Giufà and the Door Fairy Tale

On the island of Sicily there lived a simple young man named Giufà. He took everything literally, so funny things were always happening to him.

One day his mother was going to church and told him, "Giufà, when I leave, pull the door shut and keep an eye on it." His mother left, and Giufà sat down by the door and stared at it.

Suddenly the neighbours came by. "Giufà, your aunt is having a party, and you are invited." Giufà thought hard. "Mother told me to watch the door. I mustn't leave it."

So he lifted the door off its hinges, carried it on his back and set off for the party. People in the street laughed at him, but Giufà replied proudly, "I am doing what my mother told me!"

Meanwhile, thieves walked into the house with no door and carried off everything inside. When his mother came home that evening, the house was empty, and Giufà was at the party, hugging the door.

"Giufà, I told you to watch the door!" cried his mother. "And so I did! Here it is, safe and sound," said Giufà. From that day on, his mother always explained his chores very carefully and in great detail.