THE THREE WISHES
by Ada M. Skinner · from Merry Tales
Adapted Version
Once upon a time, a woodcutter lived. He had a wife. They were very poor. Their house was small. They had little food. The Woodcutter worked hard. He felt sad. The Wife also felt sad. They wanted more.
One day, The Woodcutter went to the forest. He cut wood. A small, kind Fairy came. She smiled at him. "I will give you three wishes," she said. "Ask for anything." The Fairy then went away.
The Woodcutter ran home fast. He told The Wife. "A Fairy gave us three wishes!" he said. The Wife was very happy. They sat down. "We can wish for much money," he said. "Yes, and a big house," she said. "And nice clothes!"
They ate a simple dinner. They talked about wishes. It was hard to choose. "What is best?" The Wife asked. They could not decide.
The Woodcutter was very hungry. He looked at his food. "Oh, I wish for a tasty sausage!" he cried. A big sausage appeared. It was on their table. This was the first wish.
The Wife was very upset. "Why did you wish for sausage?" she asked. "That was a silly wish! Now one wish is gone. You made a big mistake." She felt cross.
The Woodcutter was annoyed. The Wife kept talking. He felt cross. "I wish the sausage was on your nose!" he said. He did not think. This was the second wish.
The sausage went onto The Wife's nose. It stuck there. She looked very funny. The Wife was very sad. She started to cry. "Oh, no!" she said.
The Wife was very, very sad. Two wishes were gone now. She had a sausage on her nose. She felt silly. She felt unhappy. She cried more.
"Money cannot help me now," she cried. "I have this sausage!" The Woodcutter felt bad. He was sorry for his wish.
The Woodcutter saw her tears. He felt her sadness. He used the last wish. "I wish the sausage was gone!" he said. The sausage went away. This was the third wish.
No wishes were left now. They were still poor. They had no money. They had no big house. They learned a lesson. It is good to think before you wish.
Original Story
THE THREE WISHES
Once upon a time in the heart of a forest lived a woodcutter and his wife. They were very poor indeed. Their little cabin, built of rough-hewn logs, had only one room, which was very scantily and poorly furnished. One day the woodcutter said to his wife,
“How miserable we are! We work all day, and we have barely enough food to keep life in our bodies! Surely there are few who work as hard as we do and have so little!”
The housewife replied, “Yes, indeed, we are very miserable.”
“Well, I’m off for another day’s work,” sighed the husband. “My lot is too hard.”
He picked up his ax and made his way to 40the place in the forest where he was to perform his task. Suddenly, a dear little fairy whose face was wreathed in smiles danced into the path and stood before him.
“I am the wishing fairy,” she began. “I heard what you said about your work and your life, and my heart aches for you. Now, because I am a fairy, it is in my power to grant you three wishes. Ask for any three things you desire and your wishes shall be granted.” The fairy disappeared in the twinkling of an eye, and the woodcutter was left standing alone in the forest. Was he dreaming? He couldn’t believe his own senses! He thought of a thousand wishes all in an instant. He would go home and talk the matter over with his wife. He turned in his path and retraced his steps to the cabin.
“Art thou ill?” demanded his wife, who came to the door.
“Oh, no, indeed, I am not ill; I am very, very happy!” he burst forth. “I met a fairy in the forest. She told me that she was very, very sorry for me, and that she would help me 41by granting three wishes. Think of it! Any three wishes in the world will be granted by the charming fairy.”
“Wonderful!” responded the housewife.
“Oh, how happy the very thought of it makes me! Come, let us sit down and talk the matter over; for I assure you it is not easy to come to a decision. I am indeed, very, very happy.”
They drew up their chairs to the little table and sat down.
“I am so hungry,” began the woodcutter. “Let us have dinner, and then, while we are eating, we can talk about our wishes and see which three are nearest our hearts’ desires.”
They began their humble meal immediately, and the husband continued: “Of course one of our wishes must be great riches. What do you say?”
“Oh, yes, indeed,” said his wife. “I should love a beautiful house to live in, also carriages and fine clothes, and servants and—”
“Oh, for that matter,” said the husband, “we could wish for an empire.”
42“Or rich jewels, such as great numbers of pearls and diamonds! What a wish that would be,” said the wife, whose face was all aglow.
“I have it,” burst forth the woodman, “let us wish for a fine large family, five sons and five daughters, What say you to that?”
“Oh!” returned his wife, “I think I prefer six sons and four daughters.”
So they continued weighing one wish with another until they seemed almost in despair about coming to a decision regarding which three wishes would be the wisest and best. They finally stopped talking and ate their simple food in silence. The woodcutter did not seem to relish his soup and dry bread.
