Once upon a time there was a woman. She worked day and night to feed and clothe her three daughters. And three daughters grew up, fast as swallows, with faces like the bright moon. One by one they got married and left.
Several years have passed. An old mother fell seriously ill, and she sent a red squirrel to her daughters.
- Tell them, my friend, to hurry to me.
“Oh,” the eldest sighed, hearing the sad news from the squirrel. - Oh! I would be glad to go, but I need to clean these two basins.
— Clean two basins? - the squirrel got angry. - So may you be inseparable from them forever!
And the basins suddenly jumped up from the table and grabbed the eldest daughter from above and below. She fell to the floor and crawled out of the house like a big turtle.
The squirrel knocked on the door of the second daughter.
“Oh,” she answered. “I would run to my mother now, but I’m very busy: I need to weave canvas for the fair.”
- Well, now you can do it all your life, never stopping! - said the squirrel. And the second daughter turned into a spider.
And the youngest was kneading dough when the squirrel knocked on her door. The daughter didn’t say a word, didn’t even wipe her hands, and ran to her mother.
“Always bring joy to people, my dear child,” the squirrel told her, “and people will take care and love you, and your children, and grandchildren, and great-grandchildren.”
Indeed, the third daughter lived for many years, and everyone loved her. And when the time came for her to die, she turned into a golden bee.
All summer, day after day, the bee collects honey for people... And in winter, when everything around is dying from the cold, the bee sleeps in a warm hive, and when it wakes up, it eats only honey and sugar.
Translated from Russian · original on wisdomlib.ru