Online children's stories by Damaria Senne

Outsider

2010-09-07T07:34:00.000-07:00

The room is crammed to the rafters
With happy people
Laughing, chatting and dancing
Eating and drinking
Dressed in a beautiful, red dress
She's in the centre of it all
The life and soul of the party
"So why do I feel like an outsider?” she asks
I have no words to help her.

Yesterday, today and tomorrow

2009-05-26T05:14:00.000-07:00

By Agisanang Mokua

Yesterday I told you that
I love you
I told you that you are
My princess

Today, I am telling
You that you are my
future
I am telling you that
Life is nothing without you.

Tomorrow, I will tell you that
I care for you
I will tell you that I
Will never make you cry.

I will tell ou that
You are my moon
My stars
And my sun.

I will tell you that
You are the universe
I will tell you that
No mater what they say or do
I will always love you.
So yesterday, today and tomorrow
I will always love
So please don’t
Pass me by.

Because yesterday I loved you
Today I care for you
And tomorrow I will love
And care for you

A poem for my daughter

2009-05-08T11:28:00.001-07:00

By Debbie Buckwalter (my sister)

Her heart smells of purity
Her smile full of gold
Her eyes nothing but true
And her greatness simple

She has a fierce love
Ferocious loyalty and a gentle soul
Her hands are like plush velvet
All soft-like and safe

She sees saints and hears angels
Says words that heal wounds
She dreams of paradise
Of an incessant peace

Her walk is brave
Her words, shy
Her will, precociously sure
She is stunning

Transformation

2009-05-08T11:15:00.000-07:00

By Debbie Buckwalter (my sister)

You sit alone and listen
The city speaks softly
The wind whispers to the night
Pleading, cajoling, making promises.

The sun has long waved goodbye
The night has embraced it
Taken far away to a safe haven
For a well-deserved rest.

They all speak, the stars
To the moon they murmur
Secret imaginings and requests
Never to be heard nor understood.

Dawn kisses the night softly
A red hue sits on the mountains
The voices of the city grow louder
As we collide with the world.

April

2009-05-08T11:03:00.000-07:00

April is the time to prepare
For the coming winter
Time to clean falling leaves
Rake the yard and
Create mulch for the coming winter.

April is the time to
Take off the summer curtains
Wash and pack them away
Hang thick, winter curtains
Ready to cocoon in winter

April is the time to clean the house
Move furniture around
Scrub and wipe the summer sloth
Make the rooms cosier

April is a time to
Clean out the creative cobwebs
Create new tales and legends
To regale the children
Over weekend nights

I miss you (A poem)

2008-01-10T09:33:00.000-08:00

I Miss You
By Agisanang Mokua and Obakeng Phiri (Agisanang is my nephew and an aspiring poet)

Every time I cry
There is no one to hold me
Every time I’m sad
There is no one to smile at me.

When problems come my way
I have no-one to help me solve them
My life is a nightmare
My enemies attack me
And I have no one to support me

Sometimes I wish I was with you
Sometimes I wish I could disappear
But one thing keeps me strong
My memories of you
I miss you

The morning after

2007-12-10T06:54:00.000-08:00

She cooks bacon and eggs for breakfast
A special treat for the family
He hugs and kisses her
Thanks her for a nice meal.

A pretty picture they paint
I can almost forget
The sound of his fist on her face
Her body crashing on the cupboard
With a thud

The shouts and insults of the night before
The taste of fear and shame
At his rage ......

"Niki hurry up!"
My friend Anna calls from the door
"The principal will make us clean the yard
If we’re late for school."

I grab my bag
Feet pounding and breath heaving
Anna and I run to get to school on time

No matter how fast, I run
I cannot escape
The sound of my father’s fist
On my mother’s face
Her body crashing onto the cupboard
With a thud

The Frog Princess - Another Take

2007-08-16T13:09:00.000-07:00

Sipho Monareng liked fishing. It was a quiet, relaxing sport that put him in tune with nature even while he thought through some life or work-related problems.

On this Sunday morning, Sipho did not have big problems to worry about. He had just finished working on a big software programming job. The customer was happy with a job well-done. He had lots of money in the bank. The only minor problem was his mother, who nagged him every chance she got, saying he should marry.

“It’s time you found a nice girl who’ll love you and give me grandchildren,” she said. “You’re not getting any younger, you know.”

But Sipho was not in a hurry to marry. He liked his life just the way it was. So he sat by the riverbank, casting his lines to catch some fish. His mind drifted a bit.
“Excuse me sir, but I need your help,” a deep croaky voice said.
“What?” Sipho cried.
He looked around, but he did not see anyone nearby. In fact, there was no other person near the riverbank.

“I’m down here,” the croaky voice said. “I’m in the water, right in front of you.”
Fascinated, Sipho looked down, and saw a big frog standing just outside the water, looking at him.

“Please sir, help me!”
“Wow! What are you?” Sipho asked.

The frog explained that her name was Helki. She was actually a princess from a well-known African tribe. Her sister, who was power-hungry and evil, cast a spell on her.

“I was supposed to inherit our kingdom after my parents’ death, but my sister changed me into a frog so she could become Queen. According to the spell, I can only go back to being a person if a handsome man like you kissed me on the lips,” Princess Helki explained.

Sipho had heard of the princess and her disappearance. It was all over the newspapers, radio and TV for weeks. At first authorities said it was a kidnapping, but when there was no ransom demand and time passed, it was thought she had been killed. Her body was never found.

“You’re really her?” Sipho asked, awed.
"Yes I am,” the frog said. “Kiss me and you’ll see.”
"Wow. Cool!"

Sipho bent down and picked Princess Helki up. But instead of kissing her like she asked, he put her in his bait box, packed up his fishing gear and walked back to his car. After stowing his fishing gear in the boot, he took the bait box into the car with him.

Princess Helki was beating weakly on the lid, begging him to open the lid.
“Sorry I had to stuff you in there, but I needed to pack up quickly and I couldn’t think of a good place to put you while I do that. ” Sipho apologized. "I'll let you out as soon as we get home I promise."

After packing his fishing gear in the garage, Sipho took the bait box and an old bird cage and took them to his home office. Then he took Princess Helki out of the baitbox.

“You idiot! How dare you lock me in a box with soft, fleshy dead things!” she yelled.
Helki took several deep breaths to try to calm down. It wouldn’t do to antagonize the person on whom your whole existence depends on, she thought.

“Sorry, but it was very upsetting to be trapped in that airless box with that wiggly stuff. I’m a human being, a princess, not a frog and I really hate the smell of bait,” she said.
“Sorry,” Sipho mumbled.
“As I was saying, I really need you to kiss me on the lips so I can go back to being a woman. If you did, I would be so grateful that I would marry you and rule my people by your side. Being my husband will bring you a lot of power and riches. Hey, hey, what are you doing?” Princess Helki said.

As Helki was speaking, Sipho had put her in a bird cage and locked the door.
“I’m really sorry Princess but I can’t kiss you. As I told my mother, I don’t really need a wife,” Sipho said. “ I don't need your money. I make lots of money doing programming jobs. And I’m just a geeky person who’s happiest when I am alone working on my software development programmes, I wouldn't know what to do with all that power you're talking about. But even if I did want those things, I still wouldn’t help you.”

‘And why would you not help me?” Princess Helki shrieked.

“Because I know more about your kingdom than you think,” Sipho said. “I just finished a programming job for your sister, and from what I hear, she was the one who was supposed to inherit. But you didn’t like it and tried to overthrow her. Then suddenly you disappeared. No one knew where you went, and she put in a good show, pressuring the police to find you. Neat way to get rid of traitors, don't you think?”
“No I don't! And if you knew all this, why did you take me out of the river?”

Sipho explained that he admired Princess Helki's sister and the work she was doing to help her people. "So I thought I'd do her a favour and put you where you’ll never have a chance to ask another man for a kiss. Anyway, having a talking frog to keep me company while I pull all-nighters will be real cool!” Sipho said.
'Aaaaaaaaaah!" Princess Helki screamed. But there was no one to hear; just Sipho, who laughed as he sat down at his desk, logging onto his laptop.

The Tortoise and the Baboon Plant Fruit Trees

2007-08-04T12:42:00.001-07:00

“Let’s plant fruit trees,” Tortoise said to his friend Baboon.

Baboon was lazy. He did not want to plant a fruit tree.
“It’s too much work,” he said.

Baboon said he always found enough food from other people’s trees.
“Why should bother to plant my own tree?” he asked.
“So you can have your own fruit from your own trees,” Tortoise said.

Baboon did not want to work in the garden.
He wanted to go out and play. But when he saw Tortoise set to work, he also began to plant his tree.

Tortoise dug a deep hole and prepared the soil to grow his fruit tree.
He chose to grow peaches.

Baboon chose to grow bananas.
He dug the surface of the soil.
He stuck his tree into the hard soil and threw some ashes on top of it.
He did not brother to water it.

Days later, Baboon’s banana tree died.

Tortoise’s peach tree grew stronger every day.
After a couple of months, it was fine and strong.
It bore big, soft peaches that looked juicy to eat.

Unfortunately, the Tortoise could pick his lovely fruit.
He tried to climb up the stem of the tree.
But the bark was too hard and rough.
It hurt his stomach.

He tried to climb up a ladder.
But the spaces between the rungs were too big.
He fell through them onto the ground.

He threw rocks at the peaches, hoping to hit them so they fall to the ground.
But he missed them.

He was sitting under his tree, trying to find a way to get up to fruit when Baboon strolled by. “My, my, your peaches look delicious,” Baboon said. “Your idea to plant fruit trees was a very good one. I wish I had worked as hard on my tree as you did on yours.”

Tortoise asked Baboon for help to pick fruit.
“I’ll give you some of my peaches for your trouble,” Tortoise said.

