Dizzy and I have been a little creative, and have written our own version of Sleeping Beauty. One where she sleeps because of an unknown illness, instead of a spell. We wanted to highlight some of the struggles we had whilst also, kind of, following the original story. 🙂
Have you ever rewritten a fairy tale? Or if were to, how would you change it? 🙂 xxx
Dorma’s Beauty
Many, many years ago, a beautiful King and Queen lived deep in the wild forests of Somnum. They had everything that wanted: wealth, land and happiness. But there was one thing missing from their lives, and that was a child.
Many seasons past, until eventually their wishes were granted, and they became the devoted parents to a beautiful baby girl called Dorma. In celebration they invited people from all over the land to a huge feast. And before its conclusion, magic gifts were presented to the beautiful baby: virtue, beauty and wealth.
But the most important gift has not been presented: the gift of health.
Dorma grew more and more beautiful by the day. Everyone who met her loved her, and she was soon the talk of all the land.
Nothing seemed to be able to stop her in her ventures, until the day of her fifteenth birthday, when she was suddenly submerged in a suffocating sleepiness.
She retired to her bed; her family convinced that the excitement of her birthday had become too much for her.
This drowsiness continued though, and all Dorma could managed was to sit looking out of her window for a few moments a day before she was forced back to the confines of her bed.
Days passed and talks of over-excitement and possible colds began to fade. In their place, whispered suspicions began to creep into the corners of the castle. Perhaps she was simply being lazy?
Of course, the best doctors in all the land were called and presented before Dorma, who could not even muster up the energy to lift herself from her bed. Her body failing her. Yet, upon inspection, no cause was to be found.
Afterward every examination, from her bed, Dorma could hear the doctors muttering, even chuckling to themselves; a young girl who simply does not want to do her chores they said. They said it was not uncommon, 15-year-old girls can be difficult. Or, as some others suggested, perhaps she was simply being a little dramatic. A slight feeling of tiredness and she is declaring she cannot move…
The doctors always left with a lightness of tone in their voices and a shake of their heads.
And the suspicions within the castle, no longer whispered, grew.
And Dorma, with her tears, a cold river, streaming down her cheeks, continued to sleep.
Her parents became exasperated with her claims of weakness and her persistent lack of inactivity. They began to grow cold towards her.
And still Dorma slept as the shadow of sadness encapsulated her.
Exactly one year had passed since Dorma’s fifteenth birthday, and her parents decided that it was time for them to find a young Prince to marry their daughter. At least then the future of the castle would be secured.
Many princes came, each wrenching tears of despair from Dorma eyes as they looked upon her with their amusement. They all saw the silly little girl trying to gain attention. None would listen when she tried to explain her despair with the never-ending tiredness.
All the princes soon went away, resigned to the fact that they would not marry the sleeping beauty, but full of rumours to share with their comrades, for however much her parents wanted her married, even they would not force their weeping daughter to commit to a man she did not like.
And after each Prince left, Dorma slept with the blanket of darkness suffocating her.
Until one sunny day, when a handsome prince happened to be passing by the castle, and parched, enquired if it would be possible to drink water from the spring that sat outside the great castle doors.
Readily the guards agreed. And at the same moment the elegant Queen, contemplating the fate of her child, drifted through the courtyard. Immediately her eyes fell upon the dashing gentleman, and she hurried over. Gently, she suggested that he meet her beautiful daughter. She did not want to let the opportunity pass.
Having heard about Dorma’s beauty, he readily agreed. He was also intrigued as no one had seen her for many months, and he had often heard rumours about her attention-seeking and lazy behaviour.
He moved swiftly through the castle, following the welcoming Queen. And upon entering her bedroom, he was greeted by the sight of Dorma. Her pale, pretty head lying upon her soft pillows as she slept another day, which felt to her to be at least a hundred, away.
With a soft cough from the prince, her eyes fluttered open. Her heart fell as she was greeted with the sight of the beautiful Prince: another one come to mock at her.
