a beautiful girl and her brothers once upon a time there was a girl called Adera she was very beautiful and everybody loved her adab bera's father was dead and she lived with her mother and her four older brothers she worked hard in the house she fetched the water cooked the food F and cleaned the compound one day ader's mother said to her oldest son you are a man now you must find a wife and marry her I don't want a wife the oldest son said my sister Adera looks after me the next day at bga's
mother said please my son don't wait any longer go out and look for a wife where can I find a wife her son answered her my sister Adera is the most beautiful girl in the world where can I find a girl like her a week later his mother said to him have you looked for a wife yet have you found a girl I have looked for a wife her son answered but I have not found one I love my sister adaba and I want to marry her then she will stay at home with us forever
his mother was angry you can't marry a burga she said she is your sister how can a man marry his own sister her son was angry too mother he said I will never marry another woman I want my sister and I will have her he spoke to his mother every day At first she was angry but then she began to listen to him at last she said yes my son you can marry Adera I will help you the oldest son was very happy the second and third Sons were happy too adab BGA will stay at
home with us now they thought we will never lose her that evening adabo went to the river to fetch water her mother and her brothers stayed in the house adaba filled her pot with water and walked home she went to the door of the Hut she wanted to go inside but her oldest brother put his leg across the door brother she said please put your leg down I want to come in her oldest brother smiled at her I am not your brother he said I am your husband and he put down his leg adab burga
tried to go in again but her second brother held his leg across the door please brother she said let me come in I'm not your brother her second brother said I am your brother-in-law and he put down his leg adab burgo waited her third brother's leg was across the door now what are you doing she said please brother put your leg down let me come in I am not your brother the third brother said I am your brother-in-law and he put down his leg now adab bera's mother sat beside the door she put her leg
up Adera couldn't go inside mother she said please let me come in please put your leg down I am not your mother her mother answered I'm your mother-in-law and she put down her her leg adab berga's fourth brother sat beside the door now he was disabled his legs were weak and he couldn't walk he lifted one leg with his hands brother Adera said why are you doing this to me please let me come in her fourth brother put down his leg Yes dear sister you can come in he said the next evening adabo went to
the river again when she came home her family was together in the Hut again they lifted their legs against her again her fourth brother let her come in they did this every day week after week one day adab berga's fourth brother said to her dear adaba I want to go to the toilet please carry me outside so adaba picked up her brother and carried him out to the fields she stopped beside a field of te don't stop here her brother said I can't use this place the TEF will become dirty so adab burga carried him
on they came to a field of sorghum not here said her brother the Sorghum is for our food I don't want to make it dirty Adera carried him far away to a place full of trees put me down here her brother said and sit beside me listen I don't need to go to the toilet I brought you here because I want to talk to you our mother and brothers have a plan for you tomorrow they're going to give you to our oldest brother they want you to marry him Adera was very unhappy what she cried
my brother wants to marry me but I can't marry my own brother it's a wicked thing to do I agree her youngest brother said but they will try to force you my dear sister you must run away go now but where can I go Adera said there were Tears In Her Eyes now who will help me God will help you her brother said be strong go so Adera ran away she ran and ran over the fields up the mountains and down into The Valleys at last she came to a big river I can't cross this
River she thought it's too deep I must stay here there was a big tree near the river I'll climb the tree adaba thought I will be safe there from the wild animals so adaba began to live in the tree she collected fruits and leaves for her food and she drank the water of the river now a rich man lived not far away every day his servant girl came down to the river to fetch water one day the girl walked under adab berga's tree to the edge of the river she put her pot down and began
to fill it adga was sitting in the tree above the girl's head when the girl filled her pot she looked down at the water and she saw ader's face that's my face the girl thought oh how beautiful I am she looked at the face in the water again and again that is not the face of a servant girl she thought it's the face of a princess I'm not going to be a servant anymore I'm going to find a rich man to marry me she dropped her pot on the ground and it broke it doesn't matter
the girl said it was just an old water pot I don't need it now I'm beautiful I'm going to be a princess she ran back to the rich man's house but before she reached it she began to think I broke my Master's pot she thought and he is waiting for his bath he will be angry with me I must take another pot and go to the river again so the servant girl fetched another pot and went back to the river but again she saw ad bera's face in the water it's true she cried I am
the most beautiful girl in the world she dropped the second pot and it broke too then adura spat on the girl from the tree the girl looked up and saw her oh she said I am not beautiful at all the face in the water was not mine it belongs to the girl in the tree I will tell my master I have broken two of his pots but when he sees this girl he will not be angry with me so the servant girl ran home to her master master she said I saw a girl in a
tree beside the river today she was as beautiful as St Mary she is the most beautiful girl in the world I was very surprised and I I broke your water pots don't worry about the water pots the rich man said where is this girl I want to see her come to the river with me the girl said I will show you so the rich man followed the girl to the river he stood under the tree and looked up he saw Adera my servant was right he thought this is the most beautiful girl in the world
