Midsummer and the Little People June 19 2015

Fairies have been revered and feared for centuries; not the pretty, fluttery Disney fairies for fairies are a little more real than that! For centuries the farmers have burned gorse on Mid-Summer’s Eve to rid their land of the fairy population and the shape shifting witches who mingle among them. For fairies are the friends of the witch adding a layer of protection to their homes and gardens.

Would you like to see fairies for yourself? Then sit the night of mid summers eve inside a stone circle, all night alone; just before dawn the fairies will appear but beware they may steal your mind!

You can also humour the fairies by tying a coloured ribbon on an Oak tree which is near a spring. Also if you walk around a natural well three times widdershins (anti-clockwise) at dawn on Mid-Summers day then toss a silver coin into the water then the fairies will repay you with abundance.

If you decide to explore the world of the little people tread carefully, they are mischievous beings and their fun may not be your fun. Befriend them by building a small house from things you find outside, rocks, twigs, leaves, put smaller stones outside for seats and leave some berries nearby. Fairies are cautious, so place their new dwelling out of sight and wait. They can be helpful creatures! However try not to encourage them inside your home, once established they like to rule the roost!

Here in the Isle Of Man no one will drive over the Fairy Bridge without saying hello to the fairies, this is a centuries old custom; for should you not acknowledge the little people then your luck will leave you.

The little people are guardians of another realm, best left alone or handled with care for if they are angered they will kick you hard and be unforgiving.