I must admit this story made me laugh at first because the fall of vanity always makes me do that. Selfishness and greed follow at a close second and third, which I also enjoy watching as people finally get a clue and realize the error of their ways. Yes, this is all contained in a children’s book with a story that reminds us of the importance of how we raise our children.

Aree is a young girl who is obviously loved by her parents. All she needs to do is ask of them and without question they give her everything her heart desires. Even when she doesn’t ask, they are ready with gifts in hand because just as any loving parent, they want their little girl to be happy.

When Aree learns of a dance being held in a nearby village beyond the mountains, she gets excited at the chance of finally being able to show off the fine clothes and jewelry her parents have bought her. This begins a fashion show of all shows as she prances around her room trying to decide which of her beautiful dresses to wear. She tries on not one dress, but all of them and finally makes her decision of which dress to wear that will make her the, “most beautiful girl at the dance.

Can you guess which dress she chose to wear? You got it! She decided to wear every single dress she owned. That way of thinking continues as Aree tries to decide which piece of jewelry to wear. She loves them all and wants to show them all off as her dresses, so Aree also decides to wear every piece of jewelry she owns.

If you can imagine, she is a little more than silly looking, but too proud to even realize it. As she heads to the dance with her friends, Aree has a difficult time keeping up with them because of the weight of her clothing and jewelry, so they suggest she take off some of her items. Aree refuses to remove them and her friends leave Aree behind with her accusations of jealousy and all of her possessions.

My children and I really enjoyed reading this book. It teaches a great lesson about vanity and indulgence, both characteristics I hope none of my children develop. We discussed the ugliness of vanity and the fact that we should care for and love ourselves, but the focus should not always be on ourselves. If you are a parent, then I am sure you have been caught between wanting to give your child something and the fear of spoiling them. Have you been there before? If so, then you should have some comfort knowing that at least you are aware of the possibility of that happening.

Aree’s parent’s started her on a path of life filled with stuff, stuff, and more stuff which created a vain little girl. It wasn’t until she became overwhelmed with all of her stuff that she realized this wasn’t how to live life. Aree is vain no more.

This version of the story is retold for a child audience, which is quite different from the original whose main character is name Aei, which means vain. Instead of the gut kicker ending with the main character dying from the weight of her clothing, she instead gets to live and learn her lesson, which I rather prefer too.

What habit(s) do you have that you don’t want your children to learn, but may not being doing such a great job at, and are trying to break yourself?