The Story of a Lazy Man

The Story of A Lazy Man

Video recording in Romanian here: The story of a lazy man

Once upon a time there was a very lazy man who lived in a village. He was so lazy that he would not even chew his mouthful. The villagers who saw that this man would not work for all the world, decided to hang him in order not to give an example of laziness for the others.

Consequently, they chose two villagers who went to the lazy man’s place, took him by surprise, put him in a cart pulled by oxen, like an unfeeling log, and drove him to the gallows.

It was like that at that time. On their way to the gallows they met a lady in a carriage. The lady, who saw an ill looking man in the cart pulled by the oxen, asked the two peasants pitifully:

“Kind people, it seems that the man in the cart is ill, poor thing, and you take him to a medicine woman to look for a cure.

“Oh, no, my lady,” answered one of the peasants, “ Forgive us, honorable lady, but this is a lazy man who has no rival in the world and we take him to the gallows to get rid of an idle.”

“Kind people”, said the lady shuddering. “It’s a pity, poor thing, to die like a wrongdoing dog. You had better take him to my estate. My courtyard is there on that slope. I have a barn full of crumbled bread for hard times. God forbid! He will eat crumbled bread and live around my house because I know I won’t grow poor for a crumb of bread. We owe help to each other”.

“Do you hear, you, lazy man, what the lady is saying? She is offering you a place to stay in a barn, with crumbled bread”, said one of the villagers. “Look, what good luck you have come across, darkness damn you, the ugliness of the world! Jump from the cart, and thank the lady, that she has saved you from death and you have come across copiousness, being taken under her wing. We have thought we would give you soap and rope, but the kind lady is offering you shelter and crumbled bread. Be alive and don’t pass away anymore!

Should we pass our word for one like you and feed you in your condition, that’s a miracle! You can’t complain of missing good luck! Well said who said “ To call the piper while others call the tune” Come on, answer the lady, so or so, she doesn’t have time to waste.”

“But are the crumbled pieces of bread sopped?” asked the lazy man, hardly talking without moving.

“What is he saying?” the lady asked the villagers.

“What can he say, merciful lady”, answered one of them, “he is asking whether the pieces of crumbled bread are sopped.”

“Oh, dear”, the lady said astonished, “I have never heard such a thing. Can’t he sop the pieces of crumbled bread himself?”

“Listen! you lazybones: do you want to sop the pieces of crumbled bread by yourself, or not?”

“Not at all! Go ahead! Why should I worry for this mouth which has to eat?”

Whereupon, one of the villagers told the lady:

“Your kindness, merciful lady, you want to cast pearls before swine for nothing. You can understand us now that we don’t take him to the gallows for nothing, but to get him out of the bad habit. What do you think? Didn’t the entire village club together in order to help him? But does he deserve to be helped? No good comes out of idleness, so why do you put yourself to the trouble?”

Then, the lady, got fed up with her benevolence, and everything, saying affably:

“Kind people, have it God’s own way!”

The villagers took the lazy man in place and did away with him.

Therefore they choked the lazy man off the villagers, and the villagers off the lazybones.

“There you are, you lazybones in this village, if that’s all very well for you.”

An’ the wheel bend, an’ the story end.

Translated into English by prof. Nicoleta Onea

Drawings and Tangram illustrations by the students from grade 2 from Scoala Gimnaziala from Ieud, Maramures, coordinated by Inv. Maricuta Pasca and Prof.inv.primar Chindris Vasile