Noelle always felt deep down that she was destined for greatness, but she was locked inside a cocoon of such an ordinary life. She lived on a farm just North of the township of Watonga. In the old native language, 'Watonga' meant 'between two rivers'. She lived along the riverbank of the northern river.
She was a diamond in the rough. With her wavy dishwater blonde hair, piercing blue eyes, dimples and ample curves she turned plenty of heads. She was just too oblivious to notice. One day she would know how impressive she was. For now, she would remain her same, aloof, lonely monotonous self until something decided to give!!
She was a well rounded girl of almost 14 years. She loved the finer things in life, but was never able to afford the best. She loved to play instruments and sang with the voice of an angel. She loved building and fixing things. D.I.Y.(do it yourself) was how she was raised on the farm. If you didn't do it, it didn't get done. She was also very smart. Top of her class, to be exact. It might have only been a one room schoolhouse with only 35 students, but it still counted!!
Her family didn't have much, but they had each other. Which was all her parents had ever prayed for. She was well aware that she was their miracle. They made no secret that they had tried for years for a baby before they got her. She was brought up on love, not luxury. Her parents loved her beyond measure and she them. Still, she couldn't help but feel that she didn't belong. Like she was destined for so much more than this simple life.
Just like every other day, Noelle got up to feed the chickens, collect the eggs, and milk the cows. Only, this day felt different. The air seemed to whisper to her.. It rushed around her in a symphony of the hushed tones of fate. As if it were a sign of her greatness she was destined to achieve.
She was seated on a short, wooden milking stool. Sweat was starting to drip off the strands of hair that had fallen across her face while she was busy milking Bessie, her favorite milk cow when she saw the most beautiful, ornate carriage she had ever seen pull up in front of their farm house.
She wanted so badly to just drop everything and run to see why such an expensive carriage would have stopped at her house. She had never seen anything so magnificent. But, Noelle knew if she didn't finish and in a timely manor, the milk could spoil, breakfast could be late. They would also be late for their morning deliveries. No deliveries= no dinner. So, she finished milking the cows, gathered up her egg basket and her barrel of milk and headed for the house.
Inside, the house smelled of delicious baked goods. Her mother was quite the talented baker and made her own farm fresh fruit muffins, pies, and cobblers that they peddled along with the milk and eggs they delivered every morning before momma dropped her off at school.
After she dropped the goods off in the kitchen, she wandered into the foyer to try and eves drop at the huge doubled doors of poppa's office. She really did want to know who was fancy enough for that carriage and why were they in her home???
"The princess is almost old enough to be considered for engagement now" she heard through the door. 'Princess? Did he just say princess? What princess?' was he mistaken? was he even in the right country? We don't even have a monarchy in our country...