Cinderella

Cinderella was my FAVORITE movie when I was little - so little that I couldn't even say "Cinderella" (and so little that DVDs weren't around yet). Instead I called it the 'Rella' movie. I'm not sure exactly why it was my favorite movie back then. It's probably because I knew deep within my little heart that I too am a princess. Who knows.

I watched Cinderella not too long ago and it really caused me to think. Why is it that most girls love princess fairytales? Is it because of all the fancy dresses they wear? Is it the diamond crown or the pretty shoes? Is it the perfectly handsome prince?

Now hear me out as I analyze the Cinderella story: (I know that this story is completely fictional, just go with it okay) Here is someone who has almost nothing to live for:
- she has no family, other than her mean step-mother and annoying step-sisters who don't love her
- she has no prospects, I mean she cooks and cleans for people who could care less about her, she has no other job options unless she does the same thing for someone else, and where, when, or how is she going to meet a guy unless he just randomly stops by her place
- her only friends are animals and because this is a fictional tale she's lucky that her mice friends talk back to her

As I was watching this movie I thought, where is the hope in all this? Despite the fact that she has practically nothing to live for, she keeps living. The first song she sings is all about hope:

"A dream is a wish your heart makes when you're fast asleep. In dreams you will lose, your heart aches. Whatever you wish for, you keep. Have faith in your dreams and someday the rainbow will come shining through. No matter how your heart is grieving, if you keep on believing, the dream that you wish will come true."

And so she continues to have hope that one day her dreams will come true. She has the chance to go to the ball and then that chance is crushed by her step-mother and step-sisters. And just as she's falling apart and losing all her hope that her life can change, her fairy godmother appears (don't we all wish we had one of those?). She goes to the ball, has the perfect dress and looks absolutely fabulous (thank you Disney for helping us all feel good about ourselves even while we're watching cartoons), meets Mr. Perfectly Handsome Prince, dances the night away, and even manages to have time to fall in love and escape without anyone finding out who she is. Oh, and she loses one of her glass slippers (but it's okay because that comes in handy later on in the story).
Lucky for Cinderella, she made such an amazing impression on Mr. Perfectly Handsome Prince that he's convinced he's in love with her and wants to marry her! Wow, what a first date that was! So the duke has to try the glass slipper on every girl in the kingdom blah blah blah Cinderella has another glimpse of hope because that means that she gets to try on the slipper that (miraculously) only fits her. But then, just when things are looking good, the evil step-mother interferes and life goes from good to BAD. That's pretty close to hitting rock bottom: having your dreams within sight and having them disappear within minutes. But never fear! This is a fairytale so a miracle happens and her little mice friends are able to rescue her just in the nick of time! And our Cinderella lives happily ever after with Mr. Perfectly Handsome Prince who she fell in love with within a few hours of meeting him.

If only real life were like that right?

Or maybe it is...

Not so like a fairytale that we have animal friends that talk to us or fairy godmothers who appear when we need them and fix all our problems. But how many of us feel a little helpless like Cinderella does at any given point in the story? We can't see our future, who knows if our dreams are just around the corner or if Mr. Perfectly Handsome Prince will come into our lives tomorrow or within the coming years? The point is that we can't give up. Because we really don't know what the future has in store for us. And maybe something wonderful will happen.

And this is why I love Cinderella. Because even though it's completely fictional, it brings me hope. I admire this fictional character because she has the courage to keep going even when life feels like it couldn't get any worse.

"No matter how your heart is grieving, if you keep on believing, the dream that you wish will come true."