Kgale kgale, bogologolo go be go na le kgoši yeo e bego e bitšwa Kayanja. O be a dula ka mošate le mmakgoši mmogo le morwedi wa bona e lego kgošigatšana Apenyo. Kgošigatšana Apenyo e be e le kgarebe ye botsana yeo lesogana le lengwe le le lengwe le bego le rata go monyala. Kgoši Kayanja o be a beile seroto sa magadi a theko ya godimo go morwedi wa gagwe.
Long, long ago there was a king
called Kayanja. He lived in a palace
with the queen and their daughter,
princess Apenyo.
Princess Apenyo was such a
beautiful young woman that every
man wanted to marry her. But king
Kayanja demanded a very high
bride price for the princess.
Kgauswi le mošate wa kgoši Kayanja, go be go dula Kgošikgolo Aludah. O be a bitšwa “Kgošikgolo” ka lebaka la go re batho ka moka ba dinaga tša kgauswi ba be ba obamela melao ya gagwe. O be a elwa kudu le bao ba sa latelego melao ya gagwe! Mosadi wa kgoši Aludah o sa tšo hlokofala ka bolwetši bja malaria gomme Kgoši Aludah o be a nyaka go nyala mosadi yo mongwe.
Near king Kayanja’s palace lived a
chief called Aludah the Great. He
was called “the Great” because
everybody in the neighbourhood
obeyed him. (He was very violent to
anyone who disobeyed him!)
Chief Aludah’s wife had recently
died of malaria and he wanted
another wife.
Kgoši Aludah, wa go nona le go tšofala, o ile a ya go kgoši Kayanja go iša tefo ya magadi a morwedi wa gagwe. Ge banna ba ba bedi ba ba sa swere ditherišano tša tefo ya magadi, mothuši yoo leina la gagwe e lego Kakembo o ile a utswa ditaba tša bona ka tsebe. Kakembo le kgošigatšana Apenyo ba be ba kwana ele ruri.
So the fat old chief went to king
Kayanja to offer bride wealth for the
young princess.
While the two men were discussing
the price, the maid Kakembo
overheard their conversation. Maid
Kakembo was very close to princess
Apenyo.
Kgoši Aludah o ile a dumela go re o tla fa kgoši Kayanja seripagare sa lehumo la gagwe, go akaretša le nalete, yeo e bego e beilwe bjalo ka karolo ya tefo ya magadi. Ditokišetšo tša lenyalo magareng ga kgoši Aludah le kgošigatšana Apenyo di ile tša dirwa ka sephiring. Kgoši Kayanja o be a tseba gore morwedi wa gagwe a ka se thabele sephetho seo sa go mo nyadiša le kgoši Aludah.
Chief Aludah agreed to give half of
his wealth to king Kayanja,
including a needle, which was also
part of the bride price.
Preparations were made in secret
for the wedding between chief
Aludah and princess Apenyo. The
king knew that his daughter would
not be happy with this decision.
Beke pele ga letšatši la lenyalo la bogoši, mothuši Kakembo o ile a ya go Apenyo. “Kgošigatšana yaka, tatago o beakantše lenyalo la gago le Kgoši Aludah. Lenyalo leo le tla ketekwa beke ye e latelago,” Kakembo a realo.
One week before the royal wedding
day, maid Kakembo approached
Apenyo.
“My dear princess, your father has
organised your wedding with Chief
Aludah, and it will take place in one
week,” said Kakembo.
Kgošigatšana Apenyo o be a tšhošitšwe ke seo a se kwago. O thomile a sa tsebe gore a dire eng. Morago a nagana, “Nka se nyale kgoši Aludah, monna yola yo mo koto, wa go tšofala. Aowa! Ke swanetše go kitimela go Trevor ke bone gore a ka dira eng pele ke šiwa ke nako.” Trevor e be e le lesogana la kgošigatšana Apenyo.
