Once upon a time, a kind old woman lived in a little house. In her garden, she had a bed of beautiful trumpet lilies.
One night, she was awakened by the sound of sweet singing and babies laughing. She looked out the window. The sounds seemed to come from the lily bed, but she could see nothing.
The next morning, she walked among her flowers but found no signs of anyone having been there.
On the following night, she was again awakened by the singing and laughter. She walked softly to her garden. The moon shone brightly on the lily bed, and the flowers were swaying to and fro. Looking closely, the old woman saw a little fairy mother standing by each lily, singing and rocking the flower like a cradle. Inside each lily trumpet lay a little fairy baby, laughing and playing.
The good old woman quietly returned to her house. From that time on, she never picked a lily, nor did she allow her neighbors to touch the flowers.
The lilies grew brighter in color and larger in size, giving off a delicious perfume like that of roses. They even began to bloom all year round.
The day came when the good old woman died. The lily bed was torn up, and other plants were planted there, but they all withered. From then on, nothing would grow in that spot.
But the old woman's grave grew beautiful, for the fairies sang above it and kept it green. On the grave and all around it sprang up lilies, tulips, violets, and other lovely flowers of spring.