Section 1
Once there lived a widow who had two daughters. One of them was extremely hardworking and beautiful, while the other was lazy and unattractive. Surprisingly, the mother favored the ugly one because she was her biological child. The stepdaughter was treated poorly and was given all the household chores. She was treated like a servant and was always mistreated. Every day, her stepmother ordered her to go and spin some yarn near a well on the busy road. The poor girl had to sit there all day spinning, until her fingers started to bleed. Suddenly, she pricked her finger on the spindle, causing a few drops of blood to fall onto it. As she was trying to wash the blood off the spindle, it slipped from her hand and fell into the well. The girl ran back home crying to tell her stepmother what had happened. However, instead of consoling her, the stepmother scolded her and cruelly ordered her to retrieve the spindle from the well herself.
The distressed girl returned to the well, unsure of what to do. Eventually, in her desperation, she leaped into the water to retrieve the spindle.
She couldn't recall anything else until she regained consciousness and found herself in a stunning meadow, filled with sunshine and an abundance of blooming flowers in every direction.
As she walked through the meadow, she stumbled upon a baker's oven overflowing with bread. To her amazement, the loaves began to plead with her, "Please take us out! Take us out! If you don't, we'll be burnt to a crisp. We have been baking for far too long." Moved by their distress, she fetched the bread shovel and carefully lifted them out.
The girl continued walking and soon stumbled upon an apple tree, heavy with fruit. "Please shake me," begged the tree. "All my apples are ripe and ready to be picked." So she shook the tree, causing the apples to rain down upon her. She kept shaking until every last apple had fallen, and then she carefully gathered them into a neat pile before continuing on her journey.
As she walked further, she stumbled upon a little cottage. Peering out from the window was an old woman with such large teeth that the girl was frightened and started to run away. However, the old woman called out to her, "Don't be afraid, dear child. Stay with me, and if you do my household chores well, I will make you happy." She warned the girl to be careful in making her bed, shaking it until the feathers flew about, so that it would appear as if it were snowing. The old woman introduced herself as Mother Holle. Her kind words eased the girl's fears, and she decided to work for her.
The girl dutifully followed the old woman's instructions and diligently carried out her tasks. Each time she made the bed, she shook it with all her might, causing feathers to swirl about like a flurry of snowflakes. In return, the old woman treated her kindly, never speaking harshly and providing her with delicious roast and boiled meats every day.
The girl continued to work for Mother Holle for some time, but eventually, she began to feel a sense of melancholy creeping in. At first, she couldn't really understand why she felt this way, but then she realized that she was longing to return home. Despite knowing that she was a thousand times better off with Mother Holle than with her mother and sister, she couldn't shake the feeling of homesickness. After much deliberation, she decided to approach Mother Holle and said, "As much as I like being here, I am overwhelmed by homesickness, and I must return to my own people."
Mother Holle responded, "I understand your longing to be with your own people, and since you have served me so loyally and diligently, I will personally accompany you back home."
Mother Holle took the girl's hand and led her towards a wide gateway. The gates opened and as she passed through it, a shower of gold descended upon the girl, and the gold stuck to her so that she was completely covered with it from head to toe.
"That is your reward for your hard work," said Mother Holle, and as she spoke she gave the girl the spindle that she had lost in the well.
The gate was then shut and the girl found herself standing once again in the courtyard of her mother's house. As she approached, the rooster perched on the well cried out:
"Cock-a-doodle-doo! Your precious daughter has returned to you, covered in gold,"
