Once upon a time, there was a Rachel, who lived in a cozy wooden cottage beside a peaceful sapphire colored lake. The cottage and lake were nestled in a nook in the mountains, sheltered from winter storms and harsh summer winds. Her father was a woodcutter, her mother a seamstress. They were poor, but honest and very hardworking, and made happier by the perpetual sunshine of Rachel's smile.
Rachel was exceedingly beautiful beyond all the fairest maidens in the land, for she was not only fair of face and full of grace, but she was also kind to the lowly and a staunch defender of the innocent against evil. Her inner beauty shone like a beacon through her every word and deed, making her beauteous face even more immeasurably lovely. When Rachel stepped out of the front door of her house, flowers bloomed in the imprints made by her feet and the birds sang for joy.
Despite her many attributes, no matter how many friends clustered in her orbit, Rachel still did not completely fit in with the rest of her comrades. Indeed, how could a rose fit in among dandelions? She could not quite put her finger on it, yet something about her life felt hampered, as if she was meant to do and be more than what she saw on its smooth, simple surface.
There was a mystery encompassing this girl which her father and mother were bound not to reveal to her: she was not merely a woodcutter's daughter, but a royal Princess of a far-away kingdom. Rachel did not yet know it, for her time had not yet come.
As the days passed, Rachel's yearning for something more grew, as did her sense that her life should be different from what it was. She began to daydream about the good she would do if she had the power, the lives she would change for the better, the beggars she saw in town being spurned by the king's guards instead receiving kindness and compassion, the ignorant idle classes being equipped with tools to build their lives into respectability instead of carelessly thrown scant rations out of the king's coffers, the evil being held responsible for their deeds instead of bribing guards and judges to look the other way. All of this she saw with the clearness of vision those fortunate few possess when they are steeped in life's realities beyond an occasional passing glimpse of the lower classes, the true awareness of which most people never know.
Rachel longed to replace evil with good, cruelty with kindness, ugliness with beauty, strife with peace, sorrow with joy. But even though she perceived all these things, she was just a simple peasant girl. What could she do?
One night, on the eve of her 16th birthday, Rachel dreamed she was a Princess. She possessed everything her heart desired-- gold and silver and precious jewels beyond measure, a massive wardrobe featuring an endless array of splendidly beautiful and ornately elegant dresses, striking yet superbly designed outfits for every activity under the sun, and accessories galore, each skillfully crafted with exquisite taste, vast numbers of exotic pets presented as tribute by lesser kings in her empire, and luxuriantly opulent palatial surroundings fit for a high queen. Princess Rachel had merely to say the word and her desire was instantly carried out by a voluminous brigade of deferrent, stately, proficient servants. At court kings and nobles constantly vied with each other for Princess Rachel's briefest glance, servants depicted fantastic firsthand tales to their captive audiences of the melodious cadence of her voice and her daintily flawless grace from which her queenly bearing could not detract, valiant soldiers from all tribes, tongues and nations died by the thousands for a glimpse of her smile.
And yet with the immense profusion of wealth and affluence such as she possessed, still the Princess was powerless to change the state of her vassals, to truly better the lives of the poor and ignorant and unloved, to hold the evil accountable for wrongdoing as she had once dreamed was possible. No matter what she mandated, she could not change the state of the hearts of her people, much less "make" them be good.
As she was pondering this sad and inescapable fact, a King appeared before Princess Rachel. He was different from all the others in that the power radiating from his figure, as well as the glory from his face, was beyond anything she had ever previously felt or sensed. At the sight of him, all others, both servants and nobility, fell silent and quickly left the room.
The princess instinctively felt that even though she had never set eyes on him before this moment, somehow she had known him for a very long time. They gazed at each other for what seemed like an eternity, when he finally spoke. "Dearest Rachel, are you happy with the life you lead?"
Rachel's lovely face lit up like a star. "Why yes, this is the most beautiful place I have ever seen! Everything is just as I would like it to be. Only--"
His gaze intensified. "Only-- what?"
"Well... it seems like a silly thing, I suppose. I don't want to seem ungrateful, especially when I have been given everything I could ever want, but-- I had hoped to be able to do more to help those who are unable to help themselves beyond providing them with mere food and shelter. No matter what path I take, others either take advantage of the kindness they are shown instead of showing gratitude, or some knave of a public servant pockets most of the money that is meant for the poor instead of using it to help them, or a hundred other things I have yet to witness which all impede the good I try to sow amongst the populace. The more attention I show to a problem, and the more money and people I assign to resolve it, the worse it seems to grow."