Baboon said he was happy to help a friend.
He climbed up to the tree, sat on a branch, picked a big, juicy peach and began to eat.

“Baboon, you’re not supposed to sit out there and eat my fruit. You’re supposed to pick them for me and bring the down,” he shouted.

Baboon ignored Tortoise.
He ate and ate, until his stomach was full.
Then he ate some more fruits for good measure.

When he was so full his stomach felt like it would burst, Baboon took one peach, crawled off the tree and gave it to Tortoise.

“Here. They taste really good. Your idea to plant a banana tree was a very good one,” he said. Then he strolled off.

Old Man Moseki

2007-07-22T12:12:00.000-07:00

I was in grade two (about six years old), and we were required to tell a folktale we’d heard from parents/grandparents as part of oral work.
Old Man Moseki walked down the road
Cutting across the village of Phokeng
He was going to visit his Ancestors
In graves on the other side of the river.
“I’m going to ask them to remove my bad luck and make us rich,” he told his wife..

While walking on the road, Old Man Moseki saw a round, shiny thing on the ground.
It was a R2 coin.
Old Man Mosekipicked up the coin.
He looked at it.
Then he put in back on the ground.
“Let me leave the coin here. I’m sure I’ll find it when I come back from visiting my ancestors,” he said.

Old Man Moseki kept on walking.
Along the way, he saw a piece of paper fluttering on the ground.
He bent down, grabbed the paper.
The old man picked up the R200 note.
He was very happy.
“This money will buy a lot of food for my family!” he thought.

Old man Moseki did not want to take the money with him to the ancestors.
What would they think if he came asking for riches while carrying such a large amount of money?

He decided to hide the money in the bushes.
He put the R200 note under a big rock.
The rock was hidden by the grass
Growing on the sides of the road.
“No one will find this money until I come back,” he said.

Old Man Moseki walked on.
Near the river, he met Radikgomo, one of the riches men in the village.
“Dumela Ntatemogolo,” Radikgomo greeted the old man. “I hope you are well?”
The old man told Radikgomo of his trip.
“I am going to visit the ancestors to ask them to make me as rich as you,” old man Moseki said.

Radikgomo was very happy for Old Man Moseki.
“I hope the ancestors hear your plea and make you rich too,” he said.

Radikgomo also asked the old man a favour.
“I need to build another kraal for animals, and I was wondering if you would keep some of my donkeys until the job is done.”

Radikgomo also said Old man Moseki could use the donkeys for his own business and to serve the community. :”The donkeys will bring you some money and I would be very grateful for the help,” he said.

But the old man refused to help Radikgomo.
“Get away from me!” he said. “I thought you were a good person, but now I see you are jealous of me. You know the ancestors will bless me with wealth. Now you are trying to keep me so busy taking care of your business that I will not have time to take care of my own.”

Old Man Moseki walked away, muttering to himself. ‘The ancestors will answer my pleas, see if they won’t!”

He walked crossed the river over the bridge.
He walked the short distance to the graveside, where many his parents and their parents were buried.
He stood near his mother’s grave and explained his mission.

He pleaded with the ancestors to take away his bad luck.
He begged them to make him rich.
He promised to do anything they wanted as long as they gave him this one thing.

On the way back home, he met Radikgomo.
Radikgomo was looking for a donkey that escaped from his kraal.
Radikgomo did not speak to the old man.
He looked the other way so their eyes do not meet.
He did not want to fight with the old man again.
“Humphhh!” Old man Moseki snorted.

Old Man Moseki walked to the tree where he left the two rand note.
He turned the rock.
There was nothing underneath.
“Oh no, who saw me put the money here?”

Thinking of the five cent coin, he walked as fast as his creaky bones would carry him.
His eyes were glued to the ground.
He looked for his five cent coin.
But he did not find it.
Someone else walked down the road, saw the shiny coin and took it.

Old Man Moseki got angry.
“My ancestors have abandoned me,” he cried.

When he arrived at home, he told his wife what had happened.
“I don’t know what to do now to remove our bad luck,” he said.

Old Man Moseki’s wife shook her head sadly. “Moseki, we are not poor because we have bad luck. We are poor because you are blind to our good fortune, even when it dances around your feet, begging it to take it home,” she said.

2007-07-08T03:23:00.000-07:00

Youth

Youth is
A smooth, unlined face
No anti-ageing cream required.
A slim and supple body
No creaking bones and aching limbs.

Youth is
Clothes chosen for cool factor
Not to hide bulges and sagging skin.
Love, life and career
A future full of promise

Youth is
The beginning of career success
Be anything, do anything
Work hard, play harder
Spend moolah as fast as you make it.

Youth is
The 3 Cs: Cash, car and a cellphone.
Falling in love
In lust at the drop of a hat
Enjoying every heartbreaking moment
No calluses on the heart yet

Youth is
A box full of possibilities
Treasures yet to be found
Cleaned and shined

2007-07-08T03:10:00.000-07:00

Across the sea

I have a warm and friendly feeling
As I think of you today
I wish we could visit
But you are many miles away

Your friendship becomes most dear
Everytime we speak.
Your calls bring you closer to my heart
For your soul shines through
Across the miles and sea.

The Mouse Trap

2007-05-30T03:33:00.000-07:00

A long time ago, a mouse moved into a farmer house. He made friends with the other farm animals, and was very happy in his new home.

However, the farmer and his wife did not want to live with a mouse. They set a mouse trap to catch the mouse.

The mouse was afraid of the mouse-trap. So he went to the chicken and said: “Will you help me close the mouse trap so it does not catch me and hurt me?”

The chicken said he could not help. My mouth is too thin and could get caught in the mouse trap, he said. “Ask the Pig. Maybe he can help you.”

The mouse went to the pig and asked for help. The pig said he could not help either.
“My snout is too big to fit into a mouse trap so I can close it,” he said.

The pig told the mouse to ask the cow for help. He can stamp on the mouse-trap and destroy it, the pig said.

So the mouse went to the cow to ask him for help. The cow refused to help. "A mouse trap? That’s not my problem!”

The mouse went to his hole and stayed in it. He was afraid to move around the house, in case he got caught in the mouse trap.

Days passed. Then one night, a strange sound woke the farmer’s wife from a deep sleep. She thought it was the sound of a mouse, caught in the trap.
“At last!” she thought. “I have finally caught that dirty little mouse.”

The farmer’s wife did not turn the light on. She was afraid the light would wake up her husband. The farmer was tired after a full day working in the fields.

The farmer's wife crept up to the mouse trap, and searched with her hands for the creature the mouse-trap caught. A large, poisonous snake bit her.
“Help,” she cried."Help!"

The scream woke the tired farmer. He followed the sound of his wife's voice to the kitchen. She was lying on the floor, holding onto her hand. The snake was still in the mouse trap.

The farmer hit the snake with a frying pan until it died. Then he carried his wife to the hospital.

The farmer’s wife was sick for many days. She refused to eat the food the hospital provided. “I’m not hungry,” she said when her husband tried to give her food.

The farmer decided to kill the chicken to make his wife soup. “Drink this,” he said to his wife. “I made it just the way you like it.”

The farmer's friends and relatives came to visit to ask after his wife. To make sure there was enough food for everyone, he killed the pig.

The women relatives cooked pots of pork stew for many days, as they waited for the farmer's wife to get better.

Sadly, the farmer’s wife died. As if tradition among African families, the farmer killed the cow to provide food for all the friends and relatives who came to the funeral.

As the mouse watched the events unfold, he thought:“ If someone had helped me, we wouldn’t be in this mess."

As told by Mmamathe Makhekhe–Mokhuane is the chairman of the Government IT Officers Council (GITOC) and Chief Information Office for the North West Provincial government.

Her core message to IT companies was: “Please let us assist one another. Let my problems be your problems.”

Deaf and blind

2007-04-09T22:52:00.000-07:00

I lie on my bed, curtains drawn, blankets over me
Pretending to be asleep, trying not to make a sound
She calls my name, asks me if I’m alright
I have to talk to you, she says
Your brother is ok

Trapped in horror and shame
I want to shout, rage and ask her:
How could you let him hurt your son like that?
Will you let him hit me like that?

I am too afraid to say it
Because I know she is as helpless as we are
Fears him as we do, loves him as we do
Our dear father

I am invisible, I am spellbound
As he hits and kicks, shouts and swears
Deaf and blind to my brother’s pleas
Mesmerized by the violence and the blood

As quickly as it begun, it ends
Mama comes to life, rushes to her my brother’s side
I am so sorry, she cries
Hugging him, wiping the tears and blood
I am invisible to them both

Shattered by fear and guilt
The bitter taste of shame on my tongue
I slink off to my room
Under the dark of blankets
My world of quiet and peace

Are you okay, Mama asks
But all I see is the look on her face,
While she wiped blood from my face
Smoothed cream on my aching body
That day not so long ago

Please, please, please, she begged
Don’t ever interfere again, try to be invisible
And whatever happens, do nothing, say nothing

I’m fine, I say
I don’t tell her, that I fear my turn will come again
He will slap, hit and kick, shout and swear at me
And all will be invisible, deaf and blind to my pleas

Waking up grandma

2007-03-07T03:41:00.000-08:00

Grandma McKay loves to sleep. She falls asleep anytime, anywhere. “I was just resting my eyes,” she says when we catch her taking a nap.

She falls asleep during the day, while we play.

She falls asleep at church, while the preacher prays.

She falls asleep while we watch TV.

She falls asleep while we eat. She even fell face down into her soup during supper.

When the day is hot, Grandma McKay sits in a shade on the stoep, pretending to watch people go past out street. My sister Nicole and I know that most of the time she doesn’t see anything. She sleeps.
“Oh, I was just resting my eyes,” she says when you shake her awake.

Nicole and I did like playing pranks on her when she falls asleep unexpectedly. We waved our hands in front of her face………

We made strange and ugly faces at her………….

