Enter now, with me, into my land of make-believe. Rest and relive the days of your childhood where oceans have no shores, and stars have not a sky; where enthusiasm is engendered by over-indulgence, and black-birds emerge from a pie! Tell me, tell me - where is fantasy bred - in the heart or in the head?
Well, it is a new month and, as promised, I am here to tell you what I have been up to for the past, oh, three months.
One day as I was casually walking through a crafts store, I spied an unfinished doll house shell. Now let me stress at the outset, that doll houses, whether finished or unfinished, are quite expensive. Closer inspection revealed a sturdy wooden house with stairs to a good-sized divided loft where there were two large round windows, and downstairs a door and eight windows. Wow! Would I love to have this, I mused. Locating the price sticker it read - $39.99!
"Surely, this is mistake," I said aloud, to no one in particular. "A house of this quality would easily sell for a minimum of $339.99 in any doll house shop"...
Suddenly, a bright light seemed to shine around the little house, as all else in my sight became obliterated. The nondescript wooden shell had transformed into a most charming cottage in bright, happy colors, and topped off with a fish-scale shingled roof. Its facade bore trailing vines and Victorian gingerbread embelishments. The gaily shuttered windows were dressed with little window boxes spilling over with smiling happy flowers. Magical bird houses levitated from the gables, and Peter Pan suddenly appeared in a parquet circle over the door. In all, it was not unlike the cottage depicted in the fairy tale, Hansel and Gretel. .
A cobblestone walk led to the door which displayed sun, moon and stars on its side panels. Lovely vines cascaded from the door top and a pink and blue faerie stood to welcomed those who stepped to the threshold.
Ample yard with landscaping encircled the cottage like a wreath and little theme gardens, hidden among the trees and shrubbery, suddenly came to life with Mother Goose characters of Mary, Mary quite contrary, how does your garden grow... and there - Jack Be Nimble, Jack be Quick is swinging on a rope trying to jump over a candlestick!
The scraping sound of a shovel against earth turned my attention to - yes, Mr. McGreggor from Peter Rabbit working in his lettuce garden, and see - a little brown rabbit with floppy ears is looking furtively from behind a tree, surely at the lettuce!
Resting beside a small bale of hay topped by a cresent moon, I saw a black and white cow, a little blue and white china cat, a black and white spotted dog, a small dish with a spoon, and a fiddle - Hay, Diddle, Diddle, the Cat and the Fiddle, the Cow jumped over the Moon; the little Dog laughed to see such sport, and the Dish ran away with the Spoon!
Bending down to peer into a window, a flash of orange caught my eye. Why, it is the cutest little pumpkin shell I have ever seen, and so homey with its green vines, and smaller than small windows and door. I recognized it as the home of--Peter, Peter Pumpkin Eater, had a wife and couldn't keep her. He put her in a pumpkin shell, and there he kept her very well.
Suddenly, melodious music box notes of "Fly Me To The Moon" wafted through time and space drawing my attention to a dragon balloon. None other than Merlin comfortably sat therein looking through a spy glass into the sky - and, standing beside a regally festooned stallion was King Arthur in full armor. How I would love to spend some time with the "real" King Arthur and accompany him on a quest for the Holy Grail!
Just as my attention went back to the window, an unseen voice said to me, "Who are you, and what are you doing at my house?"
"Why, who are YOU," I said. "Why don't you show yourself? Are you a cowardly ghost?"
"I am Puck of Pooks Hill. I am the caretaker and I do not take kindly to human strangers," the unseen voice said.
"Well, if you would but show yourself, you would see that I mean you no harm."
"Chicken-Little. Chicken-Little. Omph dee poof say dee. Come a little closer, be not a stranger to me."
"Oh! Why, you are only an elf, said I."
"Well, come, come human. Why are you here?"
"I am Dubh Sidhe, from Dubh Sidhe's Faerie Garden, and I want ever so much to see into this little house."
Cocking his cute cap-clad head to the side, and twitching his nose, he said, "Itsy, Bitsy, Crispy dee. Come into the house with me!"
Before I could blink, I had shrunk to elf-size.
"Come, come human. Don't dawdle. Enter in and meet my kin."
We stepped over the threshold, and entered into the pages of a story book! There was Old Mother Hubbard and her little dog sitting on a cupboard, and Polly Put The Kettle On at the stove preparing for tea. Sitting at a little table with a roast turkey was Jack Sprat and his wife who could eat no lean.
On the other side of the room by the fireplace, where Christmas stockings hung, sat the Crooked Man in a crooked chair, with his crooked walk stick across his lap. The Three Pigs seemed to be keeping him company, as they all waited for Hickory, Dickory, Dock to run up the clock!
By one of the windows stood Snow White and Beauty and the Beast. My elf-guide informed me that the Beast was benevolent, but I was not so sure about the monkey swinging from the rafter and brandishing a little-bit title of The Jungle Book.
A lion by a wardrobe startled me until I realized he was only looking at himself in Alice's Looking Glass. Inside hung her pretty blue dress, and a pair of tiny red slippers.
"Where is Alice, I asked?" Puck pointed out the window where Alice, the Tin Man and the Scarecrow were dancing happily across the grass.
"Would you like a cup of tea?" a voice asked. And then I beheld beautiful Glinda, the good witch of the North. The Wicked Witch from the West was sitting on the window sill, but Glinda sprinkled star dust and the wicked one vanished.
After tea and crumpets, I felt quite tired, so I wandered up the cherry painted stairs to the bedroom. Just as I started to turn down the cover a wee voice said, "Are you going to sleep in my bed?"
But, of course, The Three Bears! And, this was Baby Bear and there sat Mamma Bear and Pappa Bear. Baby Bear took me by the hand and showed me his toys - there was the coach belonging to Cinderella, and Humpty-Dumpty sitting on a stone wall and Mother Goose wearing a jaunty pink and blue bonnet. A small bookshelf held a collection of tiny teddy bears, some dressed in little outfits.
A noise from outside beckoned us to the window where we saw a woodsman chopping wood. "Oh! It's Paul Bunyon, I said out loud!"...
"Ma'am. Ma'am. Are you all right?" a nebulous voice asked. The aura of brightness vanished as I turned around to face a gawking group of shoppers which, for some strange reason, I seem to have attracted.
One of the gentlemen asked if I was going to take the house, but I responded only on the price sticker which resulted in cacophonous chatter.
Then, picking up Story Book Cottage, and being very careful not to disturb any of the occupants, I placed it on top of my basket, and bid the gawkers good day.
When I reached check-out, my being nearly fainted as the computer rang my cottage up for $30! So, with this fabulous find of the year, I left the store...
Story Book Cottage thus became a duplicate reality!
Tell me, tell me, where is fantasy bred--in the heart, or in the head?
This story, though I actually found the doll house for $30, is a work of fiction. It may not be copied, altered in any way nor moved from this site without my written consent. Thank you for respecting my individuality and hard work.
The Cottage and dolls are in one-twelfth scale or one foot=one inch, though some of the occupants are smaller. The house was furnished and peopled as described in the story.
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