I love the ancient tradition wherein an employer would fill a box and gift it to his servants, to help make their Christmas bright; and also to show your appreciation for a year's work - kind of like the modern Christmas Bonus!

The idea originated, partially, because servants had to wait on their employers and their guests all day long on Christmas Day -- cleaning, cooking, serving, receiving guests, taking coats, stabling the horses, etc. etc. etc.!  So the grateful employers would fill a box the following day full of all kinds of wonderful things such as left-over cakes, pies, meats and treats; to old clothes and household items that had been replaced by new items. The servants would then take these boxes home to their families and celebrate their Christmas on Boxing Day.  That's only one variation of this very old tradition but it is a particularly nice and generous one.  Other versions include people going door-to-door to the homes of rich people on Boxing Day, carrying with them their own box, in the hopes of receiving any bits and bobs that the abundant households might no longer need and were happy to pass on to the less fortunate. Or sometimes, the wealthy would make a day of it and gather as a group to go about to the homes of those in need, or to their servants, and drop the goodies off themselves ... remember Bob Cratchitt's turkey!

I received a nice big cardboard box this year from out-of-town relatives filled with lovely Christmas gifts. I was just about to recycle it when I decided that, while I don't have any servants (more's the pity), I'm going to fill the box with items around the house and take it to our local Salvation Army or hospital charity shop.  And maybe I better leave out some wee offerings to the fairy folk; for my brownies and house elves, and also those industrious little garden gnomes who perform many important tasks around the Grove!

These are English expressions used to describe something done for a bit of carefree fun; usually on a sudden impulse or whim.  It can be silly and gay.  It can be mischievous - but never malicious.

"Come on, join me in the three-legged race ... it will be a lark!"

Marie decided to buy a new hat on a lark.

The children turned their desks around backwards, just for a lark, before the teacher came into the room. 

"Stop larking about and turn those desks back 'round front", she laughed.

Sigh, I definitely need to go on a lark right now!!

This lovely refined image above is subtly carrying on the tradition of the likely much more sensual predecessor of "Maying"; with a sweet lady in front continuing the search for her fellow; while a courting couple trails behind ...

Do you ever wonder why so many household items for kitchens are rooster-themed?  Everything from canisters to casserole dishes, potholders to pictures, and spoon holders to salt and pepper shakers.

A rooster in the kitchen brings good luck to your household - plain and simple!  This belief is pretty universal around the world.  Many countries relay fables with a rooster featuring prominently as the bringer of good luck to some situation or other.  So common superstition says you would be well-advised to add one to your kitchen paraphernalia - if you haven't brought one in already!  Check your kitchen - there is probably a rooster lurking somewhere, as people often gift these good luck fellows in the form of towels, utensils, dishes or other kitchen do-dads ... they might even be worked into your tiles.  I actually relish the day when the "sterile" stainless steel kitchen trend comes to an end ... and colour and variety returns. Then not only the humble kitchen rooster - but all those lovely French Provencal blues, yellows, terracotta reds and whites - can make a well-deserved comeback in our kitchen tiles, counter tops and floors.

But in the meantime,  why not incorporate a rooster into your kitchen decor to bring good luck and good fortune into your home?  It's a very simple kitchen witchery trick and you'll get all of the benefit ... without any of that early morning cock-a-doodle-do-ing! 

We are so fortunate to have received a visit from Jack Frost himself who painted this beautiful and intricate design on an old windowpane in the Grove.  Here is photographic proof of the existence of the little folk!

Where Old Man Winter can be stern and grim; Jack is all about fun.  He sees the beauty in ice and snow; and not the hardships that can come with the harsh winter weather. 

Just before dawn, this sprite tiptoes into gardens and looks for tree branches and blades of grass to coat with his shiny, shimmering paint.  He especially loves finding an old single-paned window or any other thin, clear surface that he can use for a canvas.

Jack is willing to share the beauty of winter with you.  Make sure you check early in the morning when the results of his work are still at their finest.  If he paints an original masterpiece somewhere in your vicinity; take a few moments to examine it. Each of his works are unique ... and he created it just for your enjoyment!

