Believe in Fairies?

Do you believe in fairies?...If you believe, clap your hands!

J.M. Barrie


Boys who wouldn't grow up occupied the imagination of British writer J.M. Barrie (born May 9, 1860), making appearances in his work both before and after his iconic play, Peter Pan. 





The story about the Cottingley Fairies is fascinating. Is it possible that two young cousins, aged 10 and 15, actually saw and played with real fairies? The year was 1917 and Elsie Wright and Frances Griffiths spent the summer posing and photographing each other and the fairies of the woodland near Bradford in England.  
Funny how the photographs caught attention from prominent people. A leading member of the theosophical society in Bradford, a broadcaster and historian, a physical researcher, a novelist, a clairvoyant. These men were all involved in what was called "a visible evidence of psychic phenomena".

One of the most eager supporters of the claim that the photographs portrayed real fairies, was author and spiritualist Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, well-known as the creator of  the Mysteries of Sherlock Holmes. His article in the December 1920 issue of the Strand, included two of the five fairy photographs by the girls and an admonition to the readers to believe. It was Conan Doyle's hope, that if he could get people to believe in fairies, they would also accept other exceptional marvels.

The girls proclaimed ownership to real visitations with fairies. They were interviewed many times over the years, but always stuck to their story. In 1976 they agreed that "a rational person doesn't see fairies". Still, they claimed the photographs to be the real thing. It was not until 1983, that they admitted that four of the photographs had been faked (they disagreed on the fifth one), but even then, maintained that they really had seen the fairies.

It was difficult for two young girls to raise their voice and set things right, after a famous and brilliant man like Sir Arthur Conan Doyle had believed their hoax. It took them 66 years to give in and were under a lot of pressure from journalists, both in newspapers and television. They did not think of fooling anyone, and were surprised that so many believed their photographic fun to be true.

Francis died in 1986, Elsie two years later. In 1998 a London auction sold prints of their photographs and other things, including a first edition of the Coming of the Fairies, a book by Conan Doyle for £21 620.

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Photograph: Frances Griffiths with Fairies. Taken in 1917, first published in 1920 in the Strand Magazine.
Three water colors of some of my fairies.

Whimsical Art

Whimsical.

I have had my art called whimsical. I have had people--not one or two or three, but more--say that the Amy Adams' character, Giselle, in the Disney movie, "Enchanted", is me.

What can I say? I love fairy tales, enchanted forests, castles and knights in shining armor. My Pinterest boards will show you that and also fairies, magical shoes, witches and damsells in distress. One of my water color Christmas fairies has been repinned many times.

Someone whimsical is often curious and quizzical, but can also be peculiar and unpredictable.

I just like the sound of the word itself. It is a happy word that makes my imagination wander.

What makes some of us enjoy playful things, fanciful creatures, and quaint places? I say some of us, because not everyone is into whimsical. And even the same item can leave two people with two totally different interpretations.

Two of our munchkins did just that. They have a He-Man castle at their house. The three year-old boy speaks about it with a deep, scary voice. The little two year-old girl thinks it's a princess castle.

It's all in the eye of the beholder.

I believe there are people out there who would think that whimsical and silly belong in the same sentence. But as they are comfortable with that, I enjoy embracing the chimerical in books, art, history, and in my own mind.

Today's water colors are a fairy boy and a little lamb.

Old Hair

"Grandpa, do you have old hair?"
This question was heard at the breakfast table last Saturday. Emma, 4 years old, looked over at her grandfather and his grey hair with a puzzled look on her face. The grandfather was even more surprised at the funny question but kept his calm. I just laughed.

Because, I know that hair that short is not old. It's actually pretty new. But her question was ingenious. Greying streaks of hair are the obvious sign of getting old.

Arnfinn says he has come to the age of repairing. There are hurts here and there and things that need fixing from time to time. But how great it is to be alive and well enough - and able to still learn and do and feel.

The oldest man recorded is Methuselah in the Old Testament. The man died at the ripe age of 969 and I wonder how many children he had, how many grandchildren, great-grandchildren, and so forth. He must have experienced some aches and pains in his old age, too, like the rest of us. He probably had old hair.

A fish called rougheye and sea urchins can live 200 years, bowhead whales even longer. Several sea creatures are like that. A tortoise can be around for 250 years, while an elephant can be 70 years old. Dogs ages vary with the breed. A Great Dane can be around 6 years old while an Irish Soft Coated Wheaten Terrier, like Hector, can be 14. Add that seven times and you will have the actual age of the dog, human way of counting.

I am happy with the age I am right now. Next year I will be happy with being the age I will be then. Life is a learning experience no matter our age. We are never too old to learn, to understand, and to love.That's exciting.
I have no ambition of turning 250 like a tortoise, but I am grateful for the time I have.

Today's water color is a fairy boy. Fairies are depicted as young and lovely. How old are they really?

Wasp not paying rent

Ready for bed and looking up in the ceiling. What? A wasp nest in the ceiling??
Windows have been wide open for days, due to the warm and summer-ish weather - gentle breezes - and obviously wasps - sneaking inside.
So the stinging wasp rely on a nest from which they conduct many of their activities, especially rearing their young ones.
As a mother, I can relate to that, and it stung my heart, getting rid of both the nest and the very industrious wasp flying to and fro.
But memories went to many years ago, when as a 5-6 year old I lived with my family at my grandmother's house. I slept in an attic room with two wasp nests and woke up the next morning with lots of stings. Unpleasant!
So, the other day at The Duck and Cherry, it was either me or the wasp in the bedroom, and I won. I excused myself many times, hoping it would forgive me someday. I don't mind wasps, bees and bumbles, but feel strongly that they need to live in the woods and not in my house. Besides, it's pretty rude to move in without permission or paying rent.
Today's water color is a summer fairy, who can probably speak with the little flying yellow and black critters!

Special and Personal Room Decorations

Sweet fairies have been popular as water color art from Eljarbo Studio.

Today I would like to show how one family redecorated their guest room and added two of my fairy paintings.











I appreciate that they shared the photos with me so that I can show you how lovely their new room is, with cool blue colors for a soothing and gentle effect.

The water colors were ordered with special colors in mind - and butterflies - as fairy companions!

Pheasants and other passions

I really love birds! It's a joy and passion for me, for some strange reason I cannot explain.

I love seeing their little footprints in the snow, hear them sing in the morning, and watch them as they pluck for seeds and worms on the ground.

I have painted many birds and will probably continue doing that.

My things for fairies and witches is also a winged experience. Maybe it's all about wings? I don't know, but there you have it. Another true confession from me.

So - a few minutes ago, the beautiful pheasant on the photo to the left here, sat outside my window where I sit to write and paint. I hear him and his madame all the time, and I have seen her a lot lately. They are some of my finest neighbors and I am thrilled he actually came to visit today.

I am fascinated by birds, their color and their vocation. I find it interesting that contrary to humans, with birds it is the man who dresses up in colorful feathers. Arnfinn tells me that the female needs to sit unnoticed on her eggs. That makes good sense to me.

The water color painting above on the right, is called "Betatt", which means "smitten". The male peacock sees her go by and opens his feathers to make himself attractive and interesting for her.