Most of us get our earliest life lessons from fairy tales(童话故事). However, when we grow up, we start to learn new things about life, especially that love doesn’t always win, and that a frog is just a frog. Even so, our love for fairy tales never dies. Just look at cartoons like The Lion King and Frozen which have millions of fans young and old.

Fairy tales are all about the real world. But if children only see just one side of life, adults usually see the other. For example, in the 2014 film Maleficent, we’re told the tale of Sleeping Beauty from the views of the evil(邪恶的) queen. Unlike the children’s version(版本) of the story, we see that the queen wasn’t born evil. Instead, she experiences great lossers, leading to her “evil” side. And in US writer James Garner’s bedtime story books, he tells the classic story of Little Red Riding Hood(小红帽), but with a modern touch: When the wolf tells Red Riding Hood that it isn’t safe for a little girl to walk through the woods alone, she calls the wolf sexist(性别歧视者), which connects with today’s women’s rights movement.

Fairy tales aren’t just stories our parents read to us at bedtime. They may usually start with “Once upon a time...”, but as we grow older, we learn that every story doesn’t always need a “Happily ever after” to be a good one.

I AM THE PINE

“Look,” I said to my friend Mandy, holding up the bright-red paper. “There’s a five-day art camp this summer.”

Mandy took the paper and looked at it. “Tessa, you should go. You’re the artist. I am not.”

“You can learn with me.” I said in an encouraging voice. “I really didn’t want to go alone.”

Mandy smiled, “I tried, but my little brother thought the corns I painted were rockets.”

Later, I called my other friends, but none of them could go with me. Disappointed, I decided to go outside to draw the Westons’ pine tree. Drawing always made me feel better. On the way, I thought about the art camp and wished I felt a little braver. Mandy could make friends with others in 10 minutes, but I was embarrassed when there were no familiar faces around me. By the time I arrived there, I had made myself believe that I was happy to give up going to the camp.

I took out my pencils and started drawing the strong trunk of the pine. Once I started, I didn’t notice the fly buzzing around me. That’s why I jumped when Mr. Weston talked behind me, “You’ve done a great job showing the strength of that tree.” “Thanks.” I smiled. Mr. Weston continued, “I’ve planted pine trees before. You have to spread out the roots near the surface so the tree can get enough water and grow tall. If you plant the root ball too deep, the tree dries up and dies. Roots grow out, not down.”

Now I noticed the roots all around the tree. I’d never realized how far a tree’s roots stretched（延伸） outward. It made me think about the art camp and my own roots. I was planting myself into one deep spot because it felt safer. If I wanted to grow, I had to start reaching out too.

That night, I made my final decision. I felt nervous but excited. “I am stretching my roots out into new earth so I can grow”, I thought. “I am the pine”.