The Cottage With Too Many Chairs

Ve vesnici pod kopcem stála chalupa plná židlí.

In the village below the hill there was a cottage full of chairs.

Bylo jich tam čtyřicet a bydlela tam jediná stará paní.

There were forty of them, and there was only one old lady living there.

Sousedé si mysleli, že je to zvláštní.

The neighbors thought it was strange.

Paní Marie je sbírala celý život z různých míst.

Mrs. Marie collected them all her life from various places.

Každá židle patřila někomu, koho znala.

Each chair belonged to someone she knew.

Když někdo zemřel, dala jeho židli ke stolu.

When someone died, she put his chair at the table.

V neděli prostírala pro všechny, i pro ty, co už nepřišli.

On Sunday, she set the table for everyone, even for those who did not come.

Vnuk to nejdřív nechápal a pak pochopil.

The grandson didn't understand it at first, and then he understood.