Once upon a time, the rainy season came to the forest, as it must come every year. But this time there was more rain than ever before. Nobody had ever seen anything like it. At night the water fell with a roar like thunder. In the morning it beat against the branches of the trees…
One day frog swam to the surface of a little pond and glanced around him for a place to rest: “The water is cold today – he complained – it would do me good to bask in the sun for a little while.” And so, he left the water and crouched on a warm, flat…
The ltzaes, a brave and peaceful group of Maya have been in these lands since time immemorial. They were led by a priest named Zamna, and while they were resting after their arduous journey, he recalled the words spoken to him by the queen of Atlantis: “Our land will disappear within one moon. Since you…
Once upon a time, there was a baboon and a hare. They lived happily with their families. One day, the Hare decided to have a family party at his house. He invited Baboon and his family. The Baboon was so excited to get the invitation. “But there is one condition,” the Hare said. “What is…
There was a good and peaceful young man named Ponga. He was also an excellent hunter. One day he caught in a trap a ‘mugumbi’, a small forest animal that burrows underground. The poor beast begged him: “Let me go. You will see, one day I will help you!” The next day he found rain…
A long time ago, Yhi, the goddess of the Sun, created the animals. She brought them to life by removing them from the icy depths of the earth. After that, she distributed them everywhere in the waters, on the surface of the earth or in the freedom of the heavens. But as time went by,…
Once upon a time, there was a potter, honest and diligent, who made jars of excellent quality and many sizes. He was also a very religious man: in his spare time, he prayed and went to the temple every evening to participate in the ceremonies and sing hymns. Once a week he fasted and always…
The elephant, the leader of the village, was already sound asleep when suddenly a loud, insistent voice made him gasp: Ge-cko… Ge-cko… Ge-cko. After opening his eyes and taking a deep breath, the elephant said: “Gecko, what are you doing here? Why are you walking around my head? It’s the middle of the night. Go…
At the foot of the Atlas Mountains, a mountainous massif in the Western Sahara, there was a powerful kingdom ruled by a sheikh as wise as he was good. He had married the princess Hamida, which means gazelle. The young queen deserved that name because of her grace and fragility. A year after the wedding…
On the heights of a remote village at the bottom of a valley lived a melancholic girl who had not known her parents, who had died at her birth. Unaware, however, of their end, and thinking of them on the road, she kept hoping that one day she would meet them. In her illusion, the…
Naiteru-Kop, one of the gods of the Maasai, walked the earth at the dawn of the world and he found it already held some inhabitants. He found a Dorobo (a member of a hunting people, also known as Okiek), a snake, and an elephant living together. After Naiteru-Kop had passed by, the Dorobo found a…
The Tortoise and the Chimpanzee had been friends for a very long time and so it was only natural that they should invite each other to their wedding feasts when they both decided to get married. The Chimpanzee was the first to celebrate his wedding. The most delicious food was prepared and the finest palm…
When asked how a farmer’s daughter who became a Catholic nun ended up as one of Brazil’s most influential refugee advocates, Sister Rosita Milesi, 79,…
On 24 November, the Solemnity of Christ the King, on the occasion of World Youth Day in the Particular Churches, in St. Peter's Basilica the traditional…