Back to stories list

What Vusi’s sister said Ser Vusi ki pou dir ? Que va dire la sœur de Vusi ? What Vusi's sister said

Written by Nina Orange

Illustrated by Wiehan de Jager

Read by Darshan Soni

Language English

Level Level 4

Narrate full story

Reading speed

Autoplay story


Early one morning Vusi’s granny called him, “Vusi, please take this egg to your parents. They want to make a large cake for your sister’s wedding.”

Enn gramatin boner, Vusi so gramer finn apel li. « Vusi rann enn servis amenn sa dizef-la pou to paran. Zot pe anvi fer enn gro gato pou maryaz to ser. »

Un matin de bonne heure, Vusi est appelé par sa grand-mère, « Vusi, s’il te plaît, peux tu amener cet œuf à tes parents. Ils veulent faire un gros gâteau pour le mariage de ta sœur ».

Early one morning Vusi’s granny called him, “Vusi, please take this egg to your parents. They want to make a large cake for your sister’s wedding.”


On his way to his parents, Vusi met two boys picking fruit. One boy grabbed the egg from Vusi and shot it at a tree. The egg broke.

Ler li pe al kot so paran, Vusi finn rankont de garson ki ti pe kas fri. Enn ladan finn pran dizef-la e finn avoy li lor enn pie. Dizef-la finn kase.

En allant chez ses parents, Vusi rencontra deux garçons en train de cueillir des fruits. Un des garçons s’empara de l’œuf de Vusi et le lança sur un arbre. L’œuf se cassa.

On his way to his parents, Vusi met two boys picking fruit. One boy grabbed the egg from Vusi and shot it at a tree. The egg broke.


“What have you done?” cried Vusi. “That egg was for a cake. The cake was for my sister’s wedding. What will my sister say if there is no wedding cake?”

Vusi, ki ti pe plore finn dir : « Ki to finn fer ? ». Sa dizef-la ti pou gato maryaz mo ser. La ki mo ser pou dir si pena gato maryaz ?

« Qu’as-tu fait ? » cria Vusi. « Cet œuf était pour un gâteau, le gâteau du mariage de ma sœur. Que va dire ma sœur s’il n’y a pas de gâteau pour son mariage ? »

“What have you done?” cried Vusi. “That egg was for a cake. The cake was for my sister’s wedding. What will my sister say if there is no wedding cake?”


The boys were sorry for teasing Vusi. “We can’t help with the cake, but here is a walking stick for your sister,” said one. Vusi continued on his journey.

Bann garson-la ti sagrin ki zot finn takinn Vusi. Enn ant zot finn dir « Nou pa pou kapav ede pou gato-la, me ala enn baton-marse pou to ser, ». Vusi pourswiv so larout.

Les garçons étaient désolés d’avoir taquiné Vusi. « Nous ne pouvons rien faire pour le gâteau, mais voilà un bâton de marche pour ta sœur, » dit l’un d’eux. Vusi poursuivit sa route.

The boys were sorry for teasing Vusi. “We can’t help with the cake, but here is a walking stick for your sister,” said one. Vusi continued on his journey.


Along the way he met two men building a house. “Can we use that strong stick?” asked one. But the stick was not strong enough for building, and it broke.

Lor sime, li’nn rankont de zom ki ti pe aranz enn lakaz. Enn ladan finn dimann-li « Eski nou kapav servi sa baton solid la ? » Me baton-la pa ti ase solid pou konstriksion-la e li finn kase.

En chemin, il rencontra deux hommes, qui construisaient une maison. « Pouvons-nous utiliser ce solide bâton ? » demanda l’un d’eux. Mais le bâton n’était pas assez solide pour la construction, et il s’est rompu.

Along the way he met two men building a house. “Can we use that strong stick?” asked one. But the stick was not strong enough for building, and it broke.


“What have you done?” cried Vusi. “That stick was a gift for my sister. The fruit pickers gave me the stick because they broke the egg for the cake. The cake was for my sister’s wedding. Now there is no egg, no cake, and no gift. What will my sister say?”

