Gylbert, The Hairy Fairy
Once upon a time,
In the forest of Ninglenook,
the Ningle fairies lived
in freedom and in style~
Gently turn the pages of this book
to learn about an unusual hairy fairy.
Are you sitting comfortably?
It might take a while.
Chapter 1
In the hollow of an ancient oak,
Lives a hairy fairy bloke.
With rippling muscles of beef and brawn,
And hair the tint of an angry dawn.
He is the biggest fairy ever known.
At birth his nose was as big as an acorn.
His mother screamed when he was born.
He grew up fast but stayed quite small,
Which of course, for a fairy, is normal.
His mind is keen,
And his thoughts are deep,
He doesn’t need a lot of sleep.
His favourite drink is elderberry,
A cup of tea and a glass of sherry.
He lives alone in his old oak tree,
Carving wood and drinking tea.
One day he would like to find
A pretty fairy who’s sweet and kind;
To share his home in the old oak,
To help cook and clean and share a joke.
To iron his shirts and wash the dishes,
While he works his woodcraft or goes out and fishes—
Fishing in the forest pond
Is something of which he’s rather fond.
The pond is full of carp and bream,
An angler’s haven and his dream.
Sitting on the bank, to cast his fly—
Watching as his world goes by.
Large frogs croak, half submerged,
In verdant watery reflective shades.
Lilies float like wedding hats,
Water boatmen skim the surface,
Rowing past midges, fleas, and gnats.
Dragonflies dart from place to place,
Like helicopters with whirring blades,
Then, a light breeze blew,
And a pretty fairy flew in.
She eyed the dude with his rod and fly,
“Oh my,” she said with a sigh,
“Aye, aye, aye,
He looks like my kinda guy.”
Gylbert blushed, and brushed back his hair,
And looked up in the air.
He was transfixed by what was there.
The pretty fairy stepped lightly by his side
“Hello,” she said.
Gylbert turned his head
And his jaw dropped wide.
He couldn’t help but say—
“Will you be my faery bride, my wife?”
“To live with me, to share my life?”
“To iron my shirts and wash the dishes?”
“Haha! Are those your wishes‽”
And with that the pretty fairy flew away.
He watched her disappear…
With a gentle waft—into the sky—
Into the blue.
No fond farewell,
No toodleoo,
No goodbye,
No fair thee well,
And no so long…
A tear fell from Gylbert’s eye,
He doesn’t know the reason why,
or what went wrong.
He cast his rod into the pond,
Lonely ripples curled and spun.
Perhaps a heart is never won
By asking if the chores be done.
Gylbert shook his head in surprise.
He sighs and stares at dragonflies,
Their wings aglow in golden light,
Gylbert waits for a fish to bite…
Perhaps one day he’ll see her there,
Beneath the trees, upon the air.
And if he did, he’d say just this:
“Come sit with me—no work, just bliss.
I promise.”
He’d carve her a gift, a love token true,
And tell her the dream of all the things they’ll do.
He will tell her how much he loves her—
And that he’s even bought a dishwasher.
(more…)
Lesley Scoble, March 2025
I cut the length of my story to fit the prompt’s limit of 500 words. There’s more! Maybe for another day…
My thanks to David, The Skeptics Kaddish, and to the Poet-of-the-week, Sally. To learn more about the poetry prompt, please click below.
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; mime artist; 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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