Young King Arthur was ambushed and imprisoned by the monarch of a
neighboring kingdom. The monarch could have killed him, but was moved
by Arthur's youthful happiness. So he offered him freedom, as long as
he could answer a very difficult question. Arthur would have a year to figure
out the answer; if after a year, he still had no answer, he would be
killed.
The question was: What do women really want?
Such a
question would perplex even the most knowledgeable man, and, to young Arthur,
it seemed an impossible query. Well, since it was better than death, he
accepted the monarch's proposition to have an answer by year's end. He
returned to his kingdom and began to poll everybody: the princess, the
prostitutes, the priests, the wise men, the court jester. In all, he spoke
with everyone but no one could give him a satisfactory answer.
What
most people did tell him was to consult the old witch, as only she
would know the answer. The price would be high, since the witch was
famous throughout the kingdom for the exorbitant prices she
charged.
The last day of the year arrived and Arthur had no
alternative but to talk to the witch. She agreed to answer his
question, but he'd have to accept her price first: The old witch wanted to
marry Gawain, the most noble of the Knights of the Round Table and Arthur's
closest friend! Young Arthur was horrified: she was hunchbacked and
awfully hideous, had only one tooth, smelled like sewage water, often made
obscene noises... He had never run across such a repugnant
creature. He refused to force his friend to marry her and have to
endure such a burden.
Gawain, upon learning of the proposal, spoke
with Arthur. He told him that nothing was too big of a sacrifice
compared to Arthur's life and the preservation of the Round Table.
Hence, their wedding was proclaimed, and the witch answered Arthur's
question: What a woman really wants is to be able to be in charge of her own
life. Everyone instantly knew that the witch had uttered a great truth and
that Arthur's life would be spared. And so it went. The
neighboring monarch spared Arthur's life and granted him total freedom.
What a wedding Gawain and the witch had! Arthur was torn between relief
and anguish.
Gawain was proper as always, gentle and courteous. The
old witch put her worst manners on display. She ate with her hands,
belched and farted, and made everyone uncomfortable.
The wedding night
approached: Gawain, steeling himself for a horrific night, entered the
bedroom. What a sight awaited! The most beautiful woman he'd ever
seen lay before him! Gawain was astounded and asked what had
happened.
The beauty replied that since he had been so kind to her
(when she'd been a witch), half the time she would be her horrible, deformed
self, and the other half, she would be her beautiful maiden self. Which
would he want her to be during the day and which during the
night?
What a cruel question? Gawain began to think of his
predicament: During the day a beautiful woman to show off to his friend, but
at night, in the privacy of his home, an old spooky witch? Or would he
prefer having by day a hideous witch, but by night a beautiful woman to enjoy
many intimate moments?
What would you do?
Noble Gawain replied
that he would let her choose for herself. Upon hearing this, she
announced that she would be beautiful all the time, because he had respected
her and had let her be in charge of her own life.
What is the moral of
this story?
THE MORAL IS THAT IT DOESN'T MATTER IF YOUR WOMAN IS
PRETTY OR UGLY, UNDERNEATH IT ALL, SHE'S STILL JUST A WITCH.
[Mother Shiptons Prophecy] [Poetry]
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