We danced ………...

“Zzzzzzzzzzzz,”grandma snored.

We moved a feather very lightly over her face.
“Clap!” she slapped her face.
But she didn’t wake up. Maybe she thought it was a fly.

So we slammed to door shut.
“Dooof!”
She jumped right off her chair in fright.
“What? What?” Grandma screamed.

I didn’t think Grandma would catch me if I held her ears while she slept, pretending she was a car I was driving. I saw a boy do that on TV once. “Vroooom. Vroom.”

But for some reason, Grandma woke up……
“You naughty boy!” she shouted, reaching for her wooden stick.
Fast as lightning, I jumped away from her and ran off.

I almost bumped into Mama, who was bringing Grandma a cup of tea. Mama’s angry voice joined the shouting as soon as she knew what was going on.
“If I catch you again….”

They catch me, but they did catch Nicole. To be fair, she couldn’t run away. We were in church and Pastor Marcus was making one of his very loooong speeches.
“Zzzzzzzzzzzz,” Grandma snored.

Then Pastor Marcus hit his hand on the pulpit, shouting very loudly.
“Dooof!”
Grandma was not the only one to jumps right off the chair.
“What? Oh! Sorry. So sorry. I was just resting my eyes,” she said.

Nicole laughed.
‘What are you laughing at,” Mama said in an angry, hissy voice.

Worse for Nicole, Pappa saw and heard her laugh. “OuAnt!” he said. He told Nicole to go wait outside until the church finishes. And you apologize to your grandmother after church, he said.

When we came out, Nicole was playing outside with some of the kids who come to church. I was jealous.

She apologized to Grandma and my parent, but I could see she was not really sorry.
Grandma didn’t say anything. She didn’t scold and she didn’t look angry. She just looked at us for a long time. I don’t know what was wrong with that look, but it made me want to cry.

‘Do you think we hurt her feelings?” Nicole asked me when we were alone at home.
“I didn’t know. Maybe. We didn’t mean to hurt her feelings.”

Nicole and I decided say sorry to Grandma. This time we’d mean it.
“Thank you,” was all she said.

We don’t play tricks on grandma anymore. When she falls asleep in church, we wake her up before Pastor Marcus bangs on the pulpit and scares her.

When she falls asleep watching TV, we make sure she has a pillow behind her to make her very comfortable while we change the channel. We still don’t like watching the news.

Amakeia, deur A.G. Visser

2007-02-08T13:08:00.000-08:00

The first time I heard this poem, it was early evening, and it was raining. My mother was preparing supper and explaining the poem to my older brother, and she took him through it step by step, telling it as if it was a story.

I didn't know it was a poem; I thought it was a real story, about real people. Maybe an event that happened years before, and I couldn;t understand why my mother wanted to talk about it. It was only when they saw the tears running down my cheeks that they realised the story was upsetting me, and explained that it was a poem for school.

Reading the poem always evokes part of the sadness I felt for Amakeia then.
D

.................

AMAKEIA ~ deur A.G. Visser ( a poem by A.G, Visser)

In die skadu van die berge,
bos-beskut aan alle kant,
staan alleen die hartbeeshuisie
op die grens van Kafferland.

Saggies neurie Amakeia
op die wal van Kei-rivier,
tot hy slaap, die tere wiggie
van die blanke pionier:

"Stil maar, stil maar, stil Babani;
kyk hoe blink die awendster.
Niemand sal vir kindjie slaan nie -
stil maar, al is Mammie ver."

Amakeia had belowe
toe haar nonna sterwend was,
om die hulpelose kindjie
tot hy groot was, op te pas.

Liefd'ryk sorg sy vir die wit kind,
tot vir hom die lewenslig
straal uit aia Amakeia's
vrind'lik-troue swart gesig.

Onheilspellend sien sy tekens,
oorlog kom daar in die land:
Snel die inval, huis en hawe
uitgemoor en afgebrand.

Selfvergetend, doodveragtend,
met die wit kind op haar rug,
na die Amatola-berge
het sy ylings heen gevlug.

"Stil maar, stil maar, pikanienie;
oor die bergtop rys die maan.
Niemand sal vir ons hier sien nie;
môre sal ons huis toe gaan."

Ag, dat oë van verspieders
ook haar skuilplaas moes ontdek!
"Spaar hom, hy's so klein nog," smeek sy
met die hande uitgestrek.

Woedend tier die wilde bende:
"Sterf of gee die wit kind hier!"
"Oor my lewelose liggaam ..."
antwoord Amakeia fier.

"My belofte aan my nonna -
beste wat daar ooit nog was -
waar hy gaan, moet Amakeia
saamgaan om hom op te pas."

"Is jul lewend nie te skei nie,
bly dan in die dood vereen -
kort proses met haar, Maxosas,
laat die blink asgaaie reën!"
*
In die Amatola-klowe
sing nog net die winterwind
deur die riete in die maanskyn:
"Tula - Tula - stil, my kind!"

Thandi sets her hair on fire

2006-12-08T13:05:00.000-08:00

Thandi is a beautiful girl with long and hair full of curl.
She likes to play house with her friends.
She likes to make things with her hands.

“We can’t play house without cooking,’ Morongwa says.
Bongani agrees.
Pap and meat are easy to cook,” he says. I’ve watched my Mama cook a gazillion times.
“Where can we cook?” Thandi asks. Mama won’t let us use her stove.”

The gang make a list of things they need:
Matches, wood and paper.
Salt, maize meal and water.
“Psssssst! Don’t tell Mama I stole some meat!” Thandi says.

Bongani puts two large bricks side by side, to make a stand for the pot.
He puts newspaper and wood between the bricks.
He puts wire mesh across the bricks to make a seat for the pots.
He sets the paper on fire.
“Did you put enough water in the pot for the pap?” he asks the girls.

The fire is not catching properly
There is too much smoke
“”I know what to do,” Thandi says.
She kneels on the ground, takes a deep breath:
Phooooooooh! Phoooooooh!

“Get up!” they scream
“Thandi get up! Geeet uuuup!”
“What is it?” she asks. The she sees the smoke passing over her face.
”No! Oh no! Mama! Mama!
Maaaamaaaa! “she screams.

Her Mama comes running out
Öh my! What have you been doing?
She grabs Thandi, throws her on the ground,
Pours sand all over the smoking hair.

The smoke stops.
Burnt hair is shrunken and hard.
Thandi’s Mama presses on the head
‘Is it sore?’ she asks

“You are lucky your scalp did not burn,” Mama says.
“I’m sorry Mama. We wanted to cook for our house.”

Snip, snip, snip
Thandi’s Mama cuts her hair.
The long, beautiful curls are gone.
Thandi has chiskop!
‘I look like a boy,’ Thandi cries.

“Mirror, mirror on the wall, which hat is the fairest of them all?” Thandi says

Fresh salads and sarmies are best
As we don’t need to cook them.
Just wash, cut and mix
Add a bit of salt
And lots of mayo
Yum!
“Use plastic knives, or you will cut yourself by accident,” Thandi’s Mama says.

I am am not a baby!

2006-11-30T06:01:00.000-08:00

Manana knew she was home alone even before she went through the house room by room, looking for her winter coat.

Manana’s mother worked for a family in town, so she has to leave her home early so she could help her boss get the kids ready for school.

Her father was a taxi driver . He too had to leave the house early. He had to join the line of taxis at rank early so he that he could help people get to work on time.

“Mama says I’m smart and I can get myself ready for school just fine, even if I am six,” Manana bragged to her cousin Billy.

“Yeah? So if you are so smart, how come your mother asked my mother to make me walk you to school everyday?” Billy asked.

Manana didn’t have an answer for that. Billy was nine years old, and was repeating grade two, so he always got mad when people said she was smart.

Every morning, before she left for work, Manana’s mother set out her school uniform on the bed.
“So you can easily find the clothes after you take a bath,”she said.

Manana’s mother also put the girl’s porridge on the table. All Manana had to do was put sugar and milk in the bowl, stir and eat.

Manana’s mother also packed her lunch box and put it in her school bag. She always left the school bag at the door so Manana didn’t have to look for it.

On this day, Manana didn’t think her Mama knew it was going to be cold. She didn't set out Manana’s coat, so the little girl had to look for it.

The coat was a gift from Manana’s mother for her sixth birthday.
“Mrs Bosch didn’t want it anymore, but it still has some life in it,”Manana’s mother’s said.

Manana loved her coat even if it is too big and had funny patches in places, like an old sick dog losing some of its hair. The coat was soft and fuzzy, with lots of colours.
“It looks like a tiger,” Manana’s father said.

Manana looked for the coat in the wardrobe.
It was not there.

She looked in the box her Mama put special stuff for winter.
It was not there.

She looked in Mama's wardrobe.
It was not there.

Where was Manana’s coat?

"Manana? Hurry up! We're going to be late!" cousin Billy called her.

“I can’t find my coat,”I said.

“Hurry up. We’ll run. You will be warm enough,” he said.

Manana decided to leave the coat and breakfast and just go. She didn’t want Billy to leave her behind.

Billy hated walking with Manana to school. He said he would rather walk with his friends, who had something to say, not little babies who cried all the time. It didn’t help that his friends teased him about his chore too.

As soon as Manana came out of the house, Billy closed the door, then hurried away, making me run after him.

"Wait for me!" she said.

Billy knew Manana got scared when he runs too fast and leaves me behind. So he loved doing it to tease her.

"Stop being such a baby," he said when she began cry because he was running to fast.

"I'm not a baby!" Manana said.

"If you can't cross the main road by yourself and cry everytime someone does something you don’t like, then you are still a baby," Billy said.

“You know what? I think you hate walk with me to school because I'm smarter than you in class, is what I think,”Manana said.

“Right! You’re not smarter than I am?”

