Once Upon A Time...

Once upon a time there was a girl I knew, (well, a woman really but everyone thought she was younger than she was) who would never face up to anyone, or openly rant about someone or something, or would apologise profusely for causing offence or upset, or even for saying something awkward.

Not any more.  I am realising that this Fairy Tale will end very differently.
That girl is no longer, she is now a woman, a mother, a bereaved parent.
She no longer has her child in her arms, but she is developing a strength and a courage from somewhere.  She is starting to tell people how she feels, she is starting to tell people if something they have said isn't helping....she is starting to, because it doesn't happen all the time.....but when she had her child in her arms she was like the lioness, the attacker, the protector, the nurturer......she would pounce on anyone that did wrong by her cub......she is realising that she will continue to do that, because instead of protecting her litter, she is now protecting their memory.
She is growing nails so long, and a tongue so sharp, that I'm becoming sure that it will in time bring this woman some kind of momentum to keep on going, and to challenge others when needed.
She will protect the memory of her son with a vengeance.

This girl, who is now a woman, a mother, a bereaved parent, will no longer apologise for telling truths.  She will try to be honest at all times, and at all costs to be honest about her feelings, because she is realising that in this jungle...this is her only way to survive.

This woman is slowly gathering a bigger circle of friends, and they are friends because we share our experiences and our feelings, as well as our hopes and dreams, and also our nightmares.....these friends are extra special though because they are lionesses too.  They are protecting their cubs memories with the same viciousness as this woman is.  She is finding a common path to walk on with these women, and in this pack, she is sure they will all find a way, somehow, together.

This Fairy Tale might not have happy endings for everyone though, because sometimes one loss attracts another of a different kind, as some of these ladies know......or the pathway might only lead so far for some, because the true happiness part happened a bit earlier in their stories...

The theme for this story will continue to be unknown, it will continue to be an unfinished tale, and we will forever be creating new chapters....

But I do know this......because one of those Lionesses told me this morning.......sometimes people are more able to write their feelings, or are finding ways to become more able to speak truths to others.....
I will keep writing this story for all of us.  I will keep writing it just incase another lioness is looking for a pack to join, and is looking for others who have sharpened their nails and their tongues and are now protecting their cubs memory too...

We will find our 'Happysad Ever After'...somehow


and who knows....maybe some other animals in this jungle fairy tale might learn something new in the process.......

who knows..........that may be a whole new story......