Meadow Sweet Grove © V. Buchanan 2018 / 2023

"Don't step on a crack or you'll break your Mother's back" (old nursery rhyme)

"The straw that broke the camel's back" (minor annoyances add up to a breaking point)

"Don't break your back" (don't work hard for no result/recognition)

Want a fun way to rid yourself of a bad habit this New Year?  Why not try a little bit of sympathetic magic.  Cut an apple in half, and "pour" in that bad habit, worry or negative feeling right into the apple's core.  Put the two halves back together tightly.  Tie with string, tape, or anything that works for you.  Bury the apple in your back yard. 

The reason this works, is because you are consciously identifying the problem, making a choice to remove it from yourself, and then discarding it into another space.   Works best for little things.

                                                                                                                            Meadow Sweet Grove © V. Buchanan 2018​

It is the dark time of the year.  The clocks have rolled back, it's dusk at 4 o'clock and pitch black at 5 pm.  The rain, and even the hail, pounds all day long.  And the cats are sleeping more.  Smart right?  I mean, when there are so few usable hours (outdoors anyway) it makes sense to conserve your energy.  Cats have definitely got this one right.

I for one, welcome the dark time of the year.  While it means fewer daylight hours ... there is a certain relief when the sky starts to darken at 4 pm.  You can be "in for the evening" so much earlier than in the summer ... and really focus on indoor projects.  And if you don't feel like working on a project?  You have only to take a page out of your cat's book and curl up with that soft, furry, purry body on the sofa and enjoy a cat nap.  Or drink in the blissful content on the face of another snoozing feline, smartly claiming an entire chair by the window.  See and hear the rain splattering on that window pane and realize that it is okay to begin the annual winter hibernation.  Rest and rejuvenation awaits!

                                                                                                     Meadow Sweet Grove © V. Buchanan 2017

That's kind of sad isn't it?  I mean what happens to all those dolls who didn't make it?  The dolls who are broken, forgotten and thrown away?  Made in the image of mankind, an emulation really ... made to entertain ... made to be loved ... and love?  And now lost.

Let's remember on All Souls Day, those lovely dolls - when such care was invested in their creation.  Before all items were replaceable and disposable.  Their hair, erroneously cut by a younger sibling, could be re-rooted!  Much-loved and worn bodies could be re-stuffed and stitched.  A faded face repainted.  Broken ceramic head?  No problem - you could order a replacement from the catalogue!  No need to throw dolly away.  When the clothes wore out from the many ons and offs; new ones would be lovingly stitched by Mama.

So, on All Souls Day, let's think of all the dollies who didn't make it ... and restore the ones that linger in attics, basements, storage lockers and thrift stores - waiting to be loved again!

Meadow Sweet Grove © V. Buchanan 2017

"Rock-a-bye baby" is such a well-known Mother Goose nursery rhyme.  Written with several different variations and popularized in song, it could mean, and has been interpreted to mean, so many different things (political, historical or maternal/post-partum feelings).  I think, in an attempt to explain what appears to be a very negative situation!  But what if it actually describes a joyous event?

One interpretation I haven't found yet, and which seems plain to me, is that it could describe the process of birth.  The tree top (Mom) is high up indeed for a little baby.  The wind blows (Mom or Mother Nature) giving all those life-sustaining needs to baby through the umbilical cord; which makes the cradle "rock" (ie function properly and do what it was designed to do).  When the bough (water) breaks, the cradle (amniotic sac) will fall ... and down will come baby ... cradle and all.

                                                                                                                                      Meadow Sweet Grove © V. Buchanan 2017 / edited 2020 ​

Cinderella climbs the ranks in society and in wealth, even as she climbs the stairs to the palace.  The Shoemaker and Puss n' Boots make good on that as well.  In fact, Puss is smart enough to ASK for the boots, as this kitty-cat already knows they are the necessary item to start on a successful journey to status and riches!  Dorothy (The Wizard of Oz) and Karen (The Red Shoes) both have spiritual awakenings and realize that "happiness can be found anywhere", even in poverty or uncomfortable circumstances or surroundings.  Wynken, Blynken & Nod have, at the same time, already arrived and still have a long way to go.  They can afford to literally reach for the stars as they're dreaming safe in bed with a Mother's Love overseeing their slumber.

