The bet with the troll
Norway is rich in fairy tales, myths, and legends that reflect not only the rugged landscape but also the nature of its people. An ancient legend tells of an evil troll who once made a bet with a young lad. Long ago, a farmer had three sons who were of little help on the farm. But since he was already old and weak, they should at least help him chop wood in the neighboring forest to cover their living expenses by selling it. So the eldest son set off for the forest with his axe to chop down a fir tree. But as he was about to chop it down, an angry troll appeared and threatened to kill him if he chopped down even one tree in his forest. The young lad was so frightened that he dropped his axe and ran home. He immediately told his father about his eerie encounter with the troll, who couldn’t believe that a troll had prevented his son from cutting down a tree there. The next day, he sent his second son into the forest, and just as he was about to cut down a tree, the troll appeared. The troll threatened to kill him too if he dared to cut down even one tree. Full of fear, he ran back to the farm, where he told his father everything, who had never been scared away by a troll. The next day, he sent his youngest son into the forest. But this time, he took not only an axe, but also a backpack with provisions. As he was about to cut down a tree, the troll appeared again and threatened to kill him if he cut down even a single tree. But, unimpressed by the troll, he reached into his backpack and took out a large piece of soft cheese, which he squeezed so hard with his hand that the juice squirted out. He threatened to do the same to the troll if he didn’t let him cut down trees. The troll suddenly became afraid and not only let the young lad cut down trees, but also helped him. Time flew by and it was already late in the evening. Since it was a long way home, the troll invited the young lad to his house. There, the lad made a fire while the troll cooked soup. When it was ready, the troll suggested an eating contest. If the lad won, he would get all his gold and silver, but if he lost, the troll would kill him. The lad agreed to the bet. But before the eating contest began, he secretly tied his backpack around his stomach and poured the food into it. Once the backpack was full, he took a knife and pretended to cut a hole in his stomach, but in fact he cut open the backpack. The troll didn’t notice anything and was already quite full. But the boy encouraged him not to give up and to cut open his stomach. The troll was afraid that this would hurt, but the boy assured him that it was nothing to worry about, so the troll cut open his stomach with a knife. This was really not a good idea, because he killed himself. The boy had tricked the troll and now took all his gold and silver. From then on, he lived with his brothers and parents on the farm without financial hardship. Sometimes it doesn’t take physical strength, but rather the necessary wits to knock out your opponent.
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