a fairy table setting from days gone by
Almost the longest day. Nearly the shortest night. The day began here at 5:32 a.m. and will end at 8:31 p.m. but in actuality, tomorrow will be our longest day by a minute. Regardless, I'm happy to have a nice, long stretch of time today. I'm happy that I don't have anything scheduled and that my house and garden are still fairly tidy and clean because of entertaining last week. And happy to remember all the past Summer Solstice fairy parties that my children and I set up -- a tiny tea service set, flowers and leaves, bits of fruit and crackers, with herbal tea poured. In the morning the fairies would have sprinkled fairy dust and left shiny little crystals and stones as gifts (I did this part). The crackers & fruit would have been partially eaten and the table setting in disarray (I didn't do it and it was my favorite part because it was proof that someone really had come)!
a mushroom table had popped up that year
Maybe there will be a fairy party again tonight. If so, it will include some white strawberries, a variety from Shepherd Seeds years ago. They are nearly as sweet as alpine reds and the birds leave them alone because of their lack of color. I see that the seeds look like little beads on the photo, but in real life, you don't notice them much. The plant is a fast-growing ground cover, too, and does pretty well on not too much water. Whatever happens in the garden or the world, a person can count on these during the month of June.
xo
What lovely tradition with a fairy tea party! We do not celebrate solstice but on friday we (everybody) celebrate midsummer, a swedish tradition. Today sun raised 03.31 am and will go down 10:06 pm. Have a lovely bright evening!
ReplyDeleteSomliga Dagar, thank you! Oh my goodness, these are long days for you in the north, I knew that but always forget. It must be just wonderful!
ReplyDeleteHow lovely Peggy. Just love the old tradition of fairy tea party. I might start the one here for the shortest day and longest night (it's today). The table setting is really cute!
ReplyDeleteHugs
Nat
Happy Winter Solstice to you, dear Nat, on your longest night! It actually is officially solstice here, too, just not the longest day here in Colorado....
ReplyDeleteOh my...what a magical memory to create for your child(ren).
ReplyDeleteAbsolutely precious.
When my 14 year old son was 4 we lived in a place that had a spot that we called his "secret garden". There was a tiny pond set in some trees. We put little gold fish in it for him and he spent countless hours there looking for lizards and just playing and singing.
Marie, the secret garden is equally as magical! What a dream for him to have a secret place to just be. I want one of those now, don't you?
ReplyDeleteWhat a delightful thing to do! Such a lovely use for the weeny tea sets you see from time to time too. And what a mushroom!
ReplyDeleteThose strawberrys look just like silk pods with golden beads on them! I had never heard of them before, amazing!
It was our longest day yesterday and I did wander out back and raise a glass to the skies before the night enveloped us ~ but there was so much cloud cover I saw no sky!
how lovely. this reminds me of when i taught pre-k yrs. ago, for may day, we would leave love notes for the fairies, later, bells would ring & we'd go into a dark little room lit with white twinkle light & find that they had left us a flower ring, lilac cookies, and the makings to create fairy dolls. magical.
ReplyDeleteLyn, yeah, that mushroom was special, it was the perfect little table that year, thus the photo. Those strawberries really do look beaded, don't they? Honestly, you don't notice the seeds when you eat them though...
ReplyDeleteCindy, your May Day sounds amazing, those children will remember that their whole lives. I lovelovelove it. I'll remember that for my next life cuz I'm done with that part of this one!
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