Sleepless Beauty(Robin Joy Wirth) A king and queen held a huge party to celebrate the birth of their daughter. All the people throughout the kingdom were invited except for one. The darkest, most evil fairy in the realm failed to receive an invitation.

Incensed by the omission, the dark fairy came anyway and cast an evil spell. When the princess turned sixteen she would prick her finger on a spindle and die. However, a good fairy changed the spell to prevent the death, and she and her sisters took the girl with them to raise her as their own.

When the girl turned sixteen she learned that she was a princess and the sisters told her that she was to be taken to the castle.

“Oh, no!” the princess complained. “You know how hard it is for me to sleep in strange places.”

At the castle the princess pricked her finger on a spindle as predicted, and the entire castle fell into a deep sleep. Everyone, that is, except for her. For many years the castle slept. Nobody aged, nobody talked, and nobody moved a muscle except the princess. She never slept, and she grew quite bored of waiting.

At last the handsome prince arrived. He wandered through the sleeping people and found his way to the princess in her chamber. She was lying around on her bed, her head propped up by an elbow, just staring at the door.

“You’re awake,” said the prince with surprise.

“Yes, I am,” she agreed.

“I was told this castle was asleep until the princess received true love’s first kiss. I sort of thought that included you.”

“That would be nice,” she said.

“Well, um, should I kiss you anyway?”

“I guess so,” she said. “No point in making the rest of them sleep any longer.”

So the handsome prince leaned down and gave her a kiss. Throughout the castle the sounds of cheers reached his ears as the people awoke. With a smile he looked down at the princess, but discovered that she was finally fast asleep.

“What the heck, that dragon took a lot out of me. I think I could use a nap myself,” said the prince, and laid next to her on the bed. And they slept happily ever after…at least until it was time for dinner.

---