Raganna

Once upon a time there was a widowed gentleman with his daughter named Anna. Anna was a sweet and kind young girl and her father loved her very much. But they both lived a difficult life. They were a very poor family and could hardly buy food and the clothes they wore were all ragged hand me downs. Whenever someone had old clothes they didn’t wear anymore they would give them to Anna and her father like charity. Anna’s clothes were the most ragged, her dresses were torn and patched. Anna and her father didn’t mind if their clothes were all worn out because what mattered was they actually had something to wear. They never let anything ruin the happiness they had with each other. Their smiles always shone through.

          Both Anna and her father worked and lived at the castle, the father worked in the stables while Anna worked in the kitchen. Because of her ragged dresses she was made fun of by the other servants because their clothes were finer than hers. Every day while Anna was working she heard snickers or murmurs of ‘how ugly her dress is’ from the other female servants. All of the servants began calling Anna ‘Raganna’ because they decided it suited her with the ragged dress. So Anna was now called Raganna.

          One day Raganna was walking through the town, when something caught her eyes. An old woman was selling her old dresses on her stall. All, except one, were very beautiful and the beautiful dresses were selling out quickly. The dress, that was not beautiful, was a plain, raggedy, simple dress. It was white at the top and light brown at the bottom with a torn black sash round it. No one wanted it; they all thought it looked terrible. Just then Raganna asked the old woman for the raggedy dress.

          “You sure you want this dress instead of the pretty dresses?” the old woman asked Raganna.

          “I’ve worn rags my entire life madam” answered Raganna “I don’t mind this dress at all”.

          So Raganna bought the raggedy dress and took it straight home. Raganna and her father had a room in the castle on the third floor. As soon as she got to her room she changed into her new ragged dress. Sure the dress was raggedy, but Raganna liked the dress and decided to wear it always.

          The next day there was a lot of excitement in the castle, the king and his son the prince were holding a ball that night. The servants were excited because they were allowed to watch the ball. Raganna wanted to watch the ball too, but she couldn’t bear going in rags so she decided not to go to the ball. What she decided to do was just concentrate on her work. It took the whole day for all the servants to get everything ready for the ball. The cooks started to make the food for the banquet, the musicians rehearsed their music and the maids and butlers set the dining table and mopped the floor

          That evening everything was ready, the dining table had the best china and silver, the floor was spotless and the musicians were ready to play music. In the kitchen the food was ready and looked delicious. It was time for the ball and all the guests were arriving and the servants started to move towards the ballroom to watch the ball. But Raganna and her father went straight to their room. Raganna’s father didn’t want to go to the ball either; he was tired and wanted to go to bed early.

          When Raganna and her father reached their room they both got ready for bed. Raganna took off her ragged dress and changed into a night dress.

          “Are you sure about not going to watch the ball?” Raganna’s father asked. He really wanted her to go and have a good time there.

          “Its fine father” said Raganna “besides I don’t want to frighten the guests or embarrass the other servants by going in there with a ragged dress”.

          “Pity your dress is not a gorgeous gown” Raganna’s father said “then you would be able to attend the ball”.

          Raganna began to fold the dress inside out to keep it clean for tomorrow, but when she did that the ragged dress magically transformed into a beautiful gown. It was a light pink gown with a light pink sash round it. Raganna was astonished and so was her father.

          “Amazing!” said her father “that ragged dress is magic. Now you can go and watch the ball”.

          “I don’t know about that” said Raganna “and you’ll be all by yourself.

          “I will be fine my daughter” Raganna’s father said “I will only be asleep. Besides you should have some fun for a while after doing lots of hard work all day”.

          Raganna did want to have a nice time for once so she agreed with her father to go to the ball. She washed her face and brushed her hair. Then she put on the light pink gown; she looked beautiful. Raganna’s father then took out a small box from his bedside draw. Inside the box there was a necklace and a ring.

          “These were your mothers” he said “before she died she asked me to give them to you when you were older. Now is the time for you to have these”.

          “Thank you Father” said Raganna. She gave her father a kiss on the cheek, put on the necklace and ring then went down stairs to the ballroom.

