Kgalekgale ho ne ho na le lelapa le thabileng.
Once upon a time,
there lived a happy
family.
Lelapeng lena, ba ne ba sa lwantshane. Bana ba ne ba thusa batswadi ba bona ka mesebetsi ya ka tlung, le ya masimong.
They never fought with
each other. They helped
their parents at home
and in the fields.
Empa, ba ne ba sa dumellwa ho atamela pela mollo.
But they were not
allowed to go near a
fire.
Ba ne ba lokela ho phethisa mesebetsi ya bona bosiu, hobane ba ne ba entswe ka kerese.
They had to do all their
work during the night.
Because they were made of wax!
E mong wa bashanyana o ne a lakatsa ho ya kantle letsatsing.
But one of the boys
longed to go out in the
sunlight.
Ka tsatsing le leng, takatso ena e bile matla haholo. Baenae ba mo kgalemela…
One day the longing
was too strong. His
brothers warned him…
Empa nako e ne e se e seyo. O ile a qhibidiha letsatsing le tjhesang.
But it was too late!
He melted in the hot
sun.
Bana ba kerese ba ile ba hlonama haholo ha ba bona ngwana bo bona a qhibidiha letsatsing.
The wax children were
so sad to see their
brother melting away.
Empa ba ile ba tla le leano la ho bopa nonyana ka kerese e neng e qhibidihile.
But they made a plan.
They shaped the lump
of melted wax into a
bird.
Ba nka nonyana ena e leng abuti wa bona, ba e isa hodimo thabeng.
They took their bird
brother up to a high
mountain.
Ha letsatsi le tjhaba, a fofa a ntse a bina mahlaseding a letsatsi hoseng.
And as the sun rose, he
flew away singing into
the morning light.
