Cool Waters (part 1)

Then one night, it was too warm to go to bed, so Amuma and I sat in the veranda. I was fanning her as she began to tell me this story.
‘Once upon a time, there was a little girl just like you. She was your age and your height as well. She was prone to getting bored all the time. Her parents would buy her books but she only wanted ones with pictures in them. They would buy her clothes but she only wanted ones with frills in them. They would buy her tennis rackets and cricket bats but she disliked them. They found her hard to please and unhappy. No one could entertain her for very long. So they all gave up.
‘So there she sat, bored and neglected. She knew she would have to entertain herself as all else had failed. So one evening, about this time of the night, she began to walk around her garden. Before she knew it she had walked a distance and into unknown woods. Now she was unafraid. So she walked on till she came to a clearing where there was a cool pool of water. The night was warm, like this night is. The air was light and a slight breeze flowed. The sight of water made her thirsty and she stooped for a drink.
‘The woods are a dangerous place, little one. Even as unafraid as you are, some fears are defenses. But the little one knew no fears. Blessed are the fearless, yet I would not want to be them. So she stooped for a drink and she felt a ripple in the water even before she had touched it. She saw feet, one pair touching the surface of the water, and another, it’s reflection in the water. She saw a swing, made of rope and wood, tied to the branch of a tree that passed over the waters. The rope on both sides of the swing was covered in flowers, elaborately and artistically…