meaning is meaningless 

at least that’s what a lot of academics and experts have to say

they say that finding meaning in a fairytale is all rubbish

and that looking for it is just an exercise in self-indulgence 

we’ll only find what we want to find, they say

and whatever we do find be will be pure fantasy

a flaky figment of our own imagination

a self-delusional fiction

and...to be academic about it: utterly specious

in other words

a crock

hooey!

whatever...

but I’m not buying it

why look for meaning?

fairytales are something of an obsession with me

maybe with you, too

I find them both fascinating and frustrating

fascinating, because they magically touch something very personal and sensitive deep down inside every one of us

frustrating, because that magical effect is still so very tantalizing, mysterious and hard to grasp

now normally, there are 2 ways of dealing with that frustration:

     a. we can read a favorite fairytale over and over and over

that way we get a repeated dose of magic whenever we want

it’s just naturally how we do it as kids

and it’s the same thing we sometimes do as adults with a favorite book or movie

     b. we can turn our backs on fairytales

which is pretty much just surrendering to our frustration 

but that’s a huge shame because most of us still want that magic

we just don’t trust fairytales to deliver it any more

there’s a third option, though, and it’s guaranteed to knock your socks off:

     c. we can look for meaning  

hey, I’m serious

looking for meaning is the very key to fairytale magic

but what about the experts?

academics and experts have an awful lot of important things to tell us about fairytales

but they’re wrong about meaning

and the reason they’re wrong is they’ve never found the kind of meaning I’m talking about

it’s not that they can’t

it’s just too difficult

it’s also pretty time consuming

and to be fair to them, they’ve already got plenty of other fish to fry

so do you

but if you’re serious about the magic you absolutely need the meaning

and I have a foolproof method of finding it 

it’s a secret — but one that you already know, even if you’ve already forgotten it

don’t worry though, I’m going to help you to remember

but first let me give you a hint:

it’s not “the moral”

the immorality of “the moral” 

that glib one-liner known as “the moral of the story” is a literal dead end

an exasperatingly smug, pedagogic cliché that nobody really wants or needs

like some anonymous Dutch uncle, it not only bursts a child’s bubble after “Once upon a time,” it’s blatant hypocrisy

please! 

what adult actually lives up to those priggish victorian precepts? 

and as a misguided summary of meaning it not only short changes us, but always pretends to an authority it simply doesn’t merit

I don’t pretend to any authority, but, like you, I know magic when it hits me

and geeze! you don’t need me to tell you there’s no magic in “the moral”

but what about the mystery?

finding meaning in a fairytale doesn’t kill the mystery

or the magic

in fact I always, always, always find magic in meaning

how? you ask

by using the secret: 

* resonance *

if it doesn’t resonate

if it doesn’t move you

if it comes across as flat or boring or dull 

or even if it’s wild, but obviously improbable

it’s not the true meaning

trust me

if you use resonance as your compass and touchstone you’ll always find your way to something fascinating, magical and true 

my method 

I treat fairy tales the way I treat dreams

I never know what a dream means

I only know that by going through its details, step by step, I eventually find a magically healing story

a meaning

but that story — that meaning — only heals if it resonates

and it takes a lot of time to find meaning because I examine every detail

but that’s what makes this method unique

in fact, it’s an awful lot like an archaeologic dig

each detail is a priceless artifact that points in the direction of a meaning that resonates     

and so I analyze fairytales the exact same way

I take them line by line, detail by detail, metaphor by metaphor

teasing out that story

sussing out that meaning

picking out what resonates

and that’s why I named this site: betweenthelines

because that’s where all the magic is

hiding in plain sight

in all the little details 

presto change-o

whether you find my discoveries to be delusional hooey or fascinating observations   

they resonate with me

maybe with you too

all in all, I find them just too good to keep to myself

so...

I'm delighted to have participated in a sweet conversation on the podcast: Quarantine Phone Calls...

If you'd like to listen in and learn more about me and what I've been up to, please do take a listen: