At the beginning of the movie The Wizard of Oz, all of us wished we could visit (or even live in) Oz, the mythical city where a Wizard reigned. The Wizard could grant any wish and was all powerful, all knowing, all . . . everything! How did we know that? The Wizard told us. And, along with Dorothy, we believed.

What a magical movie, complete with a cowardly lion, a scarecrow, even a tin man, and, of course, a girl and her helpless little dog. There was a good witch and a bad witch - balance, always balance - and a maze of problems to overcome. It is a classic movie which, as all classics do, offers us lessons on how to live.

The heroine, played by Judy Garland, comes to realize just how fortunate her life was before ever going to Oz. When she finally gets back home, she vows to appreciate what she had all along. Why then did she have to land in Oz and be terrified by the wicked witch, who at once called her "my pretty," while wanting to separate her from her ruby slippers?

Why do any of us have to go through trials and tribulations to find out what we should have known all along? I wish I knew. I'm searching for the answer.

Whenever I let myself be lured into thinking that I can take a shortcut in life, I get my come-uppance. I have to believe in myself and not let myself be drawn away from my basic tenets. My greatest trials have come when I don't listen to that little voice in my gut which always knows the direction to take.

I remember another movie, an Amityville perhaps, where a person stepped into a haunted house and heard a loud whisper saying, "Get out!" Now and then that kind of intuition warns us of danger. If we don't pay attention, we get to live in horror, wondering, "What happened?"

What happened is that we didn't listen to our inner wisdom; it's as simple as that. Deep down, we always know what is right. So why don't we just do what is right? We fool ourselves when we want to think it will be worth it to ignore that inner voice and allow others to convince us that they have cure-all snake oil or wield the power of a wizard.

Inevitably, when the curtain is drawn and we get to see the 'wizard,' he is just a man pulling levers to create an illusion of power and success. But, once the wizard was exposed for what he really was, Dorothy realized she had what we all have, access to the power that believing in goodness, not wizards, provides. Symbolized by ruby red, glittering slippers, a gift from the "good witch," that belief allowed Dorothy to transport herself back home solely by believing in the power of goodness. Fortunately, that was enough.

It's enough for any of us. Even when we're alone, we never are. It's all I need to know.

Recently, someone said something to me that I'll pass on to you, "You've had the ruby slippers all along." We all do.

Jean Loxley-Barnard has been a writer all her life and studied both sociology and psychology at George Washington University where she earned a B.A. Her company, The Shopper, Inc., encompasses all the Loxley-Barnard family publications - The Shopper Magazines and Doctor to Doctor Magazine. She has been in the advertising, consulting and publishing business for 39 years.