Whenever Dreams Come

Once upon a time, I believed fairy tales always had happy endings. To the best of my limited knowledge there were never any sad sagas like the current 2020 version.

Nor have I ever forgotten any of the stories Dad read to me nightly for the first five years of my life.

I always slept peacefully after hearing about tortured Princesses with long golden braids being rescued from evil stepmom’s, or villainous wizzards. Each of the delicate damsels awoke with unbated joy the moment a handsome prince (often nameless or Charming or Lancelot) arrived to save them from poisoned fruit, a remote tower or a wicked sibling.

That was usually when the story ended with the words “And they all lived happily thereafter.”

Now I am discovering that perhaps the heroine’s tiaras soon became too heavy, even those lacking emeralds and merely encrusted with diamonds

Since I have never worn a tiara or desired one, I must acknowledge that there is a distinct possibility that when the sun goes down, a crown might become uncomfortable.

I only know that one magic moment when a tall handsome bridegroom murmured, “You look like a princess,” my world was complete. I didn't need a crown or a tiara.

A very long time ago on a cold January night, two little girls walked side by side on a snowy dark NYC street after viewing the original “Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs” in a midtown theater

Joan and I held hands as we skipped and chanted “Someday Our Prince Will Come” until reaching the front door of 450 W. 58th Street

My Aunt, Helen King, had taken both of us to see the newly released 1937 film in a Broadway theatre, and her generosity provided a memory two youngsters embraced for years to come.

The dreams shared that night came true before too many years had passed when two noble princes arrived to claim their brides.

Neither arrived in a gold carriage or rode a white steed, but instead appeared on the same block traveling not from a remote land but rather a neighboring kingdom, the Borough of Queens.

So perhaps I approach today’s onslaught of news with a certain negativity. If so, I do apologize, but then I admit to always having been a firm believer in fairy tales and happy endings.

During the lifetime that has passed since that cold night when two little girls dared to dream, I have since been taught that although kingdoms may differ, and crowns are rarely encrusted with jewels, we all have both.

Perhaps their eventual weight is to remind us that we also carry responsibilities and burdens when ever dreams come true.