We all grew up hearing fairy tales, being read fiction books about dragons and mermaids and princesses. We are never told stories about kidnapping, murder, or terrorism. We don’t watch the news, we rather watch cartoons. Our parents do everything they can to shelter us from the harsh realities of the world when we are young. Our minds are too innocent and immature to handle these horrors, even those going on in our parents own lives. No matter what a parent is going through, they will hide it from their child, shield themselves by telling stories and fairytales of a better world.

My photo portrays this childhood innocence. The child, the book, and the child’s bedroom are vibrant and colorful. This shows the happiness and innocence in a child’s world. Whereas the parent is in black and white, wearing dark clothing to represent the darkness of the harsh reality. Many people may argue it is harsh in itself to allow children to believe in unreal things such as princesses and mermaids, santa and the tooth fairy. But believing in these things as a child let’s imaginations soar, allowing them to be more creative as they grow. It is proven children who grow up in broken homes, who are abused and exposed to violence at young ages, turn out to be more violent people in their adulthood. So although children are disappointed when they discover these things aren’t real, it is beneficial to shield them from reality and let them believe in fairy tales.