Another brilliant piece from a GUNNAS WRITING MASTERCLASS writer.
Once upon a time there was a girl who was born too early. She was born at a time when women wore corsets, never spoke their minds and certainly did not do anything to improve their minds.
But this girl was born smart, funny and fearless. She refused to compromise these parts of herself, her being, for anyone. Her parents tried to tame her early on, but she climbed the tallest trees, read the greatest books and sung at the top of her lungs. She loved to play the clown when visitors came by, which of course caused great embarrassment to all of her family.
Every day she would be told, “Don’t”. “Don’t get your clothes dirty”, “Don’t mess up your hair”, “Don’t scream”, “Don’t run”, “Don’t be you”. But she never compromised. No matter what they said or did; she would not break.
Until one day, when she was about nine-years-old, her craggy old aunt told her about an evil sorceress she had heard about, who was going around the town asking where she could find girls with spirit. The sorceress planned to trap these girls and use their souls for a magic potion that would give her eternal youth and great power that would eventually destroy the entire town where the girl and her family lived.
From that point forward, the girl with spirit compromised herself. You see, despite the constant nagging she had received from her family she still loved them dearly and did not want to see her family and friends destroyed. So because of that, she slowly conformed and grew into a compliant young woman. And a sad young woman. She bit her tongue whenever she felt an argument rising from her chest; she gripped her chair whenever she saw her brothers running off to play games and climb trees; and she simply jiggled her leg whenever she heard music that made her want to dance with joy. And because of that she became quiet and withdrawn.
Now her parents started to worry even more than when she had been her true self. Their previously healthy and happy young daughter was now the saddest young woman they knew. They tried everything they could to bring back the daughter they once knew. They tried making her laugh, they tried encouraging her to read and learn new and exciting things, they tried to make her play games and sing with her brothers. But nothing worked.
Until finally the old aunt confessed to the untrue story she had told the young woman when she was just a girl. Her parents were elated and immediately set about convincing the girl that in fact her old aunt had been the evil one and there was no sorceress. They reminded her of the vibrant and spirited young girl she had once been and pleaded her to return to her old self.
The young woman’s response was immediate. She let out a guttural, primal wail that quickly turned into the most beautiful song her parents had ever heard. It was as if she was releasing every part of her being that had been compromised by her aunt’s evil tale. The woman that emerged thereafter was strong, happy, and intelligent and every bit as powerful as any imagined sorceress could ever be.