Ethiopian Folktales

Narrated by Obang Oboti

Once there was a happy woman. Before the death of her husband, all of her needs were fulfilled while living with her children. And her children were happy too. The husband and wife were respected because of their standard of living. But after the death of her husband the woman’s life became difficult.

And her children were unhappy too, and said to their mother, “How can we cope in the future?”

She replied, “My children, don’t you know what it is like for a fatherless family? One who has a father is happy when the crops are seedlings in the fields.”

She meant that they could distinguish between what was bad from what was good easily. Everything is clear. When you do things, you will be happy and free and no one can harm you. But you must not do bad things because no one can support you.

So they realised that they would have to suffer without their father’s help.

They understood their mother and said, “What she says is true. Our father is dead and so our mother is now our teacher.”

Finally they said, “Now we cannot leave our home. We will stay and try to defeat the difficulties of life together.”