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This is more a short story than it is an essay. I've written it for all of you that still believe in fairy tales, and that they can and do come true.A Fairy TaleOnce upon a time, a little girl lived by the sea, in the City of Angels. She was blessed with all that any child could hope for - a strong father, a beautiful mother, a sister who adored her, and a home full of love and inspiration.
She was also blessed with a natural beauty and a talent for singing and entertaining others, and she soon realized that this was what she had been born to do. At night, in bed, she would dream of the day when she would be on stage singing and dancing for her adoring fans, who loved her for the joy she brought them. During the day, she spent her time practicing, perfecting the skills that she would need to be the very best she could be. Nothing less than the best was good enough for her dream fans, and she did not want to let them down. All the while, she remained a regular girl, going to school, making friends, playing sports, and teasing the boys. She was popular because of her caring nature and concern for the welfare of others that her parents had taught her, and she was well respected because of her talent and willingness to work hard to make her dreams come true.
Life was good for the little girl. That is, until one summer when three of her cousins came to stay. At first, she and the cousins got along very well indeed. But that ended the day the cousins brought home a pet - a nasty little lizard with green eyes they had named Jealousy. One day, everything was wonderful and life was good. The next day, ...well, the next day was something entirely different.
At the breakfast table, the three cousins sat with their new pet. "Go ahead, tell her what we talked about last night. Let her know how you really feel," said the lizard. And so began the first of many days that would leave the girl miserable, and crying herself to sleep at night.
Her cousin Imagene said to her, "You know, you think you're so pretty, but you're not as pretty as me. In fact, you're not pretty at all. You're ugly, ugly uuuugly. That's what I think."
"Not only that," said the middle cousin Buliminia, "you're fat, too. You're such a whale. How do you think you're going to be a star looking like that? Fatso, fatso, faaaatso. And that's what I think."
"Yeah," said the youngest, Quiticia, "you should just give up. You think your dreams are going to come true? You've got to be kidding. People like you shouldn't even have dreams. You're just a loser. Loser, loser, looooser. That's not what I think, that's what I know."
And so it went on, day after day, night after night. Life became almost too much to bear. One night after she had fallen fitfully asleep and returned to the nightmares that used to be dreams, she was awakened by a gentle hand on her shoulder.
"Wake up. Wake up my dear girl."
As she wiped the sleep from her eyes and looked around the room, lit with a soft moonlight that flowed over everything even though the curtains were drawn, her eyes came to rest on the most beautiful woman she had ever seen, sitting on the edge of her bed.
"Who are you?" she asked nervously. "And what are you doing in my room? Please, I have enough problems without your adding to them."
"Don't worry, my precious one. I'm not here to harm you. I'm your fairy godmother," said the woman, whose golden hair flowed over her shoulders and cascaded down a shimmering, silver and pearl-encrusted gown. "I've been watching you and I know that it hasn't been easy for you the past few months. I would have come sooner, but it wasn't time. You think right now that everything you've ever hoped for, every dream you've ever had, has been a waste of time. But I know something you don't. For now, don't listen to your cousins. They're just trying to make you fail. Now, go back to sleep. We'll meet again, and when we do, you'll know what I know."
"Why can't you tell me now?" said the girl. But the glow in her room was gone, and she was alone once again.
And so, she kept on with following her dreams, more determined now than ever before. It wasn't easy, because everywhere she went, her cousins always followed. "Uuuugly, faaaatso, looooser." She went to school to learn how to be a better singer, actor and dancer, and the cousins were there. "Uuuugly, faaaatso, looooser." She tried out for, and received, parts in musicals, and the cousins were there. "Uuuugly, faaaatso, looooser." Many times she failed, but her godmother's words stayed with her, and she vowed to never quit.
One day, she had the opportunity to try out for a part that was far greater than any she had tried out for before. And to her surprise, she suddenly had the chance to perform in front of millions. All she had to do was...do it. Of course, the cousins tried everything they could to make her fail. "Uuuugly, faaaatso, looooser. Uuuugly, faaaatso, looooser."
And so it was, after hearing those words for years, something finally snapped. Loudly, and with rage and anger.
"Hey! I've had enough of you three. I'm not ugly. I'm not fat. I'm not a loser. Just who do you think you're talking to? I'm going to make my dreams come true. I'm going to be a star. And you know something... there's not a thing you can do to stop me. Nothing. You think your words hurt me? No. You think I care what you think? No. Go home. Go on. Now. Go."
And like that, they were gone. Out the door, down the sidewalk, around the corner and...gone. Walking a lizard on a leash.
And too, like that, her dreams began to come true. She sang to millions. She adopted a song from a fairy tale and made it her own. She traveled around the country singing her song, and people came from far and wide to give her standing ovations. She had photographers standing in line to capture her beauty. She was offered endorsements by those who wanted her to be the image of their products.
And yet, one little thing kept nagging her in the back of her mind. One little thing her godmother had said to her years ago.
One night, sitting alone at her computer and reading the posts on her favorite fan site dedicated purely to her, the screen on her monitor faded out to be replaced by the image of her fairy godmother.
"Hello. I heard that you were looking for me."
"Well, yes I was," said the girl, now grown into a young lady. "I wanted to let you know that I think I finally understand what you were trying to tell me all those years ago."
"I knew you would, if you just kept at it, my dear," said the woman in silver.
"It took a while, but I finally figured out that those mean cousins of mine didn't really exist. Not in the real world - just in my head. Why didn't you just tell me that when you visited in my bedroom?"
"Well, you see, some things you just need to learn on your own. God gave you beauty and talent, and no one can take them away. But there are other things you needed to learn if your dreams were to come true; courage, self-confidence and determination. I couldn't give them to you. Only you could do that. If I had told you, it wouldn't have been the same as learning it on your own. Now you have everything you need to follow your dreams and make them real. Now you have what you need to make your star shine.
"You've done well. I'll never forget you. You can trust that I'll always be here for you, Katharine Hope McPhee. Now go, and light up the sky."
Once upon a time by the sea, in the City of Angels, a night sky full of stars was made brighter by the addition of one more star, brighter than most, and twinkling just a little more brilliantly. When you look up, find that star and remember that courage, self-confidence, determination and the gifts that God has given are all you need to make a dream, or a fairy tale, come true.