Thumbelina

Thumbelina

Once upon a time, there lived a woman who wished with all her heart to have a child. A kind old fairy gave her a magical barleycorn. The woman planted it in a flowerpot, and soon, a beautiful tulip bloomed. Sitting right in the center of the flower was a tiny, graceful girl, no bigger than a thumb. They named her Thumbelina.

A Tiny Girl in a Big World

Thumbelina’s bed was a polished walnut shell, and her blanket was a soft rose petal. But one night, a pond toad hopped through the window and snatched her away! The toad wanted Thumbelina to marry her son and trapped her on a lily pad in the middle of a stream. As Thumbelina wept, the little fish in the water felt sorry for her; they gnawed through the lily's stem, letting the leaf float away to safety.

Seasons and Struggles

For a while, Thumbelina lived in the forest, drinking nectar from flowers. But when winter arrived, the freezing cold set in. Just as she was about to freeze, a Field Mouse took her into her warm burrow. The mouse treated her well, but in return, she wanted Thumbelina to marry a wealthy, blind Mole. Thumbelina dreaded the idea of living underground in the dark forever.

During that winter, she found a wounded Swallow in the mouse's tunnels. Thumbelina cared for the bird all winter long, keeping him warm and healing his wings with her kindness.

Flying to Freedom

When the wedding day arrived, the healed Swallow returned to show his gratitude: — "Come with me! Hop on my back, and I will take you to warm lands where winter never comes and flowers never fade," he chirped.

Thumbelina climbed onto the Swallow’s back, and they flew high above the clouds. Finally, they reached a valley filled with colorful blossoms.

When Thumbelina landed inside a flower, she met a tiny Flower Prince who had wings just like a butterfly. He fell in love with her beauty and her kind heart. He gave her a pair of wings of her own and asked her to be his Queen. Thumbelina became the "Queen of the Flowers," and from that day on, she lived happily in a land of eternal sunshine.