The Kingdom with Three Funny Things

 Once upon a time there was a kingdom with three funny things. Also, it had a woman, and she was better off on her own. The first funny thing was that for this woman, being on her own was a battle, as all through out the kingdom in which she lived were many lords and priests who were opposed to the idea. They thought a woman should bear a family, even if it wasn't something the woman wanted, nor a life she would be very good at living.

    The lords and priests of her kingdom were silly creatures, for as vicious and tenacious as they could be when something was sitting right under their nose, out of sight was out of mind. And so the woman hid herself away at the edge of a dark wood so that she could forgo their demands that she bear a family. It was there, away from such impossible demands, that she lived her life as best she could.

    One by one, rumors of her status made their way among the peasants, and it wasn't long before women showed up on the doorstep of her hidden home. One came after another until there were so many, they all had to hide everywhere. Suddenly the kingdom was filled with these women, hidden in woods and dark corners and even in the homes of other peasants. These women had mothers and fathers and brothers and sisters who took the time to know them well. And that, in this story, made all the difference.

    For the peasants were the second funny thing about the kingdom. They made up the bulk of it, and when the lords and priests demanded that all their daughters marry and bear children, the peasants took into account the state of the hearts of their daughters. And when the time came for the lords and priests to stamp and demand and threaten, the peasants shook their heads.

    The third funny thing was that the lords and priests could, in the end, do very little against the whole lot of the peasantry.

   And so, all the women in the kingdom lived their lives as best they could, after all.

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