Friday, March 25, 2016

The Four Daughters

The Four Daughters

by Michael Espinoza



Once upon a time, a rich man was looking to get married.  He visited a poor man who had four daughters. The daughters were beautiful to look at, but each had a past—each had been with many men before, who were not their husbands.

The rich man fell in love, but would only marry one daughter--he left it up to them to decide which of them loved him enough to accept his marriage proposal.

The first daughter accepted his proposal, but on the day of the wedding, she remembered her past and refused to put on her white wedding dress and left the church, never even starting down the aisle. The bridegroom was not pleased, and thought, "If she will not even show up at her own wedding, how can I depend on her for anything else?"  And so the wedding was called off.

The second daughter then accepted his proposal, and on the day of the wedding she put on her white wedding dress and looked radiant. But as she started down the aisle, she remembered her past and felt the eyes of all staring at her. She hid her face, frightened at their stares of judgment. The bridegroom saw this and thought, "If she is too ashamed to be seen at her own wedding, how will she be anything but ashamed to be my wife?" And so the wedding was called off.

The third daughter then accepted his proposal, and on the day of the wedding she put on her white wedding dress and looked radiant. And she did not hide her face as she walked down the aisle. But remembering her past, she felt ashamed, and her shame spread to her face. The bridegroom saw her look of shame and thought, "If she cannot put her past behind her, how loyal will she be to me when we are married?" And so the wedding was called off.

The fourth daughter then accepted his proposal, and on the day of the wedding she put on her white wedding dress and looked radiant. And she did not hide her face as she walked down the aisle. And while she remembered her past, she looked to her bridegroom who smiled at her, and she smiled back--and this made her look all the more beautiful. She married her bridegroom, and remained loyal to him until death, and they had many children together.

And they all lived happily ever after.


THE END

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