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A fairy tale with markers (Fairy Tale Plate)

Author: Story plate

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Marci, the grabber, pensively puffed along behind his companions in the morning traffic. 

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They had an urgent job to do today, an old pipe burst underground, causing a mess. By the time they arrived on the scene, the water was already flooding the area.

Even though the main dams were quickly closed, the huge puddles made traffic difficult. 

- Marci! We start with you! - said Muki and guided the backhoe to the hole, which, thanks to its chains, easily crossed the muddy road.

With his spoon, he quickly climbed down to the cracked pipe and lifted it out of its place. 

- I dip my spoon, I scrape the earth! But you can never step in the hole, because tomorrow there will be no trace of it - she hummed a little sadly.

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The new pipe arrived on a crane truck, was carefully lowered into the ground and then joined with the other pieces. Soon the water was gushing again through the wide underground conduit.

All that was left was to cover the hole that had been dug and fill it with fresh concrete.

Yes, but Muki searched in vain for Marci, and she couldn't find him anywhere! 

 - Where could it have gone? He knows he has a job to do! "That's really strange!" the man shook his head, and then suddenly he noticed the tracks of the chains of the backhoe on the muddy road.

Well, that should make things easy for you! Just follow the clues and you'll find Marci.

He soon found it. He didn't go far, hiding behind a bush.

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- What are you doing here? You know you have to bury the hole you dug! 

- That's just it, Muki! I don't want to breathe it back in - Marci confessed shyly.

- Don't you want it? Why don't you want it? - Muki wondered.

- Because it happens every time! I dig up the earth and then I bury it back. Finally the others fix the road and it's like I've done nothing! There was a hole, no hole! And you can't tell how good a job I did!

- Marci, Marci! Your work is beautiful precisely because it removes the mistakes. If we don't fix the road, the mess will remain and everyone will be annoyed. Is that what you want?

- No, no. "I don't want everyone to be annoyed," the grabber surrendered and set to work.

But Muki could tell he was still sad. She wondered how she could cheer her friend up. 

- Hop! Got it!" he exclaimed suddenly, looking at his calendar.

- What have you got? - Marci asked.

- You'll see! We have a big job tomorrow! - Muki winked at the grabber.

They set off early the next day, out to the outskirts of the city, to a vast empty field, where a wide rectangle of land was already marked out with posts. 

- Are we building a car park? - asked the marker.

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- No, not parking! Just start digging in the designated area and see what you can do!

Marci has certainly been given a big task! He had to scoop out so much soil that he didn't even finish until the evening. He dug and dug for three days. So deep that the top of the hole was barely visible.

- I dip my spoon, I scrape the earth! But you can never step in the hole, because a week later there'll be no trace of it! - he sang, when he was long done. 

Then concrete mixers arrived and a lot of workers. But Marci could no longer see what they were working on, because they would have been in the way in the middle of the big coming and going. They weren't there for a couple of weeks. 

Then one morning Muki just jumped on him and went back to the field with him.

But the field was nowhere to be found! They were greeted by freshly planted lawns, shrubs trimmed to a rounded shape, a pebbled walkway and a huge mirror of water glistening in the middle of the park.

Well, not because there was a burst pipe here, but because a beautiful pool was built for the city! 

- I dug this hole, come and have a look! - Marci boastfully told the guests at the handover ceremony. And the townspeople patted the shoulder of the clever digger. They were very proud of him and very happy with the new park and pool. They popped champagne, handed out balloons and had fun all day.

- Muki! Can't we make a pool out of every hole we dig? - asked the digger on their way home in the evening.

- That would be fun! - laughed Muki. - But it's better for the city if we cover up the mistakes. The work is only finished when we've dug the holes back up. You know, I check at the end of every day that we've done our job properly, and I always hum this little song: 

We dug it up and buried it,
what was broken, we replaced.
We unpacked, we packed,
if spilled spilled spilled.
What needed to be fixed, we fixed,
our job is well done!

Marc liked the song! He learnt it quickly, and from then on he sang it every night, before contentedly going to sleep. He no longer minded having to bury the pits he had dug, for he understood that without them the work would remain unfinished.

If you want a grab plate, check out the Story Plate page!

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