Happily Ever After
Posted on 2004-05-11
Fairy tales of courageous knights in shining armour rescuing damsels in distress. Chaste maidens longing to meet a prince. Ugly ducklings who turn out to be beautiful swans afterall. Tales of heroic acts, poisoned apples and fire-breathing dragons. I was entertained for many hours with childhood stories that always began 'Once upon a time.....' Those four magical words always transporting me to far away lands of make-believe.
But life isn't a fairy tale. What becomes of the prince and his princess after the story ends with 'And they all lived happily ever after.'???
Throughout my childhood I knew they were just stories. I knew they belonged to a world of fantasy, and yet even now I can't help but dream of my own prince. I can't help but imagine that one day I will meet my knight in shining armour.
Do I think that he would rescue me and whisk me away to his castle in the clouds where we will live a life of pure happiness for all eternity??? Of course not. Life isn't about being unable to sleep because there's a pea under the mattress. It isn't about singing into a wishing-well whilst longing for one's prince, and it definitely isn't about growing hair so long that my loved one would be able to climb to the tower in which I'm trapped. But perhaps they are all metaphors for something even deeper. Perhaps.....
There may be a knight riding around on his faithful steed, but underneath all that armour is a man of flesh and blood, who feels, who has a past of his own, who sometimes fails, who sometimes succeeds, who is capable of loving a woman who, in his eyes, mind and heart, was the only one meant for him.
A man who comes running with concern when I anxiously call out to him. A man who is ready to listen when I need to share more about my past or even my fears. A man who can hug me so tight that it takes my breath away. A man who is confused when I turn away, unwilling to communicate. A man who is only human, with a human heart.
There can be a 'Happily ever after', I truly believe that.
I wonder whatever became of Snow White and Prince Charming??? The little girl in me would love to know.