“Please leave,” she whispered, “I know what you all think. But none see how I am a prisoner to sleep. How I am destined to be alone, shut away from the world, trapped as it moves on without me.”
But the prince did not chuckle. He did not shake his head at her. He did not raise his eyebrows in disbelief. He simply sat by her bed and took her hand lightly in his.
“What do you want?” he asked softly. A wave of understanding washed over him; he had seen this before. Seen this forever sleep in someone very dear to him.
“I want to be free from this prison. I want to be amongst the living. But most of all, I want to be believed.”
The grip on her hand tightened, and within moments, the most magical three words were uttered from his lips. Ones that filled Dorma’s heart with hope for the first time in many, many years.
“I believe you.”
I LOVE this!
Thank you so much! 🙂 I was a little nervous posting it, so it really means a lot to know someone likes it. 🙂 xxx
Dizzy,
I really loved this and hope let you finish the story. You have great visual sense and I would love to see you illustrate this and get it published. It can help so many people. I’m going to share it. Keep on going.
Thank you so much. Your comments really mean a lot to me. xx I hadn’t thought about an illustrated version, but that’s a wonderful idea! Just not sure my drawing would be up to the task. 🙂 xxx
Beautiful story, and I love the theme and ending! <3
Thank you Felicia. I am so glad that you enjoyed it. 🙂 xxx
This is a terrific story. Bravo!💕💕
Thank you so much Anne. xxx
Very good! I once rewrote a western but never a fairy tale.
How did you rewrite yours? x And thank you so much for taking the time to read mine. I really appreciate it. 🙂 xxx
I used an actual TV cowboy character but made up all of the other characters and changed it to a Western with a romantic theme.
That sounds really good! 🙂 xxx
Thanks.
Nice. I love your ending in particular. This is what every person with invisible disease needs. Just three simple words.
Thank you so much for your lovely comments and for reading our story Laura. 🙂 I hope you’re having a lovely week. 🙂 xxx
Your fairy tale is great, especially the happy ending, & a nice change. I’ve been reading Stephen King lately to escape this nightmare. You know how things can always be worse. The Prince could add some magical
“cure” words.
Thank you so much Mary. x What Stephen King books are you reading? I’ve never actually read any, but people say they are very good. 🙂 xxx
Am I too late? “Misery, “The Shining”, “Storm of the Century”, “The Girl Who Loved Tom Gordon”, “Billy Summers”, “11/22/63, & others. To me, S.K. has a way of great writing in between the dark and profane. Unfortunately, my memory isn’t very good let alone vocabulary. Time travel might be the way to go for another story!
I am going to have to read more Stephen King novels. I only recognise two of those titles! Which one is your favourite? xxx
I don’t have a favorite S.K. book, however, the movie Misery is the best so far. Being a young person still, I don’t either know where you should put your time with probable cognitive challenges coming. It isn’t easy having M.S. difficulty with staying focused. Author’s use soap opera like style of bouncing between characters, time, & story line all over the place. Just yesterday I was confused reading the clock!
I keep meaning to watch that film! It does look good. At the moment, I’m trying to get through my masters, which is plenty for my mind to focus on, as well as my tutoring. 🙂 Hoping to get through a bit longer without too much cognitive challenges. I have had them doing relapses, and it is very frustrating. xx How are you doing? I hope you have a lovely Christmas tomorrow! 🙂 xxx
Wow, Mary you read Steven King to “escape ” nightmares?
I sometimes use reading to escape my M.S. reality (ie: Dorma’s Beauty & All Donkeys’ Eve). A late onset diagnosis at the beginning of “golden” retirement was the pits. Besides, isn’t S.K. supposedly in the controlled terror category? Have you written any more westerns? Sorry this is so late. I didn’t know Heather had replied to my comment. Thank-you for saying something!
No, not lately but I won’t rule out writing another western sometime in the future. Yes, MS is the pits, especially during the beginning of your retirement. 😞
Controlled terror? Sounds like an oxymoron to me. 😆
Yes, I agree- maybe it just means being able to expect terror within a known time frame. ?