« Ki zot finn fer ? » Vusi ki ti pe plore finn dir « Sa baton-la ti enn kado pou mo ser. Bann dimoun ki ti pe kas fri inn donn mwa-sa akoz zot finn kas dizef pou gato. Gato-la ti pou maryaz mo ser. La pena dizef, pena gato, ek pena kado. Ki mo ser pou dir la ? »

« Qu’avez-vous fait ? » s’écria Vusi. « Ce bâton était un cadeau pour ma sœur. Les cueilleurs de fruits m’ont donné le bâton parce qu’ils ont cassé l’œuf pour le gâteau. Le gâteau était pour le mariage de ma sœur. Maintenant il n’y a pas d’œuf, pas de gâteau, et aucun cadeau. Que va dire ma sœur ? »

“What have you done?” cried Vusi. “That stick was a gift for my sister. The fruit pickers gave me the stick because they broke the egg for the cake. The cake was for my sister’s wedding. Now there is no egg, no cake, and no gift. What will my sister say?”


The builders were sorry for breaking the stick. “We can’t help with the cake, but here is some thatch for your sister,” said one. And so Vusi continued on his journey.

Bann mason-la ti sagrin ki zot finn kas baton-la. Enn ladan finn dir « Nou pa pou kapav fer nanye pou gato-la me ala enn bot lapay pou to ser ». Vusi pourswiv so larout.

Les constructeurs étaient désolés d’avoir brisé le bâton. « Nous ne pouvons rien faire pour le gâteau, mais voici du foin pour ta sœur, » dit l’un d’eux. Vusi continua sa route.

The builders were sorry for breaking the stick. “We can’t help with the cake, but here is some thatch for your sister,” said one. And so Vusi continued on his journey.


Along the way, Vusi met a farmer and a cow. “What delicious thatch, can I have a nibble?” asked the cow. But the thatch was so tasty that the cow ate it all!

An rout, Vusi finn zwen enn fermie ek enn vas. Vas-la finn diman li « bot lapay-la paret bon, mo kapav pan inpe ? » Me bot lapay-la ti telman bon ki vas-la finn manz tou.

Sur le chemin, Vusi rencontra un fermier et une vache. « Quel foin délicieux, est-ce que je peux en prendre un peu ? » demanda la vache. Mais le foin était si bon que la vache a tout mangé !

Along the way, Vusi met a farmer and a cow. “What delicious thatch, can I have a nibble?” asked the cow. But the thatch was so tasty that the cow ate it all!


“What have you done?” cried Vusi. “That thatch was a gift for my sister. The builders gave me the thatch because they broke the stick from the fruit pickers. The fruit pickers gave me the stick because they broke the egg for my sister’s cake. The cake was for my sister’s wedding. Now there is no egg, no cake, and no gift. What will my sister say?”

Vusi, ki ti pe plore finn dir « Ki to finn fer ? Sa bot lapay la ti enn kado pou mo ser. Bann mason finn donn mwa-sa parski zot finn kas baton bann dimounn ki ti pe kas fri la. Bann dimounn ki ti pe kas fri la finn donn mwa sa baton-la parski zot finn kas dizef ki ti pou servi pou gato mo ser. Gato-la ti pou maryaz mo ser. Asterla pena dizef, pena gato et okenn kado. Ki mo ser pou dir la ? »

« Qu’as-tu fait ? » s’écria Vusi. « Ce foin était un cadeau pour ma sœur. Les constructeurs m’ont donné du foin, car ils ont cassé le bâton des cueilleurs de fruits. Les cueilleurs de fruits m’ont donné le bâton parce qu’ils ont cassé l’œuf pour le gâteau de ma sœur. Le gâteau était pour le mariage de ma sœur. Maintenant il n’y a pas d’œuf, pas de gâteau, et aucun cadeau. Que va dire ma sœur ? »

“What have you done?” cried Vusi. “That thatch was a gift for my sister. The builders gave me the thatch because they broke the stick from the fruit pickers. The fruit pickers gave me the stick because they broke the egg for my sister’s cake. The cake was for my sister’s wedding. Now there is no egg, no cake, and no gift. What will my sister say?”


The cow was sorry she was greedy. The farmer agreed that the cow could go with Vusi as a gift for his sister. And so Vusi carried on.

