Story: The Selfish Giant

Oscar Wilde: The Selfish Giant

Every evening, at the exit of the school, the children went to play Giant's Garden. It was a beautiful large garden with flowers and shrubs covered with soft green grass. Here and there among the grass, flowers opened bright as stars, and there were twelve apricot trees during the spring flowers were covered with delicate pink and pearl, and upon reaching the  fall were loaded velvety rich fruit. The birds lingered in the branches of trees and sang so sweetly that the children stopped playing to listen to their songs.
- How happy we are here! -They told each other.
But one day the Giant came back. He had gone to visit where his friend the Cornish ogre, and had stayed with him for the past seven years. During that time, he had said all he had to say, for his conversation was limited, and the Giant felt the desire to return to his mansion.

Upon arrival, the first thing he saw was children playing in the garden.
- What are you doing here? -Emerged with his booming voice.
The children ran away in disarray.
-This garden is mine. It is my own garden, 'said the Giant-, everyone should understand that and not let anybody mess to play here.
And immediately, lifted a high wall, and the door stood a sign that read:

ENTRY STRICTLY PROHIBITED
PENALTIES UNDER CONSEQUENTIAL

It was a selfish Giant ...
The poor children were left with nowhere to play. They did the test go play on the road, but it was full of dust, was full of stones, and did not like. Often roamed around the wall that hid the Giant's garden and nostalgically remembered what was behind.
- How happy we were there! -They told each other.
When spring came, the whole area was filled with birds and flowers. However, in the garden of the Selfish Giant Winter stayed still. As there were no children, no birds sang, and the trees forgot to blossom. Only once was a very pretty flower peered through the grass, but just saw the sign, he felt so sad for the children who go underground again and went back to sleep.
The only ones who felt comfortable there were the Snow and the Frost.
-The Spring forgot this garden-they said, 'so we'll be here all the rest of the year.
Snow covered the ground with her great white cloak, and the Frost covered trees silver.

 And then his sad friend invited the North Wind to spend with them the rest of the season. Then came the North Wind. It came wrapped in furs and went roaring down the garden all day, plants and toppling chimneys.
- What a nice place! She said. We have to tell the Hail to come to be with us too.
Then came the hail too. Every day spent three hours drumming on the roof of the mansion, until he broke most of the tiles. Then he began to spin around, running as fast as he could. He wore gray, and his breath was like ice.
I do not understand why the spring is taking so long to get here, said the Selfish Giant when he looked out the window and saw his garden covered with white-gray and, hopefully soon change over time.
But the spring never came, nor the summer. The Autumn gave golden fruit to every garden, but to the Giant's garden she gave none.
'It's a giant too selfish, they said the fruit.
Thus, the Giant's garden was forever lost in the winter, and the North Wind and Hail and Frost and the Snow danced mournfully through the trees.

One morning the Giant was still in bed when he heard beautiful music coming from outside.

 It sounded so sweet to his ears, he thought he had to be the king of the elves who passed by. Actually, it was just a goldfinch he was singing outside his window, but it was so long that the Giant did not hear a bird singing or in her garden, which she seemed to hear the most beautiful music in the world. Then the Hail stopped their dance, and the North Wind ceased roaring, and a delicious perfume permeated through the blinds open.
- What good! It seems that spring finally arrived, 'said the Giant, and he jumped out of bed to run to the window.
What did him ee?

Before his eyes was a wonderful show. Through a break in the wall t a children had come, and had climbed trees. Each tree had a child, and the trees were so glad to have them again, they were covered with flowers and gently swaying their branches over their children's heads. Birds flitted around them singing and laughing small. It was really a very beautiful show.

 Only in one corner the reigning winter. It was the farthest corner of the garden and he was a little boy. But it was so little one could not reach the branches of the tree, and the child was running around the old trunk weeping bitterly. The poor tree was still quite covered with frost and snow, and the North Wind was blowing and roaring over it, shaking the branches that seemed about to break.
- Up to me, little boy! -Say the tree, bending its branches all I it could. But the boy was too small.

The Giant felt her heart melt.
- How selfish I have been! He exclaimed. Now I know why the spring would not come here.

 I will put that poor little boy to the tree and then I'll throw the wall. From my garden today will forever be a playground for children.
I was really sorry for what he had done.

Then went down the stairs, cautiously opened the door of the house and entered the garden.

But as soon as he saw the children were terrified, took to escape and remained in Winter Garden again. Only one little guy in the corner not far away, because her eyes were so full of tears that he did not see the Giant coming. Then the Giant came up behind him, took him gently in his hands, and he climbed the tree. And suddenly the tree blossomed, and the birds came to sing in its branches, and the child embraced Giant's neck and kissed him. And the other children, when they saw that the Giant was not bad, came running happily. With them came the Spring Garden.

-From now the garden is for you, my children, 'said the Giant, and taking a huge ax, and broke down the wall.
At noon, when the people went to the market, everyone could see the giant playing with the children in the most beautiful garden they had ever seen.
They were there playing all day, and by evening the kids went to say goodbye to the Giant.

'But where is the tiniest? Giant-asked, does that boy I put the tree in the corner?
The Giant loved him more than the others, because little had given him a kiss.

We do not know-answered-children, left alone.
-Tell him to come back tomorrow, 'said the Giant.
But the children said they did not know where he lived and who had never seen before. And the Giant felt very sad.
Every afternoon after leaving school the children were playing with the Giant. But the littlest, the Giant that most wanted, not seen again anymore. The Giant was very kind to all children but he missed his first little friend, and often remembered him.
- How I wish to see you again! He repeated.

Years passed, and the Giant was old and his forces were weakened. He could not play, but sitting in a large armchair, watching children play and admired his garden.
-I have many beautiful flowers, it was said, but children are the most beautiful flowers of all.

One winter morning, looked out the window as he was dressing. He did not hate the winter he knew that winter was merely the spring asleep, and that the flowers were resting.

But suddenly rubbed his eyes in wonder, and looked and looked.
It was really wonderful what he was seeing. In the farthest corner of the garden was a tree completely covered with white flowers all ll branches were golden, and silver fruit hung them. Under the tree stood the little boy who had missed both.
Overjoyed Giant ran down the stairs and into the garden. But when he reached the boy his face red with anger, and said:
- Who has dared to hurt?
Because in the palm of the boy's hands had traces of nails, and also had traces of nails in his feet.

- But who dared to wound thee? Cried the Giant. Tell me, to take the sword and kill him.
- No! Replied the boy. These are the wounds of Love
- Who are you, my little baby boy? Said the Giant, and a strange fear came over him, and fell down at the small.
And the child smiled on the Giant, and said:
'Once you let me play in your garden, today you will play with me in my garden, which is Paradise.
And when the children arrived that afternoon found the Giant died under the tree. Seemed to sleep, and was covered in white flowers whole.