King Thrushbeard

Adopted from the Brothers Grimm Popular Tales

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 Once there was a king who had a beautiful daugh
ter, Precious. Because of her beauty, she bacame h
aughty and proud of herself, and no suitor was good
enough for her. She turned doen one after another a
nd made fun of them as well.

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 One day, the king had a great feast. He invited al
l men nearby and faraway kingdoms who wanted to
marry his daughter. They were all lined up in a row
according to their rank. Kings came first, followed b
y dukes, then counts, then barons, and last all the k
nights of the realm.

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 Then the princess was led down the roe, but she we
nt on finding fault with each one of them. They were e
ither fat or thin; too old or too young; too short or too ta
ll; too dark or too pale ; and so forth. However, she ma
de fun particularly of a young king at the head of the pr
ocession whose chin had grown a bit crooked.

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 He was King Justine, but she called him Thrushbe
ard because he has a chin like a throstle's beak. Eve
ry one heardwhat she called him, and from that time
on, the young king was called Thrushbeard. But, of c
ourse, they don't ever say that name in his face.

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 The king himself was enraged at the improper behavior
of her fault-finding daughter who did nothing but mock ever
yone and put to shame all the suitors who gathered there.
"I swear, I'll have your marry the first beggar that comes t
o my door," said the King to his daughter.
A few days later, a wandering minstrel started singing unde
r the windows, hoping to get some alms.

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"Could you give me some alms and food to ease hungry st
omach?" said the smiling-faced minstrel.
"Let him come up," said the King.
The minstrel was brought into the palace in his dirty ragged
clothes, and he sang in front of the king and princess. Whe
n he finished, he asked the king for his reward.

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Then the king said, "Your singing has pleased me s
o much that I shall give you my daughter to be your
wife"
The princess was horrified, but the king said, "I swo
re an oath to give you the first beggar, and that I wil
l do."

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All the princess's pleadings were useless. All her wailings
wouldn't change the king's mind. The king asked for a prie
st and without much ado, she was married to the minstrel.
When that was over, the king said " Now , its not suitable f
or a beggar's wife to stay in my palace. You and your husb
and can now leave here together."

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The beggar led her out by the hand, and she had to g
o with him on the path that he took. When they came
to the woods, she asked whose woods those were.

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The man answered, "These thickly covered woods belonged t
o His Majesty, King Justine, whom you mocked and called Ki
ng Thrushbeard. If you had chosen him, these should be your
s."
And she said,"O, what a foolish maid I am not to have King T
hrushbeard as my husband."

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When they came to the meadow, she asked again, "Whose lovel
y fields are those?"
She just received the same answer as before. It seemed that Ki
ng Justine was a well-known king in the land. Then they came to
a great city were she asked again the same question and got th
e same answer.
"I don't like it at all, hearing you wish you had another man for a
husband. Am I a good-for-nothing husband to you?" asked the
minstrel.
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The princess was shocked. They didn't have servants to work
in the house, so she must do all the chores herself. She knew
nothing of cleaning pots, lighting fires, or cooking supper, so t
he minstrel had to teach her how to do it. She had to clean the
house herself.
For a few days, they lived a simple life, eating just a meager m
eal. It was heart-rending task for her, who has never worked in
her whole life.

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"It is time for both of us to earn a living, or else, we won't
eat," said the husband.
The minstrel tried to let the princess weave basket from t
he withies that he brought with him, but the stiff withies c
ut her tender fingers. Next, he let her try spinning, but the
tough thread soon cut into her soft fingers so that blood r
an down. Finally, he asked her to find a place in the mark
et and sell some pots and crocks.
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"Alas, what if peoples from father's country come and se
e me sitting in the marketplace selling pots and pans? Th
ey'll surely mock me," she cried in despair.
But it did no good, she had to give in if she didn't want to
die of hunger.

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The first day things went well-people were glad to buy th
e princess goods because she was so beautiful, and they
paid what she asked for. For a while, she was doing fine.
So now these lived off what she earned for as long as it l
asted, and then her husband would lay a stock of new ea
rthenware for her to sell.

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One day, as she sat down with her ware around her in a corn
er of the market and crying aloud for her buyers to come, a dr
unken horseman came galloping by and rode straight to the p
ots so that they were all shattered into a thousand pieces. Sh
e started to cry and was too scared to think what she would d
o. Finally, she ran home and told her husband about her misfo
rtune.

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" I do understand that you're no use in any steady jobs," said
the minstrel, "but I've got good news. I've just been at the kin
g's castlez and I asked them if they could use a kitchen maid
. They promised to take you on, and you'll get free food out o
f it.

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So the princess became a kitchen maid, an assistant
for the cook doing the nastiest work. While there wer
e in the kitchen, she missed all the mouthwatering dis
hes and sweet-tasting fruits at her fathers place.

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Sometimes, she cried in silence for her haughteniss that b
rought her to this horrifying situation. Before she went ho
me from work, she would fasten a little jar on both her poc
kets so she could take home her share of the leftovers an
d they lived off on those.

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Now it so happened that there was a wedding feast in the pal
ace for the old kings eldest son, and the poor princess went u
pstairs and stood by the door and watch. She saw the elegant
-looking guests in their splendid clothes come in. Once again,
she thought of her own fate with a sad heart and cursed her p
ride and arrogance that had humbled her and cast her in such
deep poverty.

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 From time to time, servants would throw her a few crumbs
of the rare sweets that were being carried in and out and w
hose smell was caught up in her nostrils, and these crumbs
she would put into her jars to take home.

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Suddenly the kings son came in, dressed in silk and satin, with gold c
hain around his neck. He saw the princess standing in the doorway a
nd seized her by the hand to dance with her, but she wouldn't and wa
s horrified to see that it was King Justine(Thrushbeard) who had sou
ght to marry her and whom she'd turned away in mockery. He drew h
er into the room and as she struggled, the band that held her pockets
broke and the jars fell out so that the soup was spilled and the leftove
rs were scattered.

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When everyone saw it, shouts and mocking laughter ec
hoed in the hall. In shem, the princess tried to flee, but
a man caught her on the stairs and brought her back; a
nd when she looked at him, she saw once again that it
was King Justine.

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The king kindly said to her, "Don't be afraid. The minstrel
who lived with you in the dingy house, the horseman wh
o galloped through your pots, and I are one and the sam
e person. I disguised myself for my live of you. Its been
done to bend your proud spirit and punish your pride wh
en you mocked me.

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Then she wept bitter tears and said," I have done a terr
ible wrong and am not fit to be your wife."
"Don't worry. The bad days are past, and you have lear
ned your lesson. Now, we shall celebrate our wedding.
And please don't ever call me King Thrushbeard again.
"

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And the maids-in-waiting came and dressed her in s
plendid clothed, and her father came with all his cour
t to wish her happiness at her wedding to King Justin
e, and now it was time for rejoicing! The king was ne
ver called King Thrushbeard again.

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Thank you !

Onofre Veyra Jr.

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