“Oh,” he cried out suddenly, “how I wish I had some nice savory sausage for dinner!” No sooner had the words fallen from his lips than a large dish of fine sausages appeared on the table. What a surprise! The two were so astonished that for a few moments they could not speak. Then the wife said impatiently:
43“What do you mean by making such a foolish wish? Do you not see that this dish of sausage means that one wish has been granted and that there are but two left? How could you make such a stupid, stupid wish?”
“Well,” replied the husband, “to be sure I have been foolish. I really did not think what I was saying. However, we may still wish for great riches and an empire.”
“Humph!” grumbled the wife, “we may wish for riches and an empire, but what about a fine large family? You have certainly been foolish in wishing for that horrid sausage. I suppose, however, you prefer sausage to a fine family;” and she burst out into tears of lamentation, crying: “How could you? How could you be so foolish? Oh, dear! Oh, dear! How very foolish and stupid you have been.”
Finally her husband lost all patience and cried out: “I’m tired of your grumbling! I wish the sausage were on the end of your nose!”
44In an instant the sausage was fastened to the end of the poor woman’s nose. How comical she did look! The husband and wife were so astonished that they could not speak. The poor woman again burst into tears.
“Oh!” she cried. “How could you? How could you? First, you wished for sausage, and second, you wished that the sausage were fastened to my poor nose. It is terrible. It is cruel. Two wishes have been granted. There remains but one! Oh, dear, dear!”
The husband, who now saw what a dreadful mistake he had made, said meekly,
“We may still wish for great riches.”
“Riches indeed!” snapped his wife. “Here I am with this great sausage fastened to the end of my nose. What good would riches do me? How ridiculous I am. It is all your fault. I was so happy at the thought of great riches, beautiful jewels, and a fine family, and now I am sad and miserable.” She continued to weep so pitifully that her husband’s heart was touched.
45“I wish with all my heart that the sausage were not on your nose,” he said. In an instant the sausage disappeared. There the two sat lamenting; but as the three wishes had been granted there is nothing further to be said.
Story DNA
Moral
Be careful what you wish for, as impulsive desires can lead to foolish outcomes and wasted opportunities.
Plot Summary
A poor woodcutter and his wife are granted three wishes by a fairy. They initially dream of great riches and a grand family, but struggle to make a decision. During dinner, the woodcutter impulsively wishes for a sausage, using up the first wish. His wife scolds him fiercely, and in a fit of anger, he wishes the sausage onto her nose. Humiliated and distraught, the wife convinces her husband to use the final wish to remove the sausage, leaving them back in their original state of poverty with no wishes left.
Themes
Emotional Arc
hope to despair to resignation
Writing Style
Narrative Elements
Cultural Context
This story reflects common themes in European folklore about the dangers of greed and impulsive wishes, often found in collections like those by the Brothers Grimm or Hans Christian Andersen, though this specific version is by Ada M. Skinner.
Plot Beats (12)
- A poor woodcutter and his wife express their unhappiness with their meager lives.
- The woodcutter goes to work and encounters a fairy who grants him three wishes.
- He rushes home to tell his wife, and they excitedly discuss all the wonderful things they could wish for, like riches, a grand house, and a large family.
- They struggle to decide on the best three wishes while eating their simple dinner.
- The woodcutter, feeling hungry, impulsively wishes for a savory sausage, which immediately appears.
- His wife is furious that he wasted a wish on something so trivial, scolding him harshly.
- Exasperated by her constant complaining, the woodcutter angrily wishes the sausage were on her nose.
- The sausage instantly appears on his wife's nose, making her look ridiculous and causing her to weep.
- The wife is devastated, realizing two wishes are gone and she is left with a sausage on her face.
- She laments that riches would be useless to her in such a state, making her husband feel remorse.
- The woodcutter, his heart touched by her misery, uses the third and final wish to remove the sausage from her nose.
- The couple is left with no wishes remaining and still in their original state of poverty.
Characters
The Woodcutter ★ protagonist
A man of average height and sturdy build, hardened by years of manual labor in the forest. His hands are calloused, and his face is weathered from exposure to the elements. He likely has a lean physique from constant physical exertion.
Attire: Rough, practical clothing suitable for manual labor in a forest. He wears a coarse linen or wool tunic, likely in muted earth tones like brown or grey, possibly patched in places. Sturdy trousers or breeches are tucked into worn leather boots. He might wear a simple leather belt.
Wants: To escape poverty and provide a better life for himself and his wife. He desires comfort, riches, and a large family.
Flaw: Impulsiveness and a lack of foresight. He speaks without thinking, leading to unfortunate consequences.
He begins as a complaining, hopeful man, then becomes foolishly impulsive, and finally learns a lesson about the consequences of thoughtless wishes, ending with a selfless act of love.
