THE PEOPLE OF THE CELTIC FAERIE

The Sprites, Part 2

Last month, a Sprite we sometimes refer to as Mira Hummingbird provided some history concerning how Humans and others of the Faery came to leave the Garden. This month, Mira's sacred mate, Gwionbach Dragonfly, speaks more about the Sprites themselves. We described Mira and Gwionbach last month, but, as a reminder, Gwionbach is about five inches tall and has long, curly, light brown hair and upward-slanted golden brown eyes. Like many Sprites, four shimmering wings are to be found resting between his shoulder blades. Gwionbach now begins:

"We Sprites live in one of the great forests of Tir na n'Og. The forest is referred to as the Singing Forest or Mother's Lullaby Grove. Human legends of long ago spoke of the magical forest of Broceliande, and perhaps this forest can be found hidden within those tales. The roots of the great trees in the Singing Forest reach deep within Mother Earth, their massive trunks rise high into the sky, and their giant limbs unfold to touch the face of the Mother and Father Creator. So tall are these trees that the clouds pass through their upper limbs, so that those who dwell high in the treetops live above a sea of white, rolling clouds, while gentle cloud waves lap at the steps of their doors. I would guess that the height and circumference of these trees would be even greater than the tallest buildings in your cities. Naturally, hollow chambers are always contained within such massive trees, and it is within these naturally-formed chambers that we make our homes. I would say that our homes are not so dissimilar to your homes. We have windows and doors, like you, and tables and chairs, beds and bookcases, and other furniture. If you are having trouble imagining what our homes are like, perhaps you would like to visit one. Come with me now, if you wish, and I will take you on a Sprite journey.

"Within the mind of your spirit, please give your body permission to become smaller and smaller and smaller still, until you are about as tall as a Sprite. Once you have accomplished this magical feat, I want you to allow your small wings to unfold from your back. These wings can be any type of wings you wish-the wings of a butterfly, the wings of a hummingbird, the wings of a bumblebee, or any other type of wings you can think of. Now that you have accomplished these tasks, my much welcomed traveler, please follow me through the sky and through the beautiful, green cathedral of the forest.

"Soon, we find ourselves standing, or fluttering, before a small, round door. Within this door is a window shaped like a teardrop from the sun. The glass within this small teardrop-shaped window is crystalline, and it acts as a prism to reflect rainbow colors inward to the interior of the house. The Sprites who live in this house have gone out to complete some errands, but also to graciously allow us to wander about their lovely home freely. Please do not feel self-conscious as you gaze about the rooms of their home, for the holders of this house do wish you to enjoy yourself.

"We still wish to observe the rules of polite society, however, so we will knock on the door three times. The door silently opens for us, and we enter into the greeting room, where prisms of bright sunlight filter through round, stained glass windows. Within the greeting room, as is proper, we find comfortable furniture, which, you may discover, resembles in some ways your own couch and chairs, except that they are much lower to the floor. As is usual for Faire Folke, the furniture is very ornate. The wood used in the sofas is carved to resemble oak leaves, and, among these oak leaves, you will find an inquisitive squirrel running along the limbs here and there, or perhaps poking its head out from amidst the foliage in an inquisitive manner. Though these leaves are carved wood, you almost sense that they are gently moving with the breeze, and you are nearly certain you can hear the rustling of the squirrels among the leaves.

"In this particular greeting room, three long couches encircle a round table. This table is enameled with tiles picturing a very beautiful pond inhabited by a large, colorful, green frog resting on a lily pad. The frog appears to be engaged in a philosophical discussion with a learned fish, which has just chanced to raise its head from out of the water. Also pictured on this table are dragonflies engaging with Sprites in a circle dance through the air over the sparkling waters of the pond. Were you to gaze into this pond long enough, you might find yourself spiraling downward, past the circle dance of the dragonflies and the Sprites and past the frog and the fish and their philosophical discussion. Deeper you would travel into the cool, clear waters of the pond, passing through a school of fish swimming to and fro, following the pathways of the invisible currents, until you glimpsed, far, far down at the bottom of the pond, a small light-filled cave. Were you to enter this cave of light, you could find yourself journeying for hours to a wonderful place of your dreams.

"Still, being the very rude Sprite that I am, and not wanting you to become separated from our company, I must suddenly pull you upwards to the surface of the pond and back to the dry lands of the greeting room and your seat, that you may partake of the small feast of food and drink we are about to offer you. A greeting room must always have sofas and a table, for the hostess and host will always wish to provide their guests with food and drink. A delicious treat awaits you today in the form of a hot, moist, spice cake with a creamy interior, resting within a bed of cream. Accompanying this appealing dish is a cup of hot, spiced apple cider, topped with a sprinkle of cinnamon. The spice cake is placed before you on a beautiful, ornate plate, which depicts a scene of a mother deer and her fawn moving through a leafy forest. The cider is served in a ceramic cup depicting a stag bellowing from deep within the heart of the forest. These are Faery dishes, and so, on occasion, you might find the deer, fawn or stag leaping off the plate or cup to go dashing across the table. We realize such a thing could prove rather distracting for a Human, so we are letting you know what to expect, for we do not wish to give you cause to spill your cider.