Princess Apenyo was shocked and
at first didn’t know what to do. Then
she thought, “I will never marry
chief Aludah, that fat old man.
Never! I must hurry to Trevor and
see what he can do before it’s too
late.”
Trevor was princess Apenyo’s
boyfriend.
Bošegong bjoo, Apenyo o ile a khukhuna a tšwa ka mošate. Ge tatagwe a ka lemoga gore o ya kae, a ka befelwa kudu. O ile a kitima a feta ka gare ga sethokgwa sa go thibana, sa go tšhoša, a namela matlapa le mehlašana go fihlela ge a fihla ga Trevor wa gagwe. Ge a fihla motseng wa bo Trevor, o be a lapile, a swerwe ke tlala, a bile a swerwe ke lenyora.
That night Apenyo crept out of the
palace. If her father discovered
where she was going he would be
very angry.
She ran through the thick, dark
forest over rocks and shrubs, until
she finally reached her Trevor. When
she arrived at his house she was
tired, hungry, and thirsty.
“Lerato la ka, ke ka lebaka la eng o tšwelela ka lebelo leeto le le kaaka o le noši mo bošegong bjo?” Trevor a botšiša. O ile a mo tlela meetse a go nwa a ba a mo fa nako ya go khutša. Trevor o be a sa iketle ge a be a sa emetše Apenyo gore a hlaloše.
“My love, why have you run all this
long distance alone and at such a
time of night?” asked Trevor. He
fetched drinking water for her and
allowed her to rest.
Trevor could not settle down while
he waited for Apenyo to talk.
“Kgošigatšana yaka, molato ke eng?” Trevor a botšiša. Apenyo o ile a tšea moya ka boima, a bolela ka manyami a re, “Tate o nyaka go nnyadiša le kgošikgolo Aludah. Efela nna nka se nyale monna yola wa go tšhoša. Trevor, ke nyaka go nyala wena le ge o le modiidi. Ke ikemišeditše go sotlega. Ke a go rata.”
“My dear princess, what is the
problem?” asked Trevor.
Apenyo breathed heavily and said
sadly, “My father wants to marry
me off to chief Aludah the Great.
But I can’t marry that horrible man.
Trevor, I want to marry you even if
you are poor. I am ready to suffer. I
love you.”
“Efela nna ga ke na tefo ya go lefela magadi a gago kgošigatšana, bjale ka ge o tseba gore ke mošemane wa modiidi,” goa lla Trevor. Apenyo a fetola, “Ke a tseba efela ke wena fela yoo nka nyalwago ke yena.” O ile a nagana sebakanyana gommea re, “A re sepele re ye go Kategga, monna wa go ba le sekepe re mo kgopele gore a re iše ka mošola wa noka. Ka tsela yeo re ka kgona go tšhaba, le tate a ka se tsoge a re hweditše.”
“Kodwa manje nkosazana, mina anginalutho, ukukhokhela ilobolo lakho. Wazi kahle, ngimpofu,” kuzikhalela uThando. UNaledi wamphendula wathi, “Ngiyakwazi loko, kodwa nguwe kuphela engingakugana.” Wake wathula isikhashana, wabe esethi, “Nginecebo, masigijimele ku Kwanda, indoda le yesikebhe asiweze sibalekele ngale komfula. Ngaleyo ndlela singeqa, ubaba angasitholi.”
“But princess, I have nothing to pay
as your bride price, you know I’m a
poor boy.” cried Trevor.
Apenyo replied, “I know, but it’s
only you I can get married to.”
She thought for a while and said,
“Let’s go to Kategga the boat man
to sail us to the other side of the
river. That way we can escape and
my father will never find us.”
Morago kua mošate, kgoši Kayanja o be a šetše a lemogile gore kgošigatšana Apenyo o timeletše. O ile a laela balata gagwe go mo nyaka metsaneng ka moka. Bašireletši ba kgoši, mašole le batho ka moka ba ile ba nyaka efela ba palelwa ke go hwetša kgošigatšana Apenyo. Ba ile ba boela morago go kgoši ba mmotša gore Apenyo ga a bonagale. “Sepelang kua sethokgweng le yo mo nyaka gona,” Kgoši Kayanja a ba laela bjalo. O be a tenegile kudu.
