Control and manipulation are expected, with sufferers using their pain to influence others, making personal suffering a tool for interpersonal dynamics. This manipulation can maintain relationships or elicit specific behaviors, serving multiple purposes.

The Three Little Pigs isn’t just a children’s tale; it’s a sharp commentary on resilience, preparation, and the strategic mindset required to navigate life’s challenges. This story strips back the layers of our decision-making processes, questioning whether we opt for quick fixes or invest in durable solutions.

Prometheus embodies the eternal struggle between conscious and unconscious forces within psyche. His act of rebellion, like the ego’s desire for independence, results in detachment from its unconscious origins. Wild archetypal forces become impossible to contain and chain him to a rock where an eagle eats his liver each day. Prometheus’s liberation by Heracles represents the relativization of the estranged inflated  ego with the unconscious, fostering growth and a  humble attitude.

Winter Solstice, the longest night of the year, calls us to brood and turn within. Retreating to the unconscious is a psychic wintering, calling our life force down into our archaic patterns.

The feather in “Dumbo” holds symbolic magic. Holding it tight, he leaps from dependency to loss, then audacious growth. He must believe the feather holds power before placing it in himself. We all need symbolic objects or talismans to project our potential onto. How else could we find it?