Sleeping Beauty
Oh, how wonderful! You’ve decided to join me for the next session! Sleeping Beauty should be here any moment! I’m sure her story will not leave you disappointed!
(A
low knock on the door is heard and Julie opens it almost
instantly. She peers around the heavy wooden door and
smiles at Sleeping Beauty.)
Julie: Hello, darling! You just missed our dear friend, Snow White!
Sleeping Beauty: Oh, I did?
Too bad! I wish I could have seen her on her way out
the door! Maybe next time!
Julie: Perhaps, dear. Now tell me, what brings you to my cozy little office?
Sleeping Beauty: Oh, it’s
my mother-in-law.
Julie: Oh, dear. What’s the matter? Please, start from the beginning, if you don’t mind.
Sleeping Beauty: Let’s see, I guess the story starts at my birth. My parents desperately wanted a child and found it very hard to have one; however, they finally had me. My parents asked all of the magical fairies they could find (they found seven) to bless me with a gift. My parents thought they found all of the fairies, but they missed one. This particular fairy was upset and put a wicked curse on me. She told my parents that I would have my hand pierced by a spindle and then I would die from the wound. Luckily, for both me and my parents, another fairy had the last gift to give. This wonderful fairy made it so I would not die from the spindle, but rather fall into a deep sleep for one hundred years. Then, at the expiration of my slumber, a king's son would wake me.
Julie: Please, continue.
Sleeping Beauty: So, no matter how hard my parents tried to shield me from exposure to a spindle, it happened. I fell into a deep sleep almost instantly and my parents had me moved to a room high in the tower of our castle. As the one hundred years passed, my prince finally came to wake me. We talked for what seemed to be countless hours and just grew so fond of each other in such a short amount of time. We had dinner that evening and then without wasting any time, we were married.
Julie: How lovely!
Sleeping
Beauty: Well, it all seemed so lovely in the beginning. My
dear
prince loved his parents, but was fearful of what his mother might have
to say about our marriage. He did not think she would
approve. We
kept our love hidden for about four years. During that time, we
had
two babies; first a girl named Morning, and then a beautiful boy,
Day.
My husband's father passed away and my husband was put in charge of the
kingdom. At this time, he announced that we had been married and
were
finally allowed to show our love for one another. Since that day,
my
mother-in-law has always seemed bitter with me.
Julie: How so, my dear?
Sleeping
Beauty: Well, she seems to always have an opinion about my
parenting
techniques. She always has a comment to make and never seems to
really
warm up to me. In the beginning, I tried very hard to gain her
approval; however, after a few years of being shot down, I gave up on
trying! I've just had enough with her.
Julie: Well, what does your husband have to say about all of this?
Sleeping Beauty: I think he knows it wears me thin, but he does not want to go against his mother. I just wish he would do something about it!
Julie: That's it! You must
tell him how you really feel about all of this. You said you
think he knows how you feel, but does he really? Maybe he does not
completely understand how upset she makes you.
Sleeping
Beauty: That sounds like a good idea. I've never said
anything
because I don't want to disrupt the relationship he has with his
mother, but this has gone too far.
Julie: Now, have you tried sitting down with your mother-in-law and telling her your thoughts as well?
Sleeping Beauty: Not
really. She is somewhat hard for me to deal with.
Julie:
Well, my dear. I think you should sit down and have a little chat
with
her. Even if she does not open up to you or seem to change her
ways,
you will know you did your best to try to change the situation! You
might be surprised, though. Sometimes all it takes is a little
communication!
Sleeping Beauty: That sounds like a great idea! I'm going to try that now! Thanks, Julie!
Julie: Anytime, my dear!
Oh, I just love helping these young women!
Author's Note: In the original story, the prince's mother is an ogress who eats children! She wants to eat Sleeping Beauty's children, and even tries to kill and eat Sleeping Beauty, too. In the end, the ogress is defeated and is eaten up by toads and snakes! I felt it would not fit with the modern day setting I have chosen for my storybook to have the mother-in-law try to eat the young children and then Sleeping Beauty. I think that topic might be more fitting for a police department rather than fairy tale therapy! Since the overall theme centers around the office of our therapist, Julie, I wanted to focus most of my attention on the problem facing the princess. I did include the basic ideas of the background because I want my reader to understand this version of Sleeping Beauty, but again, allow the princess to express her feelings. If you are curious, here are some more details about what happens in the original story. The original story takes place many years ago. Also, as mentioned previously, the original mother-in-law, who is an ogre, tries to eat both of the children and then asks to have Sleeping Beauty one night for dinner. The three manage to hide away in one of the servant's houses. The queen is fed something else in place of Sleeping Beauty and her children and is satisfied until one day she finds out that they are not really dead. She ordered them to be killed in a tub of snakes and serpents. As they were about to be placed in the tub, Sleeping Beauty's husband showed up and was outraged. The evil queen was so enraged with what was happening that she threw herself into the tub where the snakes and serpents ate her up!
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Image Information: Sleeping Beauty v5 Web Source: Flying Fotoman's Photostream
Story: Sleeping Beauty
Author: Andrew Lang
Book: The Blue Fairy Book
Date Published: 1889
Web Source: SurLaLune Fairy Tales