Mirror, mirror on the wall, Who is the fairest of all?
There once was a princess, who lived in a big palace. She was said to be the most beautiful girl in her land, and everyday there were admirers crowding the hallway, just to have a glance at her. She received flowers, jewelry, or rare perfumes from each admirer, and her parents had decorated her room with the finest material in the world. The wall was made of solid gold, her bed of fine red wood. The bedspread and her blankets were the softest silk, and her clothes were all but of materials, which gave out faint fragrant of flowers.
The princess had a magical mirror. It was said that the mirror was used by a goddess, and could tell one who is the most beautiful girl in the whole world. Everyday the princess would stand in front of the full-length mirror and looked at her face and body. She loved herself more than any other thing in this world, and even the faintest wrinkle from last night’s sleep would infuriated her. Not a single flaw would be found on her, and she made sure that others would only see the best part of her. And each day, she would talk to the image shown in the mirror, “Mirror, mirror on the wall, who is the fairest of all?” and each time, the mirror would answer, “You are the fairest of all.”
One day, she wandered in the garden her father had built specially for her. She met an old woman. Her face was covered with wrinkles, with the color of unhealthy yellow, and her fingernails were covered with dirt. The princess winced her nose, and said rudely to the old woman, “Go away, you old bone. Get as far as possible from my garden! Your body smelled like rotten fish!”
The old woman turned and walked towards the direction of the river, and she grumbled between steps, “A girl with beauty outside, might not be nice inside.” The woman jumped into the river, and when she came out, she became a beautiful maiden. A shaft of light surrounded her, and she was even more beautiful than the princess! She waved her hand and the mirror the princess used appeared at her foot. She pointed at the mirror and said, “From now on, you shall judge a girl’s beauty in a different way.” The maiden was a goddess who owned the magic mirror!
That night the princess stood in front of the mirror, looking at the slim figure in the glass. “Mirror, mirror on the wall, who is the fairest of all?”
She gaped at the answer the mirror produced, “Ina is the fairest of all.”
Soon rage overtook shock, and the princess ordered the guards to bring Ina to her. “The mirror was never wrong. Hm, I’ve got to see the girl who is more beautiful than me. No one should be more beautiful than me!” She thought to herself.
Ina was brought to the princess at once. And once more she was shocked at the girl standing in the open ground. How could she be more beautiful than me?! Well… she could be good-looking, but compared to the princess, she was like a crow to a lark.
The princess marched back to her bedroom and shouted at the mirror. “How dare you insult me! She is far the ugliest woman I’ve ever seen! How dare you say she is even prettier than me!”
The mirror answered, “My dear princess. She has the most beautiful heart I’ve ever seen. Beauty does not lie on the outside, it is the inside.”