          In the ballroom the dancing had just began. There were lots of beautiful girls, mostly princesses, in their beautiful gowns. The music was beautiful and everybody was dancing to it. Everyone was having a good time, except the prince. The prince was fed up. He was fed up because the ball was to help him find a bride, but so far he hadn’t found the right girl to be his bride.

          Then suddenly Raganna walked through the doors into the ballroom. When she made her appearance everyone stared at her. Raganna was the most beautiful girl anyone ever seen, even the prince couldn’t take his eyes off her. He walked up to her and asked her to dance; Raganna accepted.  They danced and danced forgetting about everyone else at the ball. The prince didn’t dance with any other girl; he wanted to dance with Raganna only.

          Soon the ball was coming to an end; while no one was looking Raganna quickly exited the ballroom. The prince began to search for her to introduce her to his father, but he couldn’t find her at all. Raganna was gone.

          Raganna was in her room, while the prince searched for her. Raganna’s father was asleep and didn’t hear her come in the room. Raganna took off her gown and folded it inside out; it transformed back into her raggedy dress. Then she fell asleep in bed dreaming about her dance with the prince. It was a night she would never forget.

          The next morning Raganna told her father all about it.

          “Did you tell everyone who you were?” he asked.

          “No I didn’t, besides the prince would have been disappointed for dancing with a maid in rags than a princess” Raganna said.

          Raganna’s father understood; a prince would only marry a princess, not a maid. So he decided not to talk about it anymore.

          When it was the time for the servants to work there was a big announcement; another ball was going to be held again tonight. So just like yesterday all the servants got everything ready. Raganna was happy; she wanted to dance with the prince again.

          That night when the guests were arriving, Raganna and her father went to their room. Raganna’s father wanted to go to bed early again. Raganna got ready for the ball. First she washed her hands and face. Next she took off her raggedy dress and turned it inside out again. This time the dress turned into a light blue gown. It was more beautiful than the light pink one.

          “Like I said last night” said Raganna’s father “the dress is magic”.

          Raganna put on the light blue gown and her mother’s necklace and ring. Then she headed down stairs straight into the ballroom. When she entered the ballroom all eyes turned to her direction again. Raganna was again more beautiful than all the other women in the ballroom. The prince was delighted that she had arrived and asked her for a dance. Just like last night’s ball the prince danced with only Raganna. Then the ball came to an end and Raganna quickly disappeared again before anyone noticed.

          The next day Raganna was fetching water from the well, when she saw the prince sitting on the well.

          “Good morning your highness” she said and curtseyed.

          “Morning Raganna” the prince sighed, he knew Raganna name because they had been friends for a long time.

          “Is something bothering you?” Raganna asked.

          The prince told Raganna about the mysterious girl he had been dancing with for the past two nights. He also said about not knowing her name.

          “I must ask” said Raganna “if this mysterious girl wasn’t a princess, would it bother you?”

          “It wouldn’t bother me at all” the prince answered “I don’t care if she’s of noble blood or not. As long as she is kind and caring and of noble spirit I would love her for the rest of my life”. Then he left.

          Raganna was touched by his words and felt guilty for not telling him who she really was. That night another ball was being held and Raganna was getting ready. This time she decided not to turn her raggedy dress inside out and just go in her raggedy dress.

          “You are not going to the ball in a beautiful gown?” her father asked.

          “No Father” said Raganna “I have lied to the prince for two nights now and that’s enough. I have decided to go as I am and reveal the truth to him”.

          She put on her necklace and ring and set off towards the ballroom. This time her father came with her to see what would happen. When they both entered the ballroom everyone gasped. They couldn’t believe that a girl in dirty rags would enter the ball. Even the servants were very embarrassed. The prince saw the necklace and ring she was wearing and recognized them at once.

          “You’re the mysterious girl I was dancing with for two nights in a row aren’t you Raganna?” he asked.

          “Yes your highness” said Raganna “as I am a maid and not a princess I was scared of revealing who I really was. I’m sorry”.

