There's nothing like a good old-fashioned fairy tale, isn't there?

It's one of the things that unites us.

No matter where you're from or what culture you were raised in, we were all born into

communities that told traditional stories.

Many of the most commonly told ones are the ones that have found a foothold in popular

culture.

Cinderella, Snow White, the Little Mermaid.

A lot of them are bright and cheerful, too, or at least work their way in that direction.

But some, of course, are darker.

Little Red Riding Hood, for example, in its original form is a pretty gruesome tale,

including the grandmother's blood and flesh being served to the little girl by the wolf

in disguise, and then she eats it.

And then there's Hansel and Gretel, the story of a boy and girl who are abandoned in the

woods by their parents, only to wind up lured to a cottage made of sweets and cakes.

And of course, we all know how that one ends, right?

Soon enough, they find themselves in the clutches of the old woman who lives there, a witch

who sustains herself by fattening up little children, and then cooking them in her oven.

It's like candy land meets saw with a touch of Disney magic.

And it's a story we tell to teach an important lesson.

Be careful around strangers.

And as our world has more and more become a dangerous place to live, it's a fairy tale

that still seems to hold on to a lot of its relevance.

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