Rosina in the Oven
Once upon a time, a poor man lost his wife, who left him with a lovely daughter named Rosina. The poor man worked from dawn till dusk, and there was no one to look after the girl. So, he decided to remarry. His second wife also bore him a daughter, whom they named Assunta. She was plain-looking and had a nasty temper. The girls grew up together and went to school together, but every time Assunta returned home, she was furious."Mom," she said, "I don’t want to go anywhere with Rosina anymore! Whoever we meet only praises her: how beautiful she is, how kind, while they say I’m ugly and as dark as a coal."
Her mother doted on Assunta. Seeing how her daughter was bursting with envy, she asked one day:
"Well, how can I help you with your sorrow?"
"Send Rosina to herd the cows," replied Assunta. "And make her spin a skein of hemp. If she comes home without the yarn and with hungry cows, give her a beating. Today a beating, tomorrow a beating—soon she’ll lose her beauty and her kindness."
The mother gave in to her daughter’s whims, called Rosina, and said:
"You’re not to go anywhere with Assunta anymore. From now on, you’ll herd the cows and gather grass for them, and you’ll also spin a skein of hemp every day. Watch out—if you come back in the evening without the yarn and with hungry cows, I’ll give you a good thrashing. My word is final."
Rosina was too shocked to say a word, but her stepmother already grabbed a stick, and the girl had no choice but to obey.
She took her spindle, full of hemp, and drove the cows to the field. As she walked, she muttered:
"My dear cows, my dear cows! How am I to gather grass for you when I have to spin the hemp? If only someone could help me!"
At that moment, the oldest cow turned her head and said:
"Don’t worry, Rosina. Go gather the grass, and we’ll spin and wind the hemp for you. Just say:
'Little cow, little cow,
Spin my hemp for me,
Help me with your horns,
Wind the yarn into a ball!'"
By evening, the cows had eaten their fill. Rosina drove them home and put them in the barn. She brought a big bundle of grass on her head and held a ball of yarn in her hand.
When Assunta saw this, she almost choked with anger. She said to her mother:
"Send Rosina to herd the cows again tomorrow, but give her two skeins of hemp. If she doesn’t spin it all, let her taste the stick."
But this time, too, it was enough for Rosina to say:
'Little cow, little cow,
Spin my hemp for me,
Help me with your horns,
Wind the yarn into a ball!'
And by evening, the cows were fed, the grass was gathered, and the two skeins of hemp were spun and wound into balls. Assunta turned green with envy:
"How do you manage to do all this in one day?"
"Like this," replied Rosina. "There are kind hearts in the world. My cows help me."
Assunta ran to her mother.
"Mom, let Rosina stay home and do the chores tomorrow, and I’ll go with the cows. Give me some hemp too."
So, in the morning, Assunta drove the herd to pasture. In her hand, she held a switch and whipped the cows as hard as she could. When they reached the meadow, Assunta wound the hemp around the cows’ horns. But the cows just stood there, not moving.
"What’s wrong with you? Don’t you want to spin?" shouted Assunta. "Take this!"
And she whipped them even harder. The cows shook their heads and tangled the hemp into a mess. All that was left was a lump of tow. Assunta couldn’t stand it. One evening, she said to her mother:
"Mom, I’ve been craving radishes. Let Rosina go and pick some from the neighbor’s garden."
To please her daughter, the mother ordered Rosina to go and fetch radishes from the neighbor’s garden.
"But what is this?" cried Rosina. "Do you want me to steal? I’ve never done such a thing! If the neighbor sees someone climbing over his fence at night, he’ll kill the thief!"
But that’s exactly what Assunta wanted. Now she took charge of the house and said to her sister:
"Go, go, or I’ll give you a beating!"
Poor Rosina stumbled through the darkness, climbed over the fence into the neighbor’s garden, but instead of radishes, she grabbed a turnip. She pulled and pulled until she finally yanked it out; she felt around and found a mole’s burrow, and inside were five adorable little moles.
