En Patufet

Patufet 

 Once upon a time, there were was a little boy, so small that he could fit in the palm of a hand. His father and his mother named him Patufet.

One day, Patufet’s mother was cooking lunch and she said:

-          Oh! I ran of saffron!

And Patufet was very happy, and offered to go to the shop.  He said:

-          If we don’t have saffron, I can go to buy some at the shop.

Patufet’s mother, was afraid of Patufet being stepped on, and she was doubting.  But Patufet said:

-          Don’t worry, Mum!  I’ll sing loud so that everybody can hear me and they don’t step on me.

The mother finally said yes, and gave him a small coin.  Once in the street, Patufet sang

loudly so that everyone could hear him:

Patim, patam, patum

Men and women of the street,

Patim, patam, patum

Don't step on Patufet!

Happy and singing, Patufet arrived at Joseph’s shop.  And Patufet said:

-          Ei! Ei!

-          Who’s there ?

-          Don’t you see me?  I’m down here!  Under the coin!  I want to buy a bit of saffron.

The shopkeeper didn’t see anybody, but he saw a walking coin and he thought he was Patufet. He picked up the coin and he put a small bag of saffron where there was the coin.

Patufet, went back home, carrying the saffron, happy and singing:

Patim, patam, patum

Men and women of the street,

Patim, patam, patum

Don't step on Patufet!

Patufet’s mother was very happy.  She took the saffron and threw it into the pan.  And she said:

-          Father's lunch will be ready soon. 

Patufet said:

-          Mum, I'm going to take lunch to Father!  If I can go to the shop, I can take lunch to dad too! 

Patufet’s mother replied:

-          No, no way! The basket is too heavy, and it’s very dangerous.

-          But I'm very strong, I'll be careful, and I'll sing loud so that no one steps on me.

Patufet insisted and begged so much, that his mother couldn’t refuse.  Finally, his mother gave him the basket, and Patufet went to the forest to take lunch to his dad, carrying it on his shoulders.

On the way, he was singing:

Patim, patam, patum

Men and women of the street,

Patim, patam, patum

Don't step on Patufet!

Suddenly, it started to rain, and Patufet ran to take shelter under a cabbage so as not to get wet.

A very hungry bull was passing by, and seeing that big and splendid cabbage, it didn't hesitate to eat it in one bite, and with it poor Patufet who was sheltering there.

-----------------

Patufet fell asleep under the cabbage. 

While he slept, along came a hungry ox, who ate the cabbage—and Patufet with it!

When Patufet didn’t come home, his parents went looking for him, calling his name. Inside the ox’s belly, Patufet woke up and heard them. He shouted:

"I'm inside the ox,

Where it's dark and hot!"

His parents were shocked. But they had an idea:  They fed the ox lots of cabbages, and eventually… the ox let out a big burp—and out came Patufet, safe and sound!

From that day on, Patufet’s bravery was well known in the village, and his parents never doubted him again.

THE ENDINGS CREATED BY THE STUDENTS. 

Slovenian ending 

Patufet was eaten alive but luckily he wasn’t chewed by the bull. He lived in the bull’s stomach and ate the food that came. After three days he was pooped out of the bull. He ran into a house that had an open door. The door behind him was shut by the wind so he was trapped. Inside was an old man. Patufet yelled to him for help. The man gave him food and a bed for the night. In the morning the man told him where he needs to go to get back to his village. Patufet went back home and found his mother stopped looking for him as it has been three days. The night was coming and he hid into a warm hole the mice made. In the morning his mother found him and he wasn’t allowed to help anymore.

Romanian ending 

The giant bull, with fiery eyes, had moved on, leaving behind only a heavy silence and the darkness that settled over the forest. He had no mercy, and Patufet, the tiny boy, had been swallowed in an instant, without a chance to speak a word or fight. He remained there, in the belly of the beast, in the midst of a dark and narrow world. Lying on a bed of dampness and thorns, he didn’t know what to do—but despite his fear, a brave idea sprang into his mind.

Time passed slowly in the village. Patufet’s mother, worried, didn’t know what to believe anymore. “Where has my child gone?” she kept asking herself, anxious yet still hoping that everything would turn out fine. She didn’t know that her son, though missing, was still alive, and his courage was about to unfold an unbelievable tale.

