Once upon a time, there was an old man who lived in a little cottage with a garden. One spring morning, he took his spade, went out to the vegetable patch, and planted a tiny turnip seed.
The sun shone warm, the rain fell soft, and the turnip began to grow. First came a little green leaf, then another, and then more and more! Under the ground, the turnip grew bigger and bigger.
When autumn came, the old man went to the garden and gasped. The turnip was so big that its leaves were as tall as his knees! He grabbed the green stem with both hands and pulled. He pulled and pulled, but the turnip did not budge. It was stuck fast in the earth.
"Wife, come here!" called the old man.
The old woman came running. She grabbed the old man, and together they pulled. They pulled with all their might, but the turnip stayed put.
"Granddaughter, help us!" called the old woman.
The little granddaughter ran over and held on to the old woman. Now there were three of them pulling! They pulled and pulled, but still the turnip would not come out.
"Doggy, come help!" called the granddaughter.
The dog came running and grabbed the granddaughter. All together they pulled! They pulled and pulled—the turnip wobbled a little but stayed in the ground.
"Kitty, hurry!" called the dog.
The cat bounded over and held on to the dog. Now there were five! They pulled so hard they sweated, but the turnip hardly moved.
Suddenly, a tiny little mouse ran out from behind a rock.
"I want to help too!" she squeaked.
The mouse held on to the cat with her tiny paws. And just as she joined—pop!—the turnip began to come up. A little more, and out it came, round and yellow and beautiful!
They all fell on the grass laughing. The old man patted the mouse on the head.
"Thank you, little helper!" he said.
That evening, the whole family sat at the table and ate sweet turnip porridge. And the little mouse got the biggest piece of all—because even though she was tiny, she had helped so much.