Vietnamese Cinderella- The Story of Tam and Cam

I actually really like fairy tales. They are really cool, gory and tell a lot about the cultures they come from. Have you guys ever read the original sleeping beauty? How about Bluebeard? Both are so dark and awesome! My favorite story is one that I was told in Vietnam, back when I was a cute little kid. Its the vietnamese version of cinderella, the story of Tam and Cam. So sit back and get ready for story time.

Once upon a time there was a peasant girl named Tam. She lived happily with her widowed father in a small house in the countryside. One day her father remarried and had another child called Cam. The wicked stepmother was jealous of Tams beauty and, through lies about Tam convinced her husband that Tam should be sent to the kitchen and made a servant. As fathers tend to do, Tams father died leaving everything to his wife and Cam. One day the the two sisters were sent to go fishing. While Cam was busy sleeping Tam spent the entire day catching fish and getting dirty. Right as the girls were going home Cam tricked Tam, telling her to go wash the mud off her to keep her stepmother from getting angry. While Tam did that, Cam stole all of the fish and ran back to her mother, crying and talking about how lazy Tam had made Cam do all the work. When Tam realized this she started crying, knowing that her mother would punish her fiercely tonight. As she started crying the clouds parted and down came the Goddess of Mercy. Tam told her of her plight, and the Goddess gave her a large red and gold fish. The Goddess told her to keep the fish in a well and feed it three times a day, with what little food she could. For several months Tam would go to the well and feed the fish, who would show itself to her but nobody else. The mother grew curious about Tams behavior, and one day sent her to the village. The mother put on Tams clothes, called the fish, caught it, and used it for dinner. When Tam went back to the well, she saw the surface was covered in blood and no matter how hard and long she called the fish never came back. The Mercy Goddess came back and told her what happened, and that Tam had to find the fishes bones and keep them under her pillow. She did that, and the next several months were uneventful. Then one day there was a festival for the kingdom, Tam was allowed to go and her fish magicked a beautiful dress on her. The prince fell in love with her, and they were married.

It gets better later, but i’m already 200 words over the limit and I don't want to tax you guys by making you read too much in one day. The second part is even better, and I don't want to spoil it but two of the characters become murders. What do you guys think of this story? Like Frozen it is about two sisters, but this story is more.....my type.

Kelly C.S

spoiler alert

A link to the story if you want to read more

Tam and Cam