Writers see themselves as powerful, boasting that the pen is mightier than the sword, even though a single bullet would silence us. Nevertheless, there are four words that make almost everything possible: "Once upon a time.."
"Those words are powerful?" you ask in disbelief. Yes, they are.
They are powerful because "Once upon a time" launches us into other worlds and galaxies, near or far in geography and time, real or imaginary. Once upon a time leads to your grandfather's war stories or the day you were born, to a fairy tale or mystery or science fiction novel, or to a fleeting moment we would forget if we did not tell the story. "Once upon a time..." stops the clock, forces us to listen, to create with our minds something our eyes are not seeing.
Supposedly, Albert Einstein encouraged the reading of fairy tales as a way to stimulate children's creative imagination so that they would grow up to be scientists. He saw nothing frivolous about these flights of fancy into worlds that did not exist. Rather, he considered such reading essential.
It is the phrase "Once upon a time..." that reconnects us with worlds where everything is possible, where reality does not hold sway, and the laws of nature do not always determine the outcome. It is a powerful place to be, and one we abandon too soon. To return, we need only say the magic words: Once upon a time...
I'm Frances Jaeger, and this is my Perspective.
