Exploring It's Okay to Not be Okay through Fairytales: Part 2

Dear Readers,

In the previous part of this article, we were halfway through this journey, so welcome back guys! We're gonna complete this beautiful journey in this article. If you haven't read it, here it is: Exploring It's Okay to Not be Okay through Fairytales: Part 1. 

Fairytales always had a special place in my heart because they were with me since childhood and actually, my journey of reading starts with them, and It's Okay Not to Be Okay is one of my all-time favorites. So it is dedicated to my love for both things. 

Fairytale: "A fabricated story, especially one intended to deceive." - This is the definition of a fairytale I found through google but are fairytales only for children or to deceives us, or is it more than that?

"A Fairy Tale is a cruel fantasy that illustrates the brutality and violence of this world in a paradoxical manner."                   

- Moon Young

• King donkey ears  

There was a king who had ears which looked liked donkey ears, he kept this secret from everyone, only his hairdresser knew about it. He kept it a secret for many years, but one day he couldn't keep it anymore, he goes to the forest and shouts: "The king has donkey ears!”  

No secrets can be kept forever and the truth shall prevail. "If you keep a secret to yourself, you end up getting frustrated. You need to tell someone to relieve your stress". — Moon Young

Well, this story represents the situation of Gang Tae. The things, feelings, and emotions he kept inside him for years, he needed to release them, he wanted to be free from that burden, and that's what happened in the last part of the 9th episode. Keeping everything to yourself will bring nothing but disturbance so it's always good to express our emotions. Not just Gang Tae, but we also got to know what Sang kept in his mind for years.

• The Girl Who Cried Wolf

We all are familiar with the shepherd boy's story. The shepherd boy lied all the time. The boy repeatedly lied to the villagers but when a real wolf showed up, no one comes to help him because they all assumed that it might be also a lie like before, we always took the moral of this story as 'Liars are not believed, even when they speak the truth.' But have we even thought from the perspective or from the point of view of that boy? Every coin has two sides so does this story also have another side? Well, we got this question's answer in this episode. 

If you are known to be a liar, it is so hard to make other people believe whatever you have said. Dishonesty ruins the trust and relationship we once built with the people. So, as much as possible, be true to yourself and always tell the truth.

'Do you know why the boy tricked the villagers like that? Because he was lonely. He did that because he was lonely all by himself in the mountains.' - Moon Young. She tells this story to Gang Tae to explain her lie.

As he was lonely, so was Moon Young. She needed someone to be with her and that's why she lied about the trip, she lied so she wouldn't be alone anymore. Was she wrong? Yes, she was wrong, maybe she shouldn't have lied, but it was right from her perspective... the only way she found to not be alone again.

• The Ugly Duckling

We all know the story of the ugly duckling. The other ducks are mean to the ugly duckling. They bully him because he looks different from them. So he gets really lonely and leaves his family. If the mother duck gives a lot of love, the duckling wouldn’t leave. If the adult embraces the kids, the ducks and swans can get all along and live together just fine.

The thing we learn from this story: Judgements can really bring down someone’s self-esteem. We need to understand and embrace everyone’s differences and make their their assets, not as something to be mocked for.

So who was the ugly ducking here, for this episode, was it Moon Young? Peculiar, strange, weird, never following society's unwritten rules and regulations but alone, having no one that can be called family. She was an ugly duckling but it was only till she found people who can be her family, the ones who really cared for her and accepted her as she was.

But was it just Moon Young? From my perspective, the answer is no. It's not only the story of her but it also relates to Sang Tae. He was different from the moment he was born. 'Not normal' is the common term I'll use. Being not normal isn't easy in this world... But he has his brother to accept him as he was, no matter what, to support him and be there with him. He found his family in his brother. 

So what do you think, who was the real 'The Ugly Duckling' in the story?

