How fairy tales help children and adults settle into a new everyday life

Introduction

There are moments in life when everything feels new and a little unsafe. The first day of school with a new bag and blank pages. The first night in a new house where the walls haven't yet had time to become home. Or perhaps a daily routine that changes because life took an unexpected direction. Such transitions can feel big for children – but also for us adults.

In these moments, fairy tales can be more than just a pleasant reading time. They can become a safe haven, a place where both children and adults can be helped to land. Because in the world of fairy tales we meet heroes who dare to go out into the unknown, who stand in fear, and who eventually find their way back home. And right there, in the rhythm of the story, we can also find our own peace in a new everyday life.

Why transitions can feel unsettling

Our everyday lives are full of small and big changes. For children, it can be starting kindergarten, starting school or meeting a new class. For adults, it can be about changing jobs, moving, illness or changes in the family. Even when we know that it is a natural part of life, it can feel overwhelming.

Children like to experience the world with their whole bodies. When everything familiar suddenly changes, it can feel like losing their footing. New routines, new rules, new people – there’s a lot to take in. Adults may be better at hiding their anxiety, but inside us the same thing is often happening. Our bodies sense that we’re stepping into something unknown, and our nervous system easily goes into alert mode.

Unpredictability creates anxiety. When we don't know exactly what to expect, both young and old can feel uneasy, restless, or a tight knot in our stomachs. And that's where fairy tales can provide us with an anchor.

The adventure's role as a safe haven

Fairy tales follow a familiar structure: a hero sets out, faces trials, and ultimately finds his way home. This rhythm creates predictability—and reminds us that difficult things can be overcome.

Through symbols and images, both children and adults are given a language for emotions that can be difficult to explain. When we meet a hero who is also afraid or insecure, we are reminded that we are not alone. And that makes it easier to stand in our own everyday lives.

How fairy tales support children in everyday life

Starting school and starting kindergarten

The first days of kindergarten or school can feel like entering a whole new universe. Everything is unfamiliar: the smells, the voices, the routines. Fairy tales can give children a language to understand themselves in this phase. When they hear about heroes who face the unknown, it mirrors their own experience – and makes them feel a little braver.

Moving and new surroundings

Moving to a new house or city can be exciting, but it can also be painful. Children may miss old friends, their room, or the safe path to school. Fairy tales remind us that “home” is not just a place, but something we carry with us. When children see how the hero finds new allies and builds new places to belong, it becomes easier to believe that they too can create a new home.

When emotions get too big

Children often express strong emotions through restlessness, anger or silence. Fairy tales provide space to face these feelings without having to explain everything in words. Through symbols and images, children can process sadness, loss or fear. When we read together, it opens up conversations that might otherwise be difficult – and gives the child the feeling that they don't have to carry everything alone.

In the bed closest to the fireplace, Lucy sleeps. Just like everyone else down here, Lucy is a little green seed.
"But one day," the bumblebees who look after them tell them, "one day when the sun bursts through the roof, you will reach up to the world outside. And when that day comes, you will no longer be small and green and the same. Then you will have become different. Some will be tall, and some short. Some will get many leaves, and others only a few. But what is common to all of them is that you will get hats. And each hat is something completely different in itself."
— Excerpt from A Thousand Wishes

Adults need adventure just as much

Symbols as mirrors on life's journey

Fairy tales aren't just for children – they are mirrors for us adults too. When we read about a hero who ventures into the unknown, we can recognize our own journey: the steps we take in a new job, in a new relationship, or in facing the unpredictable sides of life. The symbols in fairy tales remind us that we ourselves carry strength, even when the path seems dark.

Fairy tales as a space for reflection

In a hectic everyday life, stories can give us a little respite. When we listen to fairy tales, our attention shifts away from everything we “have to” and “should”, and we get the opportunity to feel what is actually happening inside us. Fairy tales give us time to reflect on questions such as: Where am I going? What do I want to take with me next?

Use fairy tales with your children

When adults share adventures with children, something wonderful happens. We gain a common language for feelings, we can laugh together, and we can talk about things that might otherwise be difficult to put into words. Children see that adults can also wonder, and that we can all find comfort and strength in the same stories. It creates community – across ages.

"What do you think helps to think about when you're sad, Dad?" Julius wanted to know.
Dad stopped drawing and put down his pencil.
"I try to remember that life goes up and down, that it changes all the time. When I'm hurting, I try to remember that it's not always going to be hurt. Then I try to remember that even though I'm hurting right now, there are also good things. Like now, when you and I are drawing together because we're both sad."
— Excerpt from The Pearl Whisperer

Practical tips for using fairy tales in everyday life

✨ Read aloud together – also for older children
The sound of your voice can be as important as the story itself.

✨ Talk about parallels to everyday life
Ask open-ended questions: “Did this remind you of something at school?”

✨ Let the child create their own version
Let the child continue drawing, painting or composing – it gives room for processing.

✨ Find an adventure that mirrors your own journey
As an adult, you can use a fable to reflect on your own life.

✨ Create little rituals
Set aside a set time each week for adventures, with light and warmth.

Termination

Fairy tales are more than entertainment. They are little compasses that can help us navigate when everyday life changes. When we share stories, both children and adults find a place to land – in the middle of all that is new and unknown.

For children, fairy tales offer hope that they can cope with the first day of school, settle into a new home, or cope with the big emotions that can seem overwhelming. For us adults, fairy tales remind us that we too are on a journey – and that we can draw strength from symbols, images, and magical stories.

Many of the books I write are made with this in mind: to give both young and old a language for feelings, and a safe way to talk about what can otherwise be difficult. Whether it's A Thousand Wishes , where a dandelion learns to find its worth, Gunnar Gresskar - The Long Way Home , about a pumpkin who breaks with expectations and goes his own way, or The Pearl Whisperer , which shows how imagination can help a child through life's big changes – the goal is the same: to provide stories that help us land.

The cloaked man looks at him in a way the farmer has never looked at him. Gunnar swallows and gathers his courage.
"Can you do to me what you did to the old pumpkin just now?" It feels like he's shouting, but it comes out as a whisper.
"That's exactly what I can't do, Gunnar, because I can only fulfill what is the meaning of your life. I don't know what it is until you know it yourself. But I can feel that it's not this. Most people need some time to understand who they are and what they want to do with their lives. And for some it can take a really, really long time before they know it. That's how it was with the old pumpkin.
— Excerpt from Gunnar Gresskar – The Long Way Home

So the next time life changes and you're wondering where the road will lead, make up an adventure. Sit down with your child – or yourself – and let the words become a silent guide into your new everyday life. ✨

🌟 Want to explore more adventures?
In my online store you will find books that can be read alone or together – stories that provide room for both wonder, conversation and peace in everyday life.

👉 Discover my books here

A little about what readers say:

⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️
A moving book about the desire to belong ❤️
With beautiful illustrations and a lovely story, the book reminds us of the importance of belonging and inclusion – themes that matter a lot in today's society.
- Marianne, about a Thousand Wishes

⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️
A beautiful book, perfect for reading aloud
The Long Way Home is a beautiful story about daring and choosing what is right for oneself. The book is perfect for reading aloud - and a chat afterwards about what it really means to be brave.
- Guri, about Gunnar Gresskar - The long way home

⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️
A soul-stirring good book 💗
A beautiful book for people of all ages. The story touched me in a way that helped me make an important life choice for myself. Eternally grateful for that, and The Pearl Whisperer will forever have a special place in my heart 💗
- Birgithe, about The Pearl Whisperer