Swallowtails in the Garden

2fairy

00:00 / 03:34

Playing with the Kitty

FAERY GARDEN

Vocals by Krysten Ortiz

The moment mother let those faeries in the garden,
I saw the skulking shadow of a troll.
Before I could say, "I beg your pardon,"
It commanded me to pay a toll.

"I just want to sniff the handsome roses,"
I whimpered as I backed away in fright.
"I only want to chew your little toesees,"
A gremlin lunged to take a teeny bite.

I screamed and scurried toward the door,
blocked by mocking elves, whom I abhor.
A swarm of sylphs lifted from the hellebore,
finding hair and ears and nostrils to explore.

Goblins beat on drums of water
while the gnome cut loose a raucous snore.
The troll jumped on a teeter totter
and made a phoenix soar.

If mom can't make the beasties leave,
she'll see a change that will make her twitch:
If they won't all just behave,
I'm going to turn into a witch....

Troll in the Garden

FAERY GARDEN

The moment mother let those faeries in the garden,
I saw the skulking shadow of a troll.
Before I could say, "I beg your pardon,"
It commanded me to pay a toll.

Gremlin Chewing on Toes

"I just want to sniff the handsome roses,"
I whimpered as I backed away in fright.
"I only want to chew your little toesees,"
A gremlin lunged to take a teeny bite.

A Swarm of Sylphs

I screamed and scurried toward the door,
blocked by mocking elves, whom I abhor.
A swarm of sylphs lifted from the hellebore,
finding hair and ears and nostrils to explore.

Fiery Phoenix

Goblins beat on drums of water
while the gnome cut loose a raucous snore.
The troll jumped on a teeter totter
and made a phoenix soar.

A Witch in the Faery Garden

If mom can't make the beasties leave,
she'll see a change that will make her twitch:
If they won't all just behave,
I'm going to turn into a witch....

CLAIRE'S MUSICAL ADVENTURES

While Mommy and Daddy were having a "discussion" in the kitchen, Claire turned into a fairy and chased her kitty into the back yard. Then she heard music drifting to her from some far-away land. Suddenly swallowtails appeared in front of her and fluttered just out of her reach. They were so bright that Claire tried to grab it right out of the sky, but it flitted away. As Claire was chasing a swallowtail, she tripped over her kitty and plunged headlong to the ground.
Claire slowly sat up and shook her head. She felt the need to escape from the troublesome creatures in the backyard and to follow the swallowtails. She stumbled over to the fence and pushed as hard as she could. A board swung loose, and Claire squeezed through. She glimpsed the swallowtail faeries in the meadow and dashed after them.

Mr. Mellifluous

Claire soon came upon swallowtail faeries flitting back and forth between tiger lilies. Claire was startled and fascinated, and she reached out to them, but they fluttered away to other tiger lilies in the distance. She followed them and came upon a tiny man in a brown, cone-shaped hat.
"Who, who, who are you?" Claire stuttered.
"I am Mr. Mellifluous," the tiny man shouted. "And you, you must be an owl."
"No, my name is Claire," she responded, shaking her head.
"Are you shaking your head because you are not really Claire, or because you're not sure that I really exist?"
"I don't know," Claire retorted in disbelief, frowning.
"Obviously, you don't know much," Mr. Mellifluous scolded, "and that's probably why you are trespassing on my land."
"Nobody told me that this land belongs to you, and I didn't see any 'No Trespassing signs'," Claire objected.
"Nobody obviously doesn't know anything either," Mr. Mellifluous replied. "Nevertheless, you are here, and you must make a choice. I strongly recommend that you go back to where you came from. If you do not turn back, you will meet monsters and have adventures with magical creatures and fantastic people and godlike beings. Since you are a human, I doubt that you would want that!"
"By the way, you can call me Mr. M, child," Mr. Mellifluous smiled. "It's refreshing nowadays to encounter a human with manners. That is so rare nowadays amongst humans. You certainly don't find that kind of civility manifesting in the bigger ones much anymore."
Then Mr. M suddenly exclaimed, "Not only that! You make music with your heart! Not many human folk can do that anymore!"
Mr. Mellifluous continued, "Since you make music with your heart, you shall join the fairy folk!"

