King Midas and the Donkey Ears

Do you remember King Midas? The one whose hands turned anything he touched into gold? That one. Eventually, he realised that having hands that turn everything to gold wasn’t such a brilliant thing and he began to think that wealth was a bit pointless.

Before, he would never have so much as dreamed of going out without his golden crown on his head or his fancy robes. After all, everyone might think he was just an ordinary man, and he wouldn’t want that! But now, he often took off his crown and robes and went out into the forest in a simple, comfortable gown. He would wander among the trees, listening to the birds singing and observing the beauty all around him.

“The countryside is so beautiful and powerful! Nothing can compare to it, not even gold or precious stones,” he said to himself.

One day, the king wandered further than usual. He walked all the way through the dark forest, climbed up a hill on the far side of it, and at the top of the hill he came across Apollo, the sun god. He was having a singing contest with the shepherd god, Pan.

Midas sat down a little way away and listened to both the gods’ songs. When they had finished, their adjudicator, who had also listened carefully to every note, declared Apollo the winner. He placed a laurel wreath on Apollo’s head and bowed to him.

King Midas couldn’t believe his ears.

“But Pan’s singing was better by far! The adjudicator is biased!” he blurted out without thinking and jumped to his feet.

The adjudicator, only now realising that he was there, asked him:

“And who are you to judge the gods’ singing?”

“I am King Midas,” the king replied hastily,…