I forgot to publish this one too! There have been some senior moments lately...........
Here's her story:
La
Befana was an old lady living long ago during the first century in a
little house on a hill in Italy. She once had a husband and a child
but at the time of her story she lived alone and spent her time
cleaning her house and baking.
One
night, she noticed a bright light in the sky and later that same
night, while she was tidying her house and getting ready to go to bed
there was a knock on the door. When she answered it, she saw three
well-dressed, rich looking men standing on the step. “Hello
Granny,” they said, “sorry to disturb you. We have journeyed a
long way. We wondered if you knew the way to Bethlehem, where the
child who is to be the new king has been born.” “I know nothing
about that, I do not know that place” replied La Befana. “I have
no idea what you are talking about”. The three men told La Befana
the story of the child born to be king and save the world. “Granny,
we are on our way to honour the new king. If you wish, you can come
with us” they said. La Befana replied “I'm far too busy to go off
a wild goose chase with you, but thank you” and she closed the
door.
Later,
La Befana thought of how she missed her own child and wondered if she
had made a mistake. She really didn't want to miss out on something
that might be important, so she packed a sack with that day's baking
and gifts for the child, took her broom to help the new mother and
went out to catch up with the three men. Although she searched and
searched for hours she could not find them and she was soon lost and
very tired. As La Befana gazed at the bright star in the sky and
wished that she could see the child and then find her way home angels
appeared from the star and, on this night of miracles, gave La Befana
the gift of flight. Thankfully she mounted her broom and set off
again. She searched and searched for the special child. She didn't
find him and now, every year on the night of the fifth of January La
Befana goes out searching again. She stops at the house of every
child and she leaves treats for the good ones and lumps of coal for
those who were bad.
And my interpretation:
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