lady of the lake

“Oh yes, I’ve seen her many, many times,” Mrs. Carlsen tells me with pride, “I doubt anyone is counting – I know I’m not – but I’m sure I’ve seen her more than just about anyone alive today!” The girl that Mrs. Carlsen refers to having seen so many times is a long dead Native American Princess that haunts the waters of one of the largest lakes in Minnesota, Mille Lacs. She’s very sparse on the details of the Princess’ story. She quickly explains that the Princess was left on an island in the lake by a Prince to keep her from harm’s way during a battle. When the battle was complete, and the Prince victorious, he was to return for her and they were to be married. Mrs. Carlsen describes that as days passed, the Princess soon came to realize her Prince must have been killed in the battle, and that she would be stranded on the island. Unable to swim, the Princess sat down and died of heartbreak