The Rat Bride
It is good to be ambitious, but being over ambitious can lead to disappointment. Sometimes it can be funny too!
A pretty, young she-rat was eligible for marriage. Her mother was somewhat over ambitious and decided that she must find a very powerful husband for her darling daughter. She went to the Sun God and said to him, “My daughter is extremely beautiful and your power is unmatched. She would be a perfect bride for you. Please accept her as your wife.” The Sun God smiled warmly and said, “I am honoured by your proposal. But if you are looking for a powerful husband, let me tell you that the Rain God is mightier than me, for when he comes with his army of clouds, I am completely overshadowed.”
The mother rat rushed to the Rain God and said, “Dear Rain God, please marry my daughter. She shall make a very suitable bride for you. Your power and her beauty shall make a great alliance.” The Rain God replied with a twinkle in his eye, “Lady, don’t you know that the God of Wind is more powerful than me! He can blow my clouds to smithereens if he wants to. Why don’t you propose to him?” So, the ambitious mother scurried away to the God of Wind and swiftly proposed to him, “Oh mighty God of wind! Please marry my lovely daughter.” The wind God chuckled and said, “Perhaps you don’t know that the Mountain God is more powerful than me. When I bump into him, I try hard but I cannot move him. I have to change my track, for he is immovable.”
The tired mother rat hobbled up to the Mountain God and proposed to him, “Please dear Mountain God, will you have my charming daughter for a bride?” The Mountain God spoke in a grating voice, “Madam, I am indeed moved that you thought of me as a good match for your daughter, but let me tell you that the king of rats is more powerful than me. He along with his caravan of rats digs into my body. They make holes and burrows wherever they please. There is no way that I can defend myself against their sharp teeth.”
So the mother rat went to the king of rats and said wearily, “Oh King! I offer my beautiful daughter to you; please make her your wife.”
The king of rats blushed from ear to ear and said, “Gladly!” So the king of rats married the pretty young lady. They had a grand wedding and the rest they say is history!
Finally, the ambitious mother rat realized that her beautiful daughter was fit to be a bride only for a rat. In life too, it’s good to dream but only if you keep your feet planted firmly on the ground!