Y'know someone's probably waxed poetic about this already but it's on my mind so I'm gonna do it again.
When it comes to encouraging people to learn about native plants and habitat and involving themselves and their yards in the wider ecosystem, you gotta meet them where they're at.
And maybe that means they won't go as far into it as you are or would like them to in your wildest dreams. But even small steps count towards the bigger picture and I think we need to appreciate that more.
An example from my own life is my mom and the current gardening project we're working on. We're planning out the garden beds in the front of the yard by the mailbox--my mom's previous plantings for the most part haven't worked out, so I'm taking a crack at it.
I'm a pollinator gardening enthusiast who cares more about attracting as many butterflies bees and hummingbirds as possible than keeping things 'neat' and 'tidy'. However, not only do we live in an HOA neighborhood (though not as intense as some other stories I've heard), but I know my mother--an interior designer who has a deeply vested care for making sure the exterior of the house looks as Nice as possible.
We're still getting a pollinator garden in the front though. How? I'm meeting her where she's at, I'm making some concessions, she's making some concessions, but ultimately we're making something that works for the both of us. She doesn't want the plants too tall and messy? We'll trim them back in fall and winter--the insects can use the backyard garden to nest in. She doesn't want things too wild and bushy and weedy? We'll add a nice mulch to the beds, keep things a bit spaced out until they grow in to their larger sizes. She doesn't know the latin names for the plants I'm asking for, let alone how to pronounce them to ask for them at a garden center? That's fine, I don't know the Latin names for most things anyways, let's just use common names.
Does she care that the garden will attract butterflies and hummingbirds? Not intrinsically--she sees it as more of a bonus, if anything. She just cares about what color everything will be and if it'll be easy to maintain. The fact that they're native plants barely registers as a plus side to her. And honestly? That is fine.
If I approached this problem with a hardheaded attitude on how I wanted it to be just as wild and free as my backyard garden? There wouldn't be any native plants in the front beds. It's not like I didn't teach my mom things, but I didn't lecture her like she was lesser just for not knowing or caring as much about native gardening as I do. And that, ultimately, made her more open to the idea than she would've been if I looked down on her like I've seen too many people do to others.
Not everyone is going to develop a deeply seated care about native plants and Latin names and I don't think it's reasonable to expect that. Meet people where they're at and you just might get a lot more done. Meet people where they're at and you just might find they'll get excited enough to learn more--but if they don't want to learn more, that is fine.
We can't expect everyone on the globe to suddenly become plant experts rattling off Latin names left and right and professionally ID'ing native and invasive plants. In the same way we wouldn't expect everyone to suddenly learn the ins and outs of learning code, or how to synthesize medicines, or how to properly build a house. And that is fine. Because we can lean on those who do know when these things come up.
I lost track of where this was going but. Y'know????
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Accenting the Fae
~1.6k words
A zero context thing I wrote for a Fairy!Eddie Au I came up with,,, yesterday? Recently. Enjoy! Or don't!
🍃🌼🌷🌻🪻🌺🍃🌼🌷🌻🪻🌺🍃🌼🌷🌻🪻🌺🍃
White Pines towered overhead, shading the ground cover beneath. The overgrown vines and leaves made traversal difficult for Grace. Luckily what she was looking for would be on the ground, so keeping her head low had some benefits at least.
Although, thinking about it now, Grace doubted it would be covered up by all these vines. Weren't they usually out in the open? Like in a-
A clearing. Like the one right in front her. The brush ended suddenly and Grace looked up to see a wide, sunlit patch surrounded by trees and thicket. It was radiant, the open sky above shone onto bright grass and wildflowers reflecting the light from the morning dew. In the center of it all there was a circle of red and purple mushrooms. It was gorgeous, but it's fantastical beauty put Grace on edge. She had found it.
Grace hesitated. Could this really work? Was coming out here a mistake? What if she messed up and bit off more than she could chew? What if nothing happened at all and she skipped school for nothing? It was too late now, Grace reasoned to herself, she'd been walking for hours to find this. It had to work. She walked into the clearing, standing under the sun.
With one more deep breath, Grace stepped into the circle. The ground under her boots felt the same as the ground outside the ring, soft and unassuming. After a moment of nothing she turned and nearly stepped out but as soon as she lifted her foot she felt a tug.
The breeze picked up, Grace watched the blades of grass sway and leaves swirl around the clearing. Then all at once, it stopped. She felt a presence behind her, one that left a tingling sensation in her mind. She didn't move, unsure if she should dare to do so.
"Hello?" A gentle, deep voice rang behind the teenage girl, "I can't talk to you when your back is turned." The presence laughed gently, airily without a care.
Grace turned around. Be respectful, be polite, use those Southern manners.
"Sorry, The wind distracted me," It wasn't a lie, she was temporarily mesmerized by the display.
Now that Grace was facing the source of the voice she could get a good look at him. The Faerie standing with her had curly red hair that looked cloud soft. Orange felt with a yellow triangular nose surrounded by light freckles. His bright violet eyes were lidded in a gentle, calming demeanor, his eyelids themselves were only a few shades lighter. Full, long lashes completed the beautiful draw to his eyes. But Grace knew not to stare.
He tilted his head and smiled almost sheepishly, "Oh that's alright. I can get distracted by little things too."
Grace nodded, unsure of what to say. Or where to begin. Luckily, the Fae seemed to understand that struggle as well.