Faery with Blue Wings

Suddenly a faery with blue wings waved a wand over her head. Claire lifted off the ground and discovered that she could fly!

Tiger Fairy Making Scary Music

Then Claire turned into a tiger faery and roared. She made scary music with her heart. The other faeries screeched and lashed out at her with their claws. Mr. Mellifluous muttered, "Oh, dear!" He put his hand over his mouth and shook his head. Claire and the other faeries rushed away with the wind.
"Wait! Come back! I need to tell you a few things!" Mr. M blurted out. Claire flew back to Mr. M, who continued, "Every creature in this realm has magical powers and can influence you without your knowledge. They might use their powers to unbalance you or trick you or or steal everything from you or convince you to do something evil. These subtle forces might look like people or magical animals, but as a human you will not be able at first to see their true nature: They might be monsters who dwell in shadow or Gods who dwell in light and harmony and abundance.
"Even if you can quickly tell the difference, you will probably not know how to deal with them. I am warning you! Even though you may learn to manifest the god-like qualities of harmony, abundance, and magnificence, you will experience many difficult trials along the way. You have music in your heart, so you do belong here. Since you have music in your heart, I now dub you 'Claire the Magnificent Faery Princess!' You must continue now on your journey through the Tarot Realm. You will find many deep mysteries, but you must turn back now if you can't answer this simple question in the affirmative: Do you know yourself?"
Claire considered Mr. Mellifluous's question carefully. "Do I really know myself?" she silently wondered for a moment. "Of course!" Claire suddenly blurted out. Mr. Mellifluous guffawed and disappeared into the forest. Claire struggled through the brush, searching for Mr. Mellifluous. Mr. M had vanished, but Claire still hoped to find him. She flew high into the sky, hoping to see Mr. M and maybe even her new faery friends.

fly

00:00 / 01:15

Croaking Toad

2lud

00:00 / 01:08

CLAIRE'S MUSICAL ADVENTURE: PART TWO

Claire with the Queen

Claire soared high into the air. Then she spiraled back toward the earth, where she discovered a toad squatting in some flowers. Whenever it croaked, a golden balanced cross floated out of its mouth.
"Is the music in my heart alarming you?" Claire asked.
"Not at all? Should it?" The toad answered.
Claire watched the toad. "Why are golden crosses floating out of your mouth?" she inquired politely.
"Because I am making harmonious music with my heart," it croaked as another golden balanced cross floated out of its mouth. "Do they scare you? You can kiss me if that would make you feel better."
The crosses floated out of the toad's mouth in time with Claire's music, but they were making different songs.
"I'm sure you make wonderful music too," Claire responded. "But I can't hear it very well." Then she flew off, hoping to find a friend who would sing along with her music.
Soon she came upon the Queen of the Faeries. "How do you do? I love your rainbow wings!" Claire exclaimed. "I can hear the music in your heart, your Royal Highness. Can you hear the music in my heart?"
"Of course, child," the Queen replied. "Each faery in this realm can hear the music in the heart of other faeries. That's common here. It's far more important to have rainbow wings. You are royal or upper class only if you have rainbow wings. Since you don't have rainbow wings, you can be a servant. Would you like to be my servant?"
"I would love to, your Royal Highness," Claire responded. "But right now I am looking for someone who would like to sing along with the music in my heart."
"Maybe some other time then," the Queen replied. "Right now I have to focus on major policy changes that we are implementing now in this realm. For instance, we have declared a state of emergency. We are being invaded by immigrants from other realms, and we are now implementing a mass deportation program."
"No problem! Thank you for your time, your Royal Highness," Claire replied before she flew off.

