A beautiful piece of wood always brings to mind a beautiful fire, a lit fireplace.

In winter, one of the nicest things to do is warming up in front of a crackling fireplace. Fortunately I often had this opportunity. I have changed many houses but in recent years the fireplace has always been present. We lived a few years in a very large and ancient house. There were no heaters and we warmed up with these two huge fireplaces and a pellet stove. In some moments at home we had a maximum of 13/14 degrees!

Let’s say that at that time we are hardened in the cold! It is from that time spent in that beautiful place surrounded by nature that we took inspiration to write the “Fable of the Trentine lullaby”.

“The little girl was just over three years old when they moved there and she was enthusiastic about all the meetings that only the most pristine nature could offer … Every morning she went to greet the goats and often met fawns, squirrels and hares too”.

Sweet dreams from us!
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This story is about a Sicilian girl named Mariasole.

As a child she was always too lively and never stood still. The mother, to calm her down, gently cradled her and took her to the orange tree near her house… There he sang a lullaby and finally Mariasole fell asleep.

Growing up, Mariasole turned out to be a cheerful and energetic girl. In the orange harvest season, since the parents were busy, she enjoyed running around the estate and always inventing new games.

But the thing she liked the most was climbing trees! There was one in particular that was her favorite, a big chestnut tree near the toolshed. She was able to climb up that tree to the point where the sea could be seen in the distance.

She loved the sea, she liked to splash around in the water and every time her parents managed to take her there, Mariasole was very happy.

Lately, however, it didn’t happen very often.

 

Her mother was pregnant with her little brother and her belly became bigger every day.

On sundays, his mother preferred to rest and stay calm at home because during the week she got tired all day long to collect oranges.

Mariasole was a bit worried about the arrival of her little brother, but she was also curious. She really couldn’t wait for her little brother to be born! First of all she wanted to have a friend to play with as soon as possible and then  because her mom could pick her up more often as she did before, not having the excuse of the big belly that prevented that!

 

That day Mariasole wanted to do something different than usual. There was a bright sun and it was terribly hot. As always, mom and dad advised her to play nearby and not get into trouble.

She wanted to take a trip to the beach but her mother couldn’t go because the end of her pregnancy was very close. They told her that as soon as the little brother was born, they would all go together to the sea.

 

And then they had to work, now the harvest season was almost over… In short, she had to be patient.

“Ugh! What a bore!” thought Mariasole. If there was something she really didn’t like, it was exactly to be patient!

 

She headed, pouting, toward the big chestnut tree and began to climb.

 

This time, she thought, I want to get higher so I can see the sea even better.

And so she did. She was very nimble and so she didn’t struggle to get on top of a big branch.

“Wow, that’s great!” From there there was an amazing view and the sea could be seen very well!

 

Time passed and after a while Mariasole realized that she had to get off… But she didn’t know how! Yes, because it had been quite simple to climb, but get down wasn’t easy at all!

 

Meanwhile, her mother, not hearing her for a while, was beginning to wonder where she was. She decided to take a break to drink and freshen up a little. She began to call her, but Mariasole did not answer.

Then she called her husband, Rosario, and told him she was going to look for Mariasole.

He told her not to worry: “Relax yourself Magdalene, you know how she is, she can’t stay still but she will be somewhere around here…”

 

In the meantime Mariasole began to fear to stay there forever… In addition, her legs hurt after a long time in the same position!

Mariasole’s mother began to call her daughter aloud, but the little girl didn’t answer and she even seemed to have disappeared!

Then she came back to call her husband, to help her look for their little girl.

At one point they were talking just under the Great chestnut tree.

 

Mariasole closed her mouth to avoid being heard. “If they discover me, she thought in panic, there will be troubles for me… they will punish me and I’ll never see again my beloved sea, they will not allow me to go there anymore!

Meanwhile, his parents seemed increasingly apprehensive.

“But where she will be?” Mum said. “Maybe it’s because we told her that we can’t go to the beach today… I realized that she reacted bad… And then, we have neglected her in the last period, don’t you think? Lately we were too busy between our work and the arrival of her little brother… Our little girl is still so young!”

 

“Yes, maybe you’re right” answered the father… I’m sure she’s hidden somewhere… If she hears us” he said “I want she knows that we love her very much and that she will forever be our first-born loved one!”

“Of course!” mom quickly stated “When she wes born, it was the best day of my life and she will be my joy forever!”

 

On hearing those words, the child feels reassured. Her parents really cared for her! However, she wouldn’t have lasted much longer up there!

 

And so in a whisper she called: “Mom, Daddy, I’m up here, I can’t go down…” and burst into tears.

 

Immediately his father ran to take the ladder in the toolbox and climbed up to help Mariasole to get off.

 

It wasn’t easy to get her off the tree, but in the end everything went well and Mariasole swooped into the arms of her mother who comforted her and scolded her just a little… she was too happy to see her daughter safe and sound!

After a couple of weeks the long-awaited little brother was born; they called him Matteo and, as their mother and father had promised her, they all finally went to the sea together!

A child named Kol lived in a small island in the Philippine archipelago.

The village was made up of straw huts in the middle of a thick vegetation of fruit trees and it wasn’t far from the beach.

Kol’s family was very poor but, all things considered, he lived happily thanks to the abundance of fruit and fish that the nature around offered them.
There wasn’t a real school but a hut where an elderly lady gave the 5/6 children who attended it, teachings about the most important things to know like how to do account, read and write.

In the afternoon, Kol went to pick up bananas, coconut and mango along with the other children: it was a real job and once he came home with the harvest, Kol’s mother prepared excellent smoothies. Kol’s father filled the baskets with the remaining fruits and then brought them with a cart to the market to get something out of it.