“I am too..I can say my alphabet and count up to 100 and I'm only six. My teacher says I'm a star, but she doesn’t say anything to you except Billy except “Billy! Stop that!”.

“Well, if you are smarter than me, you don’t need me to take you to school. You can do it yourself!” he said, then ran off.

The tears wanted to come back, but Manana fought them. She was going to show Billy that she could get herself to school. Her Mama said it was not too far.

“I’m just worried that she will get hit by a car. She doesn’t know how to cross the road yet,” Manana heard her mother say to Billy’s mother that day.

So she walked faster and made sure she was very far from oncoming cars. When she had to cross the roads, she looked left, right, then left again. S

he was supposed to cross then, but she got so scared she just stood on the side of the road. Again, she looked left, right and then left again. The oncoming car was very far away. So Manana crossed the road.
.
“Are you going to tell on me?” Billy asked her when they were in class.
“Maybe,”Manana said.

She knew she would not tell on him. If she told, Billy would get a hiding and would just make him meaner. Anyway, she was scared when she crossed the road alone, but she did it, and she wanted to do it again.

“Please don’t tell,” Billy said. “Please?”
“You have to give me something if you don’t want me to tell,” Manana said.
“Like what?”
“I don’t know. Something nice.”
“What if I stop calling you a baby? Is that enough?”

Nia had thought Billy would give her a sweet or some money, maybe even his juice, but not calling her “a baby” anymore was even better.

“Okay,”she said.

That evening, Manana asked her her mother if she had seen her coat.
“I looked and looked for it and I couldn’t find it,”she said.

“It’s on my bed. took it to the dry cleaner,” she said. “Winter is coming and I thought you were going to need it soon.”

Manana went to the bedroom to look at her coat. It was even more beautiful than before. The coat was softer and it smelled very nice.

She wished for cold weather for the following day, so she could wear the coat.

END

Tselane and the ogre

2006-09-08T15:54:00.000-07:00

There was once a young girl called Tselane, who lived with her mother in a little house at the edge of a forest.

Lving nearby in the forest was giant ogre called Dingwe, whose favourite meal was cooked and salted little girls.

To protect her from Dingwe, Tselane’s mother always left her inside the house when she had to go outside to gather food and wood.

“Keep the house locked and don’t open it the door unless you’re sure it’s me,” Tselane’s mother said.

How will I know it’s you mother? Tselane asked.
"I will sing for you," Tselane’s mother said.

In a beautiful, melodious voice, Tselane’s mother sang:

Tselane, my child
Here is porridge for you to eat

[Tselane ngwanaka
Mme, mme bogobe ke bo o je]

For a long time the system worked, frustrating Dingwe, who was hungry for a cooked and salted little girl.

Dingwe decided to study the family so he could work out how he could get Tselane out of the house. He hid in the bushes near Tselane’s house and watched as Tselane’s mother left to gather food and wood, and listened to her sing for Tselane to open the door for her.

The next time Tselane’s mother went away to gather wood, Dingwe went to Tselane’s door and sang for her. But his voice was rough and terrible.

Tselane ngwanake
Mme, mme bogobe ke bo o je

Tselane knew it was not her mother and refused to open the door.

Dingwe went to a magician and said: “Help me to make my voice soft and melodic.”

“Here is a piece of iron I put a spell on. Heat it on a fire until it’s red hot iron, then swallow it. The fire will burn a path down your throat and change your voice,” the magician said.

Dingwe went home and did what the magician told him to do.
“Aaaaah! It hurts!” he shouted. “It huuuuurts!”

Mid-shout, Dingwe realised that his voice was smoother, softer.
“I works! Yes, it works!”

The following day, a few minutes before Tselane’s mother was to have arrived at home, Dingwe went back to Tselane’s house and sang:

Tselane, my child
Here is porridge for you to eat

Tselane, thought Dingwe was her mother, so she responded and said:

I hear you my mother
I hear you mother
Your voice is as beautiful as a bird.

Tselane opened the door.
Dingwe grabbed her and stuffed her in a sack, tied it close and threw her on his shoulder.

Dingwe was so happy with his catch that decided to stop at a shebeen in the vilage to drink beer and celebrate. He dropped his wiggly bag on the floor and kicked it hard.

“If you don’t stay quiet and still, I will kick you again,”he whispered to his prisoner.

It was not long before the owner came to his table.

“Go away!” the owner said. “We don’t serve your kind here!”

Dingwe refused to leave.

“Bring me a big mug of beer,”he said in his soft, melodius voice. “Now!”

The owner poured beer into a huge mug and dumped it in front of the Dingwe, spilling some of it on the table.

The shebeen owner was just about to go back to the bar area when he saw the wiggly sack near Dingwe’s table.

“Moving away, are you?” he asked.’
“None of yur business,” Dingwe said.

In a soft voice, the shebeen owner told the other villagers sitting near the bar area that Dingwe’s sack was wiggly.

“I think he caught someone’s daughter today,” he said.

The other villagers decided that they were ot going to let him get away with it. Their plan was simple.

“Want some company?” Ntate Moloi asked Dingwe, sitting down next to him. Dingwe was feeling so happy he didn’t mind the company.

“You must be new to these parts,”Dingwe said. “The villagers are very unfriendly to strangers or people who are not like them.”

“Amen to that,” Ntate Moloi. “Want another drink? Maybe a whiskey?”

Dingwe was happy to accept a free drink from his new friend. He also accepted the second, third, fourth, fifth, sixsh... who wash c-c-counnting? After the twelfth drink, Dingwe passed out, his head hitting the table with a bang.

The shebeen owner opened Dingwe’s bag and found Tselane inside.
“If we take her out of the bag, what are we going to put inside? He will notice the missing girl,” Ntate Moloi said.

The magician , who was also at the shebeen having a couple of drinks, said he knew a way to fill the bag.

Once the bag was closed again, Ntate Moloi woke Dingwe.
“My friend, it’s time to go home now,” he said.

Dingwe said he did not feel well, and his feet were wobbly, but he wwas very hungry and wanted to go home so he could cook his supper.

Ntate Moeng offered to walk Dinwe home and sometimes even helped him carry the wiggly bag.
“That’s what friends do for each other when the other one is drunk,” Dingwe said.

When Dingwe arrived at home, he started a fire on his stove. Then he took the axe, put the wiggly bag on the table and opened it. A swarm of bees came out of the bag and stung him.

Accompanying were a large number of snakes, which were angry after being repeatedly stung by bees. So they too bit Dingwe, putting their poison in his body and killing him.

The following day there was a big party in the village and this time, little girls were allowed out of their homes.

“Thank you all for helping my duaghter,” Tselane’s mother said.

Picture of Tselane's house by Baby, done with "Paint" software.

The legend of Sananapo

2006-09-07T12:42:00.000-07:00

The story of Sananapo is told by his dog soon after his death. It has also been recorded by choirs and a number of artists.

I’m putting it up here because it’s a popular song among African families, and strangely enough, I couldn’t find the lyrics on the Internet.

Anyway, translated, Sananapo’s dog says:

Sananapo, Sananapo 2 X
They have killed him, Sananapo
Then they tried to give me his bones, Sananapo
I do not eat human flesh, Sananapo
I will certainly not eat my royal master, Sananapo

Setswana version says:

Sananapo, Sananapo 2 X
Ba mmolaile, Sananapo
Ba mpha lesapo, Sananapo
Sapo ka gana, Sananapo
Ga ke je motho, Sananapo
Ga ke je mong wa me, Sananapo
O a thebe ya kgosi, Sananapo!

These are not full lyrics of the song. If you know the full song, including the part of how Sananapo was killed, please let me know.

The farm animals refuse to work

2006-09-05T14:56:00.000-07:00

Ntate Moabi was tired. He had spent the past year working hard on his small farm to get a good crop of maize. Taking care of the farm animals was a big job too.
‘Let’s go to Durban on holiday,’ he said to his wife.

Page 1

Ntate Moabi could not leave the farm animals alone. Who would make sure that they eat and drink well? Who would clean their stalls?
“Ask Cousin Makhele to help,” his wife said.
Cousin Makhele, who worked as a school teacher, agreed.
“I want to buy a farm one day, he said. “Helping you will show me what it’s like to own a farm.”

Page 3

Cousin Makhele was shocked to find out how spoilt Ntate Moabi’s animals were.
Lolo the Cat ate only canned cat food.
Cousin Makhele tried to teach her how to catch mice.
“Come on Lolo, go catch the mouse. There’s a good kitty-cat!” he said.
Lolo refused to pounce on the mouse Cousin Moagi caught for her.

Page 4

Lolo complained about their new caretaker to her friend Foxy the dog.
‘He tried made you catch your own food? Eeeeeeew!’ he said, scrunching his face in disgust.
‘Imagine how humiliating it would be to chase one those creatures and then killing it! Gross!’
Foxy also had a problem with their new caretaker. Cousin Makhele said Foxy had to watch the sheep and make sure they didn’t wander away. He also said Foxy had to sleep outside, not in the kitchen where it was warm and cosy.
“Now that is really mean!” Lolo said. “How can that man do this to us?”
“The question is: what are we going to do about it?” Foxy said.

Page 5

The two friends decided to call for a meeting for all the animals on the farm.
All the animals attended the meeting.
Even the rats came: if Lolo hunted them, they would have to find a new place to live!
Lots of animals had something to complain about.
Manana the Mother Sheep said: the sheep don’t like Foxy watching them. He is big and looks scary to the lambs. And today he chased the lambs that had trouble keeping up.”
“He doesn’t let us run about and have any fund either,” one of the lambs piped up.
‘You’re lucky,’ Tsana the donkey said enviously. ‘I work from sunrise till sunset, pulling a wagon. We must have hoed everyone’s farm by now.’