Paramilitary Officer

Suddenly Claire encountered a soldier policing the realm. "You need to show me your identification. Right now, young lady!"
"But I don't have an identification? Can't you hear the music in my heart? Isn't that a form of identification here?"
"Well, I guess so. I hear the music in your heart, young lady, and you also have orangish wings, so you are obviously a faery of the servant class, not an immigrant, so I'm not going to arrest you for being an illegal alien today, but some other soldier might not be so considerate."
"Yes, sir. I'll get an ID as soon as I can. Thank you for being so nice to me," Claire replied.
The soldier replied sympathetically, "Have a good day, young lady, and please make sure that you follow all the rules."
"Yes, sir! Don't worry. I will!" Claire blurted out.

Worried about being Deported

As Claire was flying over the realm, she noticed an ogre below who looked kind of depressed. Claire spiraled down and introduced herself to the ogre, "Hello, kind sir! My name is Claire. How are you today?"
"Well, I'm okay, I guess. I'm a little worried that ICY officers are going to arrest me and my family and send us to different concentration camps. They are profiling citizens based on whether or not we have wings or greenish skin."
"I'm just wondering. Can you hear the music in my heart?" Claire asked.
"Not really," the ogre replied.
Disappointed, Claire murmured, "No problem. Most people can. I don't think that hearing music in someone's heart should be an indicator of a person's character."
"But I might be sent to a concentration camp because I can't," the ogre complained.
"Don't worry. I know you are a good person," Claire replied.
"I've always been a good, productive citizen, and I have always followed the rules of this realm, but that doesn't matter anymore."
"Are you going to hide or leave the realm or something else?" Claire asked.
"I don't know what we're going to do. My entire family might have to hide or leave the realm. We are trying to figure it out together."
"Good luck. I'll keep you and your family in my heart," Claire responded. "My father always tells me that keeping a person in your heart always helps because we are all connected."
"Thank you. I believe that too, but it doesn't always keep us from experiencing terrible disasters," the ogre responded.
"I hope everything works out for you! I will pray for you. My father tells me that helps too," Claire shouted as she flew away.
The ogre smiled and waved as Claire flew away.

Digging

As Claire was flying above the realm, Claire noticed some ogres digging what appeared to be a trench. Since the ogre she had talked to had been so nice to her, she flew down to talk to them.
"Hello, my friends. My name is Claire. I was just talking to another ogre who was very nice to me. Can I ask what you are doing?"
"We are digging a trench or a mass grave. You never know in this place," one of the ogres responded.
Claire looked around. "Is this a camp of some kind?" she inquired.
"Some call it a 'detention center,' some an 'internment camp,' some a 'torture prison,' some a 'concentration camp,'" an ogre responded. "What it is, is ethnic cleansing, which is what fascists do. They demonize people of color and only want faeries to live in their realm, not immigrants who once claimed this land as their own."
"It all sounds horrible! I will keep you in my heart and in my prayers!" Claire exclaimed.
All the ogres grunted as she flew away.

The Love of Her Life?

As Claire flew above the realm, she saw an attractive man in a crown and spiraled down to meet him. Claire blurted out, "How are you, your Royal Majesty? My name is Claire. I am not always so forward, but I have to confess that I think you are very handsome. Would you be my friend?"
"I'm sorry, but you don't have rainbow wings. I can't be friends with someone in the servant class, you must know," the prince replied.
"Would you at least stop sending ogres to concentration camps?" Claire asked politely. "Most of them are very nice. They don't deserve to be separated from their families. Would you at least talk to the King, your father?"
"I'll try, but I can't guarantee anything. He's what some might say is 'hard-headed,' especially if something benefits him politically or in some other way."
"Oh, okay. Thanks for trying anyway. Maybe I'll be your servant some day," Claire replied as she got ready to fly away.

Firing a Missile

"Wait, don't fly away quite yet. Let me show you something we're doing to stop drug-smuggling," the prince stated as he guided Claire to a nearby room, where a faery was sitting in front of a computer. "This is Corporal Fixer, the faery who is solving our problem."
The faery at the computer stood up and bowed to the prince. "How may I serve thee, my prince?" the corporal asked.
"Show this pretty lass how you are solving one of the realm's major problems." The prince guided Claire over to the computer. "Press the button," the prince commanded.
The servant pressed a button. "This will just take a few more seconds."