"Oh, how cute!" said Rosina and began gathering them into her apron.
But then she accidentally dropped one, and it hurt its little paw.
"Oh, forgive me, little one, I didn’t mean to," said Rosina.
And she began to pet and caress the mole family. The four moles in her apron took a liking to Rosina and said:
"Dear girl, you are so kind and gentle, we want to give you a gift. You will become the most beautiful in the world and shine like the sun. So be it."
But the limping mole grumbled:
"Kind, my foot! I almost lost my leg because of her! Let her turn into a snake as soon as a ray of sunlight falls on her, and she’ll only become human again if she enters a burning furnace."
Rosina returned home, both joyful and fearful. And though it was night, it became as bright as day around her—so radiant was her beauty. When her stepmother and stepsister saw her, so beautiful and shining like the sun, they were speechless. Rosina told them everything that had happened in the garden.
"It’s not my fault," she said. "But please, have mercy on me—don’t send me into the sunlight, or I’ll turn into a snake."
From then on, Rosina only left the house in the evening or on cloudy days. She spent all her time in the shade by the window, working and singing. And from the window, her radiance spread far and wide.
One day, a prince was passing by. The radiance caught his eye, he looked up, and saw Rosina. "Where does such beauty come from in a peasant’s hut?" thought the prince, and he entered the house.
That’s how they met. Rosina told the prince her story, including the curse that hung over her.
The prince said:
"Whatever happens, such a beauty shouldn’t stay in a hut. You will be my wife—I’ve decided, and my word is final."
Then the stepmother intervened:
"Your Highness, be careful, or you’ll bring trouble upon yourself. Just think: as soon as a ray of sunlight falls on Rosina, she’ll turn into a snake."
"That’s my concern," replied the prince. "It seems to me you don’t love this girl. I order her to be sent to the palace. And to ensure the sun doesn’t touch her on the way, I’ll send a closed carriage. See that it’s done. And now—farewell!"
The stepmother and Assunta dared not disobey the prince and began preparing Rosina for the journey. But they harbored malice in their hearts.
Finally, the carriage arrived—an old, completely closed one, with only a small peephole at the top, and a servant on the footboard, all decked out in ribbons, a feathered hat, and a sword at his side.
Rosina entered the carriage, and the stepmother sat with her—to escort her to the palace. But first, she took the servant aside and said:
"Good man, if you want to earn ten paoli for a tip, open the peephole in the carriage when the sun is overhead."
"Very well, madam," replied the servant. "As you wish!"
And the carriage rolled away. At noon, when the sun was directly overhead, the servant, unaware of the secret and the evil intent, opened the peephole, and a ray of sunlight fell on Rosina’s head. In that instant, the girl turned into a snake and slithered away into the forest.
The prince flung open the carriage door at the gates of his castle, but Rosina wasn’t there! When he heard what had happened, he wept, screamed, and almost killed the stepmother. But everyone began to tell him that this must have been Rosina’s fate: if this misfortune hadn’t happened now, it would have happened later. The prince stopped grieving but remained sad and inconsolable.
Meanwhile, the cooks in the royal kitchen had been baking, boiling, and roasting food for the wedding feast in ovens, on stoves, and on spits, and the guests were already seated at the table. When they learned that the bride had disappeared, they decided: "Since we’re here, let’s feast." And the servants were ordered to reheat the dishes.
Just then, a bundle of firewood was brought from the forest, and one of the cooks threw it into the burning furnace. Suddenly, he saw a snake in the bundle! Before he could pull it out, the firewood burst into flames! The cook watched as the snake burned, but suddenly, a girl leaped out of the flames—rosy-cheeked and shining brighter than the sun.
The cook was speechless, then he shouted:
"Here! Here! A girl jumped out of the furnace!" At the cry, the prince ran in, followed by all the courtiers. The prince recognized his Rosina and embraced her tightly.
They celebrated the wedding right away. Rosina lived happily ever after, and no one ever hurt her again.
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