AN old lady told me this story. She heard it from her grandfather. He, in turn, heard it from his parents. It must have come from way, way back there, somewhere.
There was a family living near to a small river. A mother and her four children lived there. The mother had favourite children and one she did not like at all. First, there was Mini Mini, second Salambu and third Selambutanya. They were very pretty girls. Smooth clear skin and soft hair. These girls got everything they wanted from a mother. The last and least was Qua Qua Tanya. Her skin was covered in sores due to neglect. Her hair was uncombed and she did not have a lot of clothes. The mother and other children scorned and detested her.
The mother would go to work every day leaving the children at home. The three kept to themselves. They would not play with their sister. When the mother returned home in the evening she would begin to sing from a distance. When the three heard her voice they would race to meet her. Poor Qua Qua Tanya would not dare to follow. The mother sang.
“Mini Mini come ya,
Selambu come ya,
Selambutanya come ya,
Le Qua Qua Tanya one stann deh.”
She refused to let the fourth child come near to her. This went on for years.
In the small river running close to their home lived a large alligator. Every day he would hear the mother sing and see the children run out to greet her. One day he was very, very, hungry and decided he would eat anything he could catch.
Early that evening he swam to the bank of the river and waited. When he was ready he began to sing in a soft tone.
“Mini Mini come ya,
Selambu come ya,
Selambutanya come ya,
Le Qua Qua Tanya one stann deh!”
Out through the gate ran the three favourite daughters. They looked down the dam but did not see their mother. The voice called again. They realised that it was coming from the river. Full of excitement and anticipation of receiving something special they ran down to the river. One by one the hungry reptile grabbed them down.
When the mother came home sometime later she called out as usual.
“Mini Mini come ya,
Selambu come ya,
Selambutanya come ya,
Le Qua Qua Tanya one stann deh.”
No one came to meet her. She realised that the girls were not there and questioned Qua Qua Tanya who replied.
“You came earlier and sang for them and they all went to meet you.”
The unfortunate mother realised that it was the work of the clever alligator. She knew that her three favourites were gone forever. Now she had only Qua Qua Tanya. The woman was forced to take better care of her only child.