Striking a Boat with the Missile

Suddenly on the computer screen a boat blew up. "Another problem solved," the prince claimed.
"But how do you know that they are criminals? Do you have any evidence?" Claire asked.
"We know they are terrorists who are destroying our realm," the prince responded.
"But how do you know?" Claire asked.
"The King knows everything. If anyone is disloyal to him or tries to get in his way, he labels them 'a traitor' and kills them with a drone-strike. "
"But isn't that murder?" Claire blurted out. "Don't people deserve a trial?"
"It solves the problem quickly, and very few people are protesting against him now, which is maintaining stability in our realm. We can't allow chaos anywhere in this realm," the prince responded.

Pirates Taking Over an Oil Tanker

"Your Highness! We have some footage of our brave faeries taking over an oil tanker. I thought you might like to view it."
"Yes, very good. Please show it, corporal."
Claire couldn't keep her mouth shut, "Isn't that just piracy? You're just stealing! I thought royalty was better than that!"
"That's what royalty does. Power involves a lot of conflict and plundering," the prince sighed. "If you want to be a servant some day, you'll have to accept that."
"Oh, now I see!" Claire exclaimed as she dashed toward the door. "Goodbye. Maybe I'll see you again some day," Claire shouted as she flew away.

Smokestack

Soon Claire saw a faery near a smokestack. She flew down to her and blurted out, "Hi! My name is Claire. How are you?"
"Not great. The air pollution from this smokestack is making me sick."
"It's probably also adding to the global warming problem too. I hope you feel better. Hey, would you like to fly around with me?"
"I can't. I have asthma. My mom doesn't want me flying around in air that is so polluted."
"Okay, sorry. I'll keep you in my heart and in my prayers," Claire stated as she flew away.

The Real Love of her Life?

Eventually Claire saw a boy who was standing in a flooded street. She flew down to meet him. "Hello. My name is Claire. Why are you standing in a flooded street--if you don't mind me asking?"
"I just wanted to see what kind of damage climate chaos is causing to our faery town."
Suddenly the boy was humming a tune to the music in Claire's heart. Overjoyed, Claire exclaimed, "You're humming to the music in my heart! I've always wanted to meet someone who could do that!"
"I do that with a lot of faeries," the boy responded. "Some faeries in this town have great tunes in their heart. Sometimes we jam together."
"Oh, that's so cool! Would you like to make music with me?" Claire asked.
"Sure, why not? It might help me get over all the destruction in this town," the boy replied. So together they created a few songs together."
After they had created four songs together, Claire asked, "I'm exploring the faery realm. Would you like to explore it with me?"
"I'd love to," he responded.
"Let's explore the enchanted forest first," Claire, feeling adventurous, suggested.
"Okay, let's go!" the boy exclaimed.

Global Warming

Soon they encountered two faeries near a forest fire. "You need to get out of here quickly!" the boy exclaimed. "The bark beetle has invaded most of these trees. Usually resin drowns the beetle, but recently it has been so warm thanks to global warming that the trees don't have enough water to make enough resin to drown the beetles, and the beetles end up killing the trees. This place could become a conflagration any minute. We need to fly out of here right now. Let's go!"
Together, the faeries soared high above the conflagration. "Good thing we found you when we did," The boy stated. "Not everyone knows what kind of damage climate disruption is causing, which can be very dangerous for faeries and other creatures."
"I'd say," Claire replied. "The fire has incinerated the whole area. We could have been incinerated too. You saved our lives. I owe you one."

"No problem," the boy sighed, "I've encountered large stretches of the forest that are now nothing but dirt and ash thanks to global climate chaos. I just knew what to look for."
"Thank goodness you did!" the faeries all exclaimed together."
"I couldn't let faeries who make such great music in their hearts get burned up in a fire," the boy replied. "We all just need to be more careful from now on."
"I couldn't have said it better myself," Claire replied.

