Page 10 - Three of Happiness

One day the Queen arose to a knock on the door. “Excuse me madam,” the courteous head advisor said in the open doorway. “The workmen are ready to lay the last stone to the Queen’s Road. I mean, the road and they would like for you to be present.”
‘’It is quite all right to call it the Queen’s Road,” she said with a smile. “I know that the name was once meant to be a joke or insult but I am quite proud of this accomplishment. So please, do call it... The Queen’s Road.”
She rode on her great white horse to the site where they were laying the last stone. The leader of all of the laborers helped her down o her horse. He was a big, dark man, with rough hands and a soiled cap. He seemed overwhelmed by the presence of the Queen but stood erect and said, “We wanted to have you here to complete this road. It has been difficult but it has given many of us a chance to work and earn money for our families. We want you to have the honor of laying the last stone of... the Queen’s Road, if you don’t mind.”
“I will be proud to lay the last stone of this great road which stretches from one end of our kingdom to the other,” said the Queen. And with that, she took the last stone which, though smaller than any of the others, was s ll quite large and placed it in its appropriate place.
As she stood, there was a great cheer from the assembled workmen. She raised her hands for silence and said, “With this stone I complete the greatest road in the kingdom, which from now on will be known by its official name, The Queen’s Road.”
There was a laugh and another cheer. She again raised her hand for silence and said to the gathering, “Now I want to tell all of you about our next project.” With that, her advisors looked at each other and rolled their eyes.
She looked at the assembled multitude and said, “I want to begin building a monument on this spot. It will have many rooms and will be available for all the people of the kingdom.’’ Of course her advisors shook their heads but knew that it was no use trying to change her mind.
At this point in his story, Edgar yawned a big eagle yawn and said, “All this storytelling is hard work and I need a nap.”
“Is that the end of the story?” I asked.
“Oh no, just the beginning,” replied Edgar. “But let’s take a little rest because the Queen is about to go on some very interesting adventures in her quest to get into
the Tree of Happiness.”
—End of Part One
Page 9