Page 46 - TA Magazine Winter 2022

finding affected by the COVID-19 pandemic. Our realities have been
distorted which has created fear and deep anxiety. Just as Alice
wonderment had to navigate her way through Wonderland and develop new
perspectives, we have to re-emerge from the pandemic with re-
the general anxiety newed senses of wonderment and light. We have all been so
very serious. (Remember the toilet paper fears and wiping
down of your groceries?)
of the white Just as The White Rabbit appeared to provide Alice an alter-

rabbit native path, we need to find new guides within ourselves to
release our fears and prosper again in our lives; finding new
meanings and sources of joy and enchantment. The White
Rabbit’s message to us is no matter how dark or daunting the
Why emerging from the rabbit hole is imperative path, we can be engaged in the mystery and wonderments that
by DR. KAREN BINDER-BRYNES surround us every day. Watching children’s wide-eyed aston-
ishment at the world around them can be beacons to remind us
of the miracle of living. I remember when my granddaughter
“I wonder if the snow loves the trees and fields was around 1 year old and we were walking in the woods.
and kisses them so gently? And then it covers them up snug, She suddenly looked up, lifting her little arms with glee and
you know, with a white quilt; and perhaps it says, repeatedly shouted, “trees,” her eyes lit up with joy and won-
“Go to sleep darlings, til summer comes again.” der. Unaware of life’s troubles, she was totally in the moment. 22
LEWIS CARROLL, Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland We need to allow ourselves to find glee in the simplest aspects
of life. We need to laugh and be silly. We need to reconnect
n 1865, BRITISH AUTHOR Lewis Carroll wrote what was with social bonds, which may have frayed during lockdowns.
to become the iconic novel, Alice in Wonderland. In the We need to trust our intuitions. We need to follow The White
story, a young girl named Alice falls through a rabbit hole Rabbit’s path into new beginnings and experiences. Just as Al-
42 into a fantasy world of anthropomorphic creatures. One ice evolved during her journey into knowing more of who she 43 Y ANDERSON WINTER 20
of the main characters, The White Rabbit, appears at the was, we need to reflect on how the past few years have revealed
beginning of chapter one, wearing a waistcoat, and mut- to us who we each are, honoring our strengths and resiliencies.
Iters, “oh dear! oh dear! I shall be too late!” Alice follows We need to assess which of the patterns we have relied on are
him down the rabbit hole and finds herself in Wonderland, a working and which we’d like to discard. Only then can we
fantastical world. There have been countless explanations as overcome ways of being which prevent us from finding greater
to the meaning and metaphor of The White Rabbit’s presence joy and meaning in our lives. C
in this narrative, however it is generally accepted that follow- TRA
ing The White Rabbit provides Alice with an alternative path A synonym for wonderment is “rapt attention and deep emo-
which will ultimately help her release her fears and prosper in tion caused by the sight of something extraordinary.” We have
life. This journey eventually affects her survival and happiness collectively been astonished by the enormity of the pandemic’s
on earth. The symbolism of The White Rabbit has come to impact on our experiences these past few years. Instead of be-
represent a journey which will carry us through the path of our ing weighed down by fear and disenchantment, as we traverse
own fears and anxieties, and leads us to a quest of knowledge new landscapes, we must invite fun and curiosity and keep
and mystery, ultimately leading us to the other side where we moving forward.
can embark on a spiritual pursuit.
We need to focus on being vibrant, alive, and present in our
The White Rabbit in Carroll’s imagination was highly anxious world and in our lives. As Alice exclaimed during her jour-
and always worrying about time and being late. He also inad- ney, “There is no use going back to yesterday because I was a
vertently became Alice’s guide through Wonderland. different person then.” There isn’t a person on earth who has
not been affected and deeply changed by the pandemic. We all
For nearly two years, the entire human population has been had to slow down and accept that our perception of time has
living with a once-in-a-century pandemic that has killed mil- been distorted. Collectively, we acknowledged in many cases,
lions of people, and for the most part, has altered our per- just as The White Rabbit acknowledged, “the hurrier I go, the
BRIAN CRONIN had previously taken for granted. Additionally, our perception an enchantment in everyday life. Hopefully, like Alice, we will
ception of normalcy and safety in the everyday certainties we
behinder I get.” We need to remember this concept and seek
of “time” has been distorted. In essence, humanity has fallen
emerge from the rabbit hole of these past few years with more
down a rabbit hole. No matter our age, we have been deeply
confidence, happiness, and wonderment! TA