by Yoti Lane
“Perhaps so,” said the girl, and began to tidy up the house, because in truth the mother was one of those people who was so constantly upset by worries over trifles, and imaginary slights, or fancied illnesses, that the house was pretty much neglected.
As the years passed the mother made life more and more difficult for the daughter. Secretly she never ceased to exert herself to try and upset the girl’s serenity. She made jibes at her, repeated remarks which were supposed to have been made by her friends, and deliberately inflicted all sorts of small hardships, and petty annoyances. But it was all useless, Never Angry went her way quietly, and sometimes looked at her mother as if she were sorry for her, as indeed she was.
She herself was never really unhappy, although she might well have been for her life at home was not pleasant, and although she was really a very pretty girl, she had none of the small things that her companions were given to help them look their best. Her clothes were very poor, and her mother never gave her presents.
One day the mother felt she could not stand her daughter’s calm any longer. The girl’s godmother lived in a distant place, and sometimes lent them a little money. Previously the mother had always gone on these borrowing missions herself, but this time she decided to send her daughter. It was a long, difficult, and even dangerous journey. “Let’s see if she will keep her temper when she finds herself alone in the bush, stung by flies, or when she tries to get across that piece of swamp!” the mother said to herself.
So next day she sent the girl off, with very little food, and instructions that she was not to come back without some money. Never Angry much disliked being sent on such an errand, but as usual she remained good humoured about it, and went quietly.
Now because Never Angry didn’t get cross, naturally she never wanted to do anyone any harm, and therefore it never occurred to her that anyone might want to harm her. So when she came upon a great chimpanzee sitting right in the middle of her path, she simply went straight on, and asked very politely if she might pass.
This chimpanzee, who was the terror of the particular piece of forest in which he lived, was naturally very annoyed at this girl who showed no fear of him. Usually humans took one look at him and fled, and the fact that this one did no such thing was most upsetting.
“Who are you?” he roared.
“My name is Never Angry,” the girl replied.
“That’s a silly name. What do they call you that for?”
“Because I never get angry!”
“And what good does that do?” snorted the chimpanzee.
“I don’t know, but if I don’t feel angry, why should I pretend to be?”
“Because if you don’t you’ll be put upon,” the big monkey assured her. “Where are you going, anyhow?”
Never Angry told him about the journey on which her mother had sent her.
“Hm, didn’t I tell you you’d be put on. You are a bit of a fool you know. Aren’t you frightened?”
“Of what?” asked Never Angry.
“Of what might happen—of me for instance?”
“Why, no,” the girl told him with composure. “Why should I be? I wouldn’t hurt you, so why should you hurt me?”
At this the chimpanzee bellowed with laughter until tears ran down his cheeks.
“So you wouldn’t hurt me!” he roared. “That’s a good one!” and off he went into another gale of laughter.
“And you never get cross?” he asked as he wiped his eyes.
“No!”
At this the chimpanzee looked cunning, and then began to tease, and bait the girl in order to rouse her temper. But it was no use. She had lived too long with her mother not to know all the moves in this game. So she simply made calm and reasonable answers to all his sallies, until he gave up.
“Well,” the monkey said at last, “You certainly live up to your name. You’d better go on your way now, or you’ll be late. Good luck!”
Never Angry thanked him and went on. Further along the path a lion spied her coming, and was so annoyed at her intrusion that he leapt out into her path hoping to frighten her.
“Who are you?” he roared.
The girl told him her name, and the lion roared again. “Never Angry! What nonsense. I’ll make you angry,” and he seized her playfully and mauled her round in the dust, but she only waited passively until he had done. She knew he wouldn’t find it much fun to play with someone who didn’t put up a fight.
After a moment or two the lion desisted, and looked down at her. “Well,” he said, “you certainly deserve your name. Here, brush yourself down with the end of my tail, and wipe your face in my mane. That’s right. Now you’d better get along, and you have my blessing. I wish all human beings were like you.”
So Never Angry went on until she came to a place where the path was very narrow, and here curled up, and eyeing her evilly, was a large python. “Please, may I pass?” she asked him.
The python was almost struck dumb for a moment, because never before had any human being come up and spoken politely to him, without any trace of anger or fear.
“Who are you?” he stammered at last. “What are you doing here? You have no right to be on this piece of path, it’s mine!”
“I am Never Angry!”
“I don’t care whether you are never angry or not, I simply asked your name, and where you are going!”
“My name is Never Angry!”
“How idiotic. I have never heard anything so silly in my life. Everyone gets angry sometimes. I do myself, and I’m a singularly amiable fellow.”