and I want to marry her beautiful girl he said why are you hiding in the tree have you done something wicked does your family want to punish you Adera didn't answer she said nothing the rich man turned to his servant go back to my house he said bring me my Spear and two carpets the girl ran home she came back again quickly with the carpets and the spear the rich man stood the spear in the ground the sharp point of it was below Adera he put one carpet on one side of the spear and the
other carpet on the other side then he spoke to adab burga jump down from the tree he said perhaps you are a bad girl perhaps you did something wrong and your family is angry with you is that why you ran away is that why you are hiding up there in the tree if that is the reason you will fall on the spear but perhaps you are a good girl perhaps someone tried to hurt you and you ran away to save your life is that why you are hiding in the tree if that is the reason
you will fall on the carpet so adga jumped down from the tree she fell on the carpet and the rich man picked her up marry me he said so ADI burer married him now a new life began for Adera she was the wife of a rich man she lived in a big house and she had many servants she forgot about her mother and her brothers she was happy but adab bga's fourth brother did not forget his sister he left his mother's house and he began to travel everywhere he was looking for adab burga it was
very hard for adab bera's brother he could not use his legs but only his arms he needed other people to help him one day he came to the rich man's house he sat outside under a tree adab berga's servants saw him they ran to adaba there is a man outside your house under the tree they said his face is like your face his eyes and his nose his mouth and his hair they're all like yours is he a relative does he come from your family I have no relatives Adera said I have only one brother
and he is disabled go and look at the man again if he is disabled and cannot walk come and tell me the servants hurried out to the tree again soon they came back to adga he looks like you they all said his hair his eyes his teeth but is he disabled adaba said can he walk her servants looked at each other we don't know they said at last he was sitting on the ground we didn't see his legs I will see him myself adaba said her servants put carpets down on the ground for her and
adaba walked outside she went to the tree and saw her brother she was very happy she ran to him him and kissed him oh my dear dear brother she said come into the house you are tired and hungry you must rest and I will make a delicious meal for you to eat she took her brother inside she washed his feet and gave him the finest food to eat and Ted to drink her brother finished his meal at last now said adab burga you must listen to me my husband is not here tonight but he will
come home tomorrow he's a good man but he likes to trick people ask if you can help him he will say something strange perhaps he will say kill my cattle don't do it look after the cattle for him or perhaps he will say take my cattle to the desert don't let them drink water then you must take them to the river and let them eat and drink listen carefully to his words and do the opposite the next day adab Vera's husband came home my brother is here adab burka said he wants to help you ah
said her husband that is good he can take the cattle up to the mountain and push them over the cliff ader's brother smiled at her good he said I will do that the next morning he went out with the rich man's herdsman he took the cattle to the valley and they ate the good green grass that evening the rich man was happy with his brother-in-law he went to his box and took out some hairs from a sheep some hairs from a goat some hairs from a cow a mule and a horse he put them in
a sack and gave them to adab bera's brother he gave him a stick too go home he said take this sack with you when you reach your house beat the sack with the stick goodbye dear brother may God go with you adaba said so adab bur's brother went home when he arrived he stood outside the Hut he took out the sack and beat it with the stick at once hundreds of sheep and goats cows mules and horses ran out of it he looked at them and laughed he was very happy I am a rich man
now he thought thank you dear brother-in-law his brothers heard the noise of all the animals they came out of their Hut what happened to you they said to the fourth brother where where did you go and where did you get all these animals I went to find our sister the fourth brother said she has married a rich man he gave all these animals to me the oldest brother was not happy my youngest brother is Rich and I am poor he thought I will go to my brother-in-law he will give me sheep and goats cows mules
and horses and I will be rich too so the eldest brother went off to find Adera he came at last to her house and sat down under the tree he called to her servants find your mistress he said to them say to her your brother is here the servants went to adab burga another of your brothers is here they said to her he is sitting outside the house under a tree another brother adaba said angrily I don't have another brother I only have one but she went out to the tree her oldest brother jumped up
dear adaba he cried my lovely sister adaba did not smile at him she didn't kiss her brother she didn't talk to him that night adab bera's husband came home ader's brother was very polite to him please he said let me help you let me take your cattle out tomorrow very well said his brother-in-law take them to the desert and kill them all ader's brother was surprised he looked at adaba but she didn't look at him she didn't speak to him the next day ader's brother took his brother-in-law's cows to the desert and he killed them
all that evening he said to his brother-in-law I obeyed you brother I took your cows to the desert and they are all dead where is my reward his brother-in-law went to his box he took out some hairs from a lion and a leopard and some hairs from a hyena an elephant and a buffalo he put them in a sack and gave them to adab bga's brother he gave him a stick too go home he said take this sack with you when you reach your house beat it with the stick thank you said adab bera's brother
he was happy I will be a rich man soon he thought he hurried home when he arrived he stood outside the Hut he took out the sack and beat it with the stick at once hundreds of lions leopards hyenas elephants and buffalos ran out of the sack they turned on ADI berga's brother and ate him then they ran away ADI burga and her husband lived happily for many years and had many fine children and AD berga's fourth brother was rich and happy too for the rest of his long life