The Ugly Woman with a Heart of Gold
A folk-tale about seeing beyond
There once was a woman whose face was so deformed that even her own family would have nothing to do with her. She was shunned by everyone & left to live alone. Even though this made her sad, she carried no resentment. For although her face was ugly, her hands could weave beautiful baskets that never frayed or fell apart.
One day while gathering grass to make baskets, she came across a traveler whose horse had fallen. The traveler was about to put the horse down because he thought he had gone lame. “Stop!” said the woman, & approached the horse. With her beautiful hands she gently stroked the horse’s face & breathed gently on his nose to calm him. The traveler was so shocked by her face, he didn’t say anything, just stared. “Let me have a look,” she said. Touching the horse’s hoof gently with her beautiful hands she found a small stone that had gotten stuck deep deep in the soft sensitive part of the horse’s hoof. When the horse got up he had a slight limp, but was able to walk again.
The traveler was astounded & so grateful, he asked the woman what she would like as payment. She said, “I live a humble life & I do not need much. Perhaps I can have that moldy bale of straw you are carrying.” The confused traveler protested telling her she should ask for more. “No,” she said. “This straw is no use to you but to me it is a treasure. Please give me the moldy straw.” The traveler agreed reluctantly & went on his way.
She inspected the straw & it was as she suspected. The mold was only on the surface & hadn’t penetrated the bundle. She gently cleaned the straw & laid it out to dry. Touching each strand she said, “oh how shiny & soft you are. How you glisten like gold. I shall make you into beautiful baskets to sell at the market.” As she wove she pretended the straw was strands of gold shimmering in the sunlight. When she was done she thought, “oh my imagination has run away with me! They really do look like they are made of gold!”
In the morning she took the baskets to market. At first when the people saw her face, they cringed in fear. The woman was used to this. She sighed & unpacked her beautiful golden baskets & the extra straw she had brought to weave as she sat. The people were mesmerized by her beautiful hands & they too began to see the humble straw glisten with a golden sheen. She smiled to them & they could all see, it wasn’t the straw that was gold. The straw was reflecting her golden heart.