          “There is no need to apologize” the prince said “remember what I told you this morning. I didn’t care if you were a maid or a princess; I love you and only you and I choose you to become my wife and princess. So would you marry me Raganna?”

          “I will my prince” Raganna answered.

          He kissed her while Raganna was crying tears of happiness. Suddenly Raganna’s raggedy dress started to magically transform by itself into a beautiful gown. It was a raggedy dress no more. It was now a light pink gown with light blue patterns.

          Then there was the sound of clapping from everyone else in the ballroom. They were happy for the prince for finding his bride at last. Raganna’s father was clapping too; he was happy for his daughter. Raganna and the prince were happy too for they were able to stay at each other’s side always. And this time Raganna didn’t have to disappear again.

          A few days later Raganna and the prince were married and Raganna became a princess. She no longer had to wear rags ever again. As for her father he became a member of the royal court. He didn’t have to work in the stables anymore. And they all lived happily ever after.

         

Away in a Manger

A very long time ago in the land of Nazareth, there lived a young girl named Rachel. She lived with her mother, Dinah, in a small stone house. They earned their living by attending wheat on a farm. Even though they worked hard they barely had enough money for food. Even though Rachel and her mother were poor they lived happily together.

          One of Rachel’s favourite things to do was sing to herself; whether she was doing housework or farm work she would sing to herself. “You certainly love to sing don’t you Rachel?” Dinah would ask her daughter. “Yes mother I do” Rachel would reply. What Rachel didn’t know was that her singing would change her life very soon.

          One night when Rachel and her mother were asleep, Rachel had a dream. In her dream the angel, known as Gabriel, spoke to her; “Rachel your beautiful voice has reached the heavens. This is why I am asking you to sing to the newborn baby boy, named Jesus”. Gabriel explained to Rachel that she must go to the town of Bethlehem, follow the bright star that would guide her to the baby boy and sing a special song to him. Rachel listened to every word Gabriel said and listened to the song she wanted her to sing.

          Next morning Rachel told her mother about the dream. “If the holy angel Gabriel really did visit you in your dream,” said Dinah “then we must leave for Bethlehem immediately”. Rachel agreed. They brought themselves a donkey each and set off to Bethlehem at once.

          While Rachel and her mother travelled across the desert, Rachel couldn’t stop thinking about her dream.

          “Mother, why do you suppose that the holy angel Gabriel chose me to sing for the newborn baby?” Rachel asked.

          “Well my dear,” replied Dinah “my guess it is because of your singing voice. Your singing must have reached her in heaven and it is not every day that the holy angel chooses someone. Be proud my daughter”.

          After twenty days of travelling through the desert, Rachel and her mother finally made it to Bethlehem. It was now night time. “Did Gabriel say where we would find the baby?” Dinah asked. “All she said was follow the bright star and it would guide us to him” Rachel replied “wait there it is!” Rachel pointed to a star that shined brighter than the other stars. It shone above a stable. “The child must be in there” said Dinah. Rachel agreed and they both walked towards the stable.

          They found the baby boy lying in a manger, with his parents Mary and Joseph, kneeling down beside him. Three old wise men were with them too.

          “Please forgive us if we are disturbing you” Rachel said politely.

          “You are not disturbing us at all” Mary replied.

          “Have you come to see our son?” asked Joseph. “Yes we have” Dinah replied.

          “We are the same” said one of the wise men “we came here to give our gifts to him”. The three wise men gave the baby gold, frankincense and myrrh.

          “I too have a gift for your child” said Rachel. She explained to Mary and Joseph that the holy angel Gabriel sent her to sing a song for the child.

          “Then please do sing your song to us” said Mary “we would love to hear it”. So Rachel kneeled in front of the baby and sang her song to him.

“Away in a manger,

                                    No crib for a bed.

   The little lord Jesus,

             Laid down his sweet head.

                                   The stars in the bright sky,

                                   Looked down where he lay,

                                   The little lord Jesus asleep on the hay”

          After Rachel finished her song Mary, Joseph and the three wise men agreed that it was a wonderful song.

          “Thank you for that wonderful song” said Mary “my baby loved it”. Jesus was smiling at Rachel in delight.