Oh. 😁
Hehe, I think controlled terror sounds like an oxymoron too! 🙂 xxx
I like this very much Heather … finally a person who believes sweet Dorma. When will we have a sequel?
Thank you Linda. I wasn’t planning on a sequel, but a few people have asked about one, which makes me think I should give one a go. What do you think? 🙂 xxx
I think you should do a sequel Heather as we all want to see this fairytale relationship go further – after all, he was the only person who believed in her.
I will get Dizzy to put her creative writing cap on, and to think of ideas for the sequel. She’ll love doing that! 🙂 xxx
Yes, do that as I enjoyed the first story very much and I’m sure your other followers did as well. I hope you are doing well – is the heat affecting you so that it is just easier to stay inside where it is air conditioned and cool?
The heat does get to me, and makes me very sleepy. How do you manage in it? Luckily, it is cooler now, and I think we are slowly moving into Autumn. 🙂 xxx
The heat has been unbearable for so many. Do you have A/C or just a fan. I have a few UK bloggers who say not many homes or businesses have A/C but now will think about getting it after this bad heat wave. I am glad to see Autumn moving in too Heather … too hot to be comfortable.
The UK is really not made for the hot weather. Not many places have a A/C. We just have a fan at home. But it is properly Autumn now. Dizzy’s got her jumper on! 🙂 How are you doing? xxx
I love Fall Heather, it’s my favorite season. I like the crispness in the air, though it’s gotten too chilly too fast here in Michigan. We never got air conditioning for years and only used a fan – my father wanted A/C as he worked in a hot factory all day and they had no fans or A/C. I am doing well, still working and was hoping retirement may be in the future. I said I’d stay until the end – my boss is taking his sweet time deciding what to do and I know he likes working. He is 75 1/2; I am 66 1/2. I’ll be Dizzy is very cute in that jumper and needs a baby pumpkin to make it a perfect picture.
I love fall too. Spring and Autumn are my favourite times of year. It’s still very warm here though. It was over 22 degrees at the weekend. x He sounds like my dad! My dad keeps saying he will retied. He is now 74 and still going. 🙂 He started talking about retirement at 60… How has your weekend been? Have you got any pumpkins for Halloween? 🙂 xxxx
Autumn is so pretty and we’ve had such a wonderfully warm and sunny October so I have taken a lot of photos that I’ll have to sort thru and write about. Yes, your dad and my boss must really be enjoying themselves to not retire. It was a rainy day for Halloween and now fog is creeping in, so perfect for that holiday. I did not get any pumpkins except a small one for in the kitchen. I actually have a ceramic one I should have taken out – less fuss/mess. 🙂
It has been pouring with rain here a lot the last week. I was all prepared to get pumpkin carving this year, but it just seemed so much effort. So we just made a nice little display instead. 🙂 A ceramic one sounds really sweet! How’s the weather been recently? It’s still quite warm here, but very wet. xxxx
It is easier to do a ceramic display instead Heather – I agree. The artificial pumpkins and gourds look better than the originals and thy won’t get moldy from the rain or mushy from the heat. We had very warm weather all through October and the first week of November. Last Thursday or Friday I came home from walking and the neighbor was washing his car in shorts, teeshirt and flip flops. We had a little snow today and very cold this weekend – 20 degrees below normal. Weather has been quite crazy!
{{{ hugs }}}
We had loads of snow last week, and then it got really icy! The snow is so pretty, but I don’t like the ice so much. I have been seeing some of the weather conditions in America. Have you got the freezing conditions too? I hope you’re managing to miss it. xxxx
I like to see the snow too Heather, but don’t enjoy walking in it, nor driving in it and ice terrifies me. We have had some horrible winds and brutal temps the last two days … yesterday the “real feel” temps were -24 which is -31 C. And winds gusting here to 45 mph which is 74 kmh. I hope it is over soon. I am happy I made my walking goal already so I am staying in the house except to shovel and run the car. I feel badly for the little critters at the Park, but driving is treacherous with the blowing snow and windy conditions. Thankfully I work from home. Merry Christmas to all of you Heather and best in the new year.
