The obvious themes from this story are ones of greed and bullying, and indeed these are great lessons to take away. The story is also about prudence and doing what it take to overcome obstacles in your path. But for now, I want to focus on the troll and the Big Billy Goat Gruff. In […]
We are probably all aware of the expression “to carry the weight of the world on your shoulders”. This originates from the Greek myth where Atlas was punished by Zeus to bear the weight of the heavens on his shoulders. Irrespective of whether Atlas carried the heavens or the earth on his shoulders, the effect […]
There are so many lessons that can be learnt from the Ugly Duckling. From accepting people for their qualities, values, friendship and humility, not how they look. That appearances can be misleading. The importance of self-acceptance, resilience and the beauty of transformation. That some of us are late bloomers. That words can really hurt. This […]
The story of Rumpelstiltskin is a well-known fairy tale. For many, the themes of this story are about power and greed (the miller, the King and Rumpelstiltskin) or about telling the truth and taking responsibility for your actions (the miller’s daughter). My take away from this story is the power in naming someone or something. […]
The Boy Who Cried Wolf In Aesop’s Fables, “The Boy Who Cried Wolf”, a young shepherd boy is sent to tender sheep near a dark forest not far from the village. He finds his days long and lonely with no one talk to and nothing to do. And so he decides to “cry wolf” so […]
Those of you that know me well, may be amused at this post because I am not known for giving up easily and have been described as gritty, determined, tenacious even. Perhaps I am growing up but when I look at the image of Sisyphus endlessly pushing the rock up the hill, I do question […]
The limited time I have had in Tokyo has made me yearn for more time to explore this amazing rich culture. I think that the shrines and sacred forests that exist in the midst of the hustle and bustle say a lot about the culture. One particular art form that has long held an appeal […]
This is the start of something that has long fascinated me, the lessons we can learn from myths, legends and fairytales. Beyond the usual we glean from Aesops fables, I am looking at stories from Rumplestiltskin to Sisyphus, but let’s begin with Goldilocks. Are you all sitting comfortable, then let us begin… Although Artistotle is […]
Is untethered a feeling of being ungrounded, unrooted? Or is it the freeing feeling of being unbound, unrestrained? I guess, as with everything, it comes down to perspective. Losing my father, my stable source, at a young age left me feeling untethered; definitely more of the ungrounded, unrooted meaning of untethered. I felt as though […]
Not that I fully understood it at the time but from a young child I was encouraged by my father to “walk my why”. He was one of those very rare people who I think definitely walked his why, and quite possibly reached what Maslow would have called self-actualisation. The fact that his final words […]