In a kingdom far far away there lived a beautiful maiden. She was a Princess and in those days husbands were chosen for the daughters of men by their fathers. So was the case with this maiden called Utun (Moon)
As her name implied, so was she; elegant, gracious, and beautiful beyond words; but she was very stubborn. She turned down all the suitors brought to her for marriage by her father, in a very haughty manner. All the eligible men in the village and nearby kingdoms were rejected by her.
Her refusal to marry any of the eligible suitors reached the ears or ends of every land, including the land of the spirits. When no groom was found good enough for the Princess, Udobong decided to go and try his luck.
He travelled seven seas and seven jungles to arrive at Utun’s father’s kingdom. He was an embodiment of handsomeness – his voice, mannerisms, height, complexion and wealth, measured by his opulence in attires and gifts brought to the king; he was simply out of this world.
When he came before the king to make his declaration known, the princess got wind of the presence of the visitor; and as soon as she saw Udobong, she shouted out her desire to marry him. Her parents tried to dissuade her because Udobong’s background could not be ascertained, but she was adamant in her decision to marry him.
Finally, the king acceded to her request and the marriage date was set. Invitations were sent forth to lands far and near. On the appointed day, the village square was filled to the brim with well-wishers, and admirers. The date itself was beautiful and perfect; food and wine were supplied in abundance. There was music and merriment all through the day and night. In all these, Udobong never disclosed his true identity because it was his secret.
The day after the wedding as it is customary, Udobong and his new bride decided to go back to his ‘Kingdom’ to start a new life, crossing seven seas and seven jungles. The journey was so long and the distance so far; every member of the bridal sendoff team got weary and went back home. Only Udobong and Utun were left behind on their own.
One by one Udobong’s secrets became an open story as they made progress towards their new home. Every distance covered, Utun would hear a voice singing to Udobong to return to him the item borrowed while going for his marriage. The items borrowed were the left and right hands, the left and right legs; so on and so forth until every lender retrieved what item Udobong had borrowed, till it remained just his head the skull. Reality dawned on her that she had married a spirit and not a man.
By this time Udobong and Utun had crossed six seas and six jungles and she could never find her way back home because they had crossed into the land of the spirits, where there is no turning back. The pain that she felt at realizing that Udobong had tricked her into marriage, by borrowing every bodily item from other spirit beings; to resemble a human being while he was just a skull was so enormous that she broke down and wept.
In her misery, confusion, fear, lonesomeness and sorrow, she cried and berated herself for not listening to the voice of reason which her parents presented and especially for getting carried away by the appearance of Udobong and the wealth that he displayed. She died a lonely, emotionally distressed and hunger stricken death after many days of wandering, exposure to the weather and wild life from which she was ill prepared to defend herself from.
Had she looked before she leaped, or obeyed the wise counsel of her parents, or listened to the voice of reason, she would have known that all that glitters is not gold; and her story would have had a better end.
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