Red Hat Congress Members

Soon the four faeries encountered congress members in red hats. "Why don't you do anything about global warming? We almost got incinerated by a forest fire caused by global warming!" the girl faeries shouted.
"And my town almost got completely destroyed by a flood caused by global warming," the boy blurted out. "Really, why aren't you doing anything to stop what could destroy all organized faery and human life on this planet?"
"I'll be honest with you," a congress woman replied. "The king receives a lot of donations from companies that are causing climate disruption. The king will primary us and have his supporters threaten to kill us if we try to do anything to stop global warming."
"Be honest. You are receiving money from those same companies, aren't you?"
"You're right on the money," the congress woman admitted.

Corrupt Supreme Court Justices

"Thanks for your honesty," the boy sneered.
"Look, the supreme court is letting us all get away with it. They ruled that corporations are people and that money is speech, so companies contribute tons of money and buy us all off," the congress woman confessed.
"You're literally playing with fire that could incinerate us all," the boy replied.
"It's up to you to to pressure us to do the right thing," the boy replied.
"Is that really enough?" the boy replied. "So far it seems like money is more important to you than the survival of the planet!"
"Many of us are doing what we can within the limitations of our current system," the congress woman replied.
"The powerful are playing with our lives. You're all taking a huge chance," the boy replied.

Friendly Dragon

Disappointed, the four faeries flew away together and found a campsite in the realm of the winged dragons. Claire discovered that the dragons were all gentle, and she made friends with one of them.

Dragon Magician

The dragon turned out to be a magician. He turned Claire's orangish wings into rainbow wings.

Rainbow Wings

When Claire showed her rainbow wings to the prince, he claimed, "I see you have rainbow wings now, but you were not born here. You can only be a royal member of the upper class if you were born in this realm. Sorry, you still can't be my friend. Those are the rules."
"That figures," Claire muttered as she flew away. She didn't care. She had found a friend who could sing along with the music in her heart.

All poems, stories, essays, illustrations, and music Copyright © 2025 by Jim Robbins.

2tree

00:00 / 01:02

tree

00:00 / 05:36

Dancing Faeries

2spring

00:00 / 00:49

CLAIRE'S MUSICAL ADVENTURE:

PART THREE

Faeries Soaring Above the Forest

Claire and her new friend Thomas liked to make songs together with the music in their hearts while dancing. Occasionally, as they made music together and danced, they would lift off the ground and soar above the enchanted forest.

Upside Down Fool

One day as they were dancing through the enchanted forest, they encountered a fool clinging head down to a tree as if hanging on for dear of life.
"Dear fool, sir, why are you hanging upside down in that tree?" Claire inquired.
"Because the world is upside down, and I was about to fall into the sky. Thank God this tree was here for me! I would have soon vanished into outer space!"
"But why do you think the world is upside-down?" Claire asked.

The King with His Minions

"I used to be the King's fool. As the court jester, my job was to amuse the King. Most of the time he laughed or smiled at the jokes I made. However, one time I made a joke about his brown-nosing super-wealthy supporters, and His Royal Highness got so mad at me that he threatened to incinerate me with a drone-strike--without due process or a trial, I might add. After the Supreme Court gave the King absolute immunity for 'official acts,' the King, drunk with absolute power, has turned into a megalomaniacal madman. No one in this realm is safe anymore. I escaped out here to the enchanted forest just before the world completely turned upside down. And fortunately, s you can see, I grabbed hold of this tree before I fell into the sky."
"I'm sorry, Mr. Fool, but why aren't we falling into the sky too?"
"Obviously because you are both faeries and can defy gravity whenever necessary, thanks to your lovely wings," the fool replied. "I wish I had wings too. All I can do is hang on to this tree for as long as I can until I eventually fall into oblivion."

Eight of Swords: Lord of Shortened Force

"You faeries can't possibly know how bad it's gotten in this realm. If anyone offended the King, he would blindfold them and imprison them with swords at the edge of the sea. Sometimes he would get so mad that he executed them with a drone-strike before they drowned. In other words, if the King imprisons you like that, you don't know if you are going to be drowned or killed by a weaponized drone at some point. The King enjoys terrifying anyone who appears even a little disloyal to him. Fortunately I escaped the King's maniacal wrath."

