My niece’s second grade class did a project based on the children’s book Flat Stanley, a story about a little boy who wanted to travel. His parents were unable to take him, so he flattened himself down and mailed himself to where he wanted to go.
Paige chose me to mail the flattened version of herself to. I was to take the Flat Paige on adventures and document her experiences with pictures, video, or a story. These would be shared with the class.
I had a really fun time working on this. It entailed a trip to Crow Moon Healing because I knew Flat Paige’s adventure wouldn’t be complete without a visit to the four-legged crew who help Karen run the B&B. They are all very cute and have large personalities that are easy to write about.
Would Flat Paige find magic at Crow Moon?
Spoiler alert: She did.
But not in the way she expected.
A fairy godmother made an appearance in the second part of the “Magical Adventures of Flat Paige” with a message about winning and losing.
Often when we condense things down into their simple, uncomplicated essence (such as writing a children’s story), we find deeper spiritual truth.
There’s a lesson here for all of us about how to handle setbacks, losses and adversity and how to foster resiliency in ourselves and our children of all kinds – inner, biological, and of the heart.
And so, without further ado, here’s part of the story I wrote for my niece.
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THE MAGICAL ADVENTURES OF FLAT PAIGE
by Debra Morrill – December 2023
Paige decided to visit her aunt Debra, so she made a flat version of herself, hopped in an envelope, and mailed herself to Wisconsin.
Pippin the cat greeted her when she arrived and helped her to feel welcome.
Flat Paige wanted to try a board game, so we played Sorry. At first, Flat Paige was happy because she was ahead. But several draws of the Sorry card in a row knocked her back to her home space. She did not like that. She might lose!
There was suddenly a shimmer in the air. Was something magical about to happen? Yes! Her fairy godmother materialized.
The fairy godmother asked Flat Paige why she was so unhappy. “It’s because I lost!” yelled Flat Paige, crossing her arms over her chest.
And the fairy godmother said, “Would you like me to help you win?”
Flat Paige said jumping up and down, “Yes! Yes! Yes! Please do! I like to win!”
And so we played another game, and once again Flat Paige lost. She screwed up her face, turned to her fairy godmother and asked, “What kind of fairy godmother are you?!? I thought you were going to help me win!”
The fairy godmother smiled calmly and said, “You are a smart, bright, beautiful, curious little girl. Whether you win or whether you lose, you are still the same smart, bright, beautiful, curious little girl that you’ve always been.”
And then she leaned closer and added, “I’ll tell you a secret, Flat Paige. You win when you remember who you are. A game is just a game. You are always you.”
The wise fairy godmother made an offer to Flat Paige. “I’ll show you a little trick. When you feel upset because you’ve lost, put one hand on your heart and comfort the part of you that feels sad. Then put your other hand on your belly and remember who you are.”
Flat Paige tried it, and she felt better! It was just a game, after all.
And the fairy godmother winked at Flat Paige and reminded her that this was a trick she could share with others.
“Everyone is special and skilled at many things,” said the Fairy Godmother. “If you can accept your losses, shake them off, and play again, you will always be a winner.”
Flat Paige smiled. Something magical had happened for her.
And with that, the visit to Aunt Debra was over. She climbed into an envelope and mailed herself back to her family, having had a fun adventure.
She brought home with her the wisdom learned from the fairy godmother:
WIN OR LOSE, YOU ARE STILL YOU!
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This work is real, and it matters.