Frogs, Sunshine and Promises
"In the olden days, when wishing still worked, there lived a king whose daughters were all beautiful; but the youngest daughter was so lovely that even the sun, who has seen many things, was struck with wonder every time he shone on her face."
The opening to the fairy tale "The Frog King" makes me smile. I once sent my sister a card with these words on it, to remind her of her own beauty and that even the sun sometimes notices.
In Philip Pullman's retelling, the King plays a key part throughout the tale firmly reminding the princess of the virtue of keeping her word. The princess doesn't want to, and in doing so feels sad and scared and tortured. Eventually she gets so mad at the needy frog that she throws it against a wall.
At first I didn't understand the father wanting this most lovely youngest daughter to keep her promise (especially to something as inconsequential as a frog) especially since it didn't seem like doing so would bring her happiness. As I thought about it though, this King probably had learned the virtue of a kept word and knew that this daughter needed to learn, and a frog, though gross, is mostly harmless, therefore she would probably gain some good thing out of the situation.
What I want to say, is that sometimes I am the princess who makes promises out of negotiation and then when it comes down to it, even though I know it is better to keep all promises made, every now and then, doing so feels like torture. More often than not, I hate to admit, I see others as frogs and focus on their neediness and intrusion on my happiness. Sometimes I am the King who wants to remind the princesses I love about their promises that they have made and the importance of keeping them. And, sometimes I am the frog, who has good hidden inside and is confident that if given a chance, that good may just be released from where it's been locked away.
"in the olden days, when wishing still worked..." As spring approaches, on a really sunny day, I might just smile back at the sun and thank it for noticing. Feel free to join me.
 |
| http://justbesplendid.tumblr.com/post/235499040/sunlight |
In Philip Pullman's retelling, the King plays a key part throughout the tale firmly reminding the princess of the virtue of keeping her word. The princess doesn't want to, and in doing so feels sad and scared and tortured. Eventually she gets so mad at the needy frog that she throws it against a wall.
At first I didn't understand the father wanting this most lovely youngest daughter to keep her promise (especially to something as inconsequential as a frog) especially since it didn't seem like doing so would bring her happiness. As I thought about it though, this King probably had learned the virtue of a kept word and knew that this daughter needed to learn, and a frog, though gross, is mostly harmless, therefore she would probably gain some good thing out of the situation.
What I want to say, is that sometimes I am the princess who makes promises out of negotiation and then when it comes down to it, even though I know it is better to keep all promises made, every now and then, doing so feels like torture. More often than not, I hate to admit, I see others as frogs and focus on their neediness and intrusion on my happiness. Sometimes I am the King who wants to remind the princesses I love about their promises that they have made and the importance of keeping them. And, sometimes I am the frog, who has good hidden inside and is confident that if given a chance, that good may just be released from where it's been locked away.
"in the olden days, when wishing still worked..." As spring approaches, on a really sunny day, I might just smile back at the sun and thank it for noticing. Feel free to join me.
Comments