The red hibiscus reminds me of a piece of literature I read in high school that was written by King Rama II. To me, the most impressive part of the story was when the King announced a competition between all the men in the kingdom for the hand of his daughter. The king decreed the competition would be 3 parts; appearance, the ability to hunt and fish, and victorious in battle.
Pra Sung, a prince of a faraway kingdom used magic to turn himself into a mute clownish figure with no shirt, red lips and pants, & a red hibiscus behind his ear. When Rojana, the princess, saw him, she was able to see the true person and tossed a flower garland to choose him. This shamed her father and shocked all the people who only saw a jaao ngao individual.
Early the next day all the competitors went into the forest to hunt for the largest game they could find. Pra Sung carried on throughout the day dancing and acting crazy. The King was relieved because he was certain the prince could not win the 2nd part of the competition. Toward sunset Pra Sung sat down by a pond and prayed. Suddenly all the animals of the forest and fish in the lakes and rivers came to him. He had outdone all the other hunters combined. This made the King very angry and he chased the prince and his daughter out of the kingdom. Though they live a difficult life in the forest, they kept aware of events in the kingdom.
Several years later, an invading army threatened the kingdom. The King’s forces were barely hanging on, when Pra Sung re-appeared to lead them to victory. The prince had now won all 3 competitions and the King willing gave him his daughter’s hand in marriage. During the wedding, the prince changed back to his true appearance. The King and all his subjects apologized to the prince. The kingdom stayed at peace and prospered under the prince’s protection.
**** Congrats to Valerie&Mason and MentalBill on a team FTF ****
Pra Sung and Rojana