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suddenly turned red
and her eyes began to open. She smiled warmly at the old couple,
shook the flakes off her body, and emerged from the snowdrift as
a pretty young girl!
The old
couple was overjoyed, took her into their hut,
and named her the Snow Maiden. The Snow Maiden
grew quickly, not by the day but by the hour.
Before long, she became quite beautiful and the
old couple doted on her. The Snow Maiden was a
dream child. She always did her chores, never
complained, and was very affectionate. When she
sang a melody, it were as if an angel from heaven
were singing just for them.
The Snow Maiden spent much
time outdoors. She liked the feel of the cool
breeze on her fair skin and enjoyed spending time
with the small creatures of the forest.
But winter soon
passed and the warm sun of spring started to heat
the land. The girl now became quite depressed.
"What's the matter," the old couple
would ask. "Are you not feeling well?"
"No, Mother, no Father, I'm fine," she
would reply. But there was no denying that
something was wrong. As the last snow melted, as
flowers began to grow in the meadows, as the
larks started to sing, the girl became even
sadder. And she would hide from the sun at every
opportunity.
Once dark clouds
moved through, bringing with them a flurry of
hail. The girl rejoiced, looking at the stones of
hail as if they were giant pearls. But soon the
hail melted and the girl cried.
Summer arrived and
one day a group of girls called out to the Snow
Maiden, "Come with us for a walk in the
woods!"
The Snow Maiden
didn't want to go, but her parents urged her,
saying, "Go play with them, dear. You'll
have fun."
So she went with the girls, who began collecting
flowers, singing songs, and dancing. The Snow
Maiden didn't join in, though, and wasn't having
a very good time. Then it began to get dark, and
the other girls made a fire from some twigs they
had collected. They continued to laugh and sing,
and the Snow Maiden could see how much fun the
girls were having. Finally, she decided to join
in. For the first time since winter a smile
formed on her face as she laughed, sang, and
danced with the others.
Then, one by one,
the other girls began playfully jumping over the
small fire they had built. The Snow Maiden jumped
over when it was her turn, but halfway through
her leap, she suddenly melted and turned into a
white cloud. A faint good-bye was heard before
the cloud rose up and disappeared into the
heavens.
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