David Trobisch:
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Pumpelhoober introduces himself and explains why he is called Pumpelhoober.My name is not really Pumpelhoober. That’s only my nickname. My real name is David, but my father said it should have been Goliath. This is because I am only nine years old, and when I stand up straight, my head touches my father’s chin. You all know who Goliath was. He was the giant whom the little shepherd boy, David, attacked with a slingshot. Z-i-n-g went the stone! Down fell the giant. That’s why I am glad my name is David and not Goliath. But I’m called neither David nor Goliath. Everybody calls me Pumpelhoober. So my name is Pumpelhoober, and now I’ll try to tell you why. You’ve probably never even heard the word “Pumpelhoober” before. If you lived in Austria, though, you surely would have heard it. In Austria, they call someone who has a lot of bad luck “Pumpelhoober.” And because I often have bad luck, my father gave me the nickname Pumpelhoober.
If I have a piece of bread and butter and the bread falls down, it’s sure to fall on the butter side. If I have a piece of bread and cheese, it’s sure to fall on the cheese side. And if I have a piece of bread and sausage, it’s sure to fall on the sausage side. That’s why I’m called Pumpelhoober. If a road is nice and wide and there’s a stone in the middle of it, I’m sure to stumble over that stone. If I climb up a tree which has both strong branches and weak branches, I’m sure to step on one of the weak branches and come crashing down. That’s what you call Pumpelhooberocity.
If my mother says, “Pumpelhoober, go to the store and buy some fresh rolls,” I lose either the money on the way to the store or the rolls on the way home. That always makes me very sad, and I feel like crying because I’ve pumpelhoobered again. But my mother, she just comforts me and says, “You know, my poor, little Pumpelhoober, the next time you go to the store for me, I’ll just walk behind you and pick up everything you lose.” Then I have to laugh, again. But I’m still a Pumpelhoober, and that’s why I’m called by that name. |
