An African princess was born in the dark mountains of Zulu-land and a dream was born from her childhood. A small hut sheltered the princess from birth from all kinds of bad spirits that would hinder her growth. After her birth, the word of her birth ran across the small village. Gifts were brought and people came to see the little Zulu princess. She lived with her grandmother as her parents were across the country looking to claim the throne for her.

She was beyond measure, the flowers were nothing compared to her, neither were the pearls of the ocean. Some did wonder how one girl could pose such intricate beauty. They would sit with granny around the fire and gran would tell a story of a legend about the Princess of a village called Kwahlathi, named after its dark forest.

The Princess would sing along with the birds every morning while her grandmother prepared her for school.

She didn’t have many friends except for one girl, Amanda, who lived across the river where they met when the Princess was fetching water for her Gogo. The two would play in the water like there was no tomorrow until they lost track of time. By then Gogo would be worried sick about her.

One day, the Princess and Amanda were walking to school. The Princes had a lot of questions for Amanda, as she was two years older than the Princess.

“Amanda, what do you call that mountain?”

Amanda answered, “That,” she pointed with the finger, “is the forbidden mountain. No one is to go there, the witches live there.”

The inquisitive Princess was cut short as they had to rush to school because they were late from all the playing on their way. Princess Nqobile was a young child filled with imagination and intelligence. In class her hand was always up, answering all kinds of questions. Her grandmother, Mamthombeni always wondered if she had been born in the right time of the world. Every teacher in the school loved her because she always wore a smile on her. She was pretty and very much clever, a child free from all the world’s problems.

One Friday when school was out, Princess Nqobile was walking home with her friend as always. They were playing and chatting to each other. A car came along the dusty road. It approached the two young girls and it slowed down. The window rolled down and a voice came from inside the car: “Can I give you a lift home?”

There was a short pause, in which Nqobile heard her grandmothers voice – “Never get into a car with a stranger.”

They replied, “No sir, we will be fine.”

That day they not only stayed true to what they were taught but they saved their lives from a bad man.

They kept walking. The little princess was talking about the upcoming Sunday, as she and her grandmother would be going to the church service. She was excited because she also sang in the choir. She had that angelic voice that would make you see the gates of heaven open. The church loved her. She was a well-behaved child from a village with so little to give. She didn’t know it then that she would have a tough life as the dreams of a whole village rested upon her shoulders.

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Tell us what you think: Do you know of any children like the Princess, sweet, smart and curious?