The King gravely nodded. "Yes. This is the unsolvable problem of the ages: how does one compel others to act as they ought? The worst elements of society continue to worsen, while those inclined towards the good continue on their upward path, regardless of the pressure applied by outside forces. Many kings, emperors, dictators, caesars, and other countless heads of state have tried their hardest and failed at this grand undertaking."
"So. Now that you know the limits of your power, Princess, what do you choose to do with the rest of your life?"
Rachel looked down at the burnished floors as she considered how to answer. "I think I would like to live in this pretty place... though it is less than ideal, if I cannot help others as much as I had planned, then I might as well be here."
The King's expression softened. "What if I told you that you could indeed help others, but it would be much more difficult than simply commanding your subjects to change their outward actions?"
Rachel's eyes glowed again. "Yes, please tell me!"
"The way to truly help others to change their actions and their lives for the better is to become a living example of what others should be. In fact, it is the only way to influence and inspire them, as they must choose every day to do what is right. Most are too weak to live uprightly on their own, which is where the bulwark of your influence is needed most to bolster their intentions and to encourage intention to become action. However, this requires that you give up your life of luxury in order to effectively and constantly show them firsthand how to live. Otherwise, the articles surrounding you will only serve to detract from your influence. Moreover, your affluence will prevent those you want to assist the most from being able to see the way in which you live your life."
Her face sobered. "Then I would have to give this all up, and go back to being simply Rachel the woodcutter's daughter?"
Rachel took a long look outside the window to the rose garden where the peacocks called. The king watched Rachel's expression become saddened, but resolute. Decided, she threw back her head and smoothed her dress.
"If this is the only way, then so be it. All the riches in the world are insufficient to bring me lasting happiness so long as I know others are suffering. I could not live the rest of my life knowing there was something I could have done, but instead I left others to die in the gutter to preserve my own comfort.
Please take me back to my parents, good King."
For the first time, the King smiled. "You have indeed chosen wisely, dearest Rachel. And now I have a secret of great importance to impart to you: the life you chose to live with the woodcutter and his wife is merely temporary. Your true inheritance is here with me. It was here before you were born to grace the earth, and it will be here when you come of age and experience, when you can finally fulfill your destiny to rule."
The excitement was beyond anything Rachel had ever known. "You mean--"
"Yes. You are my daughter. You have always been a Princess. Since the beginning of time, you were Chosen for this exact purpose to which you have set your path. Your life with your beloved parents in the cottage by the lake is meant to hone and refine you, to assist you in becoming the beautiful creation you were meant to be."
Rachel grew puzzled. "A woodcutter's daughter? How is living a simple life an advantage?"
"I placed you with them so that you would grow up free from the encumbrances which stunt the lives of so many children born of wealthy parents," the King explained. "I chose them specifically for you so that you would know the meaning of love, and I knew they would bring you up as their most beloved child. And reciprocally, I placed my most precious gift with them, my Rachel, to bestow upon them the greatest happiness they would know as they watched you take your first toddling steps, saw your first smile, and that the joy of your presence would lighten the load they bear in their own lives. You see, you are of great import to them, and to many others as well. The path you have chosen will ensure as you continue to mature that you are finished to greater perfection than you ever imagined, and in this way you can bring sunshine to countless others throughout your life as you show them by your sincere and steady example how to live."
Rachel nodded as the understanding flooded her consciousness. She rose from her throne, ran to the King, and he enfolded her in his strong arms as she hugged him closely. Suddenly she wanted to stay with him, in this moment, forever, but she knew it was not yet time.
She looked up into his loving gaze and asked, "What if I run into a problem that is too much for me?"
He smiled and tenderly kissed the top of her head. "All you have to do is close your eyes and think of me, then simply ask for help. I am never more than a breath away. Rest assured, you will never be without the support you require."
The King embraced Rachel once more. She closed her eyes and arms tightly, struggling to hold on to every last detail, every moment with her father.
"It is time now, my daughter. There is much for you to do. I will see you soon, and I love you more than you will ever know."
And Rachel woke from her dream, content with the knowing, and excited to begin the rest of her life with a true sense of purpose.
agtG
