The lonely princess has told me that in order to win her heart, I must go on a journey to test my love for her.

It will be a long and arduous trip with great dangers along the way. But I know that no matter the difficulty of the journey, I must succeed, as my love for the princess is true.

As I start on my way, I know only to follow the path on which I find myself. It is a bright, sunny day as I begin, but before long, the woods have grown thick and an impenetrable darkness surrounds me.

It is the kind of darkness where you can barely see your hand in front of you, with sounds of treacherous animals emanating from nearby.

I pull myself together and retrieve my miner’s lamp, With a flick of the matches it sputters to life, bringing into view things that makes me wish I hadn’t lit it.

There is a mass of tangled forest and a black river flows lazily by. Suddenly, out of nowhere, there is a great ogre in my path.I prepare myself for battle, but to my surprise, the ogre instead asks me a question. He asks me, “if you love the princess, how is it that she will know that you are true?”.

I respond with, “while I am a simple man, it is my conviction of destiny that will carry me through. She will know I am true when I complete this journey”.

Seeming to be satisfied with my answer, the ogre moves away. I realize I have overcome my first challenge of this great adventure on which I find myself.

Once again, I pull myself together and begin with slightly more confidence.

I travel for sometime and am ready to make camp, when in the air above me appears a vision of the beautiful princess.

She says, “you have done well to get this far, but there is a great mountain that you must scale before you win my heart. At the top of the mountain, there is a box filled with precious valuables.” With that, she is gone.

I rise early in the morning, to find rays of sunlight penetrating the darkness, like swords stabbing into the ground.

It is another day of my fateful journey and I have renewed determination to scale the mountain that lies ahead. The woods are slightly less dense as I get started. Soon, I can make out the outline of the great mountain that lies before me.

In short order, I arrive at the base of the most massive mountain I’ve ever seen. It’s height is intimidating and the path appears blocked with large, granite boulders. But undaunted, with my love for the princess in my heart, I begin.

After what seems an eternity, I find myself nearing the top of the great mountain. I am at once excited and exhausted. I finally reach the top and spy the box described by the princess.

I am pleased with myself for having gotten this far, but the box is locked and there is no key. I know there are great jewels in the box and surmise that it must be the delivery of these jewels to the princess that will help me win her heart.

Being clever with my hands, I am able to open the box nevertheless. With great anticipation, I slowly raise the lid. Inside there is a simple slip of paper.

On the paper is written, “before you can be true to me, you must be true to yourself.” I am disappointed, but after further reflection realize the implications of the message.

I resolve to take the words to heart and carry them with me as I continue on my journey.

The trip down the mountain is no less exhausting than the climb, but shortly, I have once again made my camp. I am just drifting off to sleep, when I hear a rustling in the woods. I jump up instantly, unsheathing my sword.

Out of the woods comes a fire breathing dragon. It is all I can do to maintain my ground, as I prepare to battle to what appears to be certain death.

But once again, the dragon does not attack, but instead asks me this question. “How will the princess know that you are wise?”

I respond with, “She will know I am wise because I know that which I don’t”.

Again, seeming to be satisfied with my answer, the dragon is gone. By now, my confidence is at an all time high and my determination unwavering.

I start once again along the path and after several hours of traveling, an opening in the forest is visible. It is surrounded by vibrantly colored flowers and a clear, sparkling stream guides me towards a house in the center.

The house is elegantly decorated with yellow clapboards and adorned with white window frames. It is a charming looking place, and I feel a strong compulsion to enter.

As my hand reaches the door knob, the door opens before me. To my infinite delight, it is the beautiful princess, wearing her princess gown. She is so radiant that my heart skips a beat.

She takes my hand and leads me inside. The interior is grandly appointed with a small fireplace in which a fire is crackling.

I hand her the slip of paper and say, “I will live by these words”.

She kisses me and tells me that I have won her heart.