Alligator Auschwitz

"Unfortunately, as I was escaping, a guard outside of a concentration camp called 'Alligator Auschwitz' captured me and threw me into the torture prison where they starved all of us inmates and worked us to death. Fortunately I escaped through the swamp at night when the alligators were asleep--or I surely would have starved to death by now!"

Concentration Camp

"It's good that I escaped because I was losing hope like all the other inmates. I was about to fade away."

Five of Pentacles: Lord of Material Trouble

"Unfortunately, I seriously injured my leg as I was escaping through the swamp," the fool explained. I made a couple of crutches and eventually made my way to the nearest city. A beggar woman found me and realized that two beggars might be better than one, especially if one was a cripple. She was right. People took pity on us, and we barely survived as we trudged though the snow."

Worker Bee

"Fortunately an employer took pity on me. I became his worker bee. Even though I worked long hours, the boss didn't pay much, not even enough to cover food and rent, but since I was employed, I applied for a credit card and survived by going into debt."

Pincushion

"I married the beggar-woman. Eventually she got a minimum wage job. Unfortunately wages remained stagnant and inflation kept rising. She told me that every time she went to the grocery store, she felt like she was being poked by a pin every time she picked an item from the grocery shelf."

World War III

"The King's super-wealthy supporters kept getting richer while the rest of us continued going deeper and deeper into debt. Some of the billionaires made obscene profits by selling technology to the military, technology that made weapons more sophisticated--weapons paid for by us suckers--the taxpayers. Eventually the megalomaniacal techno-bros, as they were called, convinced the King that their weapons were so sophisticated that the King could conquer the world. The King, always power hungry, decided to go to war with huge superpowers, a war that nearly destroyed the entire realm during what is now known as WWIII. Since you spend most of your time in the enchanted forest, you faeries might not be aware of all the terrible damage that has occurred, thanks to our beloved King. My wife was killed by a bomb during the war, and I made it out here to the enchanted forest just before the world turned totally upside down."

Flying Fool

"That's terrible!" Claire exclaimed. "Maybe my friend and I can do something to make you feel happier. We can hear the music in each other's heart, and we make music together. Would you like to hear one of our songs?"
"Sure, why not?" The fool replied.
The faery music made the fool so happy that his invisible wings appeared, and he soared above the treetops.

"Now I don't have to hang on to that danged tree anymore!" the fool rejoiced.

Poppies in February

"Follow us!" Claire shouted. "We'll show you something that might make you even happier!" Soon they flew over a hillside blanketed by poppies.
"I can't believe it. I do feel even happier!" the fool blurted out.

Seven of Pentacles: Lord of Success Unfulfilled

"Follow us!" Thomas the faery shouted. "We'll show you something that might make you even happier!" Soon they came upon a young farmer resting next to a bush were golden pentacles were ripening on the vine.
"I am working to create a harmonious world for everyone," the young farmer claimed. "Soon these golden pentacles will be ripe, and I will share them with as many people as I can." "This is incredibly generous of you," the fool replied. "Truly admirable work. I am feeling even happier."

King of Pentacles

"Follow us!" Claire shouted. Soon they came upon the King of Pentacles on a throne next to his castle. He seemed to be contemplating a golden pentacle on his lap. "I am working with the young farmer who is growing pentacles. The pentacle reveals the 'Elements of the Wise' Earth, Air, Spirit, Water and Fire. Together, they represent the elements and the triplicities of the zodiac and their ruling planets--in other words, all of the dimensions of Universal Consciousness represented by the paths of the Tree of Life. If you experience the energies of the Tree of Life, you know the divinity and unity of all creation, which can inspire you to create a harmonious world for everyone," the King stated.
"You are so much more inspired and compassionate and admirable than a king I once knew," the fool confessed. "I am feeling so much happier."

Goddess of Abundance

After thanking the King of Pentacles, the faeries and the fool flew out to a huge field of wheat, where they encountered a beautiful Goddess.
The Goddess spoke to them, "Hello! I am the Goddess Venus, who is associated with the seventh Emanation of the Tree of Life known as 'Victory'--the victory of love and abundance and beauty. We can create a world of love and compassion and beauty and abundance for everyone if we work together."

