история (английский)There was once a peaceful kingdom full of color and warmth. And in this kingdom lived a musician, a girl, who knew nothing but happiness. Her happiness grew when her true love proposed to her and her wedding was the most wonderful day that the land had seen in ages.
Then, one day, war arrived on the kingdom’s doorstep. One by one the neighboring kingdoms had fallen at the hands of a growing empire. It was only a matter of time before the girl’s homeland was conquered as well.
Determined to protect his wife, the girl’s husband decided to leave for war. As a parting gift, her husband picked a perfect lotus petal from the pond and placed it in her hair. To her he said, "So long as this lotus is alive, you will know that I am safe." With that, her kissed her and left with the setting sun. The girl held calm as her husband departed, but the tears came and she wept when he had crossed the horizon, for she knew that the fight would be a hopeless one and her love would be lost.
A year had passed and lotus had not wilted. Day after day she wore the flower in her hair and day after day she prayed and looked to the horizon, playing her music to bring her lover home. News had arrived that the war was not fairing well and her worries only grew. One night, while alone in her bed, the girl remembered a fairy tale her grandmother had once told her. There was a lake in the woods where a spirit lived that was lonely and sad. If someone could bring a moment of peace to that spirit, then it would come forth and grant them a single wish.
Determined to bring her lover home, the girl left for the woods. After hours of wandering, she came upon a shimmering lake. Convinced that this was the place that her grandmother had spoken of, the girl perched herself on a rock and began to play her music. All of her sadness and all of her hopes flowed through her fingers and through her instrument. She wailed and sang and all of her being became song. Before long, a beautiful woman in flowing robes appeared before the girl.
"You sing so beautifully yet your soul is so full of sorrow. It comforts me to know that others understand the suffering that I feel so deeply. When my own lover died, I was overcome with grief and came to this lake to end my suffering. But, by taking my own life, I was cursed to remain here in my sadness for eternity. But in this moment of peace, I will grant you but one wish."
The young girl, having come all this way to bring back her husband, paused. She realized that she was not alone in her suffering. She was selfish to believe that her sadness was hers alone. Her whole kingdom was feeling as she felt.
"I wish," - she said blinking back her tears, - "for you to join your love in the afterlife."
The spirit smiled for the first time in ages and with a nod, she disappeared to rejoin her long lost love.