Dear Readers,

I should have known this was coming. Give in to one and then there’s another knocking at your door. Way back in the beginning of August, I let the Threshold Guardians have their say.

Seriously, it’s almost impossible not to let them as they’re always doing their infernal chattering:

You can’t write about that. Who do you think you are? You’re not qualified. Do you even have a degree?

But, they were so insistent, as always, I let them be my guest blogger on August 3rd. And now this…

Well, Glinda is certainly a different story. Here, let’s just let her say what she wants to say…

Meet Glinda, My Own "The Fairy Godmother".

Hey! Glinda, here.

Yes, that Glinda. The Good Witch, of the North. No, not like the Game of Thrones’ “Queen of the North”. That would be Sansa Stark. I mean The Wizard of Oz, L. Frank Baum, Good Witch of the North, me – Glinda.

Sort of like, Mary Poppins, Nanny McPhee, Cinderella’s Fairy Godmother…I’m part of that bunch.

Joseph Campbell, the dude who studied myths and fairy tales called us “magical helpers.” That works, sure - but I like The Fairy Godmother.

A Bit About Me

I know. That’s only in books you scoff…well, just suspend your disbelief for a moment. People like me always show up in a heroine’s life when our main character (that would be you) gets stuck or lost, or turns down some meandering path – or is just standing there, clueless, at a threshold crossing. We’re watching, shaking our heads, and thinking “Just what is she doing?”

Mary’s going, “It’s time to get the umbrella out and float on down.” Nanny M. is going, “Where’s my staff? I’m going to have to pound it soon enough!” Cinderella’s godmother is looking around for her wand and is still dressed in her ugly old crone persona.

I will be honest and tell you I don’t look like the movie version of Glinda. Don’t get me wrong — I love that look, especially the crown! And the dress! Love the dress! The voice…not so much. Yes, I’m more like Frank Baum’s book Glinda and I’m OK with that.

“The little woman’s hat was white, and she wore a white gown that hung in plaits from her shoulders; over it were sprinkled little stars that glistened in the sun like diamonds…her face was covered with wrinkles, her hair was nearly white and she walked rather stiffly.”

Where The Fairy Godmother Comes In

We also show up when the magic quotient of the world goes way down. I mean, when the ratio of people who believe in magic is far less than the people who don’t believe. We’re hovering around 28% (oops, it just went down to 27.5%!). It hasn’t been that low since the Industrial Revolution kicked off and machines became the answer to everything.

The balance, again, has really tipped in favor of the material – all those things you can see and touch but what about the unseen? Can you possibly think there is only the material?

Magic is what keeps your world running and humming and connected and working. It has different names. Nature runs on magic! Some call it Love, some call it Divine Power, Synchronicity, Intuition, Coincidence…regardless, it needs to be used and acknowledged and thanked.

We need to engage with magic to keep it alive and working in the world and inside of us. Magic is sending you a call and it’s time for you to pay attention.

Are You Ready For A Change?

I’ve been reading the clues you (unwittingly) left for me: you are watching way too much Netflix. (Though binge-watching The Queen’s Gambit is entirely acceptable in my book. Talk about a Heroine!)

You’re frustrated with Zoom, missing the human connection. Everything you write on Facebook sounds dumb to you. All your friends seem to be doing way better than you. Your job feels like a dead-end and you are thinking maybe they’re letting me go.

Ugh. You’re having more than one “two glasses of wine” nights. Having the kids home was great at first but then they – and just about everything else, became such a huge distraction and you’re feeling resentful. You don’t like feeling this way. Your world seems upended, turned around – and shaken.

Honey, it’s going to be OK.

That's Where A Fairy Godmother Comes In

So, I show up. Sometimes I’m the old bag lady who has a word or two for you as she passes you on the street. I might be so ugly you cross to the other side to avoid me and then miss my message. What’s that saying? Be sure to welcome strangers as you may be unaware that you’re entertaining angels – or something like that! (You do entertain angels - all the time!)

Sometimes I send you the words of a song that seem to drop in on you in the car even though you were hardly listening. Or maybe I’m that stranger in the supermarket that strikes up a conversation in the ice cream aisle and says something that just tilts your perception of things a bit and then isn’t it funny that you don’t run into her in another aisle or at the check-out?

Well, this time, I’m being more direct. You need an intervention, something more “in your face”. So here I am, dear Heroine. But we need a more modern update since you’ve grown up, quite a bit.

Let's Start Your Journey

I’m here to help you find your very own yellow brick road. I’m here to help, to support, to guide you on this leg of your journey. I’ve been watching and I think you’re losing yourself, again. You’re losing yourself in the hustle and bustle; in the overwhelm of the daily grind.

You’ve given in to what others want for you. You are putting your nose to the grindstone, quieting that inner voice, and pushing on, doing your duty, what you should be doing. You’re caring for a lot of folks.

You’re putting out — what are you giving to you? I bet you’re thinking you’ll have plenty of time for what you want, later.

