Saint Peter’s Goddaughter

Saint Peter’s Goddaughter

Once, in Portugal, there lived a large family with so many children that the father found it difficult to choose godparents for every new baby.

When another little daughter was born, he set out along the road and wondered, “Whom shall I ask to be her godparent?”

Before long, a grey-haired traveller in a simple cloak came toward him.

“Why do you look so troubled?” the traveller asked.

The father told him about the new baby and his worry.

“If you wish, I will be her godfather,” said the traveller.

“I would be very grateful.”

So the girl was baptized and called Petra. A few years later, her godfather appeared again at the family home.

“I would like to travel a little with Petra now,” he told her parents. “Let her see the world and learn to look not only with her eyes, but with her heart.”

Her parents agreed, for they felt they could trust him.

Petra took a small bag, said farewell to her family, and went along the road with her godfather.

On the first day they saw a pear tree beside the path. It bore so much fruit that its branches bent to the ground, yet no one stopped beside it.

“Why do people pass by?” Petra asked.

“Sometimes abundance alone does not make a gift welcome,” replied her godfather. “It matters not only that you have something to give, but that you know how to share it kindly.”

Farther on, they saw fat sheep on a poor pasture and thin sheep in a green meadow.

Petra asked again, “Why is it so strange?”

“Because not everything in life is seen at first glance,” said her godfather. “Some people have little and give thanks for every small thing. Others have much and are always dissatisfied. Do not hurry to judge by appearances.”

At evening they stopped near a quiet place where a distant light flickered.

“What is that?” Petra whispered.

“A place where people learn to mend their mistakes,” said her godfather. “Remember: while a person lives, they can admit a wrong, ask forgiveness, and change their path.”

Petra remembered these words for a long time.

Years passed. Her godfather taught her patience, attentiveness, and that one should ask for help not only when frightened, but also when unsure how to do what is right.

When Petra was grown, he said, “Now it is time for you to live among people and test your own strength. If the burden becomes too heavy, call me. But remember: a miracle must never take the place of truth.”

Soon Petra came to the royal palace. They were looking for someone to care for the ducks and help with the household.

Petra wore plain travelling clothes, and because her name was short and her work jacket simple, everyone assumed the new helper was a boy called Peter. She did not correct them. There was much work to do, and she did not wish to speak about herself without need.

Petra worked diligently. The ducks obeyed her, the store rooms stayed in order, and every task was completed on time. The king praised the new worker several times.

The queen did not like this. It seemed to her that Peter was gaining the court’s trust too quickly.

One day she took a ring from her finger and secretly threw it into the sea.

Then she told the king, “Our Peter boasts that he can find anything lost. Let him find my ring.”

The king was surprised, but summoned Petra.

“Did you truly say this?”

“No, Your Majesty,” she answered.

“That is strange. But the ring is dear to our family. If you can help, try.”

Petra went to the shore and felt sad.

“Godfather,” she said softly, “I do not know where to search for a ring in the whole sea.”

A familiar voice answered beside her.

“Do not be afraid. Go back to the kitchen. Today the fishermen will bring a large fish. Watch carefully when it is prepared.”

It happened just so. In the fish, the cook found the royal ring.

Petra took it to the queen.

But instead of thanking her, the queen only frowned.

A few days later, she invented another trial.

“Peter says that in one night he can grind three great bags of grain,” she announced.

“I never said that,” Petra replied calmly.

Yet the king had begun to notice the strange repetition of these stories.

“I do not want to force you,” he said. “But if you know a way, help the millers. Tomorrow they must bake bread for a great feast.”

That night Petra called her godfather again.

“Prepare the mill, pour in the grain properly, and lie down to rest,” he advised. “The rest will be done by those who owe this house a good service.”

At dawn, all the grain had been ground. Petra did not know who had turned the millstones in the night, but she sincerely thanked the unseen helpers.

The queen grew angrier still.

Then she said, “Peter boasts that he can free Princess Anna Deladana from the enchanted land of Moirama.”

Now even the king shook his head.

“This sounds far too much like an invention,” he said. “Peter, did you promise this?”

“Never.”

“I believe you. But we have long had no news of Anna Deladana. If you freely wish to try to help, I will give you a horse and all you need for the journey.”

Petra thought of the missing princess and agreed.

At the edge of the forest, her godfather was waiting.

“Take a second horse for the princess and these three little tubes,” he said. “Use them only when there is no other way.”

Petra rode for a long time through hills and valleys until she reached Moirama, an old enchanted land surrounded by dark walls.

In a high tower, she found Anna Deladana. The princess was silent, as if her voice had fallen asleep.

“I have come to take you home,” said Petra.

Anna nodded.

They mounted their horses and set out. Soon riders were heard behind them: guards from the enchanted land.

Petra opened the first tube. A thick fog rose behind them, and the pursuers lost the road.

Anna Deladana said softly, “Ah!”

After some time, the chase drew close again. Petra opened the second tube. A broad hedge of supple branches grew between them and the riders. No one was hurt, but passing through it quickly was impossible.

For the second time, Anna said, “Ah!”

A third time, the guards nearly caught the fugitives by a river. Petra opened the last tube, and the water became broad and calm as a lake. The girls crossed in a boat, while their pursuers stopped on the other bank.

Then Anna said a third time, “Ah!”

She spoke no more on the road.

When they returned to the palace, everyone rejoiced. Only the queen at once invented a new accusation.

“Peter assured us that he could return the princess’s voice. Let him prove it now!”

Petra felt her hands grow cold. She went into the garden and called her godfather.

“Help me once more.”

He appeared beside her, but this time shook his head.

“I have helped you find a way through what you could not do alone. But now you need not a miracle, but truth. You heard the princess’s three words. Remember when she said them, and ask the right questions.”

The next morning, the entire court gathered in the great hall.

The queen demanded that Petra be punished for her supposed boasting and deceit.

The king raised his hand.

“No one will be punished until we have heard the truth. Peter, speak.”

Petra stepped toward Anna Deladana.

“Princess, on the road you said ‘ah’ three times. Please tell us why the first time.”

Everyone held still.

Anna suddenly answered in a clear voice, “Because I remembered the queen searching Peter’s room for an excuse to accuse the helper.”

A surprised whisper went around the hall.

“And the second time?” asked Petra.

“Because I understood that the grey-haired traveller who helped you was your godfather and teacher.”

“And the third?”

The princess smiled.

“Because everyone at court calls you Peter, though you are a girl named Petra. And you never once boasted of the wonders people claimed you had promised.”

The silence became so deep that ducks flapping their wings in the yard could be heard.

The king turned to the queen.

“More than once, you put words into Petra’s mouth that she never spoke. That is unjust.”

The queen had to lay aside her duties at court and live for a time at a country home so that she could consider her actions. She was not humiliated or harmed, but from then on she could not rule another person’s fate out of jealousy.

The king asked Petra, “What do you want as a reward for your service?”

“To return to my family, and later to work where my help is truly needed,” she said. “And I want no one in the palace to be punished merely because someone says something about them without proof.”

“That is a fair condition,” said the king.

Petra helped at the palace a little longer, but no longer as the silent Peter. She used her own name and people asked her advice when a tangled matter needed to be understood.

Before leaving, she met her godfather one last time by the old pear tree.

“You have learned what matters most,” he said.

“What is that?”

“Patience does not mean silently accepting injustice. A good heart should be gentle, but the truth must be clear.”

Petra embraced her godfather and then set out for home.

Whenever difficult roads came before her after that, she remembered: sometimes help is needed, sometimes a miracle, and very often it is enough to ask the right question bravely and speak the truth aloud.

May this story leave a little light in your heart ✨