There was once a wise woman who lived by herself near a small village. Rumor had it that she could always accurately predict questions. People came from all over the land to meet with her and seek her advice on matters both small and great. No matter how hard the questions, she always answered correctly.

Nine children from the village didn't believe that it was possible to always be right. Surely she could not know everything! They decided to test her knowledge. They all met near the woman's home the following afternoon and knocked her door.

"Old woman!" he called. "Come and show us how wise you are!"

The woman walked calmly to the door. "May I help you?" she simply asked...

Yasemin Boyracı- Afyonkarahisar - Çay Gevher Nesibe Vocational and Technical Anatolian High School

First child was holding something behind his back so no one could see what was in his hands.

-"Old woman!" he called."Come and show us how wise you are!

You say you know everything — prove it — what am I holding behind my back?”

The woman walked calmly to the child. She  She heard a ticking sound.

“I do not say I know everything," she replied. "However, I believe you are holding a clock in your hands."

The children were  puzzled. The woman advised them “Time always flies before we realize that we can neither hold time in our hands nor recover the lost time”

Elif Oral- Kozlu High School

The second child was astonished by what was happening at that time, but she was unwilling to believe as she always had suspicions about everything... Thus, she asked the woman from a long distance believing that she was playing some kinda tricks on them...

"what am I holding in my hand?"

The woman answered calmly "you are holding the most powerful weapon in the world. You can use it for good or for bad, it is in your hands.."

the girl understood that sometimes one just needed to believe...as she was holding a "pen" in her hand...

Theodora Poimenidou- General Lyceum of Palaiochora Chania,Crete.

Third child was impressed by the old woman's wisdom and clairvoyant powers and wanted to test her, too. Thus, she went to the old woman holding something behind her back so no one could see what was in her hands.

-"Old woman!" she called."You seem to be wise and infallible''-Prove it.

I am asking you -what am I holding behind my back?”

The woman looked at the child and smiled. 

“I do not say I know everything," she replied. "However, I believe you are holding a rose in your hands."

The children were  puzzled. The woman advised them “The scent of a rose will always stay on the hand of the giver”.

Senem Sönmez Tes-İş Adapazarı Anatolian High School - Sakarya Turkey

The fourth child wanted to test her with something very ordinary.As the coins are so small and can be hidden inside hands easily, he thought that the old woman can never guess it correctly.He took some coins from his pocket and hid in his hands.

He stepped forward by saying : " Well, dear old woman, maybe you have known everything till now, however; it doesn't prove that you will know everything ...We have so many questions in order to be sure of your wisdom...Now,another question for you! Can you guess what am I holding in my left hand?"

Before the boy started to talk to the old woman, he had taken some coins in his left hand.While he was taking those coins in his hand, the experienced old woman heard the jingle of the coins and once more answered correctly.The boy got sad and threw all the coins away angrily ,then left the house quickly.The old woman took all the coins from the floor and told them :

"Money doesn't grow on trees.Never throw it away".

Giorgia Nicolucci IIS Polo Tecnico "Franchetti Salviani" - IVC - Città di Castello - ITALY

The next day some boys from a very distant country came to test the old woman, this time confident that they would unmask her. Fifth kid stepped forward with a bold smile , holding nothing in his hands, and said:

“Old woman, if it’s true that you know everything, then tell me, what am I holding in my hands?”

The old woman replied, with a sweet voice: “I don’t say I know everything, but I believe you are holding nothing in your hands.”

The kids were shocked. Once more she had  managed to guess , but before they were able to speak , the old lady continued in her wise and gentle tone: “still, there's something more. What you’re holding has a great value, indeed. It represents your own future. It’s not written yet, and you are the only one with the pen to write it.”

IIS Polo Tecnico "Franchetti Salviani" - IE - Città di Castello - ITALY

The next day same boy came to talk to the old woman with a girl.

With their hands tightened together behind their backs, they asked her: “ Wise woman, if it’s true that you know everything, then tell us, what are we holding in our hands?”.

The wise woman stopped to think and then said: “ In your hands there is a true friendship”.

The boy and the girl were amazed.

The wise woman continued: “the light that shines in your eyes reveals that a true friend is someone who takes your hand and touches your heart”