A long time ago, three girls went
out to collect wood.
Zot in desann larivier pou al naze sa zour-la parski ti pe fer extraso. Zot inn zwe, naze ek zet delo lor zot kamarad.
It was a hot day so they went down
to the river to swim.
They played and splashed and
swam in the water.
Enn kout zot inn realize ki ti fini tar. Zot inn degaze retourn dan vilaz.
Suddenly, they realised that it was
late.
They hurried back to the village.
Kan inn arriv pre ar zot lakaz, Nozibele inn met so lame lor so likou. Li ti’nn bliye so lasenn ! « Silteple vinn avek mwa. » Li finn sipliy so bann kamarad. Me so bann kamarad inn dir ki ti tro tar.
When they were nearly home,
Nozibele put her hand to her neck.
She had forgotten her necklace!
“Please come back with me!” she
begged her friends.
But her friends said it was too late.
Lerla Nozibele inn retourn larivier tousel. Li’nn trouv so lasenn ek li finn degaze retourn lakaz. Me li finn perdi dan nwar.
So Nozibele went back to the river
alone.
She found her necklace and hurried
home.
But she got lost in the dark.
Depi lwin li finn trouv lalimier depi enn kabann. Li finn degaze al kot laport-la pou tape.
In the distance she saw light
coming from a hut.
She hurried towards it and knocked
at the door.
Li finn gagn sok kan se enn lisien ki finn ouver laport ek finn demann li, « ki to le ? » « Mofinn perdi ek mo bizin enn landrwa pou dormi, » Nozibele dir. « Rantre sinon mo pou mord twa ! » lisien-la dir. Lerla Nozibele inn rantre.
To her surprise, a dog opened the
door and said, “What do you want?”
“I’m lost and I need a place to
sleep,” said Nozibele.
“Come in, or I’ll bite you!” said the
dog.
So Nozibele went in.
Apre lisien-la dir, « ferenn zafer pou mo manze ! » « Me zame mo finn kwi pou enn lisien avan, » li finn reponn. « Kwi sinon mo pou mord twa ! » lisien-la dir. Alor, Nozibele prepar manze pou lisien-la.
Then the dog said, “Cook for me!”
“But I’ve never cooked for a dog
before,” she answered.
“Cook, or I’ll bite you!” said the dog.
So Nozibele cooked some food for
the dog.
Apre lisien-la dir, « aranz lili pou mwa ! » Nozibele reponn, « zame mo finn aranz lili enn lisien. » « Aranz lili-la, sinon mo mord toi ! » lisien-la dir. Alor Nozibele aranz lili-la.
Then the dog said, “Make the bed
for me!”
Nozibele answered, “I’ve never
made a bed for a dog.”
“Make the bed, or I’ll bite you!” the
dog said.
So Nozibele made the bed.
Toulezour li ti bizin kwi, ek pas balie ek lave pou lisien-la. Enn zour, lisien-la dir, « Nozibele, zordi mo ena pou rann vizit mo bann kamarad. Balie lakaz, kwi manze ek lav mo bann zafer avan ki mo vini. »
Every day she had to cook and
sweep and wash for the dog.
Then one day the dog said,
“Nozibele, today I have to visit
some friends. Sweep the house,
cook the food and wash my things
before I come back.”
Kouma lisien-la finn ale, Nozible pran trwa seve depi so latet. Li met enn anba lili, enn deryer laport ek enn dan kraal. Apre li galoupe pli vit ki li kapav pou li retourn lakaz.
As soon as the dog had gone,
Nozibele took three hairs from her
head.
She put one hair under the bed, one
behind the door, and one in the
kraal.
Then she ran home as fast as she
could.
Kan lisien-la retourne, li rod Nozibele. « Nozibele, kot to ete ? » li kriye. « Mo isi, anba lili, » premie seve-la dir. « Mo isi, deryer laport, » deziem seve-la dir. « Mo isi, dan kraal, » trwaziem seve-la dir.
When the dog came back, he looked
for Nozibele.
“Nozibele, where are you?” he
shouted.
“I’m here, under the bed,” said the
first hair.
“I’m here, behind the door,” said the
second hair.
“I’m here, in the kraal,” said the
third hair.
Lerla lisien-la kone ki Nozibele finn tronp li. Li finn galoup-galoupe ziska vilaz. Me bann frer Nozibele ti pe atann li avek bann gro baton. Lisien-la finn fer demi tour ek finn sove ek pa finn trouv li depi sa zour-la.
Then the dog knew that Nozibele
had tricked him.
So he ran and ran all the way to the
village.
But Nozibele’s brothers were
waiting there with big sticks.
The dog turned and ran away and
has never been seen since.
Written by: Tessa Welch
Illustrated by: Wiehan de Jager
Translated by: Shameem Oozeerally & MIE French Students
Tessa Welch
Wiehan de Jager
Shameem Oozeerally & MIE French Students
Mauritian Creole
Level 3
The audio for this story is currently not available.
