A Real Life Prince

I once read a medieval tale of three millers' daughters. At their birth, an angel came and gave each of the girls' parents a golden ruler and the materials to make a cloak, with the promise that three princes would someday come to ask for the hands of the maidens. The cloaks were required to be the measure of a prince - any less and they would not receive the love they had been promised.

In time, the three miller's wives all died. The millers each gave their respective daughters their gifts. One miller told his daughter the entire story and advised her to be wise and patient. The other two millers allowed their daughters to squander the precious materials. The dreaming young women cut short cloaks for pages, peasants and other handsome men, wasting their love on some who were unworthy. Yet, the first daughter worked very hard, not being tempted by the attractive men on the street. Even after her father died and was no longer there to help her make wise choices, she stayed the course and kept herself reserved for one prince.

When the girls had become women, three princes came to visit. Two of these princes scorned at what their prospective brides had to offer. One had a short, pitiful cloak, the other had nothing left at all. They had squandered their love, and yet had no man to love them or marry them. The remaining woman had a beautiful cloak, perfectly fit for a prince. They were married, and very happy. His love made her forget all of her time waiting for him.

I liked this story. It is not the typical fairy tale where unreachable goals are attained. It is very much like real life. We each are given life and the capability to marry God's best for us. Yet, so many people grow tired on waiting for love to come (it can be hard to be lonely!) that they waste their love and purity on mates unworthy of them. So many people today give in to desire and have sex, maybe with many people, before finding someone they truly wish to marry. Many others marry the wrong person in an effort to find happiness, a decision they rue for the rest of their lives, having either a bad marriage or a divorce.

When I was teen, I was fortunate enough to be in a Christian home where, even though all the "Christian" girls my age were dating around and many of them, sleeping around, I was not allowed to date guys. I was taught that going out is not a sport to have fun with and break hearts - especially my own. I was taught that God will show me the right man, and until then, I was not going to go out for the sake of going out.

I was determined to have a prince. I once wrote that I was not just looking for a "great" guy, not even a "great and godly" guy. I am looking for exactly who God wants for me, with all the attributes and beliefs I thought necessary for myself to have a good marriage with. I wrote up my "measure of a prince". My measure might seem hard to some, but I wanted to find someone who would exactly suit me. I had many requirements about appearance. Not about what someone cannot help, like having some not-so-attractive features, but about how he would dress himself, do his hair, that kind of thing. Even more requirements were about beliefs. Beliefs that not many people, even Christians in the church, today believe. And I wanted a guy who would want lots of kids. Like 8 or 10. I had several pages of these requirements for my prince.

I met a man who fulfilled all of these requirements and even more, beyond what I could even have asked for. As for the next part of the story, whether we will be married, that remains unanswered. Some people like to meddle, and have meddled with our love. But I know, in my heart, he is my prince.