His father decided to go search for him. The news that Patufet hadn’t come home overwhelmed him. The man set off into the forest, knowing that only there could he find answers. He too had no idea that something strange was about to happen in that forest.

But the parents’ search seemed in vain. Night had fallen like a heavy and silent curtain, and the forest seemed to swallow all light. The two parents showed no signs of exhaustion. Between them, words were few, but their eyes spoke more than anything—full of fear, but also of hope. “Where could he be?” they asked themselves, with no answer.

And then, like a flash in the middle of the night, an old man appeared before them. He was an elderly man, with white hair and beard, dressed in a worn wool coat, but with piercing eyes that seemed to read the souls of those around him. “I see and hear things others cannot understand,” he told them, with a calm and deep voice. “Patufet is not lost, but he is not safe either. He was swallowed by the bull that roams the forest. Still, he is not dead. He is singing, and his song will bring salvation.”

The parents, astonished by the old man’s words, listened carefully. “How can we save him?” the mother asked, her voice trembling. The old man smiled wisely and replied, “Look for him where the cabbage roots are left behind. There you will find the key to set him free. His song will be the only weapon that can stop the beast.”

Without hesitation, the parents followed the old man’s advice, heading to the edge of the forest, where the bull had made his lair. The night’s silence was deep, and the forest seemed to breathe softly with every step they took. After several hours of walking, they reached a place where the roots of a giant cabbage, partially eaten by the bull, lay as proof of the animal’s passage.

There, under the pale light of the moon, they began to hear a song. It was a delicate song, yet full of determination—a sound that seeped into every crack of the forest. It was Patufet’s voice, singing from the depths of the beast, trying to make his presence known. His song had a mysterious power, a power that seemed able to change fate itself.

“Patim, patam, patum,
Men and women of the forest,
Patim, patam, patum,
Don’t step on Patufet!”

His song echoed like a refrain peeling out of the darkness of the forest. His mother and father began to sing too. Without knowing exactly how or why, the words flowed from their lips with a power born of their love for their son.

The beast, tormented by the music’s resonance, started twisting and turning. It was as if the melody itself had the power to bring him down. With one last sudden movement, the bull opened his mouth wide and, with a sharp sound, Patufet was thrown out—free and unharmed, as if it had all been just a dream.

“Here I am, Mama! Here I am, Papa! I’m here!” shouted Patufet, emerging from the darkness and hugging his parents with all his love.

And they, with eyes full of tears, understood that their love, their son’s courage, and the song that never ceased to echo had brought them joy once again. Their lives had changed, but the word “family” remained, always, the strongest bond.

From that day on, the forest became a place where all those in need of hope could hear Patufet’s song, and his story came to be told not only in their village but in every corner of the world, bringing light wherever it was needed.

Greek ending 

The bull had no idea that he had eaten Patufet with the cabbage. Inside the bull’s belly Patufet  got terrified and started searching for a way out. As he was walking around, he met another creature. At first, he couldn’t understand what it was but it turned out to be a butterfly. They became partners and continued the search together. As time was passing, they started to lose hope and thinking that they would never get out. They decided to sit down on the bull’s belly and rest for a while. They started talking to each other about themselves and discovered how they both got in there. At first, Patufet started talking and said that the bull ate him by accident. When he finished his story, the butterfly began to tell her own. The butterfly had been in the bull’s belly for years and had lost all hope of escaping. While she was inside, she  met many other creatures like him but they all tricked her, saying that they would help her get out. However, they took advantage of her. As they were talking, the bull coughed, they slipped and ended up outside. Patufet and the butterfly became happy to finally get out and hugged. A moment later, Patufet asked her out for a cup of tea the next Saturday. That was the day when they fell in love. Later that day, he returned home and described what had happened to his mother. From then on, they lived happily ever after!!!

Lithuanian ending

But the bull felt something in its mouth and spat Patufet out. Patufet was really very scared. The bull suddenly started speaking and asked where he was going. Patufet said that he’s going to his dad for lunch. Patufet was shocked that the bull could talk. The bull said that it can carry Patufet on its back to his dad. Patufet agreed, becuase he was very tired. The bull carried him on his back to his dad. Patufet thanked the bull and they became friends.