The gnome lived alone in a small house in the woods, spending his time counting his gold coins. When winter came, he ventured out into the snowy woods for the first time and was so enchanted by the scenery that he forgot the bag of coins he had brought. In spring and summer he went out again, befriending the animals, but forgot his coins each time. By autumn, he no longer wanted to just count coins, and helped some beavers build a dam before realizing that friendship and nature were more important to his happiness than his gold.