Alice in Wonderland

I decided to read Alice in Wonderland by Lewis Carroll. I had a copy on my shelf that is so old, it doesn’t even have the copy write page. As I’ve been carefully turning the delicate pages, I’ve been rediscovering the story in a way that Disney or any visual media doesn’t capture. There’s something about reading a book amidst the reality of living; the popping in and out of a story as you live your own. It makes a book part of you in a way the t.v. does not.

Alice is in that wonderful phase of childhood where everything about her world makes sense. She loves to share what she knows and cannot fathom why there would be any confusion on matters of simple understanding. Then she ends up in this dream-like world where nothing makes sense, and that’s sensible to everyone around her.

In many ways, Alice is going through what adolescents go through when their world begins to change. Suddenly, the old rules do not work anymore, and things are not as simple as they once were. Things feel out of control and well, weird.

Teenagers are not the only ones who go through the Alice experience. Whenever our lives change, we may feel like we’re thrown into Wonderland where none of our previous experiences help us on our way to finding normalcy again.

Instead, we may feel like we’ve changed completely. Like when Alice met the Caterpillar on the mushroom:

“Who are you?” said the Caterpillar.

This was not an encouraging opening for a conversation. Alice replied, rather shyly, “I—I hardly know, sir, just at present—at least I know who I was when I got up this morning, but I think I must have been changed several times since then.”

“What do you mean by that?” said the Caterpillar sternly. “Explain yourself!”

"I can’t explain myself, I’m afraid, sir,” said Alice, “because I’m not myself, you see.”

“It isn’t,” said the Caterpillar.

“I’m afraid I can’t put it more clearly, “ Alice replied very politely, “for I can’t understand it myself to begin with; and being so many different sizes in a day is very confusing.” (pg. 48-49 Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland.)

It’s good to remember in our Alice moments that it is not just our surroundings that have changed, but we are changing too. Our experiences get inside us and we begin to grow and adapt.

I’m enjoying watching Alice go through her Wonderland experience. Perhaps I will have more to share as she goes along.