In a certain kingdom, in a certain realm, there lived a princess. She was beautiful and sweet, but also temperamental and wilful, much like all princesses, really. One day she took it into her head to travel throughout her kingdom. The King and Queen tried to dissuade their daughter. They said:
Why would you go in winter? Wait for spring!
But the princess didn't listen to her parents. She ordered the servants to harness the horses, dressed herself in the most fashionable furs, packed sweets for the journey, and set off down the road.
And it was a long journey indeed, for the kingdom stretched across enormous expanses. To travel through it all, one had to go around the forest, cross the river on ice, and pass by hundreds of villages.
Our princess had no wish to meet with the village folk, for the girl didn't like them. She considered them uneducated, unfashionable, and dirty.
The princess couldn't have imagined that all the food on her table came from the village: milk and butter, meat and bread. And all these delicacies were obtained through the hard work of ordinary people.
And so she rides in her sleigh, munching on honey cakes. Suddenly a blizzard rose up and swirled and whirled so fiercely that it lifted the princess into the air. And she landed in a dense forest.
Rather than looking about her, the girl immediately let out a deafening scream. But no one could hear her. Whether it was long or short, the princess wept bitter tears, but there was nothing to be done.
She decided to walk through the forest to find her way. She walks and trudges along, hears wolves howling, branches crackling in the frost. From fear, the traveller's heart sank into her boots.
Suddenly she looked more carefully, and a little light flickered in the dark thicket. The princess walked towards this light. She walked and walked and came to a clearing where a fire was burning. And around it sat four beautiful maidens.
The princess was afraid to approach them straightaway, so she decided to observe them first. One maiden wore a white fur coat, with snowflakes in her hair that sparkled like precious stones.
The second girl wore a festive sarafan, decorated with snowdrops and coltsfoot, and from her eyes shone such warmth, like rays of sunshine!
The third was quite a young girl, with a light, airy dress. In her hands she held a little bouquet of wildflowers. And the fourth sister held a sheaf of golden wheat ears in her hands, and her dress was embroidered with colourful leaves.
Still, the princess decided to approach them. But instead of greeting the maidens with kind words, she asked coldly:
What are you doing in my forest?
The maidens answered her:
Why is it your forest? After all, you don't know what plants grow in it, when the berries and mushrooms ripen, what animals live in it, or what help they need?
The princess thought about it—and it was true. Foreign teachers had taught her, told her about overseas kingdoms, about fashion and various ways of life. But they couldn't tell her anything about Mother Russia.
And the princess became so eager to learn about every little tree and bush, about every creature in her native forest. She asked the maidens to tell her what happens in the forest in winter and spring, summer and autumn.
The maiden Winter told her about hares that wrap themselves in white fur in winter and confuse their tracks so as not to become prey for the fox.
And the maiden Spring offered to tell the story of a bear that the sun had awakened, and now he wanders hungry through the forest. How buds swell on the trees and young leaves appear from them. And such a fragrance fills the forest that your head spins. Spring didn't forget to remind the princess about the village folk either. For them, a spring day feeds the whole year.
And the young girl Summer, who listened respectfully to her elder sisters, told of the delicious strawberry, of butterflies that, like the princess, seemed to boast of their finery. She added that the village folk's work hadn't lessened: watering the beds, herding cows and goats, preparing fodder for them.
A sad tale was told by the maiden Autumn. And how could she not be sad when you hear the farewell song of cranes and ducks, and the songs of the peasants harvesting grain from the field are also not cheerful.
Such stories enchanted the princess. She decided to ask her father and mother to invite Russian teachers to her. She wanted to learn as much as possible about her native nature. And the princess also decided to make friends with peasant children.
And as soon as these thoughts came to her, a sleigh appeared in the clearing. The princess got in and they set off for her native kingdom. But her life had changed greatly! Readers can surely guess what our princess became?