          “I am honoured to have sung this song just for him” replied Rachel “may I hold him for a while please?” Mary and Joseph saw nothing wrong with that, so they let her hold him. The baby felt comfortable in her arms and fell asleep. Rachel felt proud to have been able to hold the special baby in her arms, and then placed him back into the manger.

          “Come, my daughter” said Dinah “it is time we leave the baby and his mother and father in peace”. “Yes mother” said Rachel. And they left the stable.

          Later on that night, Rachel had another dream. The holy angel Gabriel visited her again, this time with a warning. An evil king named Herod had heard about the new baby boy and wanted to kill it. He had feared that the baby boy might take his place has the new king one day. “Tell Mary and Joseph this immediately” said Gabriel.

          When Rachel woke up she told her mother and then they both told Mary and Joseph about Gabriel’s warning. “We will leave immediately” said Joseph “we will escape to Egypt”. “My daughter and I will leave too just to be safe” said Dinah “but we will go back to Nazareth”. Everyone agreed with that plan. “I hope that we will meet again” Rachel said to Mary and Joseph. “May God be with you” said Joseph and they went their separate ways.

          And so Mary, Joseph, Jesus, Rachel and Dinah all escaped Bethlehem. The baby Jesus was safe in Egypt until the evil king Herod died. Rachel and her mother went back to living in Nazareth, but they didn’t live like they lived before. Because when they reached their old house a huge bag of silver was left on the table. It was a gift from the holy angel Gabriel to Rachel for singing to the baby Jesus and for saving him, so Rachel and her mother were never poor again.

          Rachel and her mother never forgot Mary, Joseph and Jesus and they were not forgotten either. Sometime after King Herod died Mary, Joseph and Jesus returned to Nazareth and were delighted to see Rachel and Dinah again. Jesus, now a young boy, asked Rachel to sing her song to him. He had not forgotten about her song even though he was still a baby at that time. So Rachel did sing her special song to him and always sang it to him on his birthday.

The Black Stallion of Nottinshire

A very long time ago, in the land of Nottinshire lived a farmer and his four children. He had two sons named John and Benjamin and two daughters named Mary and Susan. His wife died a few years ago and he did whatever he could to look after his family. The four siblings helped their father on the farm every day. John and Benjamin would help out in the fields, while Mary and Susan looked after the animals and house.

          One day misfortune struck. The farmer became ill with a weak heart and he couldn’t work anymore. His children had to do all the work themselves. He apologized for being a burden to them.

          “Don’t worry father,” they said “you get better and leave all the work to us”.

          The farmer was happy for having such good children and hoped he would get better quickly to help them. Unfortunately he did not get well, his heart became worse and he died. His sons and daughters were heartbroken because of their father’s death. After his funeral they each agreed to keep on working hard on the farm. They did not wish to let their father down or let all the hard work he did go to waste.

          That night the siblings were fast asleep in bed, except Susan the youngest daughter. She missed both her mother and father too much to go to sleep. So she went outside, knelt down on the ground and prayed that both her parents had reached heaven safely.

          “Mother, Father” she whispered “I promise you that I will stay strong and continue working on the farm with my brothers and sister. So please don’t worry and watch over us always”.

          The next day Susan and her brothers and sister carried on with working on the farm. It didn’t feel the same without their parents around, but they were determined to continue the work their father left behind for them. Life should have gone well for them, but life was not going well. Actually all was not well for all of Nottinshire. In fact Nottinshire was in difficult times and lived in darkness. All the darkness was because of the lady of Nottinshire.

          The lady of Nottinshire was a cruel woman and treated the people of Nottinshire very badly. She taxed them heavily and didn’t care if they were starving to death. Because of that the people of Nottinshire worked nearly all day everyday to pay taxes. No one ever dared to anger the lady of Nottinshire because if they did she would kill them instantly without mercy. The most terrible thing about the lady of Nottinshire was that she sold her soul to an evil witch to process dark magic. The source of her magic was in a dark purple staff she always kept by her side. Because of her dark magic the people of Nottinshire did everything they could to keep her happy.

