Once upon a time there was a pretty princess who lived in a wonderful area filled with forests and rivers and with snow-capped mountains rising above. Every morning, from the castle’s highest tower, she looked out over her kingdom and dreamed of adventures. She wanted more than anything to climb the distant peaks, run in the shade of the pines, and cross the streams by jumping from rock to rock. She could see herself exploring the trails with no purpose other than the pure pleasure of walking. She imagined the feeling of moving to the rhythm of nature, step by step, from one trail to another, breathing fresh air and being soothed by the singing birds. But … she was doomed to stay locked inside the walls of her golden prison. She wasn’t cursed, and she wasn’t waiting for anyone to rescue her. No, her only misfortune was not having the right shoes to go for a walk! She had a pair of shoes for each of her dresses but nothing that would fend off the elements and enable her to conquer the peaks.
So, when her good fairy godmother offered her a wish for her birthday, she already knew what she wanted: she closed her eyes and wished for hiking shoes. Since then, not a day goes by that she doesn’t put on her shoes and get outside to explore the natural world that surrounds her. She loves to go on her own as much as she enjoys going with princesses from other countries. She spent many years living the chivalrous tales of Prince Charming. Now it’s she who is running the adventure.
She’s never been afraid of heights, or cold, or the dark of night. She could walk for hours without getting tired and if she fell, she’d bounce right back up. She knew how to find her way on the trails, she knew how to read the sky and anticipate the weather, she knew how to stay safe! She had always known she could do it, but she’d never been given the opportunity to prove it to herself. She’d always been told that princesses wore dresses and glass slippers, that they had to wait, motionless and beautiful until Prince Charming arrived. But that was before, in a distant and outdated time. Today, nothing is more normal than seeing modern day princesses wearing hiking shoes!
