Once upon a time, there lived a woodcutter. Every day he went to work in the forest.
One day, after working hard, the woodcutter decided to head home. He picked up his old wooden ax and began walking. Soon he heard the sound of rushing water.
"That's strange," he thought. "I haven't heard that sound here before."
Feeling thirsty, the woodcutter followed the sound. Through the trees he saw a waterfall. It was falling into a deep pond with clear, sparkling water.
The woodcutter stepped toward the pond.
"Amazing," he thought. "I never knew this pond was here."
The woodcutter crouched to take a drink. Suddenly—splash!
He saw several ugly green frogs hop out of the pond. Then he noticed something else. His ax was missing!
"Oh no!" He looked around frantically. "That's my only ax! I need it for work!"
His eyes landed on the pond. "I must have dropped it in the water. That was what made the splash."
The woodcutter slumped down, holding his head in his hands. He didn't know how to swim. And he didn't have enough money to buy a new ax.
"How will I work?" he moaned.
"Excuse me," a voice said. "Something fell into my pond."
In front of him, a fairy was holding a glimmering ax.
"Is this silver ax yours?" the fairy asked.
"No," the woodcutter said. "My ax fell into the pond, but that one isn't mine."
The fairy slipped silently into the water without making a ripple. She quickly returned with another magnificent ax.
"Is this gold ax yours?" she asked.
The woodcutter shook his head. "No, my ax was a simple old ax made of wood."
"I see," the fairy said.
She disappeared into the water again, and reappeared. "Is this wooden ax yours?"
The woodcutter's face lit up. "Yes, that's it! May I have it back, please?"
The fairy handed the ax to the woodcutter. "You are a very honest man. I would like to reward your honesty. I will give you the silver and gold axes."
"Thank you," the woodcutter said, delighted with his good fortune.
At home, the woodcutter told his neighbor what had happened.
"Interesting," the neighbor said.
The neighbor grabbed a wooden ax and ran into the forest. He found the mysterious pond and hurled his ax into the water. For a while nothing happened.
Meanwhile some ugly green frogs sat around the pond, staring at him.
"What are you looking at?" the man said.
Suddenly the fairy appeared out of nowhere, holding a magnificent silver ax.
"Is this your silver ax?" the fairy asked.
"Yes!" The man nodded eagerly. "I guess I dropped it—"
"Lies!" the fairy snapped. "This is not your silver ax, and you did not drop it. You are a liar, and I don't like liars. Now I will punish you!"
The man shook with fear. "I'm sorry. Please don't—"
Zap! An ugly green frog now sat in the man's place.
The fairy smiled. "Nothing good comes from lying. Honesty is always the best policy!"