Page 6

The animals decided to go on strike and refuse to do any of the jobs that Cousin Makhele gave them.
Lolo refused to catch mice.
The lambs ran anywhere they liked.
Foxy didn’t chase them back. He didn’t bark when strangers came to the farm either.
The cocks did not crow in the morning.
Nia was still bored in her stall because there was no one to ride her.
Tsana didn’t want to go on strike.
“Makhele can easily replace me with a tractor if I’m useless to him,” he said.
“He can’t do that,” the other animals said. “It’s not his farm.”

Page 7

Mice, on the other hand, were encouraged to run through the house.
“Make sure that Ntate Makhele sees you in the house,” Lolo told them.
”We will win this battle,” Foxy said.

Page 8

They won.
Cousin Makhele eventually gave up and decided to treat the farms animals just as they were used to.
“Soon Ntate Moagi will come back to the farm and its lazy animals will no longer be my problem,” he said.

Page 9 and 10

Their victory did not last long.
A week before Ntate Moagi was to come back home from the holiday, Cousin Makhele received a phoned call from him.
Ntate Moagi said he and his wife had decided to sell the farm and live in Durban. He explained that he and his family enjoyed the coastal city so much that they decided to live there.
Cousin Makhele was shocked.
“Sell the farm?” he exclaimed. “What about the animals?”
Ntate Moagi said he had tired been of farming for a long time. As a result, he allowed the animals do what they liked, he said.
“Would you like to buy our farm?” he asked Cousin Makhele.
Cousin Makhele said he needed to think about it.
“Ok. I’ll phone you in a week then,” Ntate Moagi said.

Page 11

When Cousin Moagi finished talking, Lolo came out under the sofa and ran outside to tell the other animals the bad news.
“Foxy! Foxy!” she meowed as she run through the house looking for him.
He was not in the kitchen, so she went to the stalls.
“Foxy!’
“What?’ he whoofed when she stopped next to him.
“Trouble,’ she said, panting for breath. “We are in deep trouble.”

Page 12

Lolo told the animals that Ntate Moagi and his family are not coming back to the farm to live. He wants to sell the far, to his cousin.
“Oh no! What about us?” Foxy asked.
“Moagi will sell us the place, move on and forget us. That’s what people do,” Tsana said.
Tsana said there was nothing the animals could do. They all had to accept the change and hope the new owner was kind to them.
Lolo told them that Ntate Moagi offered the farm to Cousin Makhele to buy the farm.

Page 13 and 14

“I think it’s time we all changed our attitude to Cousin Makhele,” Tsana said. “From now onwards, we must do what he tells us, when he wants it, no questions asked.’
“Do what he tells us? Do you mean I have to start hunting mice? Are you crazy?” Lolo asked, her face scrunched in disgust.
Tsana said he didn’t like giving up their fight either, but there was no choice.
“Now I will have to work all the hours God gave,” he said.
“You don’t have to catch the mice yourself,” Nia said. “Invite those wild cats that Foxy likes chasing. Tell them they can come visit on the farm, as long as they agree to catch the mice for you.”
“Wow! Why didn’t I think of that?” Lolo said happily.

Page 15

“E-e-e-excuse me!” a big grandfather mouse took a deep breath before he asked: “Are you saying it’s okay for the cats to start hunting us now?”
“Yep!” Lolo said happily.
“That’s not fair!” a tiny mouse squeaked as their mother pushed them out of the stall.
It was also agreed that Foxy would start watching the sheep.
Manana said she didn’t mind.
“I didn’t want to say anything because of the strike and all, but sometimes the lambs got lost, and I had to find them myself,” she said. “I didn’t like that.”

Page 16

The following morning, Cousin Makhele woke to cocks crowing.
At breakfast, he didn’t see Lolo and Foxy, who usually sat on the floor watching him. The mice that usually scurried round the room while he ate were also absent.
After breakfast, he went outside to begin work.
The sheep were already out in the fields, grazing. Foxy was also out in the field, occasionally running to block a lamb that wandered from the herd.
Cousin Makhele was surprised, but he was also pleased.
“I wonder what changed their minds?”

END

How the birds chose a king

2006-09-02T04:10:00.000-07:00

The drought was slowly killing the birds and animals in Phokeng Forest. The grass was dry and short. There was a small, muddy puddle where the drinking water should have been. Even Mrs Crow, who had a lot of food to eat when animals started to die from hunger, was getting thinner. Who wanted to eat a small pack of bones pretending to be a buck anyway?

Page 2

Luckily, Mrs Crow was very good friends with Eagle, the King of the Birds.
‘I have a plan to make sure that we always have enough food to eat,’ Eagle said to her.
‘Please don’t tell me that I should go out there to hunt? I so hate to chase my food!’
‘Don’t worry,’ Eagle said. ‘The food will come to you without lifting a finger.’
Mrs Crow loved the plan.

Page 3

The following morning, Eagle called a meeting of all the birds in the forest. He told them to all meet at the river’s edge, where they usually drink water at ten in the morning.
‘Ten in the morning? I will be asleep by then!’ Tera the owl complained to her friend uCilo. ‘He should have arranged the meeting for early evening. That way, we would meet after I wake up and before everyone else goes to sleep.
‘Now you’re dreaming,’ uCilo said, chuckling. ‘You know Eagle always arranges things to suit him and his friends, no one else!’

Page 4

‘I called this meeting to talk to you about tax,’ Eagle said when everyone was perched on a branch. ‘You should have started paying tax a long time ago. I don’t know why I didn’t think of it. But but now that there is a drought, it is even more important that we start to do so.’
‘Pay tax?’ Mr Dove shouted at him. ‘Are you out of your mind? Why should we pay tax? And how can we do that when we don’t even have food to feed our own chicks?’

Page 5

Without a word, Eagle flew over to where Mr Dove was perched, bit his head off and let the body fall to the ground. Then he spit the head out and flew back to his perch where he faced the other birds.
‘Now, is there anyone else here who wants to question whether you should pay tax or not?’ Eagle asked as Mrs Crow flew down to eat what was left of Mr Dove.
‘No? Good! In case there is a bird here that does not know, I am the King of the Birds in Phokeng Forest. That means that my word is law. Anyone who does not like it can either challenge me or leave. But I should warn you: if you challenge me and lose, you will suffer the consequences.’
No one said a word.

Page 6

Eagle explained that all the birds were expected to spend part of their time hunting for food for the King.That is, for him.
‘Mrs Crow here has graciously agreed to accept and store all the meat that you bring for me,’ he said. ‘She will also keep track of who is bringing food and who is not.’
‘Eh.. excuse me Eagle,’ uCilo said hesitantly. ‘ I am very small and can only catch grasshoppers. I don’t have the strength to catch someone thing that you could at. Also, many of the birds here don’t eat meat and don’t know how to hunt. How will they catch your food?’
‘That is your problem, not mine.’ Eagle said. ‘The law is, all the birds in this forest should pay tax. It’s their business to find a way to do it.’

Page 7

‘You’re joking, right?’ Tera said when uCilo told him about Eagle’s tax law.
‘Nope!’ uCilo said.
‘But how can he do that? He’s not even our real leader. We did not choose him!’ Tera said.
‘We did not challenge him either when he declared himself to be King of the Birds,’ uCilo said. ‘ He said that we can either challenge him for the throne or do as we’re told. As usual, everyone chose to do as they were told.’

Page 8

For the next couple of days, uCilo worried about how she and Tera were going to hunt food for Eagle. She thought of setting a trap as she had seen humans do. But where was she going to get a trap to use? And even if she did get one, she did not know how to use it. She was more likely to hurt herself with it than catch anything useful.
UCilo thought of paying someone to hunt for them. But who? Many of the birds did not eat meat and did not know how to hunt. And with the drought being so bad and food so scarce, how was she going to pay the hunter? As she lay in her nest, worrying about the problem, a solution came to her. It was a bold and risky, but if she was successful, the birds in Phokeng Forest would never have to worry about Eagle again.

Page 9 and 10

‘You want to challenge Eagle for the leadership?’ Tera shouted at her. ‘Are-you- crazy?’
‘It’s the only way to solve the problem,’ uCilo calmly said. ‘We have enough problems with drought as it is. We don’t need is a selfish leader who forces us to hunt for him while he lazes about with his friends.’
Tera understood the need to get rid of Eagle. But challenging him was dangerous.
‘What is going to stop him from ripping your head off as soon as you say the words challenge you?’
‘Because I am so little, he might decide to play with me for a while before he kills me. You know, like a cat plays with a mouse it’s planning to eat for lunchh. Also, Eagle likes to kill in public to scare everyone. I’m going to challenge him when he’s with a few of his friends and hope that he sets me aside to kill later.
‘What will stop him from killing you even if you win the race?’ Tera asked uCilo.

Page 11

Tera went with uCilo to challenge Eagle ‘for moral support.’
To everyone’s surprise, Eagle accepted the challenge with good humour.
‘Ha ha ha ha ha!’ he laughed when uCilo issued his challenge. ‘You think that you can beat me and become King of the Birds?’
‘Yes I do,’ uCilo said, trying not to look as scared as she felt.
‘Fine then,’ Eagle said. ‘Meet me at the river’s edge tomorrow afternoon at five. We’ll compete who can fly the highest and fastest.’
‘But that’s not fair!’ uCilo said.
‘Fair?’ Eagle laughed harder. ‘What does fair have to do with choosing a leader?’
‘The contest should be something that the another bird can do equally well, not something that you only you can win,’ uCilo said. ‘A good leader should be judged by his wisdom, kindness, knowledge of how the other birds live and an interest in making their lives better, not by his ability to fly.’
‘Why should a weaker bird be given the chance to be a leader? We should choose a bird that is stronger and able to enforce the law. As I am about to demonstrate, I am that bird.’
‘Make sure that you eat a good meal tonight, my dear,’ Mrs Crow said when uCilo and Tera left. ‘You’re going to make such a tasty snack for me tomorrow evening after the race!’

