Making Magick

It's perfect today -- sunny, breezy, kite-flying weather! -- so I took a break from my yardwork's spring-cleanup schedule to take a leisurely stroll. It's one of my favorite things to do, even when my walk consistently takes the same route. Things change from moment to moment -- the angle of the sun, the growth of the grass, you name it. There's always something new to see, some bit of wonderment to encounter....

For instance, today I happened upon a blue Micron pen dropped neatly at the curb (what will it draw?, must open it and find out!), waves of blue Scilla blooming in a friend's front yard, and an open egg at the base of a tree. Not just any open egg, either. This one was robin's-egg blue, a leftover from the holiday, perhaps something gone undiscovered at an Easter Egg Hunt. It was so perfect, posing there at the base of the tree, that I half-imagined it to be proof of an extraordinary hatching, and I pondered what sort of ethereal creature could have muscled its way out of it.

Clearly, 'blue' was the word of the day and the Universe was encouraging me to draw. :)

As I walked along, far away in my head, I passed a house just as its garage door opener engaged, and out walked two elderly ladies hauling between them a cat carrier inside of which was a huge orange tom, clearly disgruntled at the thought of embarking on an Adventure. We women waved to each other and I called, "Just a checkup, I hope?" to which one replied, "Poor baby has a bad heart. The vet is putting him on a monitor to see what can be done...." I said I'd keep my fingers crossed. And suddenly thoughts of magickal eggs hatching magickal creatures were no longer in my head....

It's funny what ideas come to a person when they're outside, letting their thoughts play and fly free. My head was all over the place. All around me was sunshine and springtime, all within me was once about flowers and fairies. But now I was focused on those women and their concerns for their curmudgeonly cat. 

As soon as I got back to messy, crazy Tumbledown, I hauled out the art paper and wrote the ladies an anonymous note of encouragement. And I'd meant to draw a pretty flower fairy on the front of it, too, one hatching from an Easter egg and wearing a blue Scilla bonnet (and I still intend to draw this; the Universe demands it), but I changed my mind and instead affixed a pic to the card of my Moustache Cat, looking all debonair and bow-tied and gentlemanly. It just seemed right. More uplifting, somehow. 

And as I sealed it up I couldn't help but smile; if nothing else, this spontaneous gesture has uplifted me. And my hope is that those good feelings have been sealed within the envelope, to work their magick upon release.

So mote it be.
...

A Leprechaun Tale

A couple days ago I mailed each of the beloved grandbuglets a handwritten note.

The note explained how 'Grampa James discovered a leprechaun hiding in his sock drawer and how he'd agree to free it if it gave him a gold coin for each of the grandbugs, and so it DID, but the next day when he checked on the 'gold' in his pocket, it wasn't gold any longer.' And enclosed with the note was proof: a fat plastic coin with a shamrock stamped on it.

On Saturday James and I FaceTimed with our local 'buglets, and the first thing the 4-almost-5-year-old did was muscle her little brother out of the way in order to hog the camera and demand, "Grampa, did you REALLY see a leprechaun? How big was he? Was he the size of a crayon? Did he have a little green vest? Did he look like this?" And she held a grocery store ad with a Lucky Charms character on it up to the camera lens....

I'd made up the story, but now poor Grampa had to confirm it (oops). To his credit, he winged it beautifully, describing in grand detail how he'd bargained with the leprechaun, and how it begged for its freedom, and how surprised Grampa was to discover the next day that what he thought was gold wasn't gold after all.

All the while he talked, she listened intently with eyes wide, eyebrows high, mouth turned down at the corners. Very intense. And there was a long pause afterward while we sensed the gears turning. Then, in a stage whisper: "Grampa?.... Did you fall for a leprechaun TRICK?"

(We were so delighted by her response that James and I roared with laughter; I hope we didn't embarrass her....)

I suggested we could all set a trap for the sneaky thing, but how would we do that?? And she flew off on a Rube Goldberg tangent: "We could hang a cage from the ceiling and run a wire from it over to the wall and then run the wire across the floor and then when he walked by he'd trip on the wire and the cage would come down and catch him and then I'd grab him and say, 'Give me TWO GOLD COINS -- one for Grampa, one for Gramma, one for Miss Lily, one for Boo, and one for those cute little birds that always try to snackle your fingers off.'"

