August 25, 2022

Earlier this week, my kids, my mom and I went to Bullington Gardens in Hendersonville, NC.

We had just gone to wander around a bit, but when we arrived we found out that there was a “fairy trail.”

The fairy trail wove through the woods with dozens of small fairy-centric dioramas nestled into the trees and foliage. (Pictures below!)

As we walked through the trail listening to squeals from the under 5 set as they discovered each new scene, I couldn’t help but think that someone had come up with this idea just for fun.

People had clearly spent hours upon hours crafting and creating and imagining how to make a magical fairy trail in the woods.

The garden and the fairy trail were free. There weren’t signs or exhibits pointing out the dioramas or explaining the scenes. You saw the ones you saw and used your imagination to fill in the stories.

The whole trail was a sweet surprise.

Seeing it inspired me to think about the role of art, and intention, and delight in community. Sometimes the best things don’t follow the rules. There isn’t a reason to do them other than because you want to or because it may make someone happy.

It’s okay to do things that don’t make sense financially or from a “business building” perspective. It’s okay to do things differently. It’s okay to follow your own sense of creativity and to move towards joy.

I hope your week has a touch of creative magic, whether your own or someone else’s 💚

Warmly,

Camille

A stump covered with moss and small creatures
A stump turned into a fair house with a small door and a gabled roof
A boot turned into a fairy house with a folded license plate roof, small fairies ouside, and a stick ladder leading to a door.


About Camille Freeman, LDN, RH (she/her)

Hi there! I'm a clinical herbalist and licensed nutritionist specializing in fertility and menstrual health. I run the Monday Mentoring community of practice and also offer continuing education programs for highly-trained herbalists and nutritionists (Check out this year's Deep Dive!). I'm also a professor in the Department of Nutrition at the Maryland University of Integrative Health, where I teach physiology, pathophysiology, and mindful eating.

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