Once upon a time, there was an old couple who were childless. The woman decided to bake a Gingerbread cookie in the shape of a boy, thinking he could become their son. Instead, once he was baked, the Gingerbread Man jumped out of the oven, shouting, “Don’t eat me!” and then ran away as fast as he could.

As the old man and old woman chased the Gingerbread man, hungry animals along the way joined in, yelling, “Stop, I want to eat you!” Soon a pig, a cow, a horse, a dog and a cat were following the Gingerbread Man. 

As each animal joined the group, he called out, “I ran away from the little old lady and the little old man and I can run away from you, too! You can’t catch me, I’m the Gingerbread Man!”

At last, the Gingerbread man reached a river, which he couldn’t cross. A friendly fox approached him, saying, “Hop on my back and I’ll get you safely to the other side.” The Gingerbread Man was more afraid of the water than the fox, so he got on his back. 

But the little Gingerbread Man trusted the wrong animal. As soon as they reached the far side of the river, the fox tossed the Gingerbread Man in the air, opened his mouth and ate the him up. And, that was the end of the Gingerbread Man!