The Elves and the Shoemaker (Classic Version)

The Elves and the Shoemaker

Once upon a time, there lived a poor shoemaker and his wife. Due to a lack of business, they had just enough leather to make one pair of shoes.

One night, the shoemaker cut out a pair of shoes from the last piece of leather and left them on his workbench, determined to sew them the next morning. But when he woke up, to his astonishment, the shoes were already beautifully made and displayed on his table.

The shoes were so perfectly made that a customer bought them at a high price. With the money, the shoemaker was able to buy enough leather for two more pairs of shoes.

Again, he cut the leather and left them on the workbench. The next morning, he found two pairs of beautifully-made shoes. This continued for many days, and the shoemaker and his wife began to prosper.

Curious to know who was helping them, the shoemaker and his wife decided to stay awake one night. As they watched, two naked elves appeared and quickly made the shoes.

Moved by the elves’ kindness and hard work, the shoemaker’s wife suggested they make clothes for the elves to thank them. They worked on the clothes quietly and left them out for the elves.

That night, instead of leather, the elves found the clothes. They were overjoyed and quickly dressed. They danced and sang, “Now we’re boys so fine to see, we needn’t cobbler elves more be!”

From that night on, the elves never returned, but the shoemaker and his wife lived a prosperous life, forever thankful for the help from the elves.

The End.