Kol liked a lot to draw but he owned only a pencil and two pastel: a yellow one and a green one. He was very good and with those few colors he could make incredible drawings.

Everyone admired his talent but it seemed he didn’t realize it because it was very natural.

When he was a little older, at the age of 15, he decided to move to the nearby city to try his luck because, even if he liked the village life, he felt like destined for something else.
He greeted his parents with regret and moved to Cebu, where a friend who already lived there hosted him.

Recalling Kol’s drawing skills, he suggested to come with him to a free computer drawing course, he had heard that many were well paid for that job and that with internet he could get anywhere!
But Kol was skeptical: he hadn’t seen a computer before and wouldn’t even know where to start!
The next day, however, when he saw all the colors he could use, he decided that he absolutely had to learn how to use that fantastic tool!

He worked hard and after a few months he was able to make his own drawings and show his works via internet. Immediately his talent was recognized and many asked him for drawings on commission. They asked for his works from America, Japan and even from Italy!
Kol was overjoyed and with the first money earned he returned to visit his parents. They were very happy for him, Kol would have stayed with them only a few days but he absolutely wanted to go to his old ‘school’ to greet his old teacher and give some pastels to all the new students of the village, who were enthusiastic!

Kol returned to live in Cebu, now he had become accustomed to city life and there he finally had a good job doing what he loved most, even if, occasionally, he returned to his village to give some money to his parents and greet them.

After a few years, two students who had received crayons from him, pay a visit: they had followed the example of the old teacher and and to thank him they brought some beautiful drawings made by them.

Kol understood and immediately took them with him to teach them to use the computer; the boys were just as good and passionate as him.

From there he decided to open a small company that he called: KOL-OR.

The company became famous all over the world and finally he and his new companions of adventure obtained the deserved success.

Even today, Kol returns to his village to sit on the beach and draw the sunset with few colors. Because he loves to do it and to never forget his origins.

One day the Good Old Witch opened the door and found a chest in front of her with a newborn baby inside. “Oh heavens!” she exclaimed.
“What am I doing with a baby? I’m too busy, I definitely can’t look after it! I’ll take it to my friend the Bogeyman, he’ll know what to do.”

The Bogeyman, who had not yet seen what was in the chest, laughed heartily and said, “Dear Good Old Witch, you know that I don’t get on very well with children… I generally enjoy scaring them, definitely not looking after them! I’ll take it to my cousin, the White Wolf. He’ll know what to do.” And so he did.

The White Wolf, who had a kind heart, agreed to keep the child. After a few days, however, he had to leave for a long journey and thought it wasn’t a good idea to bring it along, so he took him into the woods to his goblin friend.

The goblin was famous for being very wise and the White Wolf said to himself, “He’ll know what to do.”
The goblin took him in.
The days passed and the baby was always sad and whiny.

The Goblin reflected upon what to do and at a certain point exclaimed, “But of course! That’s the best thing to do!”

He took the child and walked towards the city. He took it to a mother and put it in her arms. The baby stopped crying and finally smiled serenely, because there’s no better place in the world for a baby than the arms of a mother!

A marmot living on the mountains of the valley of Aosta, in Italy, had a wonderful puppy.

He cared for her with the love that only moms know how to give.

She taught her the first steps and fed her for the first days of life.

One day while explaining how to get food alone, the little marmot slid into the creek and managed to reach the shore just a few miles later.

It was found by a very special bear, it seemed really bad, but in fact it was very good and timid.

The marmot was very frightened but the bear, who even when he spoke normally seemed threatening, said to her, “And who are you, what are you doing here?”

She, terrified, replied: “I fell into the creek while my mother taught me to fish …” And the bear: “Okay, I’ll bring you back to your mother, I’m not hungry, I’ve just eaten a lot of honey!”

“But tonight we will have to stay here, it’s too dark now and it would be impossible to come back” then warned her, jokingly: “But do it well, behave as it should and do not bother me if I do not eat you!”

The marmot nodded and actually realized that that bear was really good and would never hurt her even though she was so abrupt.

The bear said, “You can sleep here” and I monster a bed of straw where he used to sleep “I’ll sleep leaning on that tree.”

The next morning they woke up and the marmot was very hungry, the bear searched for something and found honey that he took from his personal reserve in a corner that he kept hidden.

They walked in the woods looking for marmot mom and the little man continued to complain and ask how much he missed. The bear then kicked and said to her with his threatening vocation: “So, do you want to find your mom or not?”

The puppy then continued to walk and spoke no more offended and resentful but after a little more than half an hour they came to the stretch of the river where she had slipped and there she found her mother!

The races came to meet and they gave a strong hug, then Mother turned to the bear and embraced him too: “Thank you Lord Bear for bringing me back! I do not really know how to thank her!”

And the bear replied: “It was a pleasure, it is a great marmot, I have never had to do with a puppy, let alone marmot!” Even the small marmot thanked the bear and embraced it! And he said, “Thank you for having me find my mom, you’re basically nice.”

The bear laughed and said to them, “If you agree, I bring you to see a secret place where there are a lot of flowers above. So we can get there when you want. ”

The little marmot said, “Yes, but I’m tired, we walked this morning!” And the bear: “Do not worry, I’ll take you to my shoulders” and the little whispered, “How come? Then you could not do it before? ”

And he said to her, smiling, “You wanted to find your mother, walking we found it again. If I had brought you you would not have learned that you have to walk to get what you want … “.

So the little marmot realized, and went happy on the shoulders of the bear, and always remained good friends.