Three of Cups: Lord of Abundance

Suddenly the fool and the faeries had the same vision of three graceful woman dancing during a harvest celebration. "This is so beautiful!" Claire exclaimed. "I can feel the music and the joy that the women are experiencing!"
"Yeah," the fool exclaimed. "And I am feeling even happier!"

All poems, stories, essays, illustrations, and music Copyright © 2025 by Jim Robbins.

spsm25

00:00 / 03:51

Fool in a Box

2sol

00:00 / 00:58

CLAIRE'S MUSICAL ADVENTURE:
PART FOUR

Haunted by Skeletons

Once faeries liked and trusted humans. Occasionally faeries even tried to help humans. One day, a faery named Luna discovered a fool in a cardboard box in the middle of the forest.
"How are you, kind sir? Why are you hiding out here in this box?" Luna asked.
"It's kind of a long story," the fool responded. "I've been blackballed for saying something that the rich and powerful don't like. In other words, I've been blacklisted--unfairly prevented from getting a job. That means that people in power pressured my boss to fire me, and these same powerful people also smeared my name so that I would't get hired by another employer."
"Why did that happen? What did you say that upset them so?" Luna inquired.
"Powerful people in the agricultural industry wanted to build another dam on one of the most abused rivers in the realm. I protested in an op-ed piece that a new dam would be just another example of socialism for the wealthy. The proposed dam would drown a stunningly beautiful public park under hundreds of feet of water. In other words, taxpayers would end up paying millions of their own dollars to destroy their own beloved public land," the fool replied. "Corporations and wealthy landowners want more water to irrigate crops that should never ever be grown in a semi-arid region, crops such as almonds and cotton. It takes a gallon of water to produce one almond, for instance. Not long after I made my public statement, I got fired. I had been a teacher for fifteen years and had received ratings of 'excellent' in every category on every evaluation. The rich and powerful wanted to shut me up by reducing me to a state of homeless destitution. In a democratic society, this is one of the first signs of fascism--but nobody else cared. Please don't ever believe the lie that individuals enjoy freedom of speech in this realm. A person can lose a job and become destitute simply for speaking his mind to protect the public and the environment. While claiming that we live in a democracy, the rich and powerful in this realm have always had that much influence in the public sphere. But it's even worse now--a person can get arrested or even murdered by the government without due process for protesting or criticizing powerful people like the King or the super-rich. I'm hiding out here now so that I don't get sent to a concentration camp or obliterated by a drone-strike for being 'anti-capitalist' or 'unpatriotic' or 'extremist' or 'anti-Christian' or whatever 'indicators of left-wing terrorism' that they choose nowadays to label a person who speaks truth to power. The realm is now so fascistic that it blows up and incinerates boats in international waters without providing any evidence that people in the boats were doing anything wrong. The obliterated people might have just been fishing. If the powerful can get you fired for speaking truth to power, you know that super-rich people won't hesitate to use their power to shut someone up permanently--if they can get away with it, and so far they've gotten away with it. Even the realm's District Attorney has threatened to execute so-called 'terrorists' the same way that they have obliterated the people in the boats--without due process or any evidence of wrong-doing."

Faeries to the Rescue

"That's terrible!" Luna exclaimed.
The fool continued, "In other words, even the people in the Department of Justice are exercising what they believe is their right to murder people without evidence or due process. It's an upside-down world. They believe that the king has granted them the right to be the realm's official 'serial killers' who have total immunity. The king believes he has absolute power now. He has gotten away with it, and anyone who is disloyal to him is now in terrible danger--and that could include someone like me who is just trying to protect the environment for future generations."
"I'm sorry. That sounds like a terrible predicament. I know some faeries who might make you feel better. They make beautiful music together with their hearts. I will send them to you to cheer you up."
"Thank you, kind faery," the fool responded.

