Whimsy

My husband set out to treat the fairy rings that continually circled our yard. His pet peeve was anything that dared to disturb the beauty of his rich luscious green St. Augustine grass! A sprinkler system insured that just the right amount of moisture was supplied to the emerald green blades. Nutrients and minerals, herbicides and pesticides fed the well-cared for sod. Yet and still, fairy ring persisted.

“I do NOT understand it!” he exclaimed. “Nothing seems to control this blight!”

“Maybe it isn’t something you can control!” I joked. “Maybe it is something only the fairies have power over.”

He, once again, stomped off to his workshop to blend another concoction to combat what he deemed the “ruination” of his lawn. It was a beautiful sunshine filled afternoon. Housework completed and children napping, I decided to take in the patio and enjoy the few minutes of peace and quiet that were very irregular around my home. So, outdoors I went.

Sam, our golden retriever, was playing with the cats in a not-so-friendly game of tag. One in which the cats would ultimately win. They were much smarter! And, they could climb! Suddenly, the game ended as quickly as it had begun. Sam ran off to find something else to terrorize. But, the cats seemed to be mesmerized with something in the grass.

My first thought, A snake! But, as I looked closer, I knew this wasn’t so. My field of vision allowed me to see that if it was, it had to be a tiny one. I went over to see what had distracted them. “Shoo,” I chided, walking over. After a few more seconds of pawing, the cat reluctantly sauntered away.

Standing well within the most recent of my husband’s landscape banes, I sought the source of kitty irritation. There was nothing! Absolutely, nothing! “Must have been a bug,” I said, half aloud.

It was then that I heard the strangest thing! A noise so soft, yet so un-nerving. It was like the rustling of a thousand wings fluttering in three-quarter time! My mind filled with the colors of the rainbow; colors so bright that I tried closing my eyes to block out their brilliance. When I opened them again, I knew that I was no longer in my backyard.

Green clad, winged creatures surrounded me! Stunning though they were, I was frightened.

“Do not be afraid,” she spoke, a mere tinkling sound, more inside my head than in my ear. “We bring you no malice.” Her accent was thick, but lilting.

“Where am I?” I asked.

“You have left your realm, and have entered ours. At our choosing, of course!” she laughed.

“What do you mean by ‘my realm’ and where is it?” I queried, not sure if I had lost my mind or just temporarily taken leave of my senses.

“You saved my life! And, I wished to thank you, face-to-face. It is an honor to welcome you into our presence. I am Titania Fair, Queen of the Fairies of Daoine Maithe. You have great magic to command the beasts of the field! I am grateful to you. Bendith y Mamau.” The words she spoke were incomprehensible but most calming.

“Whoa! Am I dreaming? What is this? A joke? Where am I? What beasts?” confusion was beginning to set in.

“Not to be anxious, please. I only brought you here for a brief sojourn because you did honor to my monarchy. You will be returned just as you came, without any detriment to your being.”

On the verge of panic, tears started to stream unbidden from my eyes. I surely “wasn’t in Kansas, anymore”. The last thing I remembered was walking into the fairy ring to find out what the cats had trapped.

“Why do you weep? Did I not tell you no harm is meant to you? We have prepared a great feast to honor you. Will you join us?”

Though still not quite understanding the “why” nor the “where” of my circumstances, I did feel comfortable in her presence. My senses were beginning to return to me. I had somehow entered another dimension, or I was having one heck of a hallucination! And, this beautiful, tiny creature surrounded by legions of other green-clad creatures thought that I had saved her life, when all I had done was to shoo away our pet cats. “I cannot stay, Queen Titania,” I managed to get the words to pass through my lips. “I know that you have meant to honor me, but I, in fact must return to my realm. I have children to tend and my husband’s dinner to prepare.”

Thoughts of my husband returned with a mad rush. He was working on a fairy ring cocktail like no other, intent on destroying any trace of his nuisance. “Queen Titania, if I may be so bold, I must warn you of another impending danger.”

I explained the problem urgently to Her Royal Highness. But, instead of terror, she looked at me with sheer delight. Puzzled, I asked if she understood what I had just said.

“Your concern for a race unknown to you is enchanting. Thank you again!” she proclaimed. “But, we do not live in your realm. When the beasts attacked, I was visiting your kingdom to check on the progress of you mortals. The ring surrounding me was the remnants of the spell that brought me there. Often, its residue lingers for some time in the green that you call grass! As long as we continue to dwell in our realm, nothing from yours can harm us. Because of your true concern, I will grant you two wishes. Choose wisely, for sometimes a wish can be a curse. One day, we shall meet again. Good journey, my friend.”

Before I could say my goodbyes, I found myself sitting on my lawn once again!

“Are you talking to the fairies? Maybe you should warn them that I’m about to get rid of their rings for good!” my husband teased.

Knowing that he wouldn’t relent until he either rid the lawn of the fairy ring, or killed all of the grass trying, I walked back into the house, thinking of the “gift” that Queen Titania had “bestowed upon me”. Two wishes, hmmmmm! “Okay, here goes,” I thought warily. “I wish that the fairy rings that seem to plague my husband would leave our yard for good.”

I heard my husband yelling. “Honey, come out here! You won’t believe what just happened! You HAVE GOT TO SEE THIS! I think we are gonna be RICH!”

Sure enough, every trace of the fairy ring that was in our yard was gone. “Should I tell him? Naaaaah! He’d never believe it anyway!”

And, to think, I still have another wish left!