There once was a man and woman who lived in a small, provincial town where work was very scarce. They did everything they could to put food on the table and clothes on their backs, but their effort was still not enough. The couple was slowly starving to death.
One day, the husband decided to talk to his wife about leaving the town to find better work elsewhere. He said, "Dear wife...we have very little food and no way to make a better life for ourselves. I must leave this town to find better work."
"My dearest husband, you must leave at once so that we might be saved from starving," she said.
"My dearest husband, you must leave at once so that we might be saved from starving," she said.
So he began his journey that very afternoon with what little food they had left for the day in search of someone who would give him a job to support his faithful wife. Her husband came upon a farmer who took in the man and gave him plenty of work and advise as well. The farmer warned the man that when he finally returned home that unless his wife was truly faithful and loyal, the man might find that his life might be completely different than before.
After her husband had departed, the woman became very depressed but decided to continue plowing the fields and tending to her animals like she always had in the past. After a few days had passed, a prince was on his way to see the king of the land. His carriage had to pass through the area where the poor were tending the fields and animals. The prince happened to glance out at the people and laid his eyes upon one very hard-working, beautiful woman. He told the carriage driver to stop and he beckoned to the lonely, beautiful woman tending to the local animals and crops.
After her husband had departed, the woman became very depressed but decided to continue plowing the fields and tending to her animals like she always had in the past. After a few days had passed, a prince was on his way to see the king of the land. His carriage had to pass through the area where the poor were tending the fields and animals. The prince happened to glance out at the people and laid his eyes upon one very hard-working, beautiful woman. He told the carriage driver to stop and he beckoned to the lonely, beautiful woman tending to the local animals and crops.
The prince said, "Oh most beautiful woman, why are you in the fields performing such harsh duties when you are as beautiful as you? Why don't you come live with me and receive anything and everything your heart could ever wish or dream of?" The woman was surprised and excited all at the same time because the prince had chosen to speak to her.
"I will come with you, my dear prince, and take you up on your offer," said the woman. Even though she knew her husband was off working hard trying to provide a better life for them, she couldn't resist the charms and promises from the prince. The prince lived up to his end of the bargain and gave the woman anything she asked of him. She now had the life she had always wanted even though it was at the husband's expense.
The woman ended up marrying the prince and forgetting about the man who left to provide a better life for her. When the man came back to surprise his wife with all that he had accomplished, he was shocked to see that his wife had left him and married another man. He begged and pleaded with her to come back to him, but after a while his attempts fell upon deaf ears. After the initial shock had worn off and numerous attempts of trying to win back her affections had failed, he realized that the farmer was telling him the truth when he warned him about his life possibly changing upon his return home. The man could no longer take the rejection and fell sick from being heartbroken. Less than a week later, the man died of a broken heart.
The End
Author's Notes: I retold the following story, The Tale of Ivan, from the Celtic Fairy Tales unit. The story was about a husband and wife who were so poor that the husband decided to leave his home in search of work that could support his family better. He did find work and after three years returned to his loving wife and they ended up living a very happy, blessed life. While working abroad for those three years, the farmer that took him in gave him advice in place of wages, but that turned out to be a blessing in disguise. Because he listened to the farmer's advice, he was blessed with riches and a wonderful life in the end.
I changed the story quite a lot. I chose to focus my writing on the wife and what she did after her husband left in search of work. In the original story, she was faithful and waited those three long years for her husband to return. In my version, she fell for a prince and they ended up being together while her former husband was working elsewhere. Also in the original version, there was a happy ending for the man and wife. In my version, the man returns and find his wife living with another man, a prince, and has forgotten all about him. He ends up dying in the end.
This story is part of the Celtic Fairy Tales (1) unit. Story source: Celtic Fairy Tales by Joseph Jacobs with illustrations by John D. Batten (1892).
I think that there was a typo in your first paragraph. I assume you meant "put clothes on their backs" rather than "put clothes not heir backs." Other than that, I really enjoyed your story. You were so matter-of-fact about the husband falling sick and dying. To me, that ending seemed rather abrupt, but since you focused on the wife, I guess that focusing on how the husband felt when he came back would detract from your overall focus on the wife.
ReplyDeleteHey Krista, this was a great story. I really feel sorry for the husband because he was genuine. He really wanted to provide for his wife. This story reminds me of the Chris Brown song that talks about unloyal girls. All that glitter is not gold. I am sure the wife will learn that sooner or later. I would suggest proofreading or having someone proofread for you. Great work!
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