Queen of
the Cloud
by
Vera Agosti
When I was a child, my mother used to tell me fairy stories she had read herself, or her mother or grandmother had told her. She often invented some because she could not remember a passage or because she wanted to help me understand something in particular.
Here is a tale of Japanese origin she used to tell me before going to bed:
Once upon a time, in Japan, there was a little girl whose mother was very ill. The child decided to consult an old sage. This wise man told her that she had to climb Fujiyama and talk to the Queen of the cloud. She was the only one who could help her mother. The little girl was not discouraged and left to look for the Queen. Very soon she lost her little shoes, but went on climbing in the snow. When she saw the Queen, she knelt and asked her to save her mother.
"Take this flower with you," the Queen said. "Your mother will live as many years as there are petals." The flower had only five petals, so the child, while descending the mountain, began to tear them into little pieces. In this way, her mother went on living for many years.
In reality, it was not the little girl who had climbed the mountain, but the mother who wanted to save her sick child. By changing the plot, my mother wanted to make me understand that children can be as courageous as adults. She wanted me to grow up strong and to be able to face problems.
