Into the Woods

If you go out in the woods today you're in for a big surprise.
If you go out in the woods today you'd better go in disguise.

(from the Teddy Bear’s Picnic)

I attended a delightful presentation of the musical "Into the Woods" by the Sondheim Society to benefit the restoration of wind damage in Stanley Park. It was both whimsical and serious. Into the Woods featured a blend of modern themes with characters from classic fairy tales, including Jack and the Beanstock, Cinderella, Little Red Riding Hood and Rapunzel. With a little artistic license characters from these fairy tales venture ” into the woods” and confront the “shadows” that the author Joseph Campbell suggested makes these stories so appealing to all ages.

In “The Power of Myth” he proposes that fairy tales give children an initial exposure to some harsh realities with the softening that problems gets resolved and “good” people live happily ever after. The “woods” become a metaphor for the dark places where our personal wolves, trolls, witches and step-mothers do their worst. It can also be the place where what seemed ordinary becomes extraordinary, spells are made and broken, and no one returns quite the same.
It is there that one can “lose the way” and encounter various enchantments that form such complicated knots to untangle. The “woods” also provide clues to our imagination and paths that lead in new directions. Much of the concern over the environment now is driven simply by the practical consideration of how to live sustainably. There is another dimension, I believe, that touches on the ancient wisdom of these fairly tales. “The woods are lovely, dark and deep” and there is an aspect of the human soul that resonates to the mysteries that reside there off the beaten path. Each year hikers become lost and disoriented even our North Shore mountains, often within sight of the city. Though occasionally the result is tragic, people can return from these encounters with an appreciation of how “natural” environments can challenge us at the very deepest levels. Our affection for Stanley Park, the North Shore mountains and BC’s “super, natural” wilderness areas carries a reminder that we are also “wild” creatures and we meet a part of ourselves in those wild places. We can anticipate coming back from the “woods” changed in meaningful ways. Our “caring for creation” has the practical consideration that we cannot live without it but there is a spiritual component as well. We are more likely to hear the voice of Spirit in the green silence of the woods than in the cacophony of shopping malls.