Long ago there lived a king called Lir. He lived in a castle with his four children called Fionnuala who was the eldest child, Aodh, Fiachra and Conn.

The King and his children were devastated when their mother died. Lir decided to remarry. He married a woman called aoife. The king loved his children more than his wife and aoife did not like this. Aoife made a devious plan to get rid of the children.

One sunny day the children and aoife went to the lake. They loved playing and splashing in the water for hours on end. While the children were in the water aoife took out a magic wand and waved over the children. They children were shocked when they looked down at themselves and saw pure white Feathers. Aoife had turned them into swans. Aoife added to the children “the spell would be broken after 900 years. You will spend 300 years here in lough derravaragh, then you will spend 300 years in the sea of Moyle, and the last 300 years in the waters of inish glora and you will turn into humans again after you hear the sound of a Christian bell”

While the children were in the water aoife.took out a magic wand and waved over the children. They children were shocked when they looked down at themselves and saw pure white Feathers. Aoife had turned them into swans. Aoife added to the children “the spell would be broken after 900 years. You will spend 300 years here in lough derravaragh, then you will spend 300 years in the sea of Moyle, and the last 300 years in the waters of inish glora and you will turn into humans again after you hear the sound of a Christian bell”

Aoife went home to lir. Lir was horrified when aoife told lir that the children had drowned. Lir ran down to lough derravaragh and saw four beautiful swans but no children. One of the swans shouted out “ father father, aoife put us under a spell and we will be swans for 900 years.” Lir was shocked that a swan was talking but even more shocked that aoife did such a thing.

Lir rushed back to the castle to aoife. To get revenge on aoife he turned her into a large ugly moth. The moth flew high into the breezy wind and lir never saw her ever again.

Lir visited the children every day and the children sang and talked to him all the time. Lir loved the children so much that he would sometimes stay by the lake until morning. He told them stories and sang a new song every day.

Lir died and the children were very sad. The children did as aoife told them to and after 300 years they flew to the sea of moyle. The children wished they were back in lough derravaragh because the water was so cold in the sea of moyle. Fionnuala and her brothers came across their final voyage. They reached inish glora. One moring they heard the ringing of a bell. They longed for it to be a christian bell.

They came across a man in a long cloak. He looked like a monk. The swans were splasjing around hoping the spell would soon be broken. “is that a christian bell” screamed fionnuala. The monk was even more shocked at the sound of a swan talking then lir was. The children told the monk their sad and moving story. When they had finished telling the monk about their 900 years as swans, the monk blessed the swans. “yes, those bells are christian bells” added the monk.

After the monk finished his sentence the feathers on the children disapeared and they turned back into humans. They thanked the monk and began their long journey home. When they reached the castle they were lonely without their father but they were very happy. They sang and sang all day long. The children if lir were very old so they did not have a long life after their 900 years as swans. The end. We will never know if this ledged is true or not. We also will never know if aoife is still roaming around the skies as a moth. 