Salt

As a child, I was extremely fond of fairy tales. I had an enormous number of books—tales by various authors, tales from different countries and different regions. They were my doors into a world that could be as big as I could imagine it. I read them and reread them.

One birthday, I got a new book with new stories. One of them was about a king who had three daughters, all very smart and very beautiful. One day, the king decided to find out which daughter loved him the most.

He asked the eldest how much she loved him. She said she loved him as much as all the gold in the kingdom. He was very satisfied and presented her with a lot of gold jewellery. I imagined what kind of jewellery it might be, thinking it must be very heavy, and how lucky the girl was to receive all that wealth.

The next daughter answered that she loved her father as much as all the diamonds in the kingdom, which made the king very happy again, and he presented her with lots of diamonds. I imagined boxes and boxes of glittering stones and wondered how much it all actually cost.

When the youngest daughter's turn came, she said she loved the king as much as salt.

The king got very angry, but managed to control his temper and asked the question again. The girl quietly repeated her answer. This time the king got mad and ordered her to leave the palace and never come back.

I tried to imagine the salt, the comparison, and the girl. My mother bought salt in one-kilogram packets when she was making preserves in autumn, and that was about as much as I could remember about salt and its place in my life.

But maybe the girl meant some kind of exotic pink salt they brought from some faraway place?...

I didn't know.

The tale ended with salt disappearing from the whole kingdom. The king tried seasoning his food with sugar and honey, but it only became worse and eventually inedible. In the end, he brought his youngest daughter back, finally understanding her words—and greatly appreciating his first meal seasoned with salt.

And all of a sudden, I understood how wealthy I was!

I could use as much salt as I wanted. I could drink as much water as I wanted, whenever I wanted. I could take a shower or a bath whenever I felt like it. Our apartment was warm and safe. My parents and my sister were with me and healthy. I had lots of books that I could read whenever I wanted.

My list of wealth was getting longer and longer.

I hugged my book and felt very happy.