(SO generous. And to those horrid piranha birds, too, bless her!)

And there you have it: a tale about my brush with the gold at the end of the rainbow and the magick it made one Saturday night. And now I hope some of it's rubbed off on you.

May all your Erin Go Bragh-ing go well today, my friend. And may 'snackle' forever be a word in your lexicon.

Slainte.

...

It's August Eve and Magick Abounds

I'm stalked by sparkles today! Amazing things are everywhere and all I have to do is open my eyes. Check out this little bit of Who Knew?? that I encountered just stepping out the front door to collect my mail:

Did you have any idea that strawberry leaves weep dewdrops at dawn?? I didn't!

And then right next to the strawberries was THIS -- the special geranium that originated with my maternal grandmother -- all abloom. My mom started this one for me from a single slip. And see? Each blossom unfurls like tiny fairy bride bouquets of roses.

And then there was this beautiful fellow who was visiting my garden milkweed as I was retrieving the day's mail. :)

And if all that wasn't enough, there was a delightful letter from a friend waiting in the mailbox for me! So I dropped everything, sat down on the warm front step, and leisurely read to my heart's content while the afternoon sun shone down on my head and insects buzzed in the garden around me.

A dipped-in-wonderful-gold (and I mean 'wonderful' as in 'full of wonder') day and I'd hardly even stepped away from my sketchbook. All I had to do was open my eyes.

But then when I went back inside again, there was THIS:

Bless it's heart and cue the happydance! -- one of my coddled and pampered monarch caterpillars went into chrysalis mode when I wasn't looking.

Awesomesauce.

...

Marjolein Bastin and the Dipped-in-Gold Day

Yup. A Dipped-in-Gold-Day. A Fresh-Air-and-Sunshine Day. A Spring-is-on-its-Way Day. And here's why:

Responding to what sounded like Birdfest out my front door this morning, I opened it to discover robins feasting on the berry clusters in my rowan tree. Instant Spring moment!

Artwork copyright Marjolein Bastin

During my walk around the neighborhood afterwards, I glanced up to catch a black-and-white Tuxedo tom cat lazily watching me as I pursued some exercise.

On my return trip home again, I recognized the unmistakeable 'foley artist' sounds of a happy starling in full song. (In spite of my earmuffs! Says a lot about happy starlings....)

And once there I checked the Billbox to find a delightful handwritten (in fountain pen, no less!) letter from a good friend.

And because of that wonderful letter with its wonderful stationery, I took a moment today to reacquaint myself with the artwork of Marjolein Bastin.

If you're unfamiliar with Ms. Bastin's work, I suggest you study the photos in this post or hie yourself to yon local Hallmark store and spend a wonderful afternoon appreciating the beautiful cards and tchotchkes there that feature her work.

Artwork copyright Marjolein Bastin

I've collected Marjolein's charming cards since my old Law Office days back in the 90s when the Hallmark store in the downstairs lobby of the office building I worked in kept me delightfully busy over many a lunch break.

One of my fave card designs featured two little birds feathering the nest of a birdhouse made of art supplies. I was so charmed by the image that I made a similar birdhouse for both my mother and my grandmother by painting store-bought pine birdhouses from a local craft outlet and hot-gluing straw, pencils, and paintbrushes to them. They turned out wonderfully if I do say so myself, by neither were ever used for housing birds.

Opening my letter today and seeing my friend's familiar handwriting and Marjolein's familiar watercolor studies absolutely transported me. I felt like I'd been sent back in time!

And now that I think about it, my whole day has been about birds, birdsong, nature, spring, and watercolory surroundings.

And memories, of course. And the magick of reconnection.
...

The Magic of Mail

The folks at Punchbowl (who supply the info for my Let's Party! blog widget) tell us that today is 'Thank a Mailman Day,' and you can read all about it by opening this link or scrolling down the righthand side of this blogpage.

Learning about 'Thank a Mailman Day' today made my heart do a little wiggle. Because I seriously love mail. Love it! Even the typewritten word gives me palpitations; it suggests handwritten secrets and sparkles and surprises. :)

Ever since I was little, mail has mesmerized me. I realized its awesome potential even before I could write my own name....