The Straw, the Coal, and the Bean

The Straw, the Coal, and the Bean

A kind woman lived on the edge of a little town. One morning she decided to make bean soup. She lit the fire, placed dry wood in the stove, brought a bowl of beans, and began working in the kitchen.

While she turned toward the shelf for salt, something strange happened.

A thin piece of straw beside the stove suddenly moved.

“Oh dear,” it whispered. “A little longer and they’ll throw me into the fire!”

At that moment, a small black coal rolled from the stove. One edge still glowed red.

“Move, please!” it hissed. “I just escaped the flames. Another minute in there and I would have become ash.”

Meanwhile, a round bean jumped from the bowl onto the table, rolled to the edge, bounced onto a bench, and dropped to the floor.

“Wait for me!” cried the bean. “I don’t want to become soup today either.”

The three escapees hid behind a basket of firewood. When the kitchen became quiet, they peered out.

“We were very lucky,” said the bean. “But if we stay here, sooner or later someone will find us.”

“What should we do?” asked the straw.

“Travel!” cried the coal. “There must be a great big world beyond the garden.”

So the three new friends set off.

The straw went first because she was the longest and could push grass aside. The bean rolled cheerfully behind. The coal hurried last, taking care not to touch dry leaves with his warm side.

They crossed the vegetable garden, slipped beneath the fence, saw a field they had never seen before, and felt very proud.

“You see,” said the bean, “once you dare to begin, the world becomes larger.”

Soon they reached a stream.

Water rushed over stones and splashed cheerfully along the banks.

“Now that is a problem,” said the coal. “I don’t like water.”

“I don’t want to swim either,” admitted the bean. “The current might carry me anywhere.”

The straw thought.

“I’ll lie across the stream like a bridge. You cross over me, then help me reach the other side.”

“Excellent!” cried the bean.

The straw stretched from one bank to the other. The coal stepped onto the unusual bridge first.

“Careful,” warned the straw. “Don’t hurry.”

The coal moved forward.

In the middle, he looked down.

Water rushed directly beneath him.

“Oh...” whispered the coal.

He became so frightened that he froze.

“Keep going!” encouraged the bean.

“I can’t. My legs are shaking.”

“You don’t have legs,” the straw reminded him.

“Then everything else is shaking!”

The bean burst out laughing.

The coal laughed too. He moved forward, but his warm side touched the straw.

“Ow! Hot!” squeaked the straw.

A tiny dark mark appeared.

“Back!” called the bean. “We need a stronger bridge.”

The coal quickly returned.

The friends sat down to think.

Then the bean noticed a wide piece of wood nearby.

“What if we place it beside the straw? The bridge will be wider and cooler.”

That is what they did.

This time the coal crossed safely. Then the bean rolled across. Together they pulled the straw onto the far bank.

“Hooray!” they all cried.

The bean laughed so hard that she nearly rolled back into the water.

“Careful,” said the straw. “One adventure is enough for today.”

They continued until evening and found a cozy place beneath a hazel bush.

The straw made soft bedding. The coal warmed a small stone for the night. The bean found an acorn cup and collected a few drops of dew.

“You know,” said the bean as the moon rose, “alone, none of us would probably have made it this far.”

“True,” said the coal. “I would have stopped at the first stream.”

“And I would never have thought of a better bridge without you,” said the straw.

From then on, the three friends traveled together. They still argued, became frightened, and got into funny trouble, but they remembered one thing: with friends beside you, even a little stream no longer looks like an impossible river.

Somewhere at the edge of a great field, people say, there is still a path once traveled by the Straw, the Coal, and the Bean, three tiny travelers with enormous plans.

May this story leave a little light in your heart ✨