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Three Simple Ways to Connect with Urban Fae, by Tara Sanchez

(Article originally published in The Llewellyn Journal.)

There are Fairies at the bottom of your garden. No really, there ARE; and in alleyways, city parks, and shopping malls. Dora the Explorer was absolutely right: there is a grumpy old troll who lives under the bridge, and his cousin Boris hangs out beneath the expressway heading out of town, if you care to seek him out. Gone are the days when to connect with the Fae you had to head to hills and fields. Quite honestly, those days may have never actually existed, except maybe in the minds of certain poets and artists with romantic ideas of what a Fairy should look like.

In the recent Fairy Census¹ conducted between 2014 and 2017, of the 500 published entries, roughly 18% of the sightings recorded were in back yards, in gardens, and on front porches. Just a brief examination of recorded folklore reveals that the idea of the Fae being this intimately connected to our urban environments is sound. It doesn't take much to find tales of the Fae shopping in our marketplaces, legends of spectral creatures frequenting bridges and roads catching poor souls unaware, and once upon a time every good housewife knew not to annoy the Buttery Sprite that lived in her pantry. Solitary fae do not have a monopoly, either; in the UK we even have handwritten accounts of large troops of Fairy creatures appearing annually in certain very urban locations, particularly graveyards and gardens. These beings haven't disappeared; they are still here, it is us that have banished them from our sight and forgotten the role that the Fae once played in our everyday lives, and it is us that would do well to remember them.

One of the best ways we can do that is to start observing the simple rituals that our ancestors performed. These oblations were part of everyday life designed to make things easier for all concerned; Fairytales are a source of information regarding them. I promise you, no matter where you are in the world, there will be stories of little folk and spirits that can guide you in researching this should you wish to do so. Of course, if you are struggling, there is always travel, for without a shadow of a doubt there are now Nordic Trolls in Canada, and, as I discuss in my upcoming book Urban Faery Magick there is definitely at least one Dwarf in Detroit. Here are three great ideas that can just take a moment of your time that can help you make a strong connection with the Fae in your area, and combining them you can build a daily practise, a devotional practise, and a regular seasonal practise.

1. Light a Candle Every Night for the Fae. Rowli Pugh, it was said, was a terribly unlucky man. Everything he turned his hands to just failed. No matter how hard he tried he could not catch a break. His house was falling apart, his livestock were dying, his crops had perished, and even his wife had taken to her sick bed. His only option (so he thought) was to go away and try and find his fortune. As he contemplated his fate, a little man appeared to him and told him that he need not leave if he asked his wife to leave a candle burning each night before she went to bed. This she duly did, and for years the family prospered, each night the candle was lit and each morning when they woke, the work was done. The crops flourished, the animals grew rich and fat, all was well. One night, however, Rowli's wife couldn't help herself, and she crept down to try and find out who was doing all the work. Sadly, she startled the wee folk and they scattered never to return, but the family were now rich and remained so for the rest of their lives.The story of Rowli is one very specific to a region of South Wales, but across the British Isles there are dozens of variants, and some of these tales of Fairy helpers have even made it into our global collective consciousness. ("The Elves and the Shoemaker," for example, has delighted generations of children with visions of little men working tirelessly by candlelight and chuckling with joy as they danced away in their fine clothes.) Now obviously, health and safety dictates that you don't leave a live flame burning each night, but a small candle lit with a few genuine words, for a short while each evening, can draw the attention of the Fae in your area. You do not always need to ask for something to do this; the best relationships develop and grow from mutual admiration and not obligation, so start with asking for absolutely nothing, just a sense of respect and an open mind, for the Fae rarely appear how you expect them to.
2. Observe the Three Nights for Spirits. Specific nights appear repeatedly in myth and legend, Solstices and the cross quarter days being very common. According to Wirt Sykes,² the Welsh call these nights "Tier Nos Ysbrydnos," or the three nights of spirits. These are astrological and can be marked whereever in the world you live; sightings worldwide still seem to peak during these times, but it is also fair to say that you may find your local spirits have their own special times as well so take some time to seek them out.At All Hallows (31st October/1st November) the dead are said to cross the veil and the Lord of the Wild Hunt welcomes them into his army of Fae that careen across the skies, sweeping up any unsuspecting soul who gets caught outside. At Mayday Eve/Beltane (30th April/1st May), the King of Fae battles for the love of his life against his mortal enemy who would also win her hand. They are fated to fight this battle until the end of the world, neither one ever truly gaining the upper hand, but whilst the battle is fought his Fae can cavort—and do so with great gusto. Then of course there is the "Mother's Blessings," the troops of Fae who on hot Midsummer (20th/21st June) nights run riot in the streets causing madness and mayhem in their wake. On these nights ritual and offerings can be given, introductions made, and old friendships more easily renewed. Be prepared to dance, there is almost always movement and strong emotions at these times, and it may be this energy that fuels the Fae allowing them to become so apparent even to our blinkered urban eyes.
3. Leave Regular Offerings Such as Milk and Honey to Show Your Appreciation. But, NEVER outright say "thank you," as this is considered offensive. The humble Boggart can be a fairly amiable chap; he tends to hang out in very domestic environments and as long as you don't annoy them you'll rub along quite nicely. There are some tales that suggest that he (or she) is just a regional form of house brownie and as such one of their favourite payments for the return of items lost, found, mended, or procured is milk and honey. However, saying thank you has almost the identical effect as spying on them, which as we know, ended not so well for Mrs Pugh. A direct statement of gratitude is very likely to result in your faery visitors leaving without even a "fare thee well."A word of caution here: don't bargain with your Boggart and then forget to follow through with your offering; it;s far more trouble than it's worth, and to appease them might take more than the originally agreed upon bowl of milk and honey. As an interesting aside, an offering of milk and honey is commonly said to appease both the Wild Hunt and the "Mother's Blessings," and so are totally appropriate as offerings when you observe the Three Nights for Spirits.

