The verdant wood was lush with the pleasant scent of petrichor. The damp earth feels cool beneath my feet and the lichen and moss softened with the recent rain cushion my steps. I breathe the freshness and walk deeper into its mystery. I know fairies live here. There are tiny signs everywhere. I once found a fairy crown. The moment I put it on my finger, silvered fronds of a delicate vine curled around in a perfect fit. It astonished me. To imagine my finger was the same circumference as a fairy queen’s (or king’s) head! I felt enchanted.
Deep in the forest
There is a fairy’s magic
In midsummer’s dew
I wander further into the heart of the ancient trees and reach the secret glade in dappled sunlight. I know they will be out today. They love the summer solstice and gather to celebrate. There’s a chance if I sit still and keep hidden, I might see them.
The sun reaches its zenith and glints through the canopy with sparkling luminescence. The shafts of light fall in gilded pools, gleaming like small spotlights on a dance floor.
Leaves rustle and I hear whispering in the undergrowth. I hold my breath.
Lesley Scoble, June 2024
NOTES
The summer solstice moment
The fairies will dance in the forest glade this year on Thursday the 20th of June 2024 at 9:50 pm GMT. They’ll dance on the longest day and shortest night, celebrating the summer solstice. When the earth tilts closest to the sun in the northern hemisphere. The solstice is this precise moment.
Stonehenge
Stonehenge, Salisbury Plain, England, is synonymous with the solstice since pre history.
The place is special. It is strange, mysterious and haunting. Every time I visit, it leaves me with an indefinable feeling.
Late one night…
One night we were driving past the site when unusual lights appeared over the plain. We stopped the car. It was late, and all was quiet. The lights gathered together, hovered, then at impossible speed separated and vanished.
Stonehenge by John Constable
“The mysterious monument of Stonehenge, standing remote on a bare and boundless heath, as much unconnected with the events of past ages as it is with the uses of the present, carries you back beyond all historical records into the obscurity of a totally unknown period.”
I love this watercolour of Stonehenge (painted 1835) by John Constable. (I took this photo when the watercolour was on display at the Royal Academy exhibition, Piccadilly, 2022.)
From my photo album
My photo shows how different Stonehenge is today from when Constable painted his watercolour. The Victorians began the renovations in 1901. Since then, most of the stones are now either re-erected, re-positioned or set in concrete. (resource.)
…and here’s a quickie digital watercolour sketch I did on my iPad.
Time lapse video (19 secs) of my ink and watercolour sketch.
I wrote my haibun in response to the d’Verse Poets Haibun Monday: solstice prompt. Thank you, Frank J. Tassone. for your inspiration.
I should like to also thank, Colleen Chesebro for her #Tanka Tuesday prompt. My kigo word for this prompt is midsummer.
Lesley lives in the City of London Square Mile. An artist, actor and sculptor (her first ceramic sculpture won the V&A inspired by… Award). Scenic artist & book illustrator, playwright (her musical play, Rapscallion performed in inner city schools and theatre school); TV dancer; Animator and illustrator for TV production. Set up Pinecone Studios Ltd and IIMSI Ltd drama and filmmaking workshops in London – producing award-winning films made by children.
LesleyScoble.com 
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