Anon E. Mouse 
THE MAIDEN’S ROCK – a Children’s story from Saxony-Anhalt 
Baba Indaba Children’s Stories – Issue 272

ISSN: 2397-9607 Issue 272In this 272nd issue of the Baba Indaba’s Children’s Stories series, Baba Indaba narrates “THE MAIDEN’S ROCK”, a story from Saxony-Anhalt.It seems that, a thousand years ago and more, there dwelt in the village of Pfaffendorf, close by, a terrible old witch, who went by the name of Mother Gundelheind. No one dared go near her or enter her house, but those who had ventured to peep through the window in her absence declared that a blue flame danced upon her hearthstone, above which some devilish brew hung boiling, and that a black fox crouched whining beside this uncanny fire.Many a belated passer-by had seen her at night, flashing through the air upon her broomstick; and sometimes she had a companion, a fiery dragon who flew by her side, and brought her great store of red, molten gold, that he dropped from his wings before her threshold. It is needless to say that she was never at home on Walpurgis-night (30 April or May Day’s eve, also known as Hexennacht or Witches‘ Night), the great meeting time of all the witches and evil spirits; but, indeed, she was more often abroad.It was claimed by many that she worked her spells on many people in the village, but no-one was brave enough to challenge her face-to-face.Gundelheind had a young daughter Truda, and how she came by such a daughter none can tell; for Truda was as sweet as a May morning, and her hazel eyes had the look that the angels wear, in the church pictures. Instead of the old woman’s horny, blackened hide, Truda had a skin as fair and soft as cream.Everyone wondered if Truda would one day become a witch like her mother, or if she would forsake her mother’s ways once and for all?  Gundelheind had to let Truda go into the village to buy supplies and she always paid in pure gold coin, which raised more many an eyebrow.Over Time Truda began taking longer and longer to make the trip which began to raise Gundelheind’s suspicions. But what was Truda up to? Was she falling into her mother’s ways, and practising withcraft in secret, or was it something else altogether?Well, if you want to know what it was, you’ll just have to download and read this story for yourself all the way to the end.Baba Indaba is a fictitious Zulu storyteller who narrates children’s stories from around the world. Baba Indaba translates as ’Father of Stories’.Each issue also has a ’WHERE IN THE WORLD – LOOK IT UP’ section, where young readers are challenged to look up a place on a map somewhere in the world. The place, town or city is relevant to the story. HINT – use Google maps.33% of the profit from the sale of this book will be donated to charities.INCLUDES LINKS TO DOWNLOAD 8 FREE STORIES