The Boy Named Formidable
In a small village in France, there was a coup;e who after many years of marriage still had not been able to have a child. They desparately wanted one, but their time for childbearing had almost run out when she finally becae pregnant. they were overjoyed and began to plan for the child they had wanted for so long. The child was finally born and in their combined joy at his arrival, they began to imagine what a great future was in store for this little lad. Thheir hopes for him were so strong that they named him "FORMIDABLE". THis word has the same meaning i French as it does in English.
However, the little guy did not develop and live up to his heavy and powerful name. It became a joe and teasing point for all the other children in the village. Since he was not pysically strong as his name might have implied, he was subject to constant persecution from the other kids. AS he grew older, the disdain with which he was treated continued. When he reached the age when young men begin to seek a mate, they forecast that no woman would ever choose him as a husband. To everyones suprise, however, he married the most beautiful young women in the village. This started another round of comment among the gossipers - "He will never be able to satisfy such a vital and beautiful young woman!" Again, he surprised everyone by having a very good marraige and in spite of his apparent weakness, his wife seemed quite contented with him.
Finally, he felt that his life was drawing to a close and he gave his wife strict instructions as to
his last wishes. He told her that under no circumstances should his name be put on his tombstone. He said that that name had been a burden to him all his life, a veritable millstone he had carried with him and he did not want it to follow him into the grave. When he passed, he was buried in the village cemetary, and if you were ot go there today, you could see the simple stone marking his grave. The inscription on it reads: "Here lies a man who kept one woman completely happy for over twenty years." If it happens thet there is a Frenchman standing there at the same time, you might hear him say, "Formidable!!"
