She Must MARRY the OLDEST MAN in the Village

She was beautiful and kind, and her name was Tamara. In fact, Tamara was the best dancer in all of the village. Everybody loved her, since she dances very well and is kind to everyone.

Tamara lived with her parents. Her father, Alinko, was a poor farmer who loved money more than anything in the world. Alinko would lie, cheat, or steal money for himself. All his earnings went to gambling, and he rarely went home with some money in his pocket. There were times, especially when his pocket was empty, that he got angry and started beating Tamara's mother. Tamara's mother lived such a hard life, yet she worked each and every day to sell fruits at the market to ensure that there was food on the table. She would help her mother in every way possible, and she would be the best among her friends all the time, which was possible because of her love for dancing, and she was already one of the most popular girls in the village of Caba because of this. "Look, here is Tamara, the best dancer in Caba," people would say.

Tamara had a friend, Cojo, who used to accompany her in the dance competition just to clap and shout, "Go, Tamara, you can do it!" Cojo appeared to care very much about her, and she welcomed that. Life at Caba Village was quite simple: people spent time on hard work during the day and gathered in the evening for the exchange of stories with each other. For Tamara, every day was bittersweet, though. She loved dancing and making all these people happy, but she was always worrying about her father and how his gambling habits, which he couldn't control, would get him into trouble.

One day Alinko went out with his mates and overheard them discuss a big dancing competition being held in the next village. Whoever was declared the winner was to win a sack full of silver coins. The mention of money sent fire glistening at Alinko's eyes. He knew Tamara would win because she was the best dancer. He normally did not care about Tamara's dancing, and sometimes he thought it to be a waste of time, but finally, the possibility of making money at last dawned upon him. He decided to take Tamara to the competition to win the prize. "Get ready, Tamara," Alinko said. "We are going to the next village for a dancing competition."

Tamara was surprised. Her father had never minded about her dancing hate in the past, but she was thrilled. She really liked dancing and wanted to win. On the competition day, Alinko took Tamara to the next village without telling her mother. Cojo saw them leaving and thus followed them to make sure Tamara was safe by silently hiding among the bushes. When they reached, most of the people in the crowd spotted Tamara, "Oh. Look, it is Tamara. The best Dancer," They exclaimed. Tamara was nervous but gleeful.

When Tamara's time came she danced with all her heart in zeal, and the people shouted, "Tamara. Tamara" loudly. Then cam Aliko, and as the prize, winner, they presented one bag of silver coins. The bag, Alinko pocketed fast, without even whispering, "Thank you Tamara. Catch hold of the sack and escape. Cojo, observing it, felt his heart pinch for Tamara. He approached her and said, "You were really great, Tamara. Here, take some of the money that I collected under the cover of your dance." Tamara smiled a little and thanked Cojo.

Walking back home, Tamara was heavy at heart. She loved dancing with all her heart, but her father's greed made her sad. Once home, full of emotions, Tamara shared with her mother all that had transpired. Her mother hugged her tight and said, "You did your best, Tamara. I am proud of you." That very night, mixed feelings flowed through Tamara. Happy because of her win, sad because in reality, she wished that her father cared about her and not the money.

The money won by Tamara was pleasing to Alinko. He started taking her to every dancing competition that he came across. "You will dance and win more money," he would tell Tamara. Although Tamara loved dancing, the greed of her father made her sad. Tamara danced beautifully in every competition and used to win as the people shouted out for her from every competition. Alinko, however, took every bit of prize money, not appreciating, not commending, or simply not being thankful. He always went for gambling activities.

Tamara felt a heavy heart; she loved dancing, but it made her feel badly with what her father was doing. She wished he could find it in his heart to be proud of her for her talent rather than for the money she brought home. Cojo realized how pained Tamara was in her heart. "Tamara, you dance so well. Don't let your father's greed take away your joy," he said to comfort her. Tamara smiled at Cojo's good words, but the sadness wouldn't go away.

Her friends also noted this. They started shunning her behind their palms, saying, "She is the daughter of a gambler." Some even went to the extent of saying," Your father only loves money." Loneliness swept in Tamara. All those joyful moments with friends were now in vain, and more often than not, loneliness crept in on her, with only Cojo left—an ever-present supporter to encourage her on and bring out the best out of her.

One day, Tamara's mother noticed how sad her daughter had grown. "Tamara, my dear, why are you so sad?" she asked. Tamara told her everything. Her mother sighed and hugged her. "You are a wonderful dancer, Tamara. Don't let anyone make you feel less. You have a gift, and one day things will get better." Tamara tried to stay hopeful, but each competition made her feel worse. She would dance, win, and would see her father take all the money. She felt drawn into her father's wheel of greed.

Despite Tamara dancing through tears, she continued to dance as it was her one true passion. She loved making people happy, and she hoped someday her father would see the gift within her and be a dad to her because he was proud of her, not because of the money that she would make.

A yearly grand fiesta was held in the village of Caba at the end of every year. It was a time of celebration with music, dancing, and loads of food. But it was also a time during which the fathers chose suitors for their daughters. The girls would dress in their best clothes in the hope that their fathers would pick kind and handsome men for them. Tamara's father, Alinko, saw in this festival as another chance to get money. He decided that whoever wants to marry Tamara has to bring five bags of silver coins and two bags of gold coins, a very high price.

