Pg. 32, Try It Out!

Heungbu and Nolbu

A Folktale from Korea

       Once upon a time, there were two brothers named Heungbu and Nolbu. Nolbu, the older brother, was rich and greedy. Heungbu, the younger brother, was the opposite. He was poor and generous. One day, Heungbu's seven children were so hungry that they were going to die. Heungbu decided to ask his brother for some rice, so he went to his brother's house, but Nolbu's wife didn't want to give him any rice. She hit him in the face with the rice spoon. He was so hungry that he took the little bit of rice his face and ate it. Then he asked her to hit his face on other side. This time she hit him with a clean spoon. On his way home, Heungbu found a swallow with a broken leg, so he took care of the bird. Then he let if fly away. The next spring the swallow brought a gourd seed to Heungbu. Heungbu planted it in the ground, and in the autumn he had gourds. When he cut upon the gourds, pieces of gold fell out.
       After that he became very rich and lived in a big house. His greedy brother came to him and asked, "How can you be so rich?". Heungbu told him the truth. After Nolbu left Heungbu's house, he found a swallow, and he broke the swallow's leg. Then he took care of it. When the bird was well again, he let it fly away. The next year the swallow brought him a gourd seed. He planted it in the spring, and in the fall he harvested it. When Nolbu opened the gourd, dirty came out. The water covered his house and his farm. Suddenly, he became a poor man, and he had nothing to eat and no place to sleep.