The riddle of the old woman. Fairy Tale

Once upon a time, on the outskirts of a small village, there lived a witch. She was tall, thin, and elderly, but very wise and cunning. Throughout her life, the witch had mastered various forms of magic and had lived among the people. When people saw her, they trembled in fear and fled in all directions.

One day, the village heroes decided to scare the witch and came to her house. However, the witch, aware of their approach, presented them with a riddle:

"If you can solve my riddle, I will free you and give you all my riches. But if you can't, you will serve me forever."

The riddle was as follows:
"The beginning and the end of life,
Are in my hands, yet are unseen.
What is it?"

The heroes thought and thought, but could not find the answer. The witch laughed, pleased that they would become her servants for eternity. But just then, a small child from the village stepped forward and answered, "It’s time!" The witch was astonished and bowed to the child's cleverness.

"You are a very wise child. You have defeated me this way, so take my riches and save your fellow villagers," the witch said, giving all her wealth to the boy and freeing the heroes.

From that day on, the witch never did harm to people again, living a peaceful life, respecting the wisdom of children, and engaging only in good deeds.