But here’s the thing…you’ve been given a gift. A very unique gift — just for you. This life you’re living. You see, it’s a miracle that you’re here at all and along with each breath, each second unfolding, there’s another miracle, right there, under your nose. Yes, it’s called the present moment and it’s malleable.

You can use it to create life as you’d like it to be for you. But you’re just so busy. You’re letting it - your amazing gift of life — take a back seat.

I know you do it because of the very nature of life. It’s challenging, very challenging. I don’t want you to think I haven’t noticed how hard it has been for you at times. I’ve watched and loved you through it. I hope you felt my love and support. It was all around you. It always is, actually.

But the amazing thing is - the hard stuff is what it’s all about. The challenges, Dear One, are what creates the magnificent (and yes, hard) adventure which is what grows you up into your full Self – with a capital S!

It's Hard Making A Change

But it’s scary sometimes to be your big self so you like to stay right where you are, where
you’re familiar with the terrain. It also helps you stay safe so you don’t get noticed in case you say or do the wrong thing. You find your small corner of the world and you nest there. (We call this the Comfort Zone in my world.)

You get into watching reruns of your favorite shows or carpooling your kids to game after game or working late hours or whatever it is you do to distract yourself from paying attention to your journey and the steps you’re taking, or not taking, to fulfillment, to your fullest flowering.

Now, I need to talk fast because there are others besides me that aren’t that helpful. Have you heard of the Threshold Guardians? Their purpose is at odds with my purpose. They are most comfortable when you’re staying put and not thinking about growing and changing and birthing yourself into your heroine self. No, my lovely!

Let's Talk About Threshold Guardians

They don’t like you to entertain any of those thoughts! They'll come around like the evil queen in Snow White (really, weren’t those long fingernails a dead giveaway?) and give you something to help you fall back asleep, to help keep you distracted from finding your true brilliance.

They want you to buy into the message that you’re not good enough, not smart enough, not young enough….just not enough of whatever it takes to follow your dreams. They want you to just bite the damn apple and fall back asleep.

The Threshold Guardians could be an evil queen, your friends, your husband, your boss, your mother — any number of folks that want to keep you safe, small, making people happy, following their guidance instead of your own heart.

“You’re expecting too much out of life, sweetie, things are good for you now. Be happy with what you’ve got. The grass isn’t always greener on the other side of the fence.” My job is to give you the silver slippers and have you put them on your feet. Yes, they’re silver. The movie guys made them ruby. Here, put them on. They are yours.

Put On Your Slippers

No, of course, I don’t tell you how to use them. You’ve got to figure that out for yourself. Pray, meditate, walk in the woods… Everyone connects to the spiritual in their own way. I’m just telling you this support is here and to not avail yourself of it is, well…silly.

I know you’re a real-life Heroine and not a film Heroine. You can’t put on magic slippers. But what I’m trying to explain, from my world to yours, is that there is a power inside of you. And, if you nurture your connection with it, then you’ll have access to some pretty amazing wisdom that will help you in your life, on your journey.

The slippers represent this unseen power. This support is here for you. I’m part of it. OK, then - you’ve got my message, so now what? Ah, the path, the yellow brick road. Well, that’s easy.

Follow The Path Of The Heroine's Journey!

“What?”

The Heroine’s Journey. That’s the path. That’s the way you have to go. See, up there, over the hill. Can you see that gate, in amongst those gray stones? Yes, that’s the one, with the pink roses all over it. Watch the thorns. That’s the way. Just go through the gate. It will be there…the threshold…the beginning of your journey.

You have to cross over the threshold. It’s the way to your next adventure; your next “stretch” or “leap” for you as a developing human being. What? You don’t know why? Well, to answer your call. Right, your call. You wouldn’t be here listening to me if you hadn’t received a call.

What’s the call? Well, the call to expand, to grow, to move into your fuller self. It may be your soul calling you to be fully you. It’s different for everyone. Did you just have some illness or accident that jangled you enough so that you started to pay attention?

I don’t know what it was for you, everyone’s call is different, but I know that I wouldn’t be here if you were still sound asleep – like those that don’t even know they’re on a journey and that it’s important and they need to be awake, conscious and paying attention!

So go…with my blessing. No, I can’t come right now…just go ahead without me. I’ll check in with you later. But don’t worry, you’ll meet helpers along the way. It’s OK. You have to go through this part alone. It’s your journey. You have to take that first step by yourself.

The Fairy Godmother Says Open The Gate

Yes, that’s right, that’s the gate. You might have to shove it a bit. Bye, dear… see you later. This is your story. You’ll have to wear what you’ve got. I think you look great, just right. Sure, flip-flops are fine. And I don’t know about any prince. You’re about to start on your heroine’s journey.

It’s the journey to find your one true self, not your one, true prince – that’s someone else. Maybe he’ll appear but be careful, you want to know your one true self, first, and what she wants before you go hooking up with some prince because before you know it you’ll be
distracted again and have forgotten about your path, “your one, wild and precious life” – as the poet, Mary Oliver, another fairy godmother, calls it.

Can you see the gate? The roses are there, too – and the thorns. Ready to cross?