Halloween 2019: Alice In Wonderland
Added 2019-10-31 16:59:06 +0000 UTCAlice was a girl who did what she liked and liked what she did. She had lots in common with plenty of people, like drinking coffee and eating cake, but often had problems fitting in because (as is so often the case) people do like to think that everyone can fit into a neat little box. But not Alice. Too naughty for the nice people, but too nice for the naughty, Alice tended to find herself drifting off into her own little bubble where anything was possible and she could do as she pleased. It made her quite shy and isolated, but she was happy.
One afternoon, Alice decided to teach herself to play Bridge. She had no particular desire to do so, but it had looked fun in an old television programme and she just happened to have an old rulebook on the shelf. But Bridge is a complicated game, not a bit like Snap, and Alice soon found herself feeling infuriated with all that talk of bids and rubbers and compass directions. In fact, it made her head spin so much that she found herself falling. Down, down, down and suddenly, thump! Down she came upon a heap of sticks and dry leaves, and the fall was over.
Alice was now in a magical land beyond her wildest imagination. But she was not scared, for there were plenty of familiar items around her that made her feel pleasantly at home. Particularly cake. Picking up a delicious-looking pink muffin (considerately made with beetroot instead of poor, crushed beetles) it was inevitable that Alice would give in to temptation. It tasted as good as it looked, but a most extraordinary thing happened. Alice began to grow! Not outwards at the belly (Alice had an excellent metabolism), but up and up and up. She soon towered above everything and felt quite confident and invincible with this new-found power.
Alice decided to explore the land to discover the other wonders that could be waiting. She met a great deal of interesting characters, including those she had previously only seen in the pages of a book or through a screen. Alice did not think she would have much in common with them, coming from a completely different world, but everyone from the little rabbit to the strange monster pretending to be a cat were thrilled to be in Alice's company. Although admittedly, the little rabbit was quite intimidated by Alice's dominating presence at first.
Unbeknownst to Alice, her new-found popularity had brought her to the attention of the Queen Of Hearts. The queen was an evil and bitter person who resented the attention that Alice was receiving. She was convinced that her subjects would forget about her and choose to worship the pretty newcomer instead. But Alice was just being herself, she couldn't help being in possession of a naturally sparkling personality and had no desire to be the ruler of a magical land. Just imagine the paperwork! But still the queen tortured Alice with her negative thoughts and made sure that everyone knew how she felt, even resorting to spying on her through keyholes when she thought nobody was looking .
"Oh, to be small and insignificant again!" thought Alice, as she fondled a tiny bottle of fizzy beverage. She continued with this train of thought as she glugged away, only to find the room getting bigger, or so she thought. This was a most alarming turn of events. Just imagine being the size of a doll! But it allowed Alice to hide. She was sure that she would no longer attract attention and looked forward to the queen leaving her alone. After all, it had always worked for her before.
To Alice's surprise, her plan did not succeed this time. The not-so-little rabbit and monster cat still loved to be in her company. They didn't care if Alice was the size of an ant or a house, as long as she was happy. Of course, when you have an evil queen breathing down your neck, it is much harder to keep a smile on your face. Alice tried her best, trying to cheer herself up with new high-heeled boots and white stockings, and it was impossible not to laugh when the monster cat giggled as she tickled his belly. But deep down, Alice just wanted to escape and return to her own world.
Alice consumed every cake and drink she could find in an attempt to forget about her troubles. Some tasted better than others, some made her feel giddy and one even gave her the unavoidable urge to flash her stocking tops. Some days were bad, others were good. Some days were small, others were big. But still she was trapped. "This land has changed me", thought Alice as she slumped to the floor after a particularly exhausting bout of inexplicable dancing. "I shall never find my way out."
When Alice awoke, she was surprised to find that she was a normal size and her faithful rabbit and monster cat were nowhere to be seen. Seeing her Bridge book at her side, Alice wondered if she had been dreaming. It certainly seemed real and she could remember everything clearly. But here she was, back in familiar surroundings with the bittersweet feeling of being free of the evil queen but disconnected from the good she had experienced in that magical world.
Just as she started feeling sorry for herself, she looked down to see her high-heeled boots and silk white stockings. "I really have changed!" exclaimed Alice, as she realised that the confidence had been within all along. It had just needed a little helping hand to show itself and she was determined to never let it disappear again, wherever she might find herself in the future.
