn’t happen often.
The money they earned was just enough to live on, but Hansel dreamed that he would be lucky and earn enough to repair the cottage a little. After all, the roof was old, the fireplace was broken, and he didn’t want his mother to get even sicker in the winter. One day, he went to the market with baskets and eggs, which he wanted to sell as usual. He sat there sadly, waiting for customers, when an elderly grandfather who lived nearby appeared. “Hello, Hansel, how are you? You look sad. I’ll take some of your homemade eggs, they’re truly the best,” said the old man as he stopped by Hansel.
“But Grandpa, what can I tell you? Winter is coming, and I’d like to do some repairs on the cottage. Mom is sick, and I don’t want her to get any sicker, but there’s no money. What I earn here is just enough to survive,” complained Hansel and handed grandfather the eggs. Grandfather motioned for him to lean closer. Hansel did so, and grandfather whispered to him, “I heard that there is a well above the village, above the forest. But it’s not just any well. Just throw a gold coin into it and it will grant you any wish. But be careful that no one sees you, and don’t tell anyone about it. Not all people are good.”
Hansel thought the advice was a little crazy, but he figured it couldn’t hurt to try, so in the evening he went into the forest where grandfather had sent him. He wandered through the dark forest, lighting his way with a match, until he really saw a well behind some tall bushes. He walked closer to the well and thought for a moment about the foolish thing he was about to do. Finally, however, he took out a gold coin and threw it into the well. He found it strange that he didn’t hear the coin hit the water or make a splash. “I wish I had enough money to repair the roof and buy a new fireplace for my mother,” he said, and then slowly made his way back home.
He didn’t expect it, but when he got home, there was a purse waiting for him on the table, and in that purse was enough money for a new roof, a fireplace, and everything else he needed to repair for the winter. Hansel told his mother everything, and she was also thrilled.
When Hansel went to the market to sell again a few days later, the old man was passing by again and told him about the magic well. Hansel waved to him and the old man walked over to him. “Thank you, sir, you gave me very good advice. It really works. I don’t even know how to thank you,” said Hansel, bowing gratefully to the old man. “It’s nothing. I’m glad if it helped someone who really needed it,” said the old man. Suddenly, a woman’s scream interrupted their conversation: “Thieves! Help!” Hansel immediately looked in that direction and saw two men running away with a bag. They had a head start, but Hansel ran after them. What he found strange, however, was that the men headed into the forest. Hansel recognized the path and knew when he had been there before. It was the evening when he went to the well. And indeed, it was. The men reached the well and began throwing the stolen money into it. They began asking for various useless things in exchange for it.
Hansel couldn’t resist. He ran out of the bushes, where he had been watching the situation, and pushed the men into the well. The purse remained on the well, but there was only one coin left in it. That wouldn’t be much to give back to the lady. But he had a better idea. After all, he was at a magic well. So he threw the coin into the well and made a wish:
“I wish that all stolen things would be returned to their owners.” Believe it or not, several people were happy that evening, and Hansel returned to the well once more. All the while, he thought about how those men weren’t the only swindlers on earth. And so he wished that greedy people would never find the magic well again.
