The Brick and the Wax

A brick and a piece of wax lay side by side on the kitchen shelf. The brick belonged there—after all, the mistress used it to sharpen her knives. And how sharp they became afterward! But as for how the wax ended up on the shelf, no one knew. Long ago, someone had placed it there and forgotten about it.

At night, when the kitchen was empty, the wax and the brick would have long conversations. One day, the wax asked the brick:

"Tell me, neighbor, why are you so hard?" The brick replied:

"I wasn't always like this. My brothers and I were made from soft clay. The clay was mixed with water, kneaded for a long time, shaped into bricks, and then thrown into the fire. That's where we became strong and hard."

"Oh, how I wish I could be like you!" sighed the wax. "When they sharpen a knife on you, it's such a sight to see. Zing-zing! Sparks fly everywhere. But if I were to face the knife, it would cut me to pieces in no time. No, no, don't try to convince me—it's terrible to be soft."

In the morning, the mistress lit the hearth. The flames danced merrily over the logs.

Then the wax remembered that the brick had become hard after being in the fire. It moved to the very edge of the shelf and tumbled down onto the iron sheet in front of the hearth. Oh, how hot it became! It softened and began to melt. It would have melted completely if, at that very moment, the master hadn't entered the kitchen. It should be noted that the master was a puppeteer. He traveled from yard to yard, putting on cheerful performances with his puppets made of wood and cloth.

The master bent down to light his pipe with an ember from the hearth and suddenly noticed the wax, which had wanted to become as hard as the brick but had nearly melted instead.

"How wonderful!" exclaimed the master. "I'll make a new puppet out of this wax!"

And so he did—he molded a puppet and named it Pulcinella.

The puppet turned out so funny that anyone who saw its upturned nose, wide grin, and mischievous eyes couldn't help but laugh.

When the performance ended, the master would bring Pulcinella out from behind the screen. Pulcinella would bow to all sides, and the master would speak in a high-pitched voice on its behalf:

"Respected ladies and gentlemen! There was a time when I envied the brick simply because it was hard. A brick, tempered by fire, can be used to build a house, but you can't make a Pulcinella out of it. Of course, you can't build a house out of me, and you should keep me far from fire. But I bring joy to myself and to you. So, as you can see, dear ladies and gentlemen, young and old, and even the little ones, everyone is good in their own place."

Then Pulcinella would hide behind the screen, and the satisfied audience would disperse to their homes.

But how did Pulcinella's master know what the brick and the wax had talked about on the shelf at night? It's very simple. He made up this fairy tale himself and told it to us. And now we've told it to you.

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The Brick and the Wax

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