These, of course, are just some suggestions, and I do discuss many more in Urban Faery Magick; you may also find that, just like the Faery who asked for a candle to be lit each night, your local Fae may ask for something very specific to them. As long as it doesn’t bring you, your loved ones, or your area in harm's way, then go with their request. We need to start listening to them; they have a lot to teach us.

1. www.fairyist.com/survey
2. Sykes W. British Goblins: Welsh Folklore, Fairy Mythology, Legends and Traditions (Sandycroft Publishing 2017)

Article originally published in The Llewellyn Journal. Copyright Llewellyn Worldwide, 2021. All rights reserved.

A while back, I received an email from a friend who lives across the country. I hadn't talked to her in a few months. She said that she was dropping me a line to say hello. She was thinking about me because she had had a dream about me the night before. In her dream, we were meeting at a bar for a drink. When she walked in, I was sitting on a tall chair, and my feet were dangling down, like I was a dwarf. She thought it was funny. A few hours later, I received another email from a friend who lives in the same state I do, but we hadn't spoken in several months. She too had dreamed of meeting me, only in her dream we were to meet at a party. When she walked into the room, she noticed that I was about four feet tall. She thought it was funny and wanted to tell me about it. Needless to say, I was speechless when I received her email. These two people don't know each other; they don't even know OF each other. How could they both have almost the same dream, certainly the same theme of me being a little person, on the same night? There has never been anything bad between myself or either one of them. I don't know what it might mean, if anything, but it seems beyond coincidence to me. What do you think it means?

Vince

Susyn:

There are no coincidences, only synchronicities designed to shift our focus and heighten our awareness. The fact that two friends had similar dreams about you on the same night is striking, so let's investigate this further.

Metaphysically, we all share a spiritual consciousness, so it's possible for seemingly unrelated people to have the same dreams, ideas or experiences at the same time. An example of this the The Hundredth Monkey effect, which got its name when a monkey on a Pacific island decided to wash his food before eating it. Soon all the other monkeys on the island began to follow suit. While this was not surprising, the amazing thing was how, after a certain number of monkeys had taken up the practice (about 100), other monkeys on distant islands began to wash their food even though they had no physical contact with the monkeys on the first island. Henry Ford was not the only person inspired to build an automobile, nor Edison the light bulb: other totally unconnected people were working on similar inventions at the exact same time.

Even though your friends have never met each other, both have a strong connection to you. There was a reason they both recounted similar dreams to you: it was such an important message that Spirit did not want you to miss it! Dreams that portray one as short in stature are not necessarily negative. Note that both your friends found the dreams amusing rather than alarming.

