Mississippi was a very lucky pony. She lived on a farm with kind owners and lots of friends. Every day she was surrounded by lush green grass and blue skies. Sparrows sang as they flew about and hip-hopped through the grass. Mississippi could not have had it better. But that's not what she thought.

Mississippi was a vain little pony. She thought very highly of herself. "How beautiful I am" she said to herself one day, "How brilliant and strong I am. I should be a queen! I deserve more than dirty grass. I should have a golden chariot in which I ride in, but no! To find my rightful riches I must travel on foot! What a disgrace!" And she turned up her nose and squeezed under the gate.

She walked for a while and then glanced at her hoof. "Ugh!" she exclaimed, "There is dirt on my beautiful hoof!" and as she said this her hooves turned pure white. "How unfair!" she grumbled, "Now the dirt is easy to see!". Growling under her breath she continued on her way toward riches.

Soon she stopped to remove grass and burs from her mane. She began to complain again. "A queen deserves more than this. Look at this mat! It even had mud stuck here!". Suddenly, the patch of her mane which she had just complained about turned the milkiest white. Burs and mud showed plainly all over it. "This is making me ugly! I do not deserve this." she whined, but she continued on her way.

Brushing her mane to one side Mississippi moved on. Her tail dragged the ground and the way was hard and difficult to travel. Soon she grew very hungry. "Oh no!" she moaned, "I must stoop to the level of a peasant. How unfortunate this icky grass is the only thing to eat. I should be dining on the finest of hay!". Despite this complaint, she lowered her mouth to the grass and nibbled a bit. It didn't taste half bad, but she refused to admit it. "I have been contaminated!" she announced, "Such dirty food this is. And my flowing tail has sticks in it! Oh, poor me.". Right away, as the words left her lips, her tail and muzzle turned a brilliant white. "No!" she wailed, "Now I am ugly, for the sticks in my elegant tail are visible!"