The Legend of Crying Stone
Once upon a time, in the small village of West Kalimantan. There lived an old woman named Mak
Dasah and her daughter, Jelita. Jelita has an extremely gorgeous face, but she also has bad
behaviors. She was too lazy to help her mother work hard to support their lives. Every day, she just
spends her time beautifying herself and admiring her beauty in the mirror. Besides being lazy, she
was also spoiled, she always asked to be given something that she wanted. If she wasn’t, she would
cry like a baby. Of course, those behaviors make Mak Dasah feel sad but she’s still loving Jelita no
matter what because Jelita is the only daughter that she had.
One day, Jelita asked her mother to buy a new gown for her. Mak Dasah rejected it, because what?
Obviously, because she didn’t have enough money for that. Nevertheless, because Jelita cried her
eyes out, Mak Dasah felt pity for her so she fulfilled her request. Then, Mak Dasah asked Jelita to go
to the market together. “All right, but I won’t walk beside you, you should walk behind me. I’m
embarrassed if others see me with you.” Jelita said. Mak Dasah feels sad after hearing her own
daughter’s words, however, Mak Dasah obeys her arrogant daughter again. So they went to the
market, Jelita walked in front of her mother who carrying a basket on her waist.
Although they are a mother and a daughter, they look very different. As if they didn’t come from the
same family. Even, they looked like a princess and a servant. How couldn’t be like that? Jelita
dressed up beautifully and wore a luxury gown while her mother looked old and wore a dishevelled
gown.
On the way to the market, a man comes and greets Jelita “Hey pretty girl, is that your mother?” asked
the man. Jelita gives him a cocky smile and says “Of course she is not, she is my servant “. Mak
Dasah was shocked yet disappointed to hear Jelita’s answer but she kept silent even though her
heart was crying. Along the streets, Jelita kept being asked by people about her mother, but Jelita
always said that the old woman behind her was her servant.
Finally, Mak Dasah couldn’t bear any longer to hear those answers that came out of her daughter’s
mouth. She knelt then prayed to god “Oh Lord, please, punish this arrogant and ungrateful child!
Make her as hard as her heart!” she said. Immediately, Jelita's legs turned to stone, the change came
slowly from her feet up to her head. Seeing her legs turned to stone, Jelita screamed “Oh no! What
happened to my legs?!” she shouted. Then she cried and realized that she had done something bad
that hurt her mother’s heart. “Mom, Please forgive me! I promise I won’t do that again, please!” she
cried in panic. Jelita kept crying and crying but it was too late, the whole body eventually became a
stone. Mak Dasah was sad and sobbed to see what happened to her daughter, but she couldn’t do
anything else. Although Jelita become a stone completely, people can still see her tears fall. That's
why the stone is named 'The Crying Stone'.
