Come sailing by, come sailing by;
I saw three ships come sailing by,
On New Year's Day in the morning.
And what do you think was in them then,
Was in them then, was in them then?
And what do you think was in them then,
On New Year's Day in the morning?
Three pretty girls were in them then,
Were in them then, were in them then;
Three pretty girls were in them then,
On New Year's Day in the morning.
And one could whistle, and one could sing,
And one could play on the violin—
Such joy there was at my wedding,
On New Year's day in the morning”
Prince Adrian was finally of the age to be married, whether he wanted to be or not. His father, the king, had been urging his son for months to find a suitable woman to wed. Finally, out of exasperation, the prince promised his father that after the New Year, he would choose his bride.
As it happened, this task would be easier than Adrian had expected. On New Year's Day, as the sun was just beginning to rise, three large ships appeared on the horizon. The king was quickly warned of the oncoming ships and, with his son, he quickly came to see the three ships.
As they came closer, their beautiful ornate hulls became noticeable, and the king and all around him were amazed at the beauty and luxury of the three ships. Noting that they appeared friendly, the king allowed the three ships to dock. Once they were settled in, three beautiful women appeared from the three ships, each seeking the prince's hand in marriage.
The first who appeared was a princess by the name of Alexandria. She was a fair princess with a great amount of wealth in her possession. She was also an extraordinary singer. She offered her singing to the king and prince, delighting them with her soft, lovely voice. The king was instantly impressed. With her beauty, wealth, and talent, she would make an excellent daughter. The prince, however, was less so impressed. While her voice and her face were quite beautiful, he felt the princess was shallow and a bit dull. He wanted a woman he could enjoy talking with.
The second woman to come to the king and the prince was a duchess named Emilia. Although she was less wealthy than Alexandria, she was just as beautiful, and far more intelligent. She could play the violin beautifully. As she played the two a song, the king imagined his castle being filled with the violin's beautiful melody. She was beautiful, talented, and smart, everything he could hope for in a daughter. The prince, on the other hand, felt her too smart, in that she seemed to find herself superior to the prince. He was seeking for a woman who could be his companion, not one who would look down on him.
The third woman was a princess named Isabella, who came from a small island. Although pretty and wealthy, she was less so than the previous two women, and she had no talent as great as theirs. She could whistle, however, and a mighty fine whistler she was! She whistled a song fom the king and prince, quite impressively. The king, however, was not so impressed, and felt as if she were mocking him. But the prince found the whistling enormously charming. Beauty and wealth are fleeting, but a girl who could make him laugh was just what he was longing for.
The prince declared Isabella his wife, much to the astonishment of the king. The king accepted it nonetheless, the two were quickly married. It was a joyous occasion, and the two lived together happily.
Author’s Note: Many of you may recognize parts of this rhyme from the classic Christmas song, “I Saw Three Ships.” In this rhyme, however, it is not Christmas, but New Year’s Day that is the context. The rhyme curiously focuses on three ships sailing with three women aboard. The ending is unexpected, as it mentions the narrator’s wedding, but does not mention who he is marrying. I thought it would make more sense to expand on this idea and show why the women were sailing, and who was marrying whom.
Bibliography: This story is a retelling of the nursery rhyme "I Saw Three Ships" in The Nursery Rhyme Book, edited by Andrew Lang.
Painting by Joseph Walter (1783-1856) in 1838. The West Indiaman "Britannia." Web source: Wikimedia Commons
I liked your story! It was super straightforward and cute. To be honest, I hate whistling, but I was really glad at the end that Adrian picked the woman he thought would make the best companion instead of basing his decision entirely off of money, talent, or beauty. I also liked that you worked in a moral of your own which really made it feel more like a fable or tale of some sort.
ReplyDeleteAmanda! Your story was so fun to read! It was charming and even a little heartwarming, I found myself smiling at the end when the prince chose Isabella because he wanted someone who could make him laugh. It’s so true that wealth and beauty are fleeting, and I was really glad the prince saw past these superficial traits! Overall, I liked how you expanded and added your personal touch to the story.
ReplyDeleteThis was an interesting story to read. It definitely gave off the Bachelor theme in it. He had to chose from multiple people just like the show. It was good how he ended up choosing a person not based on looks but something further because looks will fade but their personality will not.
ReplyDeleteThis was certainly a fresh and interesting story to read. I was unfamiliar with the original work so it was nice to be introduced to a new piece of literature. It was interesting how you turned this into a form of the dating game, except the individual actually chose the right person in the end of the story.
ReplyDelete