          What kept the people staying strong was their hope that the true heir of Nottinshire would return. The true heir of Nottinshire was the lady of Nottinshire’s brother. He became the new lord of Nottinshire after the old lord of Nottinshire died. But sometime after he became the new lord he disappeared without a trace. The lady of Nottinshire had said that he was dead, but no one believed that he had died. There was no proof or evidence that he was dead, so the people of Nottinshire kept on believing he was alive and he would return someday and set them free from the lady of Nottinshire.

          One day Susan and her siblings were working on the farm. John and Benjamin were tending to the grain they grew in the fields, while Susan and Mary milked the cows and collected eggs from the hens. Susan was just about to collect some more eggs when a messenger from the palace came up to her.

          “Pardon me miss, it’s about taxes” he said.

          “But we have already paid our taxes sir” said Susan.

          The messenger explained that the lady of Nottinshire had ordered the taxes to be doubled and expects double at the next collection. After the explanation he left. Susan was shocked about what the messenger had just said to her and told her brothers and sister about it.

          “This is just wrong!” shouted Benjamin.

          “Yeah” said Mary “that lady of Nottinshire keeps on raising the payment of taxes we have to pay. And we have enough trouble paying the amount we have to pay now.”

           “Yes this is troublesome” said John “but there is nothing we can do about it. I for one do not want to feel the wrath of her ladyship or have her cast a dark spell on any of us. We will just have to work harder than ever.”

          Susan was worried; their life was becoming more troubling everyday and there was nothing that could be done about it. After all the farm work had been finished for the day Susan went for a walk in the forest near the farm. Susan loved walking through the forest, the peaceful forest with its tall trees and beautiful flowers always brought a smile to her face. It made her forget her troubles, feel more relaxed and renewed her strength after such a long busy day.

          While Susan was admiring flowers she heard a strange noise. It sounded like an animal was in pain. Susan followed the sound of the noise to see what it was. In a few moments she found what was making that noise. It was a wild black stallion. It was making a lot of noise because it’s back right leg was caught in an animal snare trap and was bleeding. Susan hated animal traps; she found it cruel treating animals like that. She slowly and carefully walked up to the horse, hushed it and stroked it to calm it down. The black stallion calmed down a bit after feeling Susan’s soft gentle hands and hearing her soft sweet voice. Susan carefully lifted up the black stallion’s leg and untangled the snare trap. Next she wrapped a handkerchief around the cut. The black stallion was grateful; it thanked Susan with all its heart.

          “You’re welcome” said Susan, rubbing its forehead, “your trouble is over, it’s a shame that my trouble isn’t over yet”.

          Susan told the black stallion about the lady of Nottinshire. She spoke about how her ladyship raised taxes heavily, how she didn’t care when everyone starved to death or worked their socks off and about using dark magic on her own subjects.

          “Her ladyship is a real witch!” Susan finished “you’re lucky that you haven’t run into her yet”. The black stallion listened to every word Susan said and understood completely.

          “I should leave now” said Susan “my brothers and sister worry when I’m home late”.  She left to walk back home, while the black stallion watched her leave.

          That evening, when Susan went back to the house, she told her siblings all about the black stallion.

          “It was a good thing you were there Susan” said Benjamin “that snare trap would have done some serious damage to that horse”.

          “I hate animal traps” said Mary “those things are terrible. I know we have to use them to catch animals for meat, but I still don’t like them”.

          “So do I” said Benjamin “especially when they hurt an animal that we don’t eat, but at least they help us catch animals we do eat or we wouldn’t get meat at all.”

          Susan couldn’t stop thinking about the black stallion all this time. She remembered its black fur and its brown eyes. It really was something to remember.

          That night when everyone was asleep, Susan was dreaming. In her dream the spirit of the lord of Nottinshire was talking to her.

          “Susan” he said “the reason for my disappearance is because of my sister. As soon as dawn hits go with the black stallion, you met today, to the castle of Nottinshire. There the black stallion will confront my sister to overthrow her. While the black stallion confronts my sister, try to get her magic staff and break it. If you break the magic staff my sister will be gone permanently. Remember all that”.

