Olivia and João loved being neighbors! They lived in nearby houses in Los Angeles. The only difference was that João had a huge yard, all grassy, where many cows and chickens used to live. Nowadays, João lived with his mother and a single cow in the yard, named Branca. Sometimes, Branca’s milk was all they had to eat in a day. But whenever Olivia could, she brought some snacks to ensure endless playtime on the grass, and João’s mother was always grateful. João loved playing tag, and Olivia enjoyed their interest in fairies. That day, they were pretending to be fairies, dancing and singing in the sunshine.
“Olivia,” João called, “My mom says we need more than just milk!”
Olivia stopped twirling her skirt. “What does that mean?” she asked, her black eyes wide with curiosity.
João sighed. “She wants to sell Branca. But I don’t want her to go! She’s my best friend!”
Olivia put her hands on her hips. “Maybe we can find something better to eat!”
“Like what?” João asked, his brow furrowed.
Just then, they passed an old man standing on the corner. He had a big smile and a bag full of beans.
“Hello, children!” the old man called out. “Would you like to buy some magic beans? They’ll give you more food than milk!”
“Magic beans?” Olivia exclaimed, her brown hair bouncing. “What do they do?”
The old man chuckled. “Plant one, and it grows a beanstalk that reaches the clouds! Up there, you’ll find a castle filled with treasure!”
“Treasure?” João’s eyes widened. “More than milk?”
The old man winked. “Much more!”
Without thinking, João traded Branca for the beans. They were excited to have more food than just milk!
“Beans, beans, magic beans!” they chanted, skipping home. But when they arrived, João’s mother gasped.
“Oh, João! You’ve traded Branca for beans! What will we eat?” Tears streamed down her face.
João's mom told Olivia to go home and asked João to go to bed. That night, João was so sad, he didn't know what to eat. He was so mad, he threw the beans out the window and went to sleep.
The next morning, João’s mom couldn’t believe her eyes. A beanstalk, tall and strong, reached up to the clouds! It was so big, it touched the sky!
“Well, I’ll just sell the beans,” she said.
But João’s mother was so excited to have the beanstalk, she didn’t worry. She let João go play with Olivia. João and Olivia, always curious, decided to climb the beanstalk! The climb was long, and Olivia’s black eyes looked up at the clouds. “It’s so high! But how much further?” she asked, her brown hair bouncing.
Finally, they passed the clouds and found a giant castle! A giant woman, very tall indeed, welcomed João and Olivia. Although she was kind, she asked them to leave because her husband was a giant who ate children!
The ground began to shake, and João and Olivia hid. In their hiding spot, they found some gold coins on the ground, and João quickly put them in his pocket. When they thought they could run away from the giant, they did, and managed to climb down the beanstalk quickly.
“Wow, that was scary!” João exclaimed.
Olivia nodded. “But our forest is better than that castle!”
João smiled. “You’re right. We’ll live simply, but when the coins run out, we’ll climb the beanstalk again.”
For a long time, João and his mother lived simply but comfortably with the coins João had taken. João’s mother gave pieces of cake for Olivia to take home, repaying the kindness.
“Oh, my family will be so happy!” Olivia said, her eyes sparkling.
But eventually, the coins ran out. João and Olivia decided to climb the beanstalk again, knowing the danger of the giant. This time, they entered the castle and hid in the kitchen. There, the giant was taking care of a fat hen. And when they least expected it, João and Olivia saw the hen lay golden eggs! They waited for the giant to fall asleep, and managed to capture the hen, who didn’t make any noise. Then they climbed down with her! It was difficult, but they succeeded!
“I’m glad the hen was silent!” Olivia whispered, giggling.
João’s mother was happy, they would always have something to eat! But João had seen a golden harp on his way out of the castle and thought he would go alone this time.
The next day, João didn’t play with Olivia and climbed the beanstalk again. He intended to be quick since he knew where the harp was. But this time, the giant was waiting for João at the door! The giant chased João, but the boy finally managed to escape!
Very distressed, João went to Olivia’s house and told them what had happened. They had the idea to cut down the beanstalk so the giant could never come down, and anyway, João’s mother was already happy with the fat hen that laid golden eggs.
João and Olivia managed to cut down the beanstalk with a lot of effort. Consider Olivia’s age, six, but they succeeded! The giant would never come down.
“We only need the essentials,” Olivia said. “No more, no less!”
João's mom was relieved with the beanstalk gone and invited João and Olivia for a delicious afternoon snack!
And that afternoon, the table at João’s house was full: of bread, cake, love, and laughter! The essentials!
