First off, an update since I have spent so much time bitching and moaning about my health crisis of late on this blog….

I am feeling better.  I’m afraid to hope for or announce that I might be nearing chemical remission for fear that I might be thrust back into the fire so to speak, but I am.  Feeling better.  Surfacing. Breathing easier.  One day last week, I realized at 8:45 am that pain had not asserted itself into my consciousness yet,  I had to tip my head right and left and bend my thumb to even feel twinges of the pain that has been ever- constant since last fall– and I was euphoric.

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I saw Maleficent last night and it was magnificent.  Spoiler alert if you’ve not seen it, because I feel compelled to share some of the lessons of this stunning fairytale back story.    My favorite quote of the movie has a personal significance to me:

“I had wings once.  They were strong, but they were stolen from me.”

So here are some of the lessons shared in this captivating film:

Trees are formidable foes and terrific allies.  

True loves does not come quickly or in a flash.

There are no wicked beings, only souls that have been crushed or abused.

We all lose our wings at some time or another through loss or betrayal; the direction we take after this is a choice.

No matter who or what steals our wings, love can bring them back and restore them fully.

Parenting and nurturing has little to do with biology.

THE LOVE of A CHILD IS THE PUREST AND TRUEST FORM OF LOVE.

We will find the truth generally more complex and beautiful than our assumptions.

Disney is finally beginning to “get it.”  Girls are more than princesses and they don’t need men to rescue them.

Villains can become heroes, especially when they are survivors.

and the most important lesson of this story…