Anna and Ben with the Magical Crab

Once there was a poor family with 12 kids living in a town where almost all people work as a farmer.

They get their food from farming. The father work all day in the farm and the mother just stay at home since she needs to take care of small children.

Until one day, people had a hard time with their farming, land started to dry and all plans withered. People are dying with hunger. Other people had decided to go to other city to find another job.

The father was worried how to sustain the needs of the family, he’s afraid that his children might die in hunger.

One night, the mother asked her two eldest children, Anna and Ben to go out and ask for salt from their neighborhood. The two kids hurriedly went to their neighbor and asked for salt. When they returned home their door was already locked and so they started calling out from their parents to open them.

Unfortunately, their mother came at the door crying, but she didn't open it. She said, “I’m really sorry, but you see you have a lot of younger siblings and we can’t afford to feed you all, your father and I decided to let you out from the house so we can take care of your younger siblings.”

Anna and Ben started crying, they were begging their parents to let them in even if they just go hungry, but their parents didn't open the door.

Anna and Ben waited outside their door until morning time,but still their parents didn't open up for them. The two kids decided to leave and promised to look for food for the family, so they can return back home.

Anna and Ben,started walking towards the first mountain when Anna felt hungry. She was very tired and hungry of walking the whole day.Then suddenly they saw a woman travelling with her horse, they stopped the woman and asked for food. Luckily the woman had a small piece of bread , the woman divided the bread into two and gave the half of it to Anna and Ben.

Anna and Ben continued their journey,until they reached the third mountain and they already ate all the remaining bread given by the woman. Anna and Ben were thirsty too, so they started walking looking for water and they reached a small lake. They were very happy to find a small lake where they can drink water.

While the two were talking about what they should do,they saw a big crab running in front of them and they started chasing for it. Luckily, Ben caught the big crab! They were very happy they have crab for food, but they were also wondering how they can cook it since they don’t have fire.

Then suddenly out of the blue, they heard a frightened voice saying,”Please, don’t eat me, I can help you and give you richness if you spare my life.”

Anna and Ben were very frightened when they realized that it was the crab who was speaking.

The crab started speaking again, carry me towards that next mountain and when you reached the next mountain you can see a house there.

So Anna,Ben and the crab journeyed toward the next mountain. It took them 2 days before they reached the place,and true! there was a very small house made of bamboo and they can smell food being cooked inside. When they reached the house nobody was there but someone was cooking corn. Anna and Ben took a corn and eat. Then the crab said, get the pail and cover me with it. But, never ever eat my meat or you two will die. They followed what the crab said, and the next day when they opened the pail that covered the crab, the crab became as big as a pail too!

Next,the crab instructed them to get a very big basin to cover him. The next day again when they removed the big basin that covered the crab,they were surprised, for the crab turned to be as big as the basin they covered.

The crab then instructed them to cut his legs and cook him, but he said again that they should never ever eat his meat. After they cooked the crab,the crab said that they should bury his shell and keep his meat into a big basin.

Anna and Ben followed what the crab said, and by night time the owner of the house came, It’s a witch! When the witch saw Anna and Ben inside her house she was very angry. She demanded that Anna and Ben should pay for the food they ate and for staying in her house, but Anna and Ben didn't have money.

But Ben said, tomorrow we will pay you, but Anna was still very scared.

The next day Anna and Ben were excited to go out, and they were astonished to see a big mansion made of gold and it was surrounded by trees with golden fruit. That’s where they buried the crab’s shell. They hurriedly went back to the house and checked the pail where they kept the crab’s meat and they were surprised to see that it turned to be a lot of money and jewelries.

They then decided to let the witch stay in their house, they then picked those golden fruits and went to town to sell and to buy their needs.

While in the town they saw 3 children begging for money and they recognized that it was their sisters and brother. Anna and Ben took their brother and sister with them, the next day they went back to their home, their parents were sick and their brothers and sister were hungry. Since they love their parents dearly, they took them all and stayed in a big golden mansion. After that the family lived happily ever after and they never gone hungry again.