"May I help you?" He continued, "You seem to want something, am I correct?"
"You may help me," Grace chose her words carefully, "I don't need somethin’ from ya, I actually would like ya to take somethin’ specific." Here it comes. Mentally, she crossed her fingers.
"Is that so? What would you like me to take, sweetheart?" The endearment dripped with a saccharine sweetness, it was impossible to tell if it's artificial or not.
"I would like for you, Fae, to take my accent," Grace's voice quivered as she finally made her request. She begs to whatever may be above that he responds well.
The Fae looked confused and stayed quiet. Seeming to think it over.
As Grace waited in nauseating anticipation, she couldn’t help but think back to why she was doing this. Life was fine back in Texas. She had friends, close family, and everyone talked the same talk. But since her parents dragged her upstate, she's been miserable. The mockery, insults, and bullying was too much to bare. And it wall all over her voice, her accent, and where she came from. Her parents did nothing, the teachers did nothing. Hell, her English teacher was constantly correcting her pronunciation every other word. She hated it. She hated her heavy accent and the trouble that came with it.
"Why should I take your accent? What can I do with it?" The Fae broke the quiet, startling the other in the circle. His soft cadence never changed, but a lilt of confusion was clear.
Grace thought for a moment, she didn't quite think of that. She had assumed it would be like giving him her name or voice. He would just take it to have it.
"Well, ya could use it yourself, if ya like. Or maybe give it to someone else?" That made sense, at least to Grace, but she couldn't be too confident.
"I suppose you're right, child," The Fae hummed, "I do like the sound of your accent, and I may use it. But tell me, why do you want to part with it?"
"I want to give ya my accent because I don't like it. I am thankful you do, it’s all the more reason to give it away." Even if she thought it was, Grace tried not to make her accent seem worthless.
The Fae thought over the girl's answer, a sad look crossing his face.
"You poor thing," The Faerie sighed, "I will take your accent but I would like to give you something in return. Is there anything you want?"
"Thank you. And Yes, I would like to leave the forest safely, please, so I can get home." Grace didn't want anything, honestly, but knew it was best to take the trade. He was kind enough to offer and it would be rude to refuse. Also, she really didn’t want to go through all those roots and vines again.
The Fae nodded, curls bouncing gently with the motion, "Of course. You will return home safely, and in return I get your accent."
There was a tightness in Grace's throat that left her unable to speak. The Fae in front her motioned her closer, cupping her face once in reach. He studied her, turning her chin up as though to get a good look of her neck. Another bounce of red curls told Grace he nodded again, for what reason, she had no clue. The constriction in her throat was uncomfortable yet she was somehow able to breathe just fine. He titled her head back down and patted her cheeks. After doing so the feeling vanished and she swallowed.
"How's that?" The Fae asked, with a new rich tone accompanying that of a typical Texan accent. He did it.
Grace could only stare upon hearing his voice. Quickly, when his brows furrowed, she remembered to speak.
"It's," Grace paused stunned once more hearing herself, "Different. Thank you." Her shoulders dropped in relief, she can't believe it worked.
"You're welcome," The Faerie smiled, "Now get yourself home, darlin'. You're supposed to be in school."
"Yes, of course. Goodbye," Grace ended the interaction, ready to leave the nerve wracking moment behind.
She took one step backwards, but was stopped by his voice.
"Darn it, I almost forgot somethin'." The Fae pointed at her, like a scolding parent, "You, missy, should never do this again."
"Wha-"
"No," He interrupted, "What you did was reckless, had any other Folk shown up you'd be left with nothin' but that pretty head of hair. You're lucky I ain't so particular 'bout these sorts of things."
The Fae sighed, his expression returning to that sad look from earlier. "I'll give ya some credit, ya did some things right, but it wasn't perfect. And that imperfection is what gets ya into trouble."
Grace nodded, it was all she do. She was more or less fully shell shocked by now. This Fae, of all creatures, was scolding her behavior just like her mother would.
The Faerie nodded in return, taking a step back himself. The wind picked up once more, slower this time.
His eyes grew dark, "Don't. Do it again." The Fae waved her off with a stern, but polite, goodbye, shooing her outside the circle.
Grace stumbled backwards out, the wind kicked into gear the second her foot landed. She closed her eyes as her hair blew in her face, the wind was much stronger outside the ring than she thought.
Then it stopped. Grace's hair fell in her face, now a complete mess. She opened her eyes to... nothing. The fairy ring was gone, with no evidence of it ever having been there at all. The whole thing felt surreal. Had it even happened? Grace spoke the question aloud to find her answer.
A perfect, upstate accent fell from Grace's lips. It only just occurred to her she never said what accent she wanted instead. She could've gotten something worse, but she guessed it had been the doing of the Fae that was kind enough to give her this one.
Grace took one last look towards the sky, it was clearer than it had been before. Not a cloud in sight. She breathed a deep sigh of relief, glad for it to all be over.
Turning around, Grace started her venture home. Along the way she found a trail that led her safely out to the edge of the forest where she had entered. A trail that definitely hadn’t been there before. Mentally, she thanked the kind Fae one more time.
Grace really didn't like that expression he made before leaving. She didn't know him, but that serious, almost threatening demeanor didn't suit his eyes. She didn't want to know what would happen if she went against the Fae’s wishes, and she didn't want to find out either.
She's never going near a Fairy Ring again, that was for sure.
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