Page 12

Tera and uCilo spent the rest of the day visiting the other birds, telling them about uCilo’s challenge.
‘I am worried that Eagle will kill uCilo even if she wins the challenge,’ Tera said. ‘Please help me protect her soon after the race.’
‘How can we help?’ the Sparrows asked.
Tera’s plan was simple. If all the birds enter the contest, then uCilo won’t be the only challenger.
‘And if Eagle kills her, then he’ll have to kill all the birds that entered the race. And he can’t do that because there will be too many of them.’

Page 13

Although there were many birds who agreed to the plan, some refused.
‘My husband was stupid enough to question Eagle and he died because of it,’ Mrs Dove said. ‘I am not going to do anything that could get me killed and leave my children orphans.’
‘We are all afraid, but we cannot let fear rule our lives,’ Tera said. ‘Eagle became king because we were too afraid to challenge him when he put himself on the throne. uCilo’s challenge gives us the chance to get rid of him. If we don’t and he gets away with setting a law that says we should hunt for him and his lazy friends, what will he do next? Pass a law that says he and his friends can snack on us anytime they like? We have to stop him. Now.’

Page 14

All the birds in the forest attended the contest. For some of the birds, the event was pure entertainment. For others, it was an opportunity to see their friend Eagle wipe the floor with that impertinent little bird, uCilo. There were many birds that attended the event in order to support poor little uCilo. Her cause was right. Unfortunately, she could not win in a race against Eagle. The only thing that they could do was enter the race, as agreed with Tera.

Page 15

Eagle did not mind the other birds entering the race.
‘It’s a good thing that they are all entering the race,’ he said to Mrs Crow when she complained. ‘They will not be able to say that I made myself king when they don’t like the rules. They are getting the chance to win the throne away from me and I know I will beat them.’

Page 16

When the race began, Eagle flew high above the other the birds. When he was as high as he could get, he twisted and turned and danced generally provided a good show for everyone. He was the clear winner!
‘Where is uCilo?’ Tera asked in concern. ‘Can anyone see uCilo?’

Page 17

Eagle was just about to begin his descent when uCilo came out from under his wing and flew higher. Before the race began, uCilo crept under Eagle’s large wing. He was so busy bragging to his friends that he did not notice the little extra bundle under his wing.
Eagle tried to catch up with her but he could. He was too tired.

Page 18

‘There she is,’ Tera shouted, flying in circles just above the spectators. ‘She won! She won!’
‘No she didn’t,’ Mrs Crow said angrily. ‘ Eagle ran faster and higher than all the other birds, and that little UCilo tried to cheat him.’
‘Who cares how she did it?’ Tera shouted. ‘She won! She won!’

Page 19

Eagle was furious.
‘uCilo did not win the race fairly, so she should be disqualified,’ Eagle said to the Mrs Swallow, who was referee to the race.
‘Fair?’ uCilo laughed, taunting Eagle like he did her. ‘As you said, what does fair have to do with choosing a leader? I have provden that a leader need not be the strongest bird in the group. He or she should be smarter and more cunning that her enemies. As I have just demonstrated, I am that bird.’

Page 20

‘You agreed to the race Eagle, and we never set the rules of the game,’ said Mr Swallows, who acted as referees said.
‘Because I did not expect her to cheat!’ Eagle shouted.
‘You said that the bird that can fly the highest and fastest becomes king or queen of the birds. uCilo flew the highest. So you have to accept the results.’
‘And if I don’t?’ Eagle asked, walking to Mr Swallows in a threatening manner. ‘What if I decide to kill the little cheat and give her to Mrs Crow to snack on?’

Page 21 and 22

Mr Swallows took a huge gulp of air, but it did not calm his nerves. He looked at the other birds that had agreed to support uCilo, standing behind him. They could not back off, esepcially now that the chance to get rid of Eagle was so great.
‘We.. the other birds.. we..we agreed that if by some miracle uCilo wins the race and you still kill her, then we will kill you too.’
‘Kill me? How?’ Eagle asked incredulously.
‘Physically, none of us can win a battle against you,’ Mrs Swallows said. ‘But we can get to in other ways. For example, when the hunters come, we could fly towards your nest to lead them to you. You are a big bird. Sooner or later, they would get you with their guns. ’
‘Or, we could poison the meat that we bring to you as tax,’ Tera said. ‘You would never be be able to look at your food without wondering if it is safe to eat.’
‘You are going to let her get away with it!’ Eagle exclaimed angrily.
‘Sorry Eagle, but uCilo is the better leader, despite her small size,’ Mrs Swallows said. ‘She also showed us that we don’t have to be physicaly stronger in order win.’

Page 23

‘Bye bye,’ uCilo taunted him, waving a wing at him. ‘ I can’t say that it was nice knowing you.’
‘You will pay for cheating me!’ Eagle vowed as he and his friends left the field. ‘One day, I will make you pay.’

Page 24

Eagle, Mrs Crow and many of Eagle’s supporters decided to move to another forest after the race.
‘You’re welcome to keep this dustbin anyway,’ Mrs Crow said as they left. ‘It’s dry and ugly and you are likely to starve to death living here.’
‘Sore loser!’ Tera crowed.

Bibliography

Based on the folkstory titled: ‘How the birds chose a king.’ An original version of this folkstory is published in ‘Zululand, Its Traditions, Legends and Customs by L.H. Samuelson (Kessinger Publishing)

Thandi goes shopping

2006-09-01T14:51:00.000-07:00

Ooh! I’m so tired!
I just want to lie down here and sleep.

Mma and I had a very busy day.
I woke up in the morning
To find Mma washed and dressed.
‘Time to take a bath,’ Mma said.
‘We need to go shopping.’

The water was nice and warm
‘I can swim,’ I said to Mma.
I like playing with the bubbles

Breakfast was porridge with milk
‘Yech!’ I said
‘Try the banana,’ Mma said
It’s soft and sweet.

We walked up the road.

To catch a taxi to town.

‘Four,’ the lady next to Mma said
Giving her the money to pay the driver.

Vrooom! Vroom!
I say as I drive my car
Just like the taxi driver.

The shops are big and busy
Lots of noisy people.

Mama pushes the trolley
Through the long rows of vegetables and fruits
‘We need bread, sugar and jam,’ Mma says
Pap and meat are ever so nice.

Ooh! I’m so tired, I say
‘You’ll have to climb on my back, Mma says
Putting a big blanket around me.

Left, right, left, right, she walks
Movement shaking me up and down.

Ooh, that is so comfortable
I’m sure Mma won’t mind if I sleep.

Mma and I went to town.
Mma and I went shopping.

Grandfather, what's wrong with you?

2006-09-01T14:02:00.000-07:00

I first learnt this song when I was in school primary school, while we were learning about our bodies.

Batswana mothers also sing the song to put their babies to sleep, and I was no different when Baby was small. Dont know if the song was originally in Setswana, or if it's a translation.

Ntatemogolo o tswa kae kajeno
Ke tswa kwa sepetlele godimo ga thaba
O bolaiwa ke eng?
Ke tlhogo, magetla, sehuba le letheka
Mangwele le menwana
Mangwele le menwana

O bolaiwa ke eng?
Ke tlhogo, magetla, sehuba le letheka
Mangwele le menwana
Mangwele le menwana

Rough English translation

Child: Dear grandfather, where are you from today
Grandfather: I come from the hospital at the top of the hill
Child: And what is wrong with you?
Grandfather, (indicating the mentioned body part):
My head, my shoulders, my chest and my waist
My knees and my toes x2

Child: What is wrong with you?
Grandfather, (indicating the mentioned body part): My head, my shoulders, my chest and my waist
My knees and my toes x2

The Doll That Grew

2006-08-19T17:49:00.000-07:00

Thirteen years after the illustrated children's book was published, I think the writing was not as good as it could be. The illustrations didn't help.

I hope it still makes for an enjoyable read though.

..............................................................................