          Then Susan’s dream ended, Susan woke with a start. That dream was a big puzzle to Susan. ‘Why did the lord of Nottinshire speak to me in my dream?’ she thought ‘What’s his connection with that black stallion? And what did the lady of Nottinshire do to him?’ The only way for her to find out was to go to the castle of Nottinshire with the black stallion.

          When the dawn started to come, Susan crept quietly out of her house. She didn’t tell her siblings about her dream or what she was told to do in case they would think her crazy and try to stop her. Outside the gate the black stallion was there waiting for her. Susan walked up to the stallion, mounted on it and they both set off to the castle of Nottinshire. On the way to the castle, Susan couldn’t stop thinking about the dream she had. She feared about the danger that she was going to be in, but she knew she mustn’t let the lord of Nottinshire down. All she could do now was focus on defeating the lady of Nottinshire.

          They soon reached the castle; the castle looked dark and frightening because of the lady of Nottinshire’s darkness. Susan got off the stallion and they both walked into the castle. The inside of the castle was all dark, like it had been painted black all over. Her ladyship didn’t like lightness from outside so she kept all the curtains closed to keep the castle dark. Susan didn’t really like being in the dark, but with the black stallion by her side she didn’t feel scared. The black stallion led the way to the throne room, where her ladyship always sat. Susan was still confused about how the black stallion knew its way in the castle; you wouldn’t really bring a horse inside a castle but as long the black stallion knew where it was going Susan did not care.

          There was no one in the throne room, even the lady of Nottinshire wasn’t there. But she had left her magic staff behind on the throne. Susan remembered what the lord of Nottinshire had said to her; she had to break the staff. Susan ran to the throne and was just about to pick up the staff when a dark blast stopped her. It was the lady of Nottinshire!

          “I never thought that I would see you again” she said to the black stallion “I thought you would have died by now, but you’re still alive. No matter I’ll have a fun time killing you myself.” She fired dark blasts at Susan and the black stallion; both of them dodged the attacks.

          Susan, who was taking cover behind a pillar, was puzzled what her ladyship had just said. She still didn’t understand the relationship between the black stallion and the lady of Nottinshire. But now she knew this was no time for unanswered questions. The only thing she had to think about now was getting the magic staff.

          Meanwhile the lady of Nottinshire was shooting dark blasts at the black stallion; it was her true target. But since she was only aiming at the black stallion, she didn’t pay attention to Susan. So while the black stallion was distracting the lady of Nottinshire, Susan carefully crept up towards the throne. There was a row of pillars near the throne; a perfect cover for Susan. She crept up to the throne and grabbed the staff, but the lady of Nottinshire saw that.

          “Put that magic staff down” she shouted “it is mine!”

          “Never!” shouted Susan.

          Remembering what the lord of Nottinshire told her to do Susan smashed the staff against the hard floor. The staff broke in half and the dark magic poured out.

          “No!” yelled the lady of Nottinshire. Not only was her dark magic disappearing; her body was starting to wither. Since she sold her soul to gain the magic staff, it was her life source and with the staff broken she was dying. Her body withered until she was no more.

          When the lady of Nottinshire turned to dust all the darkness surrounding the castle vanished and all the spells that were cast on the people were broken. Then a bright light surrounded the black stallion and in a flash it turned into a man. Susan gasped! The black stallion was really the lord the Nottinshire.

          “Your lordship” she said and curtseyed to him.

          “Susan, you have not only stopped my sister but you have also saved my life” he said.

          The lord of Nottinshire explained to Susan about his sister’s greed for power and for the throne. Then spoke about gaining magic and turning him into a black stallion to get what she wanted.

          “But thanks to you I have returned to the throne and my sister can no longer threaten Nottinshire” he finished.

          And so Nottinshire became a happier place once more and the lord of Nottinshire was back on the throne. The people of Nottinshire were happy to have their real ruler back and no longer live under darkness. As for Susan, his lordship asked for her hand in marriage and she accepted it. So Susan became the new lady of Nottinshire and her siblings came to live in the castle as members of the court. And they all lived happily ever after.