Narnia, the Other

“Let it not be forgotten that once there was a place, for one brief shining moment, that was known as Narnia, the Other.”

So ends the last sentence of the last chapter of the following legacy.

For eight years, my family and I lived the lives of modern-day wilderness inhabitants. The following stories of actual events as we lived them are a testimony to the strength, resiliency, stubbornness, idealism, and struggles of throw-back pioneers, trying to find our place in a world which we had found wanting.

It was a bold experiment which received its nourishment in an unconscious desire to test the unknown in ourselves, to see what could be accomplished. From this perspective, some 40 years later, the experience has a mystical glow to it, as time has a way of forgetting the hardships and the day-by-day ups and downs.

I am supremely happy and grateful that it happened, exactly the way it did. Although the children really had no choice as they knew no other way, it all contributed to a firm foundation for all of us, a lasting legacy to the adventurousness of the human spirit. It was an exploration into what really is endless possibilities if we but allow ourselves to explore and discover what “wants to happen,” and to conjure up the will to tap down all the reasons why it should not.

I offer these stories to you, the reader, as a way to “give back,” to tickle your imagination, to have momentary astonishment, to have compassion, and a good laugh here and there as to the bold, sometimes ridiculous, attempts to deal with nature, human failings and inexperience, and the environment.

In all honesty, we did the best we could.

Jessica Webb

Beauty and the Chronicles of Narnia, the Other

The *Introduction* as relayed by the Narrator

Once upon a time, there was a little girl who lived in the woods. She and her mom and dad and baby brother built and lived in a log cabin in the middle of the Chequamegon National Forest in Bayfield County, Wisconsin. Their forty acres were completely surrounded by dense woods, accessible only by an overgrown path leading from a gravel road which is where they parked their truck. These were the early days before some improvements were made.

Her name was Beauty, and beautiful she was. Long blonde hair and a lithe body, she was also quick and strong. She noticed all things in her world. And, she was very happy.

The family had lived in the city with its many houses and streets and cars and, naturally, too, many conveniences with nearby stores and services. It was similar to many towns which naturally included people of all sorts and a lot of activity with everyone engaged in pursuits. People went to work, went to school, went for groceries and to buy many other things which they needed to make their lives comfortable and to their satisfaction. Mostly people had more than they really needed and had what could be described as the “accumulation habit.”

There were no opportunities for such busyness in the woods. Unless your love was to collect leaves and sticks and stones and bugs, and to see and hear birds, bears, and deer.

And Beauty loved it, even though it was all so different from what she had previously experienced in her young life and which she had quickly forgotten about. She grew to love it even more with every passing year. Everything about the woods, as it became more and more familiar, was deeply engrained upon her. She was constantly surrounded by green. Green of the trees, the grasses, and the growing plants in the garden, so much so that even today as an adult, her favorite color is still green. Green soothes her, comforts her, and helps her imagine and remind her that all things are possible, and that all is well in the world, that new growth is always happening even though it doesn’t always appear that way.

As she grew older, however, she realized that everyone did not think and believe as she did or were as happy as she was. Many people were troubled. They had problems getting along with others and, because of personal issues, were not always able to be kind to others as a regular habit.

Now, one might think that living in the woods as described above was pretty boring. That much didn’t go on. And, since there was no electricity there was no television or cellphones or iPads, not to mention no water, or electric stove, or refrigerator. But, one just needed to be observant. Life and living was all around, especially for a little seven year old. In fact, quite often it was downright busy!

For one thing, there were daily chores, you see. After her mom and dad had finished building the log house after cutting down the needed number of trees, she had a rather nasty responsibility which she did not like at all. As the cabin had no water or plumbing, she was given the job of taking the bucket of night soil (with the poop and pee that everyone contributed to), to the dumping place and emptying it into a pit. She used water from the barrel that was collected from the rain to rinse out the remaining bits. She tolerated the job because it was her responsibility, a way of contributing to the rhythm of daily life, and it made everyone else happy because they didn’t have to do it!

What follows are the adventures of Beauty and her family as they lived through the next several years. It is hoped that the reader is entertained and learns from these pages about a family and life-style that once existed in the wilds of Northern Wisconsin.

Snowflower, Fairy Godmother

May, 2024