The Doll That Grew
By Damaria Senne
First Published by Macmillan Boleswa, 1993

‘Pule, can I borrow your old car?’ Neo Moloi asked her brother Pule.
‘No,’ Pule said. ‘I’ve just finished fixing it. What if you broke it?’
‘I won’t break it, I promise. Everyone is going to enter the Saturday afternoon race. I’m the only one in our street who can’t enter because I don’t have a car.
‘Weeell-‘
‘I’ll take care of it, I promise. Lend it to me, please, please, please.’
‘Oh do stop begging,’ Pule said laughing. ‘I’ll lend you the car, but you must take good care of it.’
‘I will, I promise,’ Neo said.
Six boys and three girls took part in the car race.
‘On your marks, get set, ready, go!’ the referee shouted. When she said go, all the kids started running and pushing their cars. The trick was to drive the wire car on the dusty, bumpy streets as fast as you can to reach the end of the street first. A racer needed two things to stand a chance of winning– a strong car with wheels that will not jam or break off when they bump against rocks on the street and a driver who can run very fast. Neo was a very fast runner, but could she outrun the boys and drive the car well?
Unfortunately, Neo crashed the car during the race. Pule was very angry.
‘See what you’ve done!’ he shouted at her.
‘I didn’t do it on purpose!’ Neo shouted back. ‘Why are you being so mean to me?’
‘You should have been more careful. You said that you would take care of the car when you borrowed it. Now look at it! ’
Pule bent and picked up his smashed car, handling it with care.
‘Stupid girl!’ he mumbled as he walked away.
‘I am not stupid!’ Neo tried to shout at him. But her voice was low and choked because of the tears. ‘You’re the one who is stupid, acting as if a bunch of mangled wires is a car.’
Mrs Moloi was in the kitchen preparing lunch when the argument started.
‘Why are you and Neo shouting calling each other stupid?’ she asked Pule as she stood at the kitchen door.
‘Look at this,’ Pule said, waving the shapeless mass of wires. ‘Look at what she has done to my car. And she’s not even sorry. She called me stupid when I complained.’
‘Neo?’ Mrs Moloi asked her crying daughter for her version of events.
‘I… I didn’t do it on p-purpose,’ she sobbed. ‘ I was just playing with it, and somehow the wheel went funny and I crashed it. ‘Now he’s being mean to me.’
‘She called me stupid.’
‘Pule’ Mrs Moloi said in a firm voice. They knew that voice: it meant that Mother was getting impatient and they should all stop and listen to her.
Mrs Moloi told Pule to try to fix the car.
‘If you can’t fix it, ask your father to help you when he comes home from work. I’m sure he can do something with it.’
When Pule was gone, Mrs Moloi sent Neo to her to bedroom to collect pieces of cloth, which was left over when she was making Pule a new school shirt. She had been meaning to use the material to make a doll for Neo. Now was the time.
‘Bring me a thread and needle too,’ she said.
Happy again, Neo rushed to do as she was told.
Mrs Moloi cut out a head, a body, hands and feet from the cloth. Then she joined the back and front pieces together, leaving a small opening at the back. There was not enough cloth to stuff the doll properly, so Mrs Moloi decided to use bean seeds.
‘I suppose we could spare some,’ Mrs Moloi said after giving the matter some thought. ‘Go and get them, will you dear?’
Neo was very excited. Humming softly to herself, she ran to the shed. There she found Pule sitting on a bench, fixing his car.
‘I’m very sorry about your car,’ Neo said.
‘That’s all right. It was not as bad as I thought – I will be able to repair it.
‘Good.’ Neo said.
She opened a large container at the corner of the shed and peered inside.
‘No, not this one,’ she mumbled to herself
‘What are you looking for?’ Pule asked curiously.
‘Looking for beans. Mama is making me a doll.’
Neo moved to the next container.
‘With beans?’
‘We don’t have enough material to stuff the doll, so we thought the beans would work just as well. So I’m looking for the bean seeds. Ugggggh! Who decided to put old goat skin here? It smells!’
Waving her hand in front of her face, Neo moved to the next container and peered inside.
‘Yes! Found it!’
Neo used plastic container and dipped it into the bean seed container, then took the beans to her mother.
After stuffing the doll with beans until there was no room for more beans, Mrs Moloi sewed up the opening at the back of the doll. Then she drew eyes, a nose and a mouth on the doll’s head.
‘You take care of that doll,’ Mrs Moloi said. Never leave it outside, because if it rains and those seeds get wet, they will start to grow.’
Weeks later, Pule decided to make another car. Neo sat on the bench, watching. Pule had nearly finished making the car when Mrs Moloi called Neo.
In her rush to answer her mother’s call, Neo did not see Pule’s truck and she stepped on it. She tried to jump to the side, but she landed on top of Pule’s new and unifinishe dcar.
‘Oh no!’ she cried.
Pule was very angry with her. She was ruining his car for the second time. He shouted at her, pushing her off the car. But her feet were stuck in the wires.
‘I’m so sorry,’ Neo said.
But Pule did not hear her.
‘I’ll get you for this,’ he threatened her.
After freeing her feet, Neo ran to the house but she was so upset that she left her doll in the shed. It was near when Neo realised that her doll was missing. The family helped Neo look for her doll, but they did not find it.
‘Maybe you forgot it in the shed,’ Pule said. But they did not find it there when they searched.
That night, the tears that soaked Neo’s pillow were as powerful as the rain that beat on their roof. Neo missed her doll very much. She missed the friend who played house with her. More importantly, missed the friend to all her stories.
Neo was helping her mother weed the yard when they found the patch of growing beans. It was in the space between their outside toilet and the fence separating their home from the next door neighbour’s.
‘Beans! Whoever planted beans here?’ Neo exclaimed where she saw them.
‘I don’t know,’ Pule said quickly.
‘I don’t think your father did,’ Mrs Moloi said. An appalling thought came to her. Pule was very angry with Neo on the day that the doll disappeared.
‘You buried the doll here, didn’t you?’ Mrs Moloi said. ‘You were so angry with her that day that you decided to bury the doll outside.
‘I was just hiding it for a while to scare her, but it rained that night,’ Pule said. ‘I knew the seeds were going to start sprouting, so I decided to hide it. I am sorry Neo.’
‘You should have told Neo about it immediately,’ Mother said in her firm voice.
‘Yes mother,’ Pule said.
‘I’ll forgive you,’ Neo said. ‘If you make me a car of my own!’
Pule agreed that it was a fair trade.

I want to be supergirl

2006-08-08T13:47:00.000-07:00

The first time I saw Supergirl, she was walking down Rocky Street in Johannesburg, carrying a bag of groceries. It was a Saturday morning and my eleven year old brother Peter had sent me to the Yeoville Market to buy some vegetables and spices.

Rocky Street was loud and busy as usual. There was noise from hundreds of people speaking in English, Zulu, French, Afrikaans, Portugese and a few other languages that I knew were of Africa but could not name.

Some hawkers shouted at passersby, asking them to stop to see their wares. Others played loud music, hoping to attract the buyers with their songs.

There was a faint smell of rotting food in the air. The street cleaners work hard, but Yeoville is a very crowded place. The more garbage they take away, the more people throw away.

My cousin Nala says that she throws garbage on the street so that the cleaners can have work to do. She says if we throw things in the bins and keep the streets clean, the city managers will have to let some of the cleaners go.

Supergirl stood out even in that mess. Perhaps because one does not expect to meet an action heroine in person. And if by some miracle I were to meet Supergirl, it would be in a suburb like Sandton, where the rich live. Definitely not in Yeoville.

Anyway, she was dressed in her traditional blue top and short skirt, a large red S printed on the front of her top. She looked just like the one on TV, with her long cape flowing behind her. I wanted to talk to her, but I was afraid to walk up to her.

What could I say to her?
‘ I want to be you,’ sounded so stupid! So I stood there and watched her walk by. Then I went to the nearest vegetable vendor, selected a mix made up of cabbage, potatoes, carrots, beetroot, onions, tomatoes and green beans. I also selected a packet of mixed herbs and some peri peri.

‘That will be thirty rands, please,’ she said. I handed her the money, then took the heavy package home.

Peter was in the kitchen, ironing our clothes when I got home.
‘Where is Mother?’ I asked as I opened the plastic bag and put the vegetables into their rack.

‘In the bedroom,’ Peter said. ‘She was feeling tired, so she decided to lie down.’
‘Good. I hope she’s feeling well enough to fall sleep.’

Last night Mother must have hurt badly because she moaned and groaned while lying in bed. She tried to keep it quiet, but the pain must have been bad because she couldn’t stop the moaning. Peter and I pretended to be asleep. Mother gets very sad when he illness keeps us awake.

‘She took some painkillers,’ Peter said. ‘That should dull some of the pain, maybe even make her feel sleepy.’

Peter did not laugh, as I expected him to, when I told him about seeing Supergirl at the Yeoville market.

‘She was not really Supergirl,’ he said slowly and firmly. ‘Supergirl is not real.’
‘Of course I know that Supergirl is not real real, Peter,’ I said. ‘ I’m not stupid!’
‘I didn’t say you were stupid,’ Peter said reasonably. Peter is always reasonable. Drives me crazy! ‘It was just the way you said it. You didn’t say I saw a girl dressed in a Supergirl costume on Rocky Street. You said, I saw Supergirl on Rocky Street today.’
‘I don’t want to talk about it,’ I shouted as I walked down the passage to the bathroom .

I know the girl at the market was not real. She was probably an actress dressed to play the role in a theatre production. Or more likely she was a crazy who like me, wanted to be someone else.

I hate my life. I hate being who I am. Short, skinny and poor. Peter, Mother and I share a small crowded flat with another family in Yeoville. We used to live alone in the flat. That is, back in the days when mother was healthy and had a job.

Unfortunately, she got AIDS, and now she can’t work anymore. She gets treatment at the clinic. They tell us that if she takes her pills and eats right, she will get better. For now, she doesn’t have anything serious like cancer or TB. But she’s has suffered from ulcers for as lng as I can remember and lately, they have gotten worse. I want to believe that she will get better, but so many people have died from the disease!

Who is going to take care of us when she dies? I don’t think the law will allow an 11-year old boy to raise a 9 – year old girl. They would probably take us to one of their orphanages.

Peter says he would prefer that they do that, rather than take us back to Phokeng, where most of my mother’s family lives.

‘If they love us so much and want to help us, where are they now?’ he said to mother when she tried to talk to us about. It was the one time when I saw him lose his temper. ‘They should be here, helping you now, not waiting for you to die so that that they can take us away.’
‘They are afraid of being near me and catching the virus,’ Mother tried to explain. ‘Despite the education from the government and other organisations, a lot of people are still afraid of the virus.’

‘I don’t care,’ Peter said. ‘If they can’t be boethered to help us now, then they should not bother. The orphanages will do just as well taking care of us.
As usual, the bathrom smelled hot and mouldy. There was a dark, fatty ring surrounding the rim of the bath, with little brown flecks stuck on the floor.
Urrgg! Disgusting!

I hate sharing a bathroom with strangers! The new family we’re sharing with, Mrs Thandi Ncube and her three sons, do not clean up after bathing. Sometimes the boys don’t even bother to pull the plug to let their dirty bath water out. I’ve shouted at them, Peter has used his infuriating reasonable tone with them and they don’t listen. And why should they, when their mother does not see anything wrong with what they are doing?

These days, I just wipe in the morning and wait for everyone to take a bath. When they are done, I scrub the bathroom, then take my own bath in a clean place. It’s the best way to keep the bathroom clean. One more thing I hate about my life.

Peter says that we should be grateful that our situation is not worse. We have a place to live, food to eat and we go to school. But I don’t want to be grateful.

