The idea of WoNderLand came to me one day when browsing fairytale imagery for hours. This became a way to take a break from In-Your-Face-Reality and restore my soul with meaningful mythology. Immersing myself in fairytale imagery was not wishful thinking. I was not dreaming of a Prince in Shining armor coming to my rescue as many people simplistically conclude. They are missing the point entirely. How shallow of them. Feed 'em to the trolls! No, what drew me into fairytales was the promise of transformation, the alchemy of change from timidity to courage. From despair to hope. From disbelief to faith. From victim to hero.
Today, extensive collections of fairy tales are being preserved in digital format. Several resources are listed on WoNderLaNd. Scroll down the links to find selected websites. There's probably at least one site that will suit your fancy and tickle your imagination. I am not a fairytale expert and WoNderLaNd is not intended to be an anthology of fairytales. The main purpose of WoNderLaNd is self-renewal: treating yourself to inspirational imagery, meaningful myth and taking exquisite care of your self by feeding your soul.
"What to do if you find yourself inside a fairy tale,” says Neil Gaiman, is “to touch the wooden gate in the wall you never saw before and say “Please” before opening the latch.”
Having found my way out of a midlife fairytale, let’s just say that one day, while doing nothing more peculiar than Saturday’s wash, my laundry room morphed into a sinister forest. What does a woman do in a situation like that? Well, being resourceful creatures, we search for secret passageways, collect talismans, diamonds, and toads-who-might-be-princes while carefully observing peculiar landmarks, committing the trail to memory lest we be forced return.
Trauma, including emotional trauma, breaks our connections to ordinary life. It's as if we've have fallen through a rip in the fabric of time, so to speak. And, it's no surprise meeting Cheshire cats disappearing in the moonlight, or leprechauns testing our virtue or vice. We're not even shocked when yellow brick roads appear, winding through trees throwing apples at ungrateful fruit thieves, so impolite.
Trauma, including emotional trauma, breaks our connections to ordinary life. It's as if we've have fallen through a rip in the fabric of time, so to speak. And, it's no surprise meeting Cheshire cats disappearing in the moonlight, or leprechauns testing our virtue or vice. We're not even shocked when yellow brick roads appear, winding through trees throwing apples at ungrateful fruit thieves, so impolite.
“Always say ‘Please’,” cautions Gaiman. Even innocents are bound by the rules of common decency, you see. There are no excuses for rude behavior when kindness is the mortal being’s royal birthright. Fairytales are our truest accounts of character transformation. Paupers become princes and scullery maids become queens. The uninitiated human is refined by the challenges of her journey, a royal crown signifying her success: mastery of the self. We refine our character on this journey by the smallest of choices we make. Shall I choose the left fork in the road or the right? Can I solve the riddle and find safe harbor? How we comport ourselves from the beginning of this adventure to the very end, matters. We are transformed. We have the power to choose the direction of our transformation.
WoNderLaNd was created to keep you company during your healing journey. To inspire and delight your sensibilities. To remind you that you are not alone. To impress upon you that the impossible is not; and, the possible most likely is. To reassure you that ordinary heroes still conquer demons, dragons and bedeviling villains as they have for centuries, always earning their escape but never without suffering wounds. Scars bearing witness of human betrayal and treachery. So what can you do when you find yourself trapped in a fairytale?
Love,
CZBZ
Resources
Instructions by Neil Gaiman
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