There once was a queen whom the Lord had prevented from having children. Every morning she went into the garden and begged God in heaven to bestow a son or daughter on her. At dusk the sun shone brightly through the tree trunks and cast its light on the dark green of the garden.
Soon after she gave birth to a little daughter who was as white as snow, as red as blood, and her hair as black as ebony. But the dear child was dead and remained dead. The queen became pale, and her heart trembled greatly.
After the child was lowered into her grave and was covered over with earth, one of her little arms suddenly emerged and reached up into the air. The dead child shouted, “Now I’m going to strangle you!”
Now the woman became so frightened and desperate that she did not allow the neighbours to comfort her and finally hung herself. Indeed, she died a horrible death.
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Notes:
1. Written in March 2020
2. Part of The New Brothers Grimm project
3. Assembled from Tale 76: The Pink Flower; Tale 69: Jorinda and Joringel; Tale 53: Snow White; Tale 6: Faithful Johannes; Tale 117: The Stubborn Child; Tale 4: A Tale About The Boy Who Went Forth To Learn What Fear Was; Tale 214: How Some Children Played At Slaughtering; Tale 9: The Twelve Brothers