The invisible elf (Traditional South African legend)
outh African children are the best behaved in the world. They always obey their elders, do their homework and come home on time. This is normal because if one day they do behave badly, their parents will let Tokoloshe know. You’ve probably not heard of him, but, believe me, count yourself very lucky that he’s never been seen around here... Tokoloshe is a very small and very hairy elf. But don’t be fooled by his size, because in fact he’s the most dangerous of all creatures. When he eats a stone, Tokoloshe becomes invisible and starts being naughty: he slips into the houses and turns everything upside down with his pranks and tricks. Some people in South Africa are so afraid of him that they put bricks under the legs of their bed to raise it, so that the tiny elf cannot climb up to them. However, you don’t need to worry about a thing, because I’m going to tell you a secret. There’s a very easy way of getting Tokoloshe off your back: just leave a bowl of milk at the foot of your bed. This tiny elf absolutely loves milk, he can’t get enough of it. So, if he finds the bowl, he’ll be so grateful that he’ll be your friend forever and he’ll make sure that nothing bad ever happens to you.