“I don’t get angry, I don’t know what it is to feel angry,” the girl replied.
“Then there must be something the matter with you, that is if you are telling the truth. Let’s see, shall we?”
At that the python slid over, and made her a prisoner in his coils. “Now I’ll keep you here, and find out how you really feel,” the python went on.
Never Angry gave a small sigh, and then remained still, and unruffled, until at last the puzzled python released her.
“Well,” he said, “I see you were telling me the truth, but I think you’re likely to get yourself into trouble all the same.”
“But why?” the girl asked quietly. “You are the third person I’ve met on the way and in each case we’ve parted good friends.”
“Well, maybe, you’re right,” the python said grudgingly. “Anyhow the village isn’t far from here, and so you ought to get there safely enough. Go with my blessing.”
So Never Angry bid the snake farewell, and walked on into the village, and went in search of her godmother. Although she did not know it Never Angry’s godmother was no ordinary woman, she could work magic, and sometimes she did it to punish the wicked, and sometimes to reward the good. She was very interested when she heard the girl’s story.
“Why did not your mother come herself ?” she asked.
So Never Angry told her how her mother held the belief that she, Never Angry, was good tempered simply because it was not difficult to be good tempered when all went well, and life was easy.
“And was it easy to come here?” asked the Godmother.
“It was really, because I met so many good friends on the way,” Never Angry replied, and went on to tell about the chimpanzee, and the lion, and the snake. Secretly the Godmother was amazed at this story and wondered if it could really be true. However, she asked no questions, but resolved to find out the truth in her own way. So she asked the girl in, and kept her for some days. During those days she secretly put her to many tests, and discovered it was true. In all difficulties Never Angry remained serene and reasonable.
At last the Godmother called the girl to her, and told her she would now send her home.
“You have all my blessings,” she said. “Because I find you are well named, and you are a good, kind girl. Don’t worry about the journey back, and don’t worry about the future, for I think I can promise you that it is going to be very different to the past. I am not
going to send you back as you came, and we shall have a feast before you go. Now you are going to see how beautiful you can be!”
At this the Godmother clapped her hands, and three handmaidens appeared and they led the girl away, and bathed her in perfumed water until her skin was clear and beautiful. Then they washed, and dressed her hair, and after that they attired her in wonderful new clothes. Then they led her back and there was a wonderful farewell feast waiting for her.
At the end of the feast the Godmother raised her hands for silence. “I am going to send this beautiful girl home now. What wind will volunteer to carry her?”
At this a blustering wind arose and almost knocked everyone off their feet. “No, no,” cried the Godmother. “This girl must travel on a gentle wind!” So the rough wind went away and a gentle one blew up instead. Then the Godmother bid Never Angry farewell, having put a small bag with money, and a large bag with new clothes in her hands. Never Angry found herself floating up gently, leaving the earth below, and gliding softly over the tree tops.
When the sun became warm she found herself floating down until she reached the bank of a beautiful river where she bathed, and then the wind wafted her on once more.
In the evening she found herself outside her own village, and she walked towards her mother’s house looking so radiantly beautiful that everyone stopped to stare.
When the mother saw her daughter arriving home looking so beautiful, so wonderfully dressed, and so free from the stains and fatigues of travel, she was astounded.
Never Angry handed her mother the money.
“And how did you come by these clothes?” the mother enquired. “Have you been spending some of the money on them? They cost a pretty penny.”
Never Angry explained gently that her Godmother had given them to her.
Then the mother questioned her daughter about all that had happened on the journey, and what it was like in the Godmother’s house.
“I’m sure you have lost your temper many times since you set out from home?” she said bitterly.
Never Angry said she had not, and proceeded to tell how kind everyone had been. As she talked the mother realised how badly she had behaved to her daughter. She seemed to hear the voice of the Godmother in her ears telling her how lucky she was to have such an unusual child, and that she should cherish, and not punish her.
“You have done well,” the mother said at last. “I am proud of you. I am beginning to think you are right after all, and in future we shall try to live your way. I shall never be angry either.”
Of course the mother didn’t really succeed in this fine resolve but she did keep her temper much better than before, and later on, when her beautiful daughter made a fine marriage, it was much easier for her to do this. As for Never Angry she became famous all through the country, and was often called upon to give advice and make judgments, because she was never angry, and never afraid.
Many people tried to follow her example besides her mother, and they didn’t do so badly. There were fewer quarrels and disputes in her country than in the past so that everyone became more secure and more prosperous than they had ever been before.
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