Bribery

"If you don't mind, I'm going to vent a little more," the fool said to the faery. "After the Supreme Court gave the King absolute immunity for 'official acts,' the King, drunk with absolute power, has turned into a greedy megalomaniac. The King is a grifter who has been absolutely corrupted by absolute power. He takes bribes from everyone who wants something from the government. The King will even order the invasion of a sovereign nation without the approval of congress if corporations that want to profit by stealing resources from another nation give him a big enough bribe--you know, like a billion dollars."

Once Mighty River

The fool sighed, "The rich will always exhaust people and resources if they can get away with it--just as they have destroyed once mighty rivers to irrigate unsustainable crops. In the process, they have caused many species to become endangered or threatened. But the rich don't care about nature or people--they only care about power and profit."

Global Warming

The fool sighed again, "The rich continue to cause devastating climate disruption that will soon cause the end of organized human existence."

Hurricane

The fool sighed again, "Instead of invading another nation to steal its oil, our realm could support renewable energy resources, but no, on behalf of corporations and the ruling elite, our government spends taxpayer money on wars and kills and kidnaps people and continues to move humanity and the planet to the brink of disaster."

Pandemic

The fool sighed again, "The pandemic has proven that the ruling political and economic elite don't care about people. Instead of investing in health care for all, the government, which could have taken sane measures to contain the virus, allowed over a million people in this realm to die a horrible death. That disaster was preventable to a very large degree. Other nations around the world were able to contain the virus so that only a few people died."

Invading a Sovereign Nation (without Justification)

The fool sighed again, "The government invests trillions of dollars on warfare instead of on accessible health care or environmental protection. Through war, the rich expand their power and wealth while many die at home from disease and causes related to poverty."

Bugs

The fool sighed again, "The rich stagnate wages and inflate prices to get richer while everyone else gets seriously 'bugged' by the cost of living."

Jailed

The fool sighed again, "Protesters like me will be sent to concentration camps or executed for being what they define as a 'terrorist.' The government keeps building concentration camps that they call 'detention centers,' and I'm pretty sure that the government has enough weaponized drones to wipe out most or all dissent."

Concentration Camp (for Artists and Dissidents)

The fool sighed again, "I'm sure the government is building very special concentration camps just for dissidents and artists like me who challenge the system. Instead of creating a harmonious and sustainable world that works for everyone, the greedy political and economic elite continue to concentrate power and wealth in the hands of the few while quickly moving humanity and the natural world to the brink of disaster. The fate of humanity and the planet is in the hands of a few insanely greedy people, which causes me to ask, 'Who are the real terrorists?'"

Baby Blue Eyes

Suddenly Claire and Thomas hovered above the fool in his cardboard box. As they sang a haunting magical song, the fool remembered the many baby blue eyes and other species of flowers that he had helped to save by stopping the construction of the dam that would have destroyed the river canyon--and he felt a little better.

Baby Blue Eyes Faery

Then he remembered glimpsing with his third eye a lovely baby blue eye faery while he hiked through the canyon, and that made him feel better too.

River Canyon

Then he remembered a point on the trail where he could view a large stretch of the river canyon, and that made him feel even better. By the time the faeries stopped singing, the fool even felt a little hope.

9sol26

00:00 / 03:44

Swallowtails in the Garden

Playing with the Kitty

FAERY GARDEN

The moment mother let those faeries in the garden, I saw the skulking shadow of a troll. Before I could say, "I beg your pardon," It commanded me to pay a toll.

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Troll in the Garden

FAERY GARDEN

Gremlin Chewing on Toes

A Swarm of Sylphs

Fiery Phoenix

A Witch in the Faery Garden

CLAIRE'S MUSICAL ADVENTURES

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Suddenly a faery with blue wings waved a wand over her head. Claire lifted off the ground and discovered that she could fly!

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Croaking Toad

CLAIRE'S MUSICAL ADVENTURE: PART TWO

Claire with the Queen

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Paramilitary Officer

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The moment mother let those faeries in the garden,
I saw the skulking shadow of a troll.
Before I could say, "I beg your pardon,"
It commanded me to pay a toll.