2213. Twins
© Bruce Goodman 15 August 2021




(Day 6 of a week of retelling traditional folktales.)

A childless queen was told by a wise old lady that two flowers would grow from underneath her bed.

“Eat one and you shall have a child.”

The queen ate both and bore twin girls. One girl was very beautiful; the other was ugly as sin and rode a goat while waving a wooden spoon. A witch came along and cut off the head of the beautiful twin and replaced the head with a calf’s head. The twins searched the world for the beautiful head and they eventually found it. The girl put her beautiful head back on and the twins escaped to a foreign kingdom.

The king of the kingdom fell in love with the beautiful twin. But the ugly twin would not consent to the marriage unless she herself married the king’s son. The king consented. On the way to the wedding the king’s son was sullen.

The ugly twin said, “Why are you so sullen? Why don’t you ask why I ride a goat?” He asked and the goat turned into a magnificent horse.

The ugly twin asked, “Why don’t you ask why I wave a wooden spoon?” He asked and the wooden spoon turned into a silver wand.

The ugly twin asked, “Why don’t you ask why I am so ugly?” He asked and she was ugly no more. In fact she was the most beautiful princess in the whole, whole world.

(Footnote: Awww).

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