You may recall that Dorothy and Toto didn’t move fast enough to join Aunt Em and Uncle Henry in the storm cellar. A cyclone born of chaos had picked them up and transported them to unfamiliar surroundings, causing Dorothy to exclaim:

“Toto, we’re not in Kansas anymore!”

They weren’t.

They had touched down among a group of Munchkins in the land of the Wizard; nice enough people, but Dorothy wanted to get home ASAP, knowing Aunt Em and Uncle Henry would be worried. She asked the Munchkins for help.

However, the Munchkins had no idea where Kansas was. They advised Dorothy to follow the yellow brick road to the Emerald City, where the Wizard lived; he could certainly help. They gave Dorothy money to grease the skids by buying something from the Wizard’s store, cautioning her that there was a two doll limit.

Dorothy asked how she should travel. “You must walk a straight line, for your journey will be through inconsistency,” the Munchkins replied.

Dorothy’s journey to elicit help from the Wizard, the adventures she experiences, and the interesting folks she meets along the way are the stuff of life and this classic, enduring childhood tale.

Space does not allow recitation of all the challenges Dorothy and her friends faced on their journey. However, I hope to provide sufficient highlights to assist readers faced with paths paved with glitter.

After starting, Dorothy and Toto soon encountered a cornfield. In the middle of the field stood a scarecrow. He was stuffed with straw and wore a blue suit and a blue hat. He had a face with painted features.

This scarecrow winked at Dorothy.

So, she lifted him off the pole he was impaled upon. The scarecrow expressed his gratitude for the opportunity to explore other fields and asked what he could do to repay her kindness.

Dorothy inquired if he could take them to the Emerald City. But the Scarecrow said he couldn’t, as he had no brains and was therefore unable to form the convictions necessary to support an ideology, leaving him unable to choose a path.

“Do you think the Wizard could give me brains?” the scarecrow asked. Dorothy didn’t know, but thought he might be able to create the illusion.

The scarecrow didn’t have to think before accepting her invitation.

As they journeyed along, they heard a groan coming from the woods. Dorothy went to investigate and found a tin woodsman standing frozen.

Dorothy asked why he had groaned. The woodsman told her he was unable to move; his joints were rusted shut.

He said if Dorothy were to apply oil to his joints from the nearby oil can, he would be most grateful; Dorothy did. “I might have stood there always if you had not come along,” the Tin Woodsman said. “So you certainly saved my life. How did you happen to be here?”

“We are on our way to see the Wizard,” Dorothy answered.

“Why?” asked the Woodsman.

“I want him to send me back to Kansas, and the scarecrow wants brains.”

“I would rather have a heart than brains,” replied the woodsman. “Do you suppose the Wizard could give me a heart?”

“If he has one,” Dorothy replied.

So the woodsman joined them. But as they started back toward the yellow brick road, a large lion bounded onto their path.

Toto barked and ran at the Lion, alarming Dorothy, who ran up to the lion and slapped him on his nose. “Don’t you dare bite Toto”, she said. “You ought to be ashamed of yourself, a big beast like you, scaring a little dog like Toto. You’re nothing but a big coward!”

“I know,” said the lion, hanging his head in shame. “But I come from a pride of the legislator breed; we don’t have an ounce of courage — or pride.”

“Maybe the Wizard could give you courage,” observed the woodsman.

“Do you think so?” the Lion asked.

“If you have the courage to ask,” Dorothy sarcastically exclaimed.

Now a full complement, Dorothy and her new friends soon reached the Emerald City. After making purchases from the store, they made their way to the throne room and delivered their pitch to the Wizard. He told them he would grant their requests, but first, they had to do something for him.

They all did what the Wizard asked. Upon their return, the Wizard grabbed some bran to put in the scarecrow’s head, giving him “Bran New” brains. He had the lion drink an emerald “bravery” potion and inserted a heart-shaped pillow filled with straw into the chest of the tin woodsman.

Their wishes granted, the trio was euphoric — but not Dorothy.

The Wizard had employed his magic from behind a curtain, directing constituents to keep their eyes closed and telling them that, though he was invisible, he was everywhere. However, being everywhere caused the Wizard to trip over the curtain, fall, and reveal his actual form: an old man with thinning hair, holding a megaphone.

“Whoops,” said the Wizard.

“Now, how will I get back to Kansas?” Dorothy implored.

“By helping me inflate the balloon,” the ex-Wizard said. So Dorothy assisted by holding the hose while the Wizard pumped the hot air needed. But when the balloon was full, the Wizard floated off, leaving Dorothy behind.

It was a disappointed, dejected Dorothy until a group of students from a local elementary school appeared and thanked her for exposing the fraud. As a reward, they gave her a pair of magic slippers they had made in class that, when their heels were clicked together in a joyful leap, could grant a wish.

So, Dorothy leaped joyfully, clicked, wished, and was back in Kansas.

All of which shows that it’s not who you ask for wishes to come true, it’s believing they will.

Doug Pugh’s “Vignettes” runs monthly. He can be reached at pughda@gmail.com.