When a change in physical characteristics is prominent in a dream, we should examine its metaphysical meanings. I think this dream may be about you shortchanging yourself personally. Because you met both your friends at a social event, it might indicate that you were withdrawn at the time or cutting yourself off from the world at large. In this day and age of computers and text messages, we often end up connecting with others from our easy chairs. Another meaning could involve shortchanging yourself emotionally. If you are or have been involved with either of these friends, this could be something to look at. In fact, comparing the similarities of the two people who had this dream could hold further clues.

Perhaps you are feeling limited in your career or finances or ignoring your health. Considering any aspect of your life where you feel you're being shortchanged may will reveal the hidden message in these dreams. Once you figure out how its meaning, you will begin to receive intuitive guidance on how to go about changing the area that is falling short for you.

*****

Oceania:

Do you in any way resemble a renowned dwarf actor such as Warwick Davis, Peter Dinklage or Herve Villechaize? It's possible one of them appeared in a television movie or series or as a guest on a late-night talk show the evening before your two friends had their respective dreams. They both may have seen the actor and made an unconscious association with you if you and the actor share a facial feature, smile, hair style, expression, gesture or personality trait.

Perhaps you resemble one of the actors from the popular Lord of the Rings films, which feature dwarves and hobbits. Perhaps both of your friends saw one of the movies the day before they dreamed of you and made an unconscious association. It is surprising how much we observe in a given day that never makes it through to our conscious awareness. Sometimes when we examine our dreams carefully, we can identify where various bits and pieces came from in the prior day.

There are other possible explanations for your friends having similar dreams about you. Friends - especially female friends - can be very tuned in to our emotional state and often sense what we're going through even at a distance. Your friends may have picked up on you feeling small, powerless or child-like in some area of your life at that time. Though your insecurity may have troubled you, it may have seemed absurd or even humorous to friends who think highly of you and found it hard to imagine you feeling small, which made their dreams seem funny to them.

If we examine the two dreams in detail, we see that one of your friends had you on a pedestal of sorts - a tall chair with your feet dangling down - indicating that she looks up to you and/or is aware of your discomfort with high places! Perhaps you had recently been promoted or given more responsibility but didn't feel entirely comfortable in that role. In your other friend's dream, her perspective was to see you shorter than her, suggesting that she sensed your discomfort and wanted to comfort you or raise you up.

I would reflect back on the time period when your friends wrote to you and assess whether you were undergoing a professional change or a personal challenge. The dreams may have been expressions of your friends' women's intuition, which makes them good people to turn to when you need advice or support in the future. If you want to further insight into this synchronistic event, you could ask your friends for feedback about how each of them perceived you at the time of their similar dreams.

Astrea:

Many times in life we hear, "You will always have what you NEED, but not necessarily what you WANT." Your spirit must have needed to experience the feeling of leaving your human body, and the suggestion in the next chapter of Sylvia Brown's book was all it took to get you there.

Even though you hadn't read it yet, your SOUL recognized the title of that chapter as something it had been seeking, and your soul, knowing that you had that reference to read after your experience, got with it and out you went!

While I don't usually recommend her books, Sylvia Brown has a wide reaching and powerful effect on lots of people. A Gemini like you would be able to relate easily to her writing and put it to good use. Synchronicity - you gotta love it!

I like your description of "getting caught." That's exactly what it feels like, isn't it? One minute you're free and hovering above the room, and the next minute, ZAP! back down into your corporeal form you go!

As a little kid, I loved that "feeling of return." With practice, most of the time we can control that event, but sometimes, when our physical ears hear a distracting noise or something else occurs to knock us back into reality, back we go. With practice you will be able to control your return better.

I find it interesting that you were visiting your mother-in-law and not someone in your own genetic family. Evidently, you and your husband got married for reasons that are even deeper than love. His family's interest in "psychic stuff" will nurture your children in such matters and help them to grow into their own abilities.

You'll never have to be concerned that when your daughter visits them, she'll be discouraged from exploring her own psychic life and power. My parents encouraged me to develop my psychic senses in a time when it wasn't nice to even discuss such things in public. Heck, it's STILL not considered a great topic at the dinner table in some families!

Your kids will get to talk about it ALL and ask questions and read and study. This is going to give them such an edge in life! Talk with your husband about how you want to present this to your kiddos, so that you are united in your approach and ready to tell them their experiences are all natural and okay.

A word or two of warning: Geminis often have difficulty staying grounded in REAL LIFE. Don't get so strung out on your ASTRAL life that you neglect what you're doing here on Earth.

You are at the beginning of a long journey to learn where your power really lies. Try to be patient with this process and take your time.