Vas-la ti sagrin ki li’nn azir kouma enn gourman. Fermie-la finn aksepte pou ki vas-la al ek Vusi e servi kouma enn kado pou so ser. Vusi pourswiv so larout.

La vache était désolée d’avoir été si gourmande. Le fermier décida que la vache devait accompagner Vusi et être un cadeau pour sa sœur. Vusi poursuivit sa route.

The cow was sorry she was greedy. The farmer agreed that the cow could go with Vusi as a gift for his sister. And so Vusi carried on.


But the cow ran back to the farmer at supper time. And Vusi got lost on his journey. He arrived very late for his sister’s wedding. The guests were already eating.

Me kan finn ariv ler pu dine, vas-la finn sove et finn retourn kot fermie-la. E an rout, Vusi finn perdi. Li finn arriv bien tar pou maryaz so ser. Bann invite ti deza pe manze.

Mais là l’heure du souper la vache s’échappa et retourna chez le fermier. Et Vusi se perdit en chemin. Il arriva très tard pour le mariage de sa sœur. Les invités mangeaient déjà.

But the cow ran back to the farmer at supper time. And Vusi got lost on his journey. He arrived very late for his sister’s wedding. The guests were already eating.


“What shall I do?” cried Vusi. “The cow that ran away was a gift, in return for the thatch the builders gave me. The builders gave me the thatch because they broke the stick from the fruit pickers. The fruit pickers gave me the stick because they broke the egg for the cake. The cake was for the wedding. Now there is no egg, no cake, and no gift.”

Vusi, ki ti pe plore, finn dir « Ki mo sipoze fer ? Vas ki finn sove la ti enn kado an esanz bot lapay ki bann mason ti donn mwa. Bann mason ti donn mwa sa bot lapay-la parski zot finn kas baton bann dimounn ki ti pe kas fri la. Bann dimounn ki ti pe kas fri-la finn donn mwa sa baton-la parski zot finn kas dizef ki ti pou servi pou gato. Gato-la ti pou maryaz. Asterla, nepli ena dizef, ni gato e pena kado. »

« Que dois-je faire ? » s’écria Vusi. « La vache qui s’est enfuie était un cadeau, en échange du foin, que les constructeurs m’ont donné. Les constructeurs m’ont donné le foin, car ils ont cassé le bâton des cueilleurs de fruits. Les cueilleurs de fruits m’ont donné le bâton parce qu’ils ont cassé l’œuf pour le gâteau. Le gâteau était pour le mariage. Maintenant il n’y a pas d’œuf, pas de gâteau, et aucun cadeau ».

“What shall I do?” cried Vusi. “The cow that ran away was a gift, in return for the thatch the builders gave me. The builders gave me the thatch because they broke the stick from the fruit pickers. The fruit pickers gave me the stick because they broke the egg for the cake. The cake was for the wedding. Now there is no egg, no cake, and no gift.”


Vusi’s sister thought for a while, then she said, “Vusi my brother, I don’t really care about gifts. I don’t even care about the cake! We are all here together, I am happy. Now put on your smart clothes and let’s celebrate this day!” And so that’s what Vusi did.

Vusi so ser finn reflesi pandan enn moman apre li finn dir « Vusi, mo frer, mo pa kas latet ar bann kado. Mo pa mem gagn traka gato-la ! Nou tou ansam isi, mo erez. Asterla, ale met to zoli linz et anou selebre sa zour-la ! E samem Vusi finn fer. 

La sœur de Vusi réfléchit un moment, puis elle a dit, « Vusi mon frère, les cadeaux me sont égaux. Je ne me soucie pas non plus du gâteau ! Nous sommes ici tous ensemble, je suis heureuse. Maintenant va mettre tes vêtements de fête et célébrons ce jour ! » Et c’est ce que fit Vusi.

Vusi’s sister thought for a while, then she said, “Vusi my brother, I don’t really care about gifts. I don’t even care about the cake! We are all here together, I am happy. Now put on your smart clothes and let’s celebrate this day!” And so that’s what Vusi did.


Written by: Nina Orange
Illustrated by: Wiehan de Jager
Read by: Darshan Soni
Language: English
Level: Level 4
Source: What Vusi's sister said from African Storybook
Creative Commons License
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 International License.
Options
Back to stories list Download PDF