{{{ hugs }}}
We hope you had a wonderful Christmas, Linda. And it is a little late, but Happy New Year! 🙂 How has the weather been since? It has been rather cold here. Dizzy’s been hiding under her heated blanket. 🙂 xxx
Thank you both of you – Happy New Year 2023 to you as well. It had been nice up until last Wednesday when we had an all-day snowfall with heavy snow. Today we had freezing rain – but it was warm enough to melt some of that snow thankfully. I hate the damp and cold weather of Winter – I don’t blame Dizzy for hiding under her heated blanket at all!
That sounds so cold! Has all the snow gone now? At least it is starting to be a little sunnier here. I keep telling Dizzy that it won’t be too long till the Spring again. 🙂 Have you been able to get to the park? xxx
It has been brutal Heather, but the snow and ice is all gone and we are having a Spring Thaw which I hope lasts until the real Spring. 🙂 I have been going to the Park a lot more than I usually do in Winter and I’m happy the snow and ice is gone from the trail now.
Aww, do you still get to see the squirrels? Is Parker still there? I’m hoping this brighter weather will stay till the Spring now too. It’s so much nicer to wake up to sunshine. 🙂 xxx
I do still see Parker every time I go to Council Point Park. In fact, tomorrow I will have him in his own post … well, just because he is so darn cute. 🙂 I heard around the beginning of February that we gain two minutes of daylight per day – it is nice to see sunshine earlier. Especially while it is still Winter.
I love having the lighter evenings. It’s not getting properly dark till about 7 now. 🙂 How is Parker doing? 🙂 xxx
Yes, same here though I have to leave later in the morning now until it gets lighter again. I start work around 11:30 so it is a tighter squeeze right now, but will get better. I just saw Parker today Heather – we had a bitter cold day today, more like Winter out there and it was very windy. I took the squirrels some walnuts I had saved for the coldest days and I rolled them walnuts like I was bowling. They like that – the shy ones don’t have to get too close that way! 🙂 {{{ hugs }}}
Awww, I bet they love the walnuts. It was so cold last week. There was even snow near me! Today has been lovely though. 🙂 It feels like proper Spring. Has it got any warmer where you are? 🙂 xxx
Heather, I just ordered some more walnuts from Amazon today – I want to practice taking a video of walnut bowling. Have to learn how to use the GoPro first … a friend got a new one and handed over the old one to me, but I have to study up on it. I hope I can take a video of them. We had a week of very hot weather, like July, then today it is like a Winter’s day with snow showers … this was in the course of one day it turned like that – the weather is a bit crazy!
Your story is captivating! From the dialogue to the engaging story line, you had me! Thank you for saying so much.
Thank you so much for your lovely comments. They really mean a lot. 🙂 xxx
Thank-you! I wish you & Dizzy a very Merry Christmas, too, & a Happy New Year. My plans are to have a quiet holiday at home. We’re at the end of an ice storm with more precipitation on the way. No power outages here yet. (Santa was reported over Russia this morning heading west with the promise he’d come if the kids were in bed by 9:00 pm. How old is Dizzy?)
We hope you had a wonderful Christmas. And it is a little late, but Happy New Year! 🙂 x How has the weather been since? An ice storm sounds so cold! I hope the kids were in bed by 9 and Santa was able to come. 🙂 Dizzy is 10 now and she was safely tucked up in bed in time for Santa to come. 🙂 xxx
The weather is quite a paradox in the Beaver state, Oregon, – beautiful, bright, and sunny with bitterly freezing temperatures for a few days now. A cloud cover “may” be coming from Canada. It’s the wind that scares me! Hopefully, Santa came for the kids. Dennis & I never had any, but there are nieces and nephews. (Remember he passed away plus I’m 72 now).
I absolutely love this post
Thank you so much for taking the time to read our story. 🙂 xxx