"Hopefully, you will now have had time to enjoy your cake and cider. If you have not yet finished, please feel free, if you are wearing clothes, to place the food in your pocket. If, like most Sprites, you are wearing very little clothing, then we will provide you with a small satchel to place the food in, so that you may take it with you upon your return to the mundane world. We will pass quickly now through the kitchen where our wonderful food came from. Please take note that there are, again, colorful, round windows, for there are round windows through all the rooms of the house. You see a large, open fireplace, where much of the food is prepared. Its chimney rises upwards and outwards, disappearing through the wall of the kitchen. Hanging on the walls of the fireplace are ornately designed pots and pans and other kitchen utensils. In the kitchen is found the water basin where we receive pure, clear water from a spout designed to resemble the long, graceful neck and head of a swan. The water pours forth from the swan's open beak, and the levers on either side of the spout are shaped like the swan's wings. When the wings are up, the water is off, and when the wings are down, the water is on. Off to the side of the kitchen, you will find a large room, which you might refer to as a larder. Faire Folke do not partake of meat, so you would find none in the larder, but you would find there many other kinds of foods which are very nourishing and tasty.

"Now we move out of the kitchen to pass through a round, open doorway, which leads us straight into another room, which you might refer to as a family room. Neatly arrayed on shelves, you will find many games and books and musical instruments. Here, the family gathers to tell tales, accompanied by musical instruments, and to read or play games. As usual, there are three round windows of colorful stained glass, one smaller window up high and two larger ones below, which form a triangle. Every room in a Sprite house has three windows. The smaller upper window always symbolizes the star which rose over Jesus' birthplace, and the two lower windows represent the merging of the spiritual and physical realms. The three windows project three tunnels of light which merge into one and fill the room with light. The three windows also represent the Awen or the light of inspiration, the liquid light of divine love which flows from the Mother and Father Creator and our beloved brother, Jesus.

"Let us now pass through another round doorway into a room filled with bookshelves filled with books. These bookshelves flow upwards and curve around the three windows of the room. If you take time to gaze about this room, you will see another open doorway which leads into a room containing an easel upon which to create paintings. This room also holds a potter's wheel to spin formless clay into pots. Together, we have discovered the craft room. In this room, the parents and children enrich their spirits with feats of artful craft to give honor to Mother Earth and all her children.

"Now we will move quickly past the bedrooms. In this house, as we pass down the hallway, we see, through the round, open doors, three bedrooms on the right for the children and four bedrooms on the left. Next to the children's bedrooms is a large room which we refer to as the bathing room. The three windows in this room allow the sun to shine his light down upon a large pool of water, where the children and parents may swim. This bathroom, though it is beautiful, is used rarely by the family, for most Sprite bathing and swimming is done outdoors in nature. The bathing rooms of Sprites are used more frequently by visiting guests, who are oftentimes more private in their bathing habits, although a Sprite family will sometimes gather together for a family soak in their indoor pool. The pool becomes heated, so that the water bubbles and steam rise up from it. The pool itself is like a large, tiled bowl. This particular pool displays within its tiles a scene of fish and mermaids playfully swimming about. In fact, the spout from which the water fills the pool is made in the shape of the head of a fish, while the tail of the same fish controls the water flow. When the tail is up the water is off, and when the tail is down the water is on.

"Sadly, there are too many details in our homes to point them all out to you in one short visit. I would guess there are many things you would find quite unique and mystifying if you had the time to study them. There are other rooms in this home we might visit, but I would like to take this time to show you a bit more of the forest in which we dwell. Please take hold of my hand or Mira's hand, and, together, we will gently fly out of this room and down the long, winding hallway, until we find ourselves standing once more before the front door of this home. I have already expressed our gratitude to the Sprite family who holds this home for allowing our brief visit.

"As stated earlier, the great forest where we have our homes is called the Singing Forest or the Mother's Lullaby Grove. The reason for this is that the trees gently rock in the wind and, as the wind passes through the leaves, they make a sighing, singing sound. When you are in the forest, whether flying high in the trees or resting in your home, you hear the trees singing gently to you, soothing and calming your spirit like a very quiet lullaby a mother would sing to her child, combined with the very gentle rocking motion of the trees. This is why our forest is called the Singing Forest or the Mother's Lullaby Forest.

"Our forest surrounds a great, great meadow which is longer and wider, perhaps, than some of your major cities. Within this meadow grow many splendid, colorful wildflowers and herbs and edible foods. This is how we help those Faire Folke in other realms, for this meadow is known as Mother's Herb Hollow, and here you can find any herb that is needed for healing. It is from this place that the herbs in your realm are born. They appear first in our realm, and then they pass from the spirit into physical to be used by Humanity, and then they pass back once more from Humanity to spirit, where they return again to Mother's Herb Hollow. This is because Mother and Father Creator have created these plants so that all Creation can survive, for these plants nourish the animals and all life. All life follows the harmonic, circular pattern created by the Mother and Father. These plants, because they wish to serve and heal and nourish, have, in their spirit, volunteered to enter the harsher, physical realms where Humanity lives, to be used by them and by all life on the physical Mother Earth. Then, after performing their duty, they will return to the spirit realm, where they may dwell as long as they wish. Out of love for the Mother and Father Creator, these plants maintain a circular cycle, spirit to physical and physical to spirit, as you find reflected in the life and death and life of the seasons in your physical world.

"It is growing late now, in the Human world, and it is time for you, our wonderful guest, to return back to the mundane world. The Sprite wings on your back are growing smaller and smaller and smaller until, like a snowflake in the sun, they disappear. Your small Sprite body is beginning to grow larger and larger and larger, until, once again, you regain your physical Human body. If you have enjoyed this journey and return unwillingly to your Human body, do not weep, for with the love of the Mother and Father Creator and faith in Faery magic, you may one day fly once more with Sprite wings under the light of the full moon above the enchanted meadows and forests of Broceliande."

The above article appeared in the July 2001 issue of "The Open Line", a monthly newspaper based in Spokane, Washington (email: ol@openline.cc).