wolfella and the broken glass slipper

It was not the first fairy tale that I have ever heard from my dad. As I can remember, the first one was Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs. Amongst those that he tells at night, the primer would always be "Cinderella." I have always been so fond of her and her stepsisters, and of course, the prince who saw her beautiful despite the soot on her face brought about by sleeping by the furnace. (Her name is Ella, but since her dad died, her wicked stepmother casted her out of all the decent bedrooms in the house to sleep with the cinders to keep the fireplace burning during the cold nights.)

According to Wikipedia, the oldest publication record of Cinderella's tale dates back 1634. Because of its worldwide impact and universal theme, many versions followed. When Cinderella stories made it to the cinemas, I had another favorite. In Ever After, Dougray Scott as the Prince and Drew Barrymore played Cinderella in the 1998 version of Charles Perrault's 1729 story. Yes, they lived so happily ever - but how about after?

As a child, I listen to my dad's stories. It was clear to me that his objective is for me to drift to sleep early so he and mom could have their moments together. What he does not know is that I just close my eyes to get rid of him too. When I hear the door shut, there begins my own fairy tale. I would pick up where dad left off. I become Cinderella. All of those, were of course, normal.

On an afternoon before I gave my new trainee KC's assessment for the course that I have just delivered, I asked, "In fairy tales, why are there always dragons to kill and wicked witches or stepmoms to thwart? Why aren't there scenes where the newly crowned princess gets to beat and whip the whore (black and blue until her eyeballs drop!) who tries to steal the affection of the prince? After all, the princess is no longer "the oppressed"?

Will the fairy godmother intervene? Will the prince stop flirting with the damsels of the court? Will there be another feast after the incident? Will the glass slipper land broken on the prince's face? I always wonder about these things when I was five, but I now that I don't wonder about them anymore, they become more real - - - well, not the dragons and the stepmoms, though. I just wish some fairy godmother will intervene before I take the whip and beat the hell out someone's eyeballs.

Yet, fairy tales must end with an "ever-after". It is with reality that Cinderella has transformed into a big bad wolf.