the blog of author, illustrator and designer Kris Waldherr

01.09

my dinner with Ariel

My post this week about 25 things about me generated a few comments regarding my daughter Thea’s proclivities for all things female and finned. To recap:

1. Yes, she really does believe she’s a mermaid.

2. She’s convinced that we live in a water castle. When she climbs up our stairs, she calls it a waterfall.

3. She says I’m her mermaid mommy (especially when I wear a blue dress).

4. Strangest of all, sometimes she drags herself around the carpet, with her legs (aka fins) “swimming” behind her. In a twisted way, her landbound locomotion reminds of Christina’s World until she jumps up and declares, “I can walk on my fins!”

But Thea’s behavior is all age appropriate. You see, she’s only three.

How did this come about, you might wonder? A blogger recently wrote about the snubbing of fairy tales in British society. We’ve never been like that — I’m definitely of the Bettleheim school that exposure to fairy tales is a good thing for everyone, not just children. Though Bruno Bettleheim is far more of a Freudian in his interpretations than I am, I do think fairy tales allow us to work through whatever is playing now in our subconscious theaters. So we read Thea lots of fairy tales as well as allow her to watch dvds of said stories. On the aquatic side, she’s seen Finding Nemo and The Little Mermaid more times than I can count.

Yet it’s difficult to separate the influence of fairy tales from natural inclination. From the time of her birth, Thea’s always loved fish and water. If she was in a bad mood, a long swim in the bathtub would set her right. We also gave her the middle name of Delphine — dolphin.

That written, it was clearly The Little Mermaid movie that sparked Thea’s devotion to All Things Mermaid and Ariel. How intense is Thea’s identification with Ariel? Well, she gets very upset when we call her Thea: “MY NAME IS ARIEL. I’M A REAL MERMAID.” (Yes, that’s shouting.) I think that one of the happiest moments of Thea-Ariel’s life when when she was given an “real” Ariel costume (which she would wear it 24/7 if she could). Hey, I can even convince her to eat mussels and salmon and other squishy seafood that most preschoolers wouldn’t touch, even with a cupcake bribe. After all, they’re “mermaid food.”

Because of this all-Ariel-all-the-time, Thea-Ariel has been given several beautifully illustrated books showcasing the Hans Christian Anderson tale. Though I’m a purest when it comes to fairy tales — I infinitely prefer Grimms to Disney — I haven’t the heart to read them to her without some seriously editing.

Eventually my daughter will learn the folkloric truth: Ariel doesn’t get the prince, but she does get a soul. But for now, I want to support her belief that it’s possible a three year old from Brooklyn can be a mermaid.

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The above art is of Benzai Ten, a Japanese goddess of happiness who lives under the sea. It was published in my book The Book of Goddesses (Abrams).

comments

Raven wrote on January 9, 2009 at 12:32 pm:

Is she a Water sign?

I regularly use the Goddess Tarot w/my clients, Kris. It’s very popular! Thanks for such a beautiful deck!

Kat Meyer wrote on January 9, 2009 at 12:35 pm:

Oh, Thea Ariel is darling! My 4-year old niece, Salome, is Ariel obsessed as well. (Actually, she’s partial to Ariel, but as long as there’s some princess involved, she’s able to function normally). I loved fairy tales as a child. My favorite was “The Canary Prince,” which I learned as a grown-up was penned by Italo Calvino when I rediscovered it in his “Italian Folktales.” Bettelheim’s “Uses of Enchantment” is also a favorite of mine, and while I like the older Disney’s, I just can’t get into the new Disney princesses movies. No matter how many times (and it’s a LOT of times) Salome subjects us to them!
Thanks for the post! It brought back some nice memories of reading when I was little.

kriswaldherr wrote on January 9, 2009 at 12:40 pm:

Raven, she’s a Pisces with Cancer rising. No surprise, huh?

Kat, I love that your niece’s name is Salome. How cool is that?

Frankly, I think I’d have to keep Thea in a cave to avoid the Disney princesses. She thinks they’re her friends — sort of a princess club society thing.

Lisa hunt wrote on January 9, 2009 at 1:41 pm:

Thea is a smart, intense child. It makes perfect sense that she would gravitate to fairy tales and the poignant Little Mermaid story in particular. The original version is layered with meaning and always resonated with me as a child. I’m happy to hear that the story has captivated Ariel-Thea as well. Also, I think her capacity to fantasize and believe she’s Ariel is a very good sign for lots of imaginative thinking ahead! . This is just the beginning!

p.s. As you know, Kyra is a Disney Princess girl too–unavoidable. But the girls (”Marilyn and Audrey”) will figure it all out in time.

Susan Brassfield Cogan wrote on January 9, 2009 at 3:46 pm:

I love this painting. I collect Kuan Yin images, statues and jewelry. The painting reminds me of some of the Thai Kuan Yin images.

Melanie Hope Greenberg wrote on January 9, 2009 at 4:20 pm:

Hi Kris, found your blog by googling “mermaids”. I’m surprised Thea does not have my picture book MERMAIDS ON PARADE since I saw you with her at the Mermaid Parade in Coney Island, when I marched with the Superfine Dinettes in 2007 (they star in the book). I would definitely sign the book for her if she did. She might also like my blog about the book. http://mermaidsonparade.blogspot.com

Happy New Year! Melanie

Christina Rodriguez wrote on January 9, 2009 at 5:30 pm:

Thank you for the blog mention, Kris! I’m so glad you posted this today. Your daughter is adorable!

Joy wrote on January 9, 2009 at 6:07 pm:

I love reading about your daughter and her incredible imagination. She sounds like my kind of person. I live on a sailboat named Ariel. She even has a mermaid painted on the stern. I go snorkeling weekly and just love being in the water swimming with the fish.
Your daughter might just have this type of life in her future.

Joy Delgado
http://www.laughing-zebra-children-books.com
http://goingbeyondreading.blogspot.com/

kriswaldherr wrote on January 9, 2009 at 9:55 pm:

Melanie, that would be great! Let’s get together soon. We have a Friday Night Salon at the gallery, which often features tarot reading. We also just started a film series. You should stop by.

Christina and Joy, thanks for your nice words. I think my little Ariel would love seeing your boat.

Helen Ginger wrote on January 10, 2009 at 11:31 am:

Thea is darling. And so are you for not squashing her imagination.

As a former mermaid myself, swim free Thea/Ariel!

my dinner with Ariel

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