• Romeo and Juliet

 It is a tragic love story where the two main characters, Romeo and Juliet, are supposed to be sworn enemies but fall in love and commit suicide due to their families' ongoing feud. This is the story of star-crossed lovers who were never meant to end up together.... and become legends after their death. 

Letting old family wounds go, and not letting your emotions rule your life, are the two morals we learn from the story of Romeo and Juliet. We were stuck in past problems and forgot that life isn't about the past, it's about the present and the future we are going to face.

This episode slightly connects the story of Moon Young and Gang Tae to the story of Romeo and Juliet. It reveals the connection between the two families and indicates that they are also ill-fated/star-crossed lovers. But the most important thing is 'Love', so will they overcome this with the power of love?

• The Father of Two Sisters

A Tale of Two Sisters. I hated the father in the story. Even though his daughters were abused by their stepmother and were on the verge of death, he turned a blind eye to all of it. The one who neglects and turns a blind eye to the abuse is worse than the abuser. Those two sisters were practically killed by their father.

Courage plays an important role in our life, if we just have the courage to speak if anything is wrong, it's the most right thing to do. Our voices may literally save a life if we will take a step and use it in the right way.

Well, I guess it's the bitter truth we face. This is not just for parents but also for all the people who turn a blind eye in every situation. Those individuals who keep their mouths sealed as if nothing had happened. So is this related to Moon Young's story? Would her childhood have been more beautiful and peaceful if anyone had the courage to go against her own mom? I guess that's why among all, this is the story Ko Moon Young hated the most.

• The Hand, The Monkfish 

Once upon a time, a beautiful baby girl was born into a wealthy family. She was as beautiful and flawless as magnolias. Her mother loved her so much that she pledged she’d do anything for her baby. She said she would even present to her the sun and the moon. When the baby started eating solid foods, her mother was thrilled, “My sweet child, I will feed you everything you want to eat. Open your mouth wide like this, ah”. When the baby started walking, her mother ran hurriedly to where she was. “My sweet child, I will carry you. Come on, hop on my back.” After raising the baby by always providing her with everything she needed, the mother said, “My beloved child, I need some rest now. Can you get me some food?”

Then the child spoke, “Mom, I have no hands. I never used them so they’ve vanished.” “Then my sweet child, can you carry me on your back? My legs hurt.” Then the child said, “Mom, I have no feet. You always carried me on your back. So, I’ve never even stepped on the ground. But instead, I have a huge mouth,” and she opened her humongous mouth.

Then the mother shouted in anger, “You weren’t my perfect baby after all. You’re like a useless monkfish. All you can do is eat what I feed you. You can’t do anything on your own. You’re an utter failure.” Then the mother threw the baby into the far-away sea. Ever since that day, it’s been said that the fisherman can hear a baby’s cry on spooky, windy days out on the sea. “Mom. Mom. What did I do wrong? Please come and get me. Please come back and get me.”

This is definitely a sad story but also the story which tells us a lot, taking care of children doesn't mean spoonfeeding them everything, but making them an independent adult usually should be the goal of every parent. This is the world we have to face alone, not every time there would be someone with us. So rather than spoiling kids, letting them do things on their own is the best thing.

Is this story represents Sang Tae? I'm not saying that it fully does, but he surely was dependent on Gang Tae almost his all life... though it didn't countinued so far as he got his own path to follow, his own dream to reach and goal to conquer. 

• The Tale of Two Brothers 

A long time ago, there lived two poor brothers who cared for each other very much. One day, it was the harvest season so they both harvested rice.

The older brother was worried his little brother might run out of rice. So he secretly carried a sack of rice at night and left it in front of his little brother’s house. The same day, the little brother also carried a sack of rice and put it in front of his older brother’s house, thinking that his older brother might need more due to his big family. When they woke up the next day, they both noticed that they still had the same amount of rice as before. The two brothers thought it was strange so they did the same thing at night and left a sack of rice in front of each other’s house. And that continued for days.

