Long, long ago in a land far, far away, there lived a king and queen who loved each other dearly. They had two sons, but the king desperately wanted a daughter. He wanted a girl in the image of her mother, who was kind, beautiful and beloved by her kingdom. The king’s wish soon came true and the couple was blessed with a baby girl.
The king remembered his wish and upon her birth he told the queen all about it. The infant was just as he imagined she would be. She was beautiful just like her mother, a calm baby who hardly ever cried and always smiled. The queen was happy about her daughter’s gentle nature but how she longed for more for her child. Instead, she wished that her daughter grow up to be strong and caring, as smart as any man. She prayed for her to have a big generous heart and to be able to think for herself.
As the child grew, the queen became weaker. She wished more and more that her daughter be strong in body, mind, and spirit. Slowly, the queen began to notice that, although her daughter had a sunny and quiet nature, she was also strong willed. She possessed a strong sense of right and wrong and was not easily swayed by others. An intelligent child, she taught herself reading, writing and arithmetic from her brother’s old lessons. At only six years old, she would read her tired mother beautiful stories to make her laugh. Her little voice would lift with excitement and giggles, causing her mother and everyone around her to join in the happiness. The child also seemed to take care of the entire castle. She would run from end to end as fast as her little legs could carry her. She would give hot drinks or cold cloths to those who were sick and feverish, pat them on the back if they had a cough. Whenever a doctor was called for her dear mother, she would become his helper, or at least as much as she could for one so tiny. She would do anything to make anyone feel better.
Although she tried hard, the little one could not understand why her mommy became more and more tired. Nothing seemed to help. Then one gloomy morning the eight year old girl lost her mother and the angels gained one more.
As the girl grew and grew, her father, the king, began to get more and more frustrated with her behavior. She was very different from what a princess was supposed to be. Though she still possessed a quiet and calm nature, she seemed to be very uninterested in her duties as a princess. She would skip her finishing lessons, run around in working garments instead of her fine dresses, and, most importantly, she seemed uninterested in finding a husband.
Many suitors were paraded before her, princes, dukes, noblemen, captains of sea and even kings. But she remained only concerned with helping others, especially the sick. She even began to disappear when suitors came calling, only to be found later nursing a sick child to health or studying science with the monks, or teacher, at the monastery.
Soon came the princesses eighteenth birthday. Her father had tried and tried to make the princess become more involved in her duties but nothing had worked. As a last attempt, he decided to throw a grand ball in her honor. He invited princes and young kings from all over the world. He bought her beautiful gowns and had special tiaras made in her honor. He thought there would be not way for her not to fall in love. That night, he was sure, she would find her prince. The night of the ball arrived and the castle was in frenzy. They had one very large problem. The princess could not be found anywhere.
The ball was a disaster. The princes and young kings were so disappointed that they all left. The king became very angry. He sent soldiers out among every corner of the kingdom to find her. They searched for days and days with no luck. When they had almost given up hope they found her in the most unlikely of places, in the servant’s part of the castle. The princess had been working day and night to save her most trusted friend, her nurse. The nurse had taken care of her and her brothers after her mother had gone to the angels and the princess loved her dearly. Now it seemed that the angels wanted her too. When the soldiers found the princess she was crying tears of frustration as she tried and tried to save the nurse. In the end, all she could do was ease the nurse’s pain as she went to join the angels.
The soldiers felt extreme sadness for the young girl and what she had lost but they had to follow the king’s orders. Once she was before the king, he unleashed his anger. He told her she was either to marry the man of her choice or be sent to a nunnery. She cried as she told him that she was invited to study to become a physician. Her father was shocked. He told her that princesses do not deal with the sick, or do a man’s work, especially his daughter. She told him that she could not do what he asked. He told her that she must leave his kingdom immediately.
He cast her from the kingdom and told the soldiers to escort her just outside the gate of the kingdom and leave her there. The soldiers took pity on her and escorted her to the neighboring kingdom. They arranged for her to live at the monastery and be taught at the university nearby.
Years and years passed and she missed her family dearly. Her father and his grumpiness, her brothers, and their loveable teasing, but she knew how important her work was. Instead of being too sad, she focused on her studies. Eventually, she got the highest marks in her class and graduated with honors. She began to forget about her life as a princess. She lived in a nearby orphanage as a doctor caring for the children and the people in the village.
One day, she received a letter from her kingdom asking that she come right away. A war had broken out and the people desperately needed medical help. She went straight away to help them. She saved many lives and helped the wounded. She kept spirits up with her beautiful stories and tried to keep her patients laughing and happy.
Then one day, her father became badly injured in the war and she was called to save him. It took hours and hours but finally he seemed to be better and fell into a deep sleep. When he awoke, he told her how sorry he was and how much he loved her.
Years and years passed and she missed her family dearly. Her father and his grumpiness, her brothers, and their loveable teasing, but she knew how important her work was. Instead of being too sad, she focused on her studies. Eventually, she got the highest marks in her class and graduated with honors. She began to forget about her life as a princess. She lived in a nearby orphanage as a doctor caring for the children and the people in the village.
One day, she received a letter from her kingdom asking that she come right away. A war had broken out and the people desperately needed medical help. She went straight away to help them. She saved many lives and helped the wounded. She kept spirits up with her beautiful stories and tried to keep her patients laughing and happy.
Then one day, her father became badly injured in the war and she was called to save him. It took hours and hours but finally he seemed to be better and fell into a deep sleep. When he awoke, he told her how sorry he was and how much he loved her.
She stayed to nurse him back to health and after the war was over she returned to her orphanage with her father’s blessing. Months later, she was called back urgently once again. When she arrived, she was surprised to see that her father had thrown a huge ball in her honor, deeming her a hero. She was whisked away and dressed in the finest gowns and shoes. Her hair was done with beautiful bows and a new, specially made tiara from her father was placed on her head. Once she returned to the ball, her father gave a big speech. He told his subjects how much he loved and was proud of his daughter. With tears in his eyes, he gave her a special sash and presented her to the crowd as their very own, and very first, “Princess Doctor”.