Impulsive, easily swayed by immediate desires, somewhat naive, prone to complaining but also capable of great happiness and remorse. He is ultimately kind-hearted.
Image Prompt & Upload
A middle-aged man with a sturdy, lean build, facing forward, full body visible head to toe. He has a weathered face, short dark hair, and a simple, unkempt beard. He wears a patched, coarse grey linen tunic, sturdy brown breeches, and worn leather boots. A simple leather belt is cinched around his waist. He holds a well-used iron ax with a wooden handle in his right hand, resting it on the ground. His expression is one of slight weariness but also a hint of hopeful anticipation. Plain white background, full body visible head to toe, single figure, no watermark, no text, no signature.
The Housewife ◆ supporting
A woman of average height and a slender build, likely thin from a life of hard work and meager meals. Her hands are probably rough from household chores.
Attire: Plain, practical clothing suitable for a poor peasant woman. She wears a long, simple linen dress or smock, likely in a muted color like faded blue or brown, possibly with a simple apron over it. Her clothes are mended and well-worn. She might wear simple, sturdy shoes or go barefoot indoors.
Wants: To escape poverty and acquire riches, a beautiful house, carriages, fine clothes, servants, jewels, and a large family.
Flaw: Impatience, a tendency to blame others, and an inability to see beyond her immediate misfortune.
She starts hopeful, becomes critical and miserable due to her husband's foolish wishes, and ends up as the direct victim of his second wish, leading to her husband's final selfless act.
Initially hopeful and supportive, but quickly becomes impatient, critical, and prone to lamentation when things go wrong. She is materialistic and desires comfort and status.
Image Prompt & Upload
A middle-aged woman with a slender build, facing forward, full body visible head to toe. She has a simple, unadorned face, with dark hair pulled back in a neat bun. She wears a long, faded blue linen dress and a plain cream-colored apron tied at the waist. Her hands are clasped in front of her. Her expression is one of deep sadness and frustration, with a large, savory sausage comically fastened to the end of her nose. Plain white background, full body visible head to toe, single figure, no watermark, no text, no signature.
The Wishing Fairy ○ minor
A tiny, delicate creature, ethereal and light, with a graceful form that suggests effortless movement.
Attire: A shimmering, gossamer gown that seems to be woven from light itself, perhaps in soft pastel colors like rose or sky blue. It flows around her as she moves, giving her an otherworldly appearance.
Wants: To alleviate the suffering of the deserving poor and to grant wishes as part of her fairy nature.
Flaw: None explicitly stated, but her power is limited to granting wishes, not controlling how they are used.
She appears, grants the wishes, and disappears, serving as the catalyst for the story's events without undergoing any personal change.
Kind, compassionate, benevolent, and powerful. She is observant of human suffering and willing to offer aid.
Image Prompt & Upload
A tiny, delicate female fairy with a graceful form, facing forward, full body visible head to toe. She has a sweet, smiling face with bright, sparkling eyes and long, flowing golden hair. She wears a shimmering, gossamer gown in soft rose and sky blue, which flows around her. Her posture is light and airy, as if she is dancing or floating. She has delicate, translucent wings on her back. Plain white background, full body visible head to toe, single figure, no watermark, no text, no signature.
Locations
Woodcutter's Cabin
A small, single-room cabin built of rough-hewn logs, very scantily and poorly furnished, suggesting extreme poverty.
Mood: Miserable, humble, later astonished and then despairing.
The woodcutter and his wife discuss their misery, plan their wishes, and accidentally use their first two wishes here. The final wish is also used here to remove the sausage.
Image Prompt & Upload
A dimly lit, rustic interior of a small, one-room cabin. The walls are constructed from rough-hewn, unchinked logs, showing the natural grain and knots. A simple, sturdy wooden table stands in the center, with two crude, backless wooden stools pulled up to it. A single, small, unglazed window lets in a sliver of weak, diffused daylight. The floor is packed earth, uneven and worn. no border, no frame, no watermark, no text, no signature, edge-to-edge illustration.
Heart of the Forest
A dense, natural forest where the woodcutter performs his daily tasks, characterized by trees and paths.
Mood: Ordinary, then suddenly magical and hopeful.
The woodcutter encounters the wishing fairy who grants him three wishes.
Image Prompt & Upload
A winding, narrow dirt path cutting through a dense, ancient European forest. Tall, straight oak and beech trees with rough bark rise on either side, their canopies forming a thick, dappled green ceiling. Sunlight filters through the leaves, creating shifting patterns of light and shadow on the forest floor, which is covered in fallen leaves and mossy roots. A sense of quiet solitude pervades the scene. no border, no frame, no watermark, no text, no signature, edge-to-edge illustration.
