April 16, 2001
Greetings from my fairy tale,
Once upon a time there was a beautiful Princess named
Katherine. She was kind and thoughtful
and caring, and was a dutiful daughter to the King and Queen. There were many wonderful things about the
Princess, but what people noticed first was her long golden hair. It flowed in lovely wheat colored locks down
her back. By the time she was ten her
hair reached well below her waist.
Each day families from the Kingdom would come to the palace
to see the King, and everyone would want to meet the Princess. They all admired how smart she was, and
everyone wanted to see her magnificent hair.
One day, a man came to the throne room to meet the Royal
family. He gripped his hat tightly in his hands, his eyes were down. He stood alone in the great hall and bowed
politely to the King and Queen. He said
nothing, only looked at his feet.
”Where is your family?” asked the King. He was a busy monarch, and did not like to be kept waiting.
“My wife and daughter wait outside.” The man said. “My
daughter is too ashamed to come into the palace, because of how she looks. A sickness has left her with no hair.”
The King and Queen were shocked. The Princess did not know what to say, she
had never heard of such a thing.
Finally the King said: “We hope your daughter will feel
better soon. Perhaps one day there will
be a cure for her illness.”
The man thanked them for the visit, and he left.
The Princess rushed to the King’s throne. She was close to tears.
“How can this be?” she said to her father. “You must do something to help this girl.”
Her father stroked his chin, and shook his head. “There is nothing I can do, daughter. Even though I am the most powerful man in the
land, I cannot bring back this girl’s head of hair.”
The Princess went to her rooms, and watched out the window
as the man and his family walked out of the palace toward their village. She thought for a moment and then called her
maidservant.
“Send two horsemen to the village and bring back the family
who visited today. Then come back with
your best shears.”
The maidservant did as she was asked, and when she returned,
Princess Katherine had wound her hair into a thick braid.
“You will cut this off, please.” she commanded the
maidservant.
Looking at the Princess, she could see that no amount of
arguing would change her mind, and so the maidservant brought out her
shears. Katherine sat quietly, a
determined look on her face.
Afterwards, the Princess ordered the royal weavers to create
a gorgeous golden wig, woven from her braid.
As they worked, the Princess brushed her short hair up under her
crown. She looked in the mirror and
smiled. Then she prepared for her
guests.
In the great hall, the Princess sat next to her
parents. The King and Queen looked at
their daughter’s hair, and could not believe what they saw. Before either could speak, the Royal page
announced the next visitors.
The man from the village brought his wife and daughter into
the throne room. The young girl would
not look up, her head was wrapped in a tattered turban. The three of them stood quietly waiting for
the King to speak to them.
The King hesitated, not sure why this family had returned.
The Princess said: “Father, please allow me.”
Katherine stepped from her throne and gently removed the
girl’s turban. With the help of her
maidservant, they placed the golden wig on the girl’s head. Then, the Princess removed her crown, and set
it on the girls’ new hair. Katherine
held a small mirror for her to see. The
girl looked up into the Princess’ face, her eyes were shining with tears.
Katherine said:
“I give you these gifts because I hope they will bring you
happiness. But always remember that your
true beauty comes from within. Those who
love you can see this beauty. I can see
it too. Time and sickness will never
take that from you.”
As the family left the throne room, their arms around one
another, the King stepped from his seat to join his daughter.
“You are a wonderful daughter, Katherine. You have given more than you know. You have shown us that compassion is lonely
without deeds.”
The King and Queen were very proud of their daughter. To commemorate the day, they selected a fine
piece of marble to be displayed in the Royal garden. On it they had inscribed these words:
“…whatever you did for the least of these brothers of mine,
you did for me.” Matthew 25:40
Hope this finds you in a happy ending.
David
PS
Katherine donated her hair to Locks of Love, an organization
who provides wigs for children with a variety of illnesses.
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