An
Eastern European story is instructive here. One day, these three
worthy peasants were lazing beside the Iskur river and talking
generally among themselves, as people are apt to in such stories.
‘“Now,
Ghele,” said one of the others, “if you were a king, and had all
the powers of a king, what would you most like to do?”
‘Ghele
thought for a while and finally said, “Well, that’s a tricky one.
I think I would make myself some porridge and put into it as much
lard as I liked. Then I wouldn’t need anything else.”
‘“What
about you, Voute?”
‘Voute
thought for quite a bit longer than Ghele, and eventually he said, “I
know what I would do. I would bury myself in straw and just lie there
for as long as I pleased.”
‘“And
what about you, Gyore?” said the other two. “What would you do if
you were a king and had all the powers of a king?”
‘Well,
Gyore thought about this for an even longer time than the others. He
scratched his head and shifted around on the bank and chewed on a
grassy stalk and thought and thought and got crosser and crosser. In
the end, he said, “Damn it. You two have already picked the best
things. There isn’t anything left for me.”