Back at the palace, king Kayanja
had discovered Princess Apenyo’s
disappearance and ordered his
subjects to search for her
everywhere in the village.
The king’s guards, soldiers, and
everyone else searched, but they
couldn’t find Princess Apenyo.
They went back to the King and told
him Apenyo was nowhere to be
seen. “Then go to the bush and
search,” King Kayanja ordered. He
was very annoyed.
Ge kgošigatšana Apenyo le Trevor ba kitimela kua lebopong, maru a maso a thoma go kgobokana godimo. Ledimo le maatla le be le le tseleng.
As Princess Apenyo and Trevor
hurried to the riverbank, dark
clouds began gathering in the sky. A
heavy storm was coming.
Kategga, monna wa sekepe o be a le gare a bofelela sekepe sa gagwe ge baratani bao ba fihla go yena. Trevor o ile a kgopela Kategga gore a ba sesiše go ya ka thoko yela ya noka. Kategga o ile a ganana le kgopelo yeo, a hlaloša gore ledimo le maatla le be le etla, ka fao go tla ba kotse kudu go sesa.
Kategga the boatman was mooring
his boat when the young couple
approached him. Trevor asked
Kategga to row them across the
river.
Kategga refused to accept,
explaining that a heavy storm was
fast approaching, and it would be
too dangerous.
Trevor o ile a gapeletša le go hlaloša lebaka leo le ba gapeletšago gore ba tshele noka. O ile a tsentšha seatla sa gagwe ka potleng gomme a ntšha legapi a le fa Kategga. Ge Kateggaa e kwa ditaba tša bona le go bona legapi leo le le botse, o ile a ba kwela bohloko. Ka gona, a dumela go ba tshediša noka le ge legodimo le befile.
Trevor insisted and explained to
Kategga why they must cross. He
then put his hand deep in his
pocket and took out a cowrie shell
to give to Kategga.
When Kategga heard their story and
saw the beautiful shell, he felt sorry
for them. He agreed to row them
across the river in spite of the
weather.
Kategga o ile a gogela sekepe kgauswi le lebopo gomme a ba botša gore ba namele. O ilea tšea disepetša-sekepe ba thoma leeto. Ge kgoši Kayanja le kgoši Aludah ba fihla lebopong, ba ile ba bona batho ba bararo bao ka gare ga sekepe. Ba ile ba lemoga gore baratani bale ba tšhabile. Ledimo le maatla le ile la hlasela sekepe gomme Kategga a palelwa ke go se laola. Kgoši Kayanja a goelela, “Apenyo, boa morago hle! Ke go lebaletše ebile nka se go otle, wena goba Trevor.”
Kategga pulled the boat near the
bank and told them to get in. He
then picked his oars and began
rowing.
When king Kayanja and chief
Aludah reached the bank, they saw
the three people in the boat. They
realised that the young lovers had
escaped.
Efela go be go šetše go senyegile. Sekepe se ile sa menoga gomme sa lahlela batho bale ba bararo ka meetseng ao a maatla. Boraro bja bona ba ile ba nwelela. Morago ga letšatši leo, yo mongwe le yo mongwe yoo a dulago mmušong wa kgoši Kayanja, o be a dumeletšwe go nyala yoo a mo nyakago go sa kgathalege gore ke mohumi goba ke modidi.
Heavy winds rocked the boat and
Kategga could no longer control it.
King Kayanja shouted: “Apenyo,
please come back! I have forgiven
you and will never punish you or
Trevor.”
But it was too late. The boat tipped
over and the three people were
thrown into the wild water. They all
drowned.
After that day, everyone in king
Kayanja’s kingdom could marry
anyone they wanted, rich or poor.
