No, please, your Majesty, do not tie your golden slipper around my neck to commend me for my performance. The tears that I see in your eyes when I am singing are the only reward I would ever wish to receive!

Do you not understand the weight of your praise around my tiny neck? It cannot be borne!

The Nightingale in The Nightingale, Hans Christian Andersen. Illustration by W. Heath Robinson.