The Twelve Dancing Princesses require a lot more study - there is just too much going on there and lots of variations to the story.   And the Poor Old Woman Who Lived in a Shoe?  There are many analogies suggested for its possible political meaning, but perhaps she is simply trapped in circumstances.  Shoes tied to the back of the wedding carriage, symbolize both a binding contract and fertility.  Well, she certainly got both of those in spades!  It is perhaps a warning to be wary of what a simple pair of shoes can do for you ... be mindful where yours take you.

Meadow Sweet Grove © V. Buchanan 2017

A:   Her Fairy Godmother of course!

Well, although the appearance of the Fairy Godmother to supply the gown is undoubtedly the most common version of the tale - there are others too.

Fairy Godmother
The most popular and most-remembered version was written by Charles Perrault in 1697.  His story introduced the Fairy Godmother who provided Cinderella with a beautiful ballgown and transformed a pumpkin into a coach to take her to the palace.

Tree Spirits ("Elder Mother") and Birds
In Grimm's Fairy Tales, such as Ashputtel/Aschenputtel, Cinderella is never visited by her Fairy Godmother at all.  She must complete seemingly impossible tasks set to her by her Step-mother before she can attend the King's Feast.  The tasks are completed by the birds, ants and other little animals to whom she has been kind.  When even this fails to gain her leave to attend, Ashputtel prays and weeps at her Mother's grave, letting her tears water the hazel tree she herself planted.  The ball runs three nights in succession and each night she finds a new dress, more beautiful than the previous, folded on top of the grave.

Alternatively, the dress is hanging or falls from the branches of the tree or is brought to her by the birds who earlier helped her to complete the other tasks.  The birds also help alert the Prince to the step-sisters' deception when they cut off parts of their heels and toes to fit Ashputtel's shoe and later, at the wedding, they peck out those same offenders' eyes.  But there is enough material there for another post ... and we were talking about the origin of the dress.

These versions nod towards tree spirits such as the dryads and tree worship in general.  The tree is seemingly absent in other versions but the concept of the "Elder Mother" continues on in the Fairy Godmother.

Walt Disney
Walt Disney, forever clever and sometimes misunderstood as one who "sanitized" fairy tales, actually did a fantastic job of working into his  animated classic many of the symbols of the original tale.  The befriending of the little birds and mice that perform a task and make-over the dress that had originally belonged to Cinderella's own mother.   When her step-sisters destroy the dress, Cinderella runs in tears into the garden, where her Fairy Godmother appears and "Bibbity-Bobbity-Boo!"; she conjures up a majestic white gown.   Clever, no?

Meadow Sweet Grove © V. Buchanan 2017

But the moon has risen orange now for many a night over Meadow Sweet Grove.  The summer has been a hot one, a smoky haze hangs in the air during the day, the sun burns brightly orange through that haze at sunset (difficult to look at), and the moon rises orange, with incredible definition of its craters, waxing larger and larger each night.

​I think most people are familiar with Aesop's Fable about The Fox and the Crow.

​In this story, the Crow has found a wonderful round of cheese and is sitting in a tree, when along comes a sweet-talking fox.  He wants the cheese for himself, but how to get it?  He convinces the Crow that she has a beautiful voice and would love to hear her sing.  She is flattered, opens her mouth to sing and, sadly for her, the cheese drops to the ground.  Now, when you think about this fable, it becomes apparent that casting is important.  Crows are really, really intelligent.  Only a sly fox would have been right for this role ... for who else, in the entire animal kingdom would have the ability to out-smart a crow?

                                            Meadow Sweet Grove © V. Buchanan 2017 
(gif courtesy of AnimatedImages.org)

Almost all folk and fairy tales agree ... you truly must "pay the piper" if you are daft enough to enter a fairy ring!  The folklore on fairy rings, elf rings and witches' circles are replete with stories of mortals foolish enough, or bewitched enough, to join in the irrepressible dance inside that enticing ring of mushrooms.  While it may enable you to see fairies, dance with wild abandon and revel in euphoria ... it comes with a price.  Sometimes the little folk whisk you away to fairyland, where you must serve a fairy master or mistress for a year and a day.  Sometimes it feels like you have only been dancing for a few minutes; when actually hours and hours have passed. You may even be doomed to dance forever ...

Or sometimes, as in the case of Rip Van Winkle (who also partook in a wee bit of fairy mead), only a mere 100 years passed before he "awoke" to his old home ... and all the changes that had come about during his lost years.