The light on the MarchtThe world of legends
Polenta-Sepp, a strong, courageous man from Andermatt and father of seven children, wanted to go over to the Bätzbach stream one evening. There he planned to watch over a cow that was about to calve. As he was leaving the village, he saw a light approaching on the country road from the Marcht bridge. The light grew and grew until it was the size of a large basket for collecting sticks. Polenta-Sepp was frightened and didn’t know whether he should turn back or carry on.
Finally, he said to himself: “Oh well, just carry on, for goodness’ sake; you have a right to. But if the cow comes to any harm, you and the whole family will be ruined.” And so he continued on his way. When the light reached him, it was only a glimmer and let Sepp move on unhindered.
However, “the next morning his mouth was full of blisters.” So, Polenta-Sepp went to the priest and told him everything. The priest said he would investigate the matter. Later, the priest said, “there’s nothing to be done about it, it's a lost cause. The light is a clergyman who was once supposed to heal a sick person, but who fell from grace through his own fault. He can’t be redeemed and is lost for ever and ever.”
Speaker: Myriam Planzer
Sound recording: Florian Arnold
