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- Touch the wooden gate in the wall you never
- saw before.
- Say "please" before you open the latch,
- go through,
- walk down the path.
- A red metal imp hangs from the green-painted
- front door,
- as a knocker,
- do not touch it; it will bite your fingers.
- Walk through the house. Take nothing. Eat
- nothing.
- However,
- if any creature tells you that it hungers,
- feed it.
- If it tells you that it is dirty,
- clean it.
- If it cries to you that it hurts,
- if you can,
- ease its pain.
- From the back garden you will be able to see the
- wild wood.
- The deep well you walk past leads down to Winter's
- realm;
- there is another land at the bottom of it.
- If you turn around here,
- you can walk back, safely;
- you will lose no face. I will think no less of you.
- Once through the garden you will be in the
- wood.
- The trees are old. Eyes peer from the under-
- growth.
- Beneath a twisted oak sits an old woman. She
- may ask for something;
- give it to her. She
- will point the way to the castle.
- Inside it are three princesses.
- Do not trust the youngest. Walk on.
- In the clearing beyond the castle the twelve
- months sit about a fire,
- warming their feet, exchanging tales.
- They may do favors for you, if you are polite.
- You may pick strawberries in December's frost.
- Trust the wolves, but do not tell them where
- you are going.
- The river can be crossed by the ferry. The ferry-
- man will take you.
- (The answer to his question is this:
- If he hands the oar to his passenger, he will be free to
- leave the boat.
- Only tell him this from a safe distance.)
- If an eagle gives you a feather, keep it safe.
- Remember: that giants sleep too soundly; that
- witches are often betrayed by their appetites;
- dragons have one soft spot, somewhere, always;
- hearts can be well-hidden,
- and you betray them with your tongue.
- Do not be jealous of your sister.
- Know that diamonds and roses
- are as uncomfortable when they tumble from
- one's lips as toads and frogs:
- colder, too, and sharper, and they cut.
- Remember your name.
- Do not lose hope — what you seek will be found.
- Trust ghosts. Trust those that you have helped
- to help you in their turn.
- Trust dreams.
- Trust your heart, and trust your story.
- When you come back, return the way you came.
- Favors will be returned, debts be repaid.
- Do not forget your manners.
- Do not look back.
- Ride the wise eagle (you shall not fall).
- Ride the silver fish (you will not drown).
- Ride the grey wolf (hold tightly to his fur).
- There is a worm at the heart of the tower; that is
- why it will not stand.
- When you reach the little house, the place your
- journey started,
- you will recognize it, although it will seem
- much smaller than you remember.
- Walk up the path, and through the garden gate
- you never saw before but once.
- And then go home. Or make a home.
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