Chapter IV

(Excerpt from After the Glass Slipper: 8 Proven Steps to Lasting Love
By Jon & Beverly Meyerson)

The First Awareness
A Loving Relationship Requires
Daily Appreciations

Prince felt that, as the mistress of the palace, Cinderella must manage the royal household. He decided to delegate palace management to the servants for several weeks after the honeymoon, while Cinderella became accustomed to palace life.  Though she found her new life exciting, it was so contrary to her upbringing that she felt quite awkward.

Within one month after their nuptials, Prince had taught Cinderella how to complete each palace task.  She knew his heart was kind, but his instructional voice stirred up memories of her stepmother inspecting her work while she scrubbed the floors.

On the day when she was fully charged with palace management, Prince repeated countless times that she “must be fair, but firm with the servants.”  He told her, “They must understand that you, Cinderella, are the mistress of this house and that you are in full control.  They must know that if their work is unsatisfactory, they will be discharged.”

After Prince departed for work that day, Cinderella was alone with the servants.  There were so many chambers in the palace that she hadn’t even remembered them all.  She sat near the fireplace, befuddled.  Be fair, but firm with them, swirled in her head.

Soon, the head chambermaid approached to inquire if the master chamber should be cleaned.  Cinderella simply nodded and said, “Yes, please.”  Then realizing she had not sounded very firm, she added loudly, “And make sure it is thoroughly cleaned from top to bottom!”

The chambermaid was clearly taken aback. “Yes Madam, of course,” she said meekly and walked away.  Cinderella continued to sit near the fireplace, feeling in her heart that she was not going to be good at directing others, for she knew only how to perform the work herself.

When Prince returned from work, all the tasks were completed.  Cinderella described how she had supervised each one.  All he said  was “yes,” and proceeded to talk about his day.

Cinderella received no praise from Prince during the following months.  Day after day, from morn to evening, she worked diligently to manage the palace, and day after day she waited to hear a simple “good” or “thank you” or “very fine.”  She heard nothing.

She had made sure the bread was baked, vegetables were prepared, the meat was cured, chambers were cleaned, the garden was cared for, and palace walls were repaired.  Prince would return from work and merely say “yes” when she told him of her efforts.  It reminded her of never receiving a single compliment from her father or stepmother. She told herself that Prince was not mean, just busy. But Oh!, she wished, if only he would say thank you or fine work even once!

He acted as though he really didn’t care.  When she told him of her day, he interrupted and spoke only about his. Her stomach churned as though it were making butter.  “I guess his work managing the kingdom is much more important than my work,”  she thought.

Three months after the honeymoon, she sat in the parlour and tears flowed, “Oh, what unhappiness I have here! I thought marrying Prince would fill me with joy.  Now I find my duties are no better than living with my stepmother.  He doesn’t care about me at all!”  She lay on the settee, resting her head on a satin pillow.  She dreamt of a time when her mother was holding her to her bosom.

A while later, Cinderella awakened to a rustling sound.  She looked up and saw Fairy Godmother floating down toward her.  She was a small delicate lady, dressed in a plain white pinafore of cotton batiste, with a pastel bodice of dotted Swiss.  She held the same silver wand that she used to prepare Cinderella for the ball.  Her soft white hair was adorned with a fine silver ribbon.

Fairy Godmother’s powerful presence disguised her short stature.  Her large grey-green eyes invited Cinderella in, and it pleased Cinderella that Fairy Godmother had been able to discern that she was unhappy and had come to her assistance.

“My child, what in heaven’s name is wrong?”

“Oh, Fairy Godmother, my life is no happier than before.  Prince doesn’t appreciate me.  He offers me no praise for my work, nor for anything I do.”

“So he does not praise you as you praise him?”

This question confused Cinderella because she had not thought she was required to praise Prince since he was, well, a prince.

“A prince needs praise?”  she finally asked.

“He’s a prince, but also a man. And men need much praise, though they often act as if ‘tis not important, for hidden inside the mind of all men are the feelings of the little boy from which they grew.  Each woman also carries her little girl within her.”

“But, surely a lady shan’t offer compliments first. “Tis the duty of a gentleman to first offer respect and admiration to his lady!”

Fairy Godmother titled her head in a curious manner before saying:

Which comes first, the chicken or the egg?

                                    A riddle, a puzzle, pray tell me, I beg.

            “Wha –– what?”  said Cinderella, quite puzzled herself, trying to decipher the words.

With a slight smile, Fairy Godmother added:

Where, of where, doth the praise begin,

                                    Someone must start, or no one will win!

            “Oh . . . . Oh, I see,” Cinderella said, realizing that in every activity someone must go first.

Just before she floated out of the room, Fairy Godmother said:

As water and sunshine make flowers bloom,

                                    Praise is required of the bride and the groom;

                                    Praise can be offered in three different flavours:

                                    His appearance, character, or his behaviours.

Cinderella was much too engaged in following this rhyme to worry about how Fairy Godmother appeared or disappeared from the parlour, and it was a few minutes before she realized she was alone.

“Aha!” she thought.  “Three different flavours like candy or cakes.  So Prince needs compliments, too.  He seems so self-assured that I never would have thought it.”  She glanced outside at the garden, radiant with daisies in the noonday sun.

When Prince’s carriage rolled up to the palace in late afternoon, she greeted him outside near the rose bushes, rather than waiting for him to enter.

“Your hair has been shorn in an appealing manner.  You are looking quite handsome today!”  Cinderella said, beaming at him.

Prince raised his chin, smiled so his teeth shone bright, then took her hand and stroked it.  He gently kissed the back of each finger.  It thrilled her that he was so touched by her loving words.

While dining that eve, Cinderella told Prince that she knew how hard he worked, regularly attending the business of the kingdom on all days except when they worshipped.  Prince immediately spoke proudly of his efforts to help the people of the kingdom with new roads and additional knights to protect the village homes.  He was obviously pleased that Cinderella had praised his hardworking “character” and called for the court jester to entertain them that evening.

Later, Cinderella said to Prince, “I thank thee so much for selecting such a comical court jester this night.  I felt more cared for tonight than at any time since our honeymoon.”  The love they made that night continued well into morn.

While Prince was at work, Cinderella unrolled a parchment, opened her inkwell, and penned:

Praise Often

Praise can be offered

In three different flavours:

Appearance, character,

Or one’s good behaviours.

Appearance:  His engaging smile, his dashing hair, his comely clothes, his masculine unclothed body.

Behaviour:  How he plans outings with me, what he does for others, how he listens to me, how he makes love with me.

Character:  His sense of humour, his intelligence, his ability to work hard, his athletic strength in jousting, his knowledge of music.

She hid the parchment in her bureau beneath her personal belongings.

(NOTE:  The remainder of this chapter indicates how Prince learned to praise Cinderella as well.)

Praise for After the Glass Slipper