Colorful decorations filled the village square, and the air was soon filled with the general excitement. The fathers with their daughters stood in line, waiting for the suitors. Tamara was gorgeous, shining in the festive attire. She danced so gracefully; the audience was yelling and applauding her name. But in the soul of Tamara, it was fussy. She was feeling that her father's demand was so high, fearing that no one would be able to meet it.

When Alinko decided that it was time to get a suitor for Tamara, he got up and thundered, "Whoever will be willing to be my daughter Tamara's wife, let him bring five bags of silver coins and two bags of gold coins." An uproar ensued as the crowd was aghast at the colossally huge sum of money involved. Many promising youths of great potential, who adored Tamara, chickened out at such an elevated demand. Her heart went down by watching them step away. She looked at Cojo, hoping that he, anyways, could come up with a way, but they both knew it was not possible. Cojo was poor and couldn't avail a huge sum.

And then, out of the murmurs and whispers in the crowd, a rather unlikely figure stepped forward. To everyone's surprise, he was the village's oldest and richest person. "I have heard him ask for a very large bride-price," Alinko said to his friends. An appearance was worth all that Casali demanded, and he stood up with it: onto the platform he walked, loaded with five bags of silver coins and two bags of gold coins. "Casali has the money," the crowd gasped, whispering. Tamara's heart sank. She couldn't believe it. Casali was very old, already with many wives and children. She didn't want to marry him.

Tamara looked hopefully at Cojo, for something that he might do, but Cojo was heartbroken. He knew that he could not afford the wealth that Casali had. Cojo sat on the ground and cried. He loved Tamara and wanted to marry her, but he had no money. Tamara thought she started to cry tears of her own. She could not possibly live with Casali. She wanted to be with Cojo, the friend who never left her side. With tears and a sorrowful heart, Tamara ran home. "Mother." she cried out as the door flew open. Her mother embraced her, her heart reaching out to feel her touching daughter's pain. "Why is this happening to me?" Tamara burst into sobs. Her mother could do nothing but console her without giving a definitive answer.

Alinko, on the other hand, was very happy. He saw the bags of silver and gold and couldn't hide his excitement. "Thank you, Casali," Alinko said, taking the money. "I will bring my daughter to you." Casali nodded, satisfied that he had gotten what he wanted. Alinko promised to bring Tamara to Casali's house the next day. He went to the drinking spot with his friends and started spending money, feeling proud of himself.

All that night Tamara could not close her eyes, pondering on her future life with Casali, and her poor heart bled for her own sake. She loved Cojo, and her father's greed had taken her chance of happiness away from her. She wished things could be done over again.

The following morning, Tamara had no choice. Her father had already decided for her. And so she was going to be wed to the village's old and wealthiest man. Desolately, Tamara felt her heart in shambles. She could hardly be wed to Casali, but then no way could offer her another comfortable future. And so she did pack her things quietly, in the dark, so as to go unnoticed.

As Tamara was about to step out of the house, she heard the unmistakable drumbeats. The sound of the hard, rhythmic pounding resonated from

She heard a great noise of drumming coming from the village and sensed that something urgent was in arrears. She could not run away from the situation until she found out what was going on. Drawing nearer, in the village square was a great circle of people around a big tree. Under the branches stood Cojo, holding in his hands a little drum. He had told the Casali he was going to have a drum contest, making it known that he could recover a wife by this traditional village method of challenging someone to a contest of excellence.

Cojo now took up the rhythm of the drum, hands flying across it with great dexterity and speed. Such captivating scenes made the onlooking crowd sway more and more to the beat. Tamara's eyes became wide as she watched Cojo drum with all his might, his love for her translated in the music. He tried to drum upon his turn, but his hands were old and trembly. The sound was weak, and the crowd started to lose interest when he was drumming.

Finally, it was Cojo who emerged the winner. The elders of the village proclaimed him as such and by the ways of old, he would marry Tamara. A cheer rose from the crowd as Cojo smiled, his eyes all bright with love at Tamara. She felt her heart lift and bounded to where he was as they embraced in the center of the village that was celebrating their love. Alinko was not at all happy, but he dared not stop anything. The elders of the village had spoken, and he had to succumb to their decision.

Tamara's mother took her in her arms and she was more than happy for her daughter to get rid of the unnecessary baggage of a wrong marriage. Alinko upon seeing his going-downhill condition became a changed man. He apologized to Tamara and thereafter started some promises to be a good father, for he had realized that money is not everything in life.

The marriage of the really happy couple of Tamara and Cojo was going on, and the whole village was celebrating it. Tamara danced with all her heart; she danced with no sadness steering it anymore. She knew love and kindness were much better in life than money, and she was going to live her life the way she deserved to.

From that day, Tamara and Cojo lived happily ever after. Tamara continued her dancing, and Cojo remained her companion in many adventures, always bringing light into her life. That is how their story turned into a legend at Caba Village, showing to the world—who doubts it—that a real love triumphs over problems that are as huge as can be.