As I lay in the bath, I thought of all the things that I wish were different in my life. I’d be normal, just like the girls we see on TV. I would have a healthy mother who can take care of us.

We’d live in our own home which we did not have to share with sloppy strangers. I’d have my very own bedroom. I’d cover the bed with a pink bedspread with matching curtains. Maybe they would have some flowers on them. Blue and pink ones would be nice. I’d pack a lunch box to school, maybe even own a juice bottle I could fill with Oros. Hmmm. Sounds nice, doesn’t?

The second time I saw Supergirl, I did not stand like statue, questions buzzing in my head, unable to speak.
I walked up to her and greeted her. Then I asked her:
‘Why are you doing this?’
‘Doing what?’
‘Dressing up in a silly outfit like that and pretending to be a TV character?’

She looked at me for so long that I was sorry I walked up to her and asked her a quetsion. Maybe I should just have left her alone and gone on home, I thought.

I was just about to leave when she said: ‘The simple answer is that I’m an actress, and I’ve been working on a show about Supergirl. But I could have taken it off before I went to the market.’
‘So why didn’t you take it off?’ I asked her.
‘It makes me feel better,” she said. “When I’m tired or worried about something, I wear this outfit. When I borrow the TV character’s clothes, I also borrow some of her strength and power. The clothes make me feel as if I can do anything that I need to do.’

‘Wow! You too? I thought I was the only who felt lame,” I said.
I told her sometimes I feel silly and stupid. Sometimes I feel like I can’t do anything right. I definitely can’t compete with my brother Peter. He always knows what needs to be done and how to do it, and it’s all I can do to just to do what he tells me.’

‘Then don’t compete with him,’ Supergirl said. ‘Be yourself and do what you can do. I don’t know Peter, but I’m sure there are things that you are good at that he may not be good at. Do them well.’

We didn’t speak long afterwards. I think we both felt strange, talking to strangers about things that are really important to us.

I paid for the vegetables and spices and went home. Peter cooked a delicious lunch of vegetable stew, rice and beetroot salad. Although mother said that she was not very hungry, but she ate quite a bit too. And while conversation went on around me about many things, I kept thinking about what Supergirl said.
‘I’m sure there are things that you are good at that Peter may not good at. Do them well.’

The teeth that grew on the ground

2006-07-24T12:47:00.000-07:00

The hare walked through the forest, shouting the news to all the animals in the forest.
‘Come! Come see a miracle,’ she shouted through his reed loudspeaker. ‘The lion’s teeth are growing on the ground. Come see miracle teeth that grow like plants.’

The hare met the elephant on the way through the forest.
“Good morning Mr Elephant,” the hare said. ‘Are you going to come to the see the big lion teeth that are growing on the ground near the river?”

The Mr Elephant told the hare that he did believe there were miracle teeth growing anywhere.
‘I don’t believe you,’ he said. ‘You are up to something. I don’t know what it is, but whatever it is, it’s not good.’
“I’m sorry Mr Elephant for all that I’ve done to you,’ the hare said. ‘I know sometimes I’ve cheated you, but this time, I’m telling the truth. There are lion teeth growing on the ground in the forest. I saw them.’
The hare also said the party would be fun.
“It’s been so boring in the forest lately, don’t you think?’
The elephant agreed to go to see the miracle teeth. He also warned the hare: “If I walk all that way in the sun and find out that it was all a hoax-‘
‘I’m telling the truth I swear,’ the hare said. ’If you come to the party, you won’t regret it.’

“I’ve seen teeth growing like that before,’ the zebra, also called Bra Zee by all the animals in the forest said.
Bra Zee said when he was a young boy he saw jackal teeth growing on the ground.
“Really,” his youngest nephew asked. “Were they dry and yellow with black stuff sticking on them?’
He said they were clean and white and looked like normal teeth.
‘They looked as if they were picked clean with a piece of grass that very morning,’ he said.

Bra Zee’s nephews pretended to believe him, but they did not. Everyone in the village knew that he was not right in the head. Sometimes he got confused and he thought he was a leopard. The other zebras had to take care of him, especially when leopards were near and hunting for food.

For Leo the leopard, any excuse to party was a good excuse.
‘I hope you have enough beer to last through the night,” Leo said.
‘B-b-beer?” the hare stammered. ‘No one told me we need beer.’
‘Now you know, so go get it!” Leo said.

Mrs Wolf was very worried about her husband. He left home a week before to go hunting and never returned. She was afraid that a hunter killed him.
‘Stay here, in case someone comes to bring word about your father,’ she said to her cubs. ‘I will ask the other animals at the gathering if they have seen him. Maybe someone will give me a good lead.’
‘He’s dead,’ male wolf cub said after their mother had left.
‘Don’t say that!’ female wolf cub said.
‘If he was alive, he would have come back home.’ He said.’ We all know that.’

‘Young man! What kind of party is it going to be?’
‘It can be any kind of party you want, Sir,” the hare said. ‘What did Sir have in mind?’
“A party is not a success unless there’s a good game of cards going,” Jack said
The hare assured him that there would be many games to play, including cards.
Jack said it was a good idea to have many games.
‘But you must make sure that that stupid Tiger is not allowed to ruin the games!’ he said.
Jack had never forgiven the tiger for catching him while he was cheating.

Tiger did not have to be asked twice to attend a big party. Lately, it seemed that the smaller animals were becoming faster, making it difficult for him to catch his meals.
‘Or am I growing older?’ he wondered.
It didn’t matter what the reason for the problem was. All Tiger cared about was that he was hungry, and the animals coming to the party would bring their young.
‘There will be a springbok or two that gets separated from his mother. That will serve as a good meals to last me until breakfast the following morning,’ he decided.

Even though Mr and Mrs Bear did not believe the hare’s story, they decided to attend.
‘You know that the hare is a liar,’ Mrs Bear said to her husband. ‘Chances are, he took those teeth from the body of an old lion that died from hunger and planted them on the ground. Now he says a miracle. Not bloody likely!’
‘Come on my dear,’ Mr Bear said. ‘You must admit that watching the hare try to get out of this mess is going to be more fun than looking at any old teeth, miracle or no miracle.’

And so, that afternoon, all the forest animals drank water from the river, and then went to the spot where the hare said the miracle teeth were growing. Even the birds, which hare did not bother to invite attended the event. They flew to the miracle site to see the lion teeth growing on the ground. Who would mind their presence? It was not as if they could eat too much food!

The hare had put a fence around the large space where he said the teeth were growing. Two large lions stood at the gate, letting everyone in.
“Where is the hare?’ the animals asked as they came in.
‘He’s in there somewhere, getting ready to make a speech before everyone sees the miracle teeth,’ the lions said.

Inside the yard was a loud happy party. The animals sang, danced, drank beer and sang some more. Jack managed to find a few animals that agreed to play cards with him.
‘Burp! Eh…sure Jack,’ Leo said in a slurred voice. ’I would be happy to play cards with you.’
‘Wonderful,’ said the totally sober Jackl, rubbing his hands in glee. Oooh! Cheating the leopard was going to be so easy! Now, what was he going to ask for in payment?

Mrs Monkey was the only one who didn’t get into the spirit of the party. She was at this gathering to see teeth growing on the ground and that’s what she wanted to see. She did not come to watch a bunch of animals eating and drinking too much. What kind of example were they setting his her kids?

So she removed the branch covering the teeth, leaving them exposed for her and Little Monkey to see. Then she took a long stick and poked at them.
Hard.
The teeth shifted.
Just a little.
So she poked at them even harder.
And the jaw snapped shut!

‘Little Monkey,’ Mrs Monkey said. ’It’s time to go home.’
‘But Mummy, the teeth-‘
Mrs Monkey grabbed Little Monkey and threw him on her back. Then she climbed the nearest tree and hopped from tree to tree.
She was careful not to seem to be in too much of a hurry.

‘Where are you going?’ one of the lions asked as she was leaving.
‘Little Monkey is not feeling too well,’ Mrs Monkey. “So I’ve decided to take him back home. Have fun!’
Slowly she walked away, Little Monkey holding onto her back.

Mrs Monkey and Little Monkey had not travelled far when the gates were pulled shut and locked.
‘Ladies and gentlemen, let the party begin!’ the hare shouted from his loudspeaker.

The animals formed a circle around the teeth, so everyone would be able to see properly. The hare asked the large animals to be kind to the small ones and allow them to get inside the circle so they can see better.
‘I don’t think the teeth are real,” the buck said.
‘They look real to me,’ Bra Zee said.

The animals were still arguing about whether the white things on the ground were indeed a lion’s teeth when a lion jumped out of the ground and attacked. He caught the nearest antelope that had been standing next to him.
With a snap, he broke her neck. But he did not stop to enjoy his meal. Instead, he attacked the next animal.

Never one to let opportunity escape him, Jack attacked the Elephant standing to him. He took a large bite out of his trunk.
‘Aaaaah!’ the Elephant screamed in pain, his eyes streaming in tears.

During the attack, Tiger dragged away a few small animals to a corner and started eating. The meat was soft and fresh. Delicious!

Mrs Wolf decided to kill a few zebras. Clearly her husband was not attending the event. Maybe he was dead. Or maybe he was alive and had travelled far from the forest. Husband or no husband, she still had to provide a fresh kill for her cubs.

‘That was a really good meal,’ Jack said to the Lion after he’d eaten his fill.
Mrs Bear congratulated the Lion and the hare on a good story.
‘It was interesting enough to bring many animals here,’ she said. ‘Whose idea was it?’
‘Mine,’ the hare said from the tree top, where had had been sitting during the attack began to avoid getting killed by accident.
‘We have an agreement,’ Lion said. ‘He hunts for me, and in return, I promise not to eat him.’

P.S This is a retelling of a folktale, not a original tale.