ther once lived a woodman and his wife. their hut stood in a wild and lonely forest. great hills covered with trees rose behind the little home, but there was a beautiful lake in front. the woodman and his wife were very poor, and they had to work all day. but they were very happy because their little grandson, coco, stayed with them.
coco was a little merry boy. he had big bright eyes. he was tall and strong, and loved to be outdoors most of the times. he played in the fields and in the forests . he enjoyed looking at the bountiful flowers and trees. he sang happy tunes with birds. he ran with the dogs, goats, squirrels, and monkeys.
but one thing coco loved the best was the beautiful lake . he would lie on the shore and look over the water. he loved fishing. how he wished he had a boat on hidls own. then, he would be able to row out on the beautiful lake and catch fish for supper.
at night, when he went to bed, he often dreamed he was fishing in the lake. he always dreamed that he would find a fortune in the lake.
one day, coco's grandfather got sick. he could no longer cut down the big trees in the forest.
he could not earn money to buy food. the old man, then, got worried.
"do not worry grandpa," said coco. "when i am big , i will find a fortune in the lake. then, we shall no longer be poor. we shall have plenty to eat."
that night, coco went to bed without supper , for then was no food in the hut. when he fell asleep , he had a dream. a lovely lady come and stood behind him.
"why didnt you have supper, coco?" the lady asked
"because my grandma had nothing to give me," he said." but someday , when i am big , i shall go fishing in the lake and find a fortune."
"tomorrow , you must go fishing in the lake."
"but i have no boat. where can i get a boat?" asked coco
"go down the lake and you will find a boat there," said the lady
when coco awake , he did not forget the lady's words . so he went to his grandma.
"grandma, can i go fishing today in the lake?" asked coco
the old woman shook her head . "but we had no boat grandson"
she said.
coco told her of his dream. his grandma wondered how he could go fishing . she let him go.
coco ran to the lake and found a boat on the shore. he found a fishing rod in the bottom of the boat ready. coco threw the lne into the water. after a few minutes, he pulled his line, and he had caught a big fish. coco shouted with joy at the catch he made . he ran back to his grandma happily.
"we can have fish for supper, grandma!" coco shouted excitedly.
the next day, he told his grandma he would go to the lake again. he looked for his fishind rod but could not find it.
he worked until the sun went down. he had gathered a basketful of oysters.
he showed the pearls to his grandma and grandpa .and so the woodman, grandma and coco, lived happily ever after
