A
Prince’s Whim
Story
By:
Nizar B. Zain
Translation: Dr.Dinha T.Gorgis
Hashemite University, Jordan
She was
crying bitterly while talking to Umm Na’il with an
interrupted, humiliating, and melancholic voice:
“I did
nothing that could’ve hurt him…
I loved
him so deeply…
And so
did he openly…
The days
I’ve spent with him, including yesterday, were
honey-like…
Yesterday, in particular, he called me ‘weetie’.
So how do
you want me to believe you, Umm Na’il?
You must
be kidding, Umm Na’il?!”
****************
The story
started almost a month ago…
Umm Na’il
entered their life suddenly…
The
husband, a father, had just passed away…
The wife,
and her daughter, were still mourning over the deceased
father whenUmm Na’il, one day, knocked on their door,
and transformed their sorrows into joys…
“The
Prince heard about your daughter’s beauty,” said she
quietly and professionally!
The
surprise astounded them.
“The
Prince proposes the hand of my daughter? Who? Mine?!!!”
asked she breathlessly. Then she went on while at
uttermost excitement:
“Who are
we as to have the Prince our son-in-law? I’m afraid
you’ve knocked on the wrong door, mam!”
But Umm
Na’il confirmed that it was a real thing, not a dream or
fantasy…
Umm Na’il
readily started to arrange for the wedding, even before
she received their consent…
The
mother, as if hypnotized, got involved in the
preparations!
The
girl’s heart began to throb joyfully! For she had always
maintained a passionate love for Sindrella’s fairy
story…
And now,
herself a real Sindrella, free from conspiracies,
crooked schemes, and witches, she was too willing to go
for it!
*******************
At a
remote suburb, and in a villa surrounded by security
men, a high-ranking officer received them with a bow to
show high respect after he had recognized their
identities. They were three: the bride, her mother, and
Umm Na’il.
They made
their way in…
The bride
and her mother were dazzled upon seeing the furniture
and decorations…
A cook
and two maids, of obvious oriental complexion, welcomed
them.
After a
few minutes, a smart Mulla (a religious sheikh) came in.
And after a few other minutes two men, holding the end
of their gold-embroidered gowns, greeted the dignified
Sheikh by mutually caressing noses.
**********************
They felt
there was unusual footwork outside the villa…
No less
unusual were the movements indoors…
All stood
up ceremonially to bid him a majestic salute!
It was
the Prince himself!!!!
*******************
The Mulla
called upon the bride’s mother:
“Are you
the bride’s commissioner?”
And
without waiting for her reply, he continued”
“Under
special circumstances, a mother can be a commissioner
for her daughter. Repeat after me, (woman)…
The she
started parroting what the Mulla had just uttered…
His two
apprentices, in gowns, signed the marriage contract as
witnesses mechanically.
“Congratulations! Congratulations!” said the Mulla , and
was in no time off the scene.
The two
witnesses followed suit.
Umm Na’il
left, too, but dragging the bride’s mother out.
********************
After the
girl had stopped wailing, Umm Na’il continued:
“Don’t be
sad my girl; for our Prince won’t deny you any rights.
He’s just, and has a passionate love for justice.”
Umm Na’il
went on as if she was reciting from a book whose
chapters she had learnt by heart:
“First,
and foremost, you have to observe the iddat [40 days
after marriage]. If you get pregnant during this period,
your baby will be given a life-long allowance , just
like all other Prince’s family members. If otherwise,
you’ll have the right to stay in the villa for all the
iddat period. The Prince will then grant you a
sufficient amount of money to enable you to live
decently for the rest of your life. And, listen
carefully to this: If you deliver him a baby, you have
no right to marry again at all. If not, you have the
right to get married, but only after two years…”
Still
sobbing, with her crystal tears coming down, the girl
pathetically said:
“But I
did nothing that could’ve perplexed him.”
“I loved
him so dearly.”
“He never
concealed his love for me.”
“Even
yesterday he called me ‘sweetie’!”
“I’ve
never thought about money.”
“I’ve
never thought about anything, but love and how to
satisfy him!!!”
“So how
come that he’s no more caring?…”
“Dear
girl! You have not sufficiently appreciated what’s going
on around yet!” said Umm Na’il very politely She
continued while patting on her shoulder to soothe her;
“Such are
but the very requirements of sustaining prince-hood,
darling. A great deal of responsibilities that the
prince has to bear make him in need of joy and
entertainment continually. And this is why he gets
married newly every week.”
“Just
imagine those he meets daily,” Umm Na’il went on. “They
are the well-off, the town’s eminent figures, and the
tribes’ head sheikhs who all profoundly realize and
appreciate his needs and are thus too willing to offer
their daughters and have the honor of marrying them to
the Prince!”
“It is in
the nature of princes everywhere and at all times to act
as such.”
“Haven’t
you heard of Haroun Al’Rashid, and other caliphs whose
palaces were full of harems and maids?”
“Haven’t
you read ‘One Thousand and One Nights’?
“The
princes’ bodies, my girl, need renewed love that only
virgins can offer.”
