Not a magic cup but a magic pot producing gold or valuables was a promise my grandma made with me when I was little. I remember the deep anxiety when I learned immortality of humans. So, I asked my grandma, "What happens when you are gone? Who is gonna be with me?" Just because my mum got seriously sick after she had my second brother, she went back to her parent's home and I was left with my grandparents. It was not much trouble to me because I was always with my grandma after my brothers were born anyway. She was the whole world to me thinking I would be like Oliver Twist or Anne Of Green Gables without her. This innocent question was answered,
"I promise I will make sure to send gold or valuables as much as you need from the heaven where every one of us has a magic pot. The magic pot will give you what you need."
I had no doubt about her promise since I was living in a world of stories that my mum read for us whenever she could. All those stories got the same ending, "And she lived happily ever after." This straightforward ethics that your life will be fulfilled as long as you are a good girl or a boy sounded so "right" to my simple and pure mind back then.
After many years, I feel that there are many exceptions and various perceptions of "good" depending on the circumstance one lives in. In other words, there are so many incidents that make no sense to me because some "good" people end up in tragedy. But the alternatives sound hopeless and unbearable: "Bad wolf gets what he wants and lived happily ever after", "Anne was sent back to the orphanage because of her excessive imagination." or "Heidi could not see her grandpa again." What can this world be without hopes from picture books? As Norton says, children's literature "contains numerous moments of crisis, when characters make moral decisions and contemplate the reasons for their decisions," an important skill for children to see modeled (2010, p. 34). I'd rather tell stories to children where they can develop rather compassionate, empathetic and positive perceptions of the world we live in.
There are countless tragedies and terrible events we might go through in our lives. But equally, there are countless joys and heartful events we can experience in our lives. We can see more luck and happiness when you can find the magic pot in the inside of your heart.
After many years, I feel that there are many exceptions and various perceptions of "good" depending on the circumstance one lives in. In other words, there are so many incidents that make no sense to me because some "good" people end up in tragedy. But the alternatives sound hopeless and unbearable: "Bad wolf gets what he wants and lived happily ever after", "Anne was sent back to the orphanage because of her excessive imagination." or "Heidi could not see her grandpa again." What can this world be without hopes from picture books? As Norton says, children's literature "contains numerous moments of crisis, when characters make moral decisions and contemplate the reasons for their decisions," an important skill for children to see modeled (2010, p. 34). I'd rather tell stories to children where they can develop rather compassionate, empathetic and positive perceptions of the world we live in.
There are countless tragedies and terrible events we might go through in our lives. But equally, there are countless joys and heartful events we can experience in our lives. We can see more luck and happiness when you can find the magic pot in the inside of your heart.
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