This story is about love and appreciation between two brothers but it doesn't represent only brothers but any person having appreciation and love towards another person. It's about kindness and self-less love. 

"Siblings who care a lot about each other should live together so that they won’t end up doing pointless work." - Sang Tae 

It's an exact representation of the relationship between Sang Tae and Gang Tae, their love for each other, the sacrifices they have made without expecting anything from one another. It's the story of these two brothers, which is also one of the most beautiful aspects of this drama.

• Finding The Real Face

Once upon a time in a castle in the deep forest, there lived three people who had their real faces stolen by the Shadow Witch. The Box Man spoke, “If we want to stop fighting and find happiness, we must retrieve our stolen faces.” So they hopped on their camping car and began their journey to find their real faces. 

Then one day, they run into a mother fox who was bawling, curled up in the snow. The Masked Boy asked the mother fox, “Ma’am, why do you keep crying?” “Oh I came out here to find some food but dropped my baby whom I was carrying on my back somewhere in the snow,” the mother fox’s tears had run dry. She wailed while beating her chest. When the masked boy saw that, warm tears started gushing from his eyes. Then the snow began to melt quickly and the baby fox who was frozen under the snow soon appeared. The three of them resumed their journey. Soon, they ran into a clown who was dancing naked in a field of thorny flowers.

The Emotionless Princess asked, “Why are you dancing with all your might knowing you’ll be pricked by the thorns?” “I feel that this is the only way to make people look at me. But it hurts and no one’s looking at me,” he answered. The Emotionless Princess walked into the field of thorny flowers and started dancing with the clown, “I am an empty can so I won’t be hurt even if I get pricked by the thorns.” When she began hopping and dancing, loud clanking noises echoed from her empty torso. And upon hearing those sounds, the people began to flock to where they were. The crowd watched their dance and applauded them.

They began a new journey to find their stolen faces and the evil Shadow Witch appeared in front of them once again. She kidnapped the Masked Boy who shed tears on behalf of the mother fox, as well as the Emotional Princess who danced with the clown, “The two of you will never be able to find your happy faces.” 

After putting such a curse on them, she locked them in a deep, dark mole tunnel. The Box Man found the mole tunnel a few days later but the entrance was so narrow that he couldn’t go in. “What do I do? I need to take this box off my head to go into the tunnel.” That moment, the Masked Boy’s voice reached him from the inside of the tunnel, “Mister, don’t worry about us. Just run far away. The Shadow Witch will return soon.” However, the Box Man mustered up the courage to take the box off his head. He went inside the tunnel and saved the Masked Boy and the Emotional Princess. 

Upon getting out of the dark tunnel, the two of them saw the man’s face covered with dirt and grime instead of the box and burst out laughing. They laughed and giggled. While laughing uncontrollably, the Masked Boy’s mask suddenly fell off.

The can surrounding the Emotional Princess’s torso also fell off and made a clanking noise. The Box Man, now out of his box, said this when he saw the two of them finding their true faces while laughing, “I’m happy.” What the Shadow Witch had stolen from them was not their true faces but their courage to find happiness.

The path which leads us to the beautiful (not at all times) journey of life is not simple or easy to cross, we have to face many difficulties, problems. The only thing we can do is to face these unexpected situations with courage and that's how you can make this journey meaningful, going in the right direction.

The last episode was the sweetest and happiest in the whole series.

This story consists of the whole concept of the drama. 'Finding The Real Face', finding what this trio really wanted. The happiness, joy, and their own goal for life. There's the proverb 'All well when it ends well' - after overcoming all the struggles of life, this journey ends with happiness, smiles, and satisfaction on everyone's face.

It's Okay to Not be Okay definitely wasn't only about the iconic trio but it's the story of everyone. These are the stories that tell the truths, struggles, and the real meaning of life. Every story had its own meaning and moral and it's the most beautiful thing about them. After exploring all 16 fairytales, this wonderful journey has reached its destination. I hope you enjoyed this ride!