Fairy Wing, By Lauren Swinney
July 8, 2020
O.K. It was the wing of a dragonfly. Where Cousin Dorothy found it, I don't know, but she had no difficulty convincing younger me that it was a true fairy's wing that would enable her to communicate with the garden fairies.
Trustingly I asked, "How do you do that?"
Quick-witted Cousin Dorothy had a ready answer. "You write a tiny note and put it in the petals of a flower with the fairy wing. Then you go away and wait."
It worked. It really worked. Because I played the game fairly and never peeked, the fairy answered. I was enraptured. I had many questions. Cousin Dorothy guarded the wing and limited my queries.
Not a single suspicion did I have until one of the fairy responses contained a misspelled word. I have no idea what caused me to believe fairies were good spellers.
Cousin Dorothy freely admitted she had authored the fairy responses. Game over.
Trustingly I asked, "How do you do that?"
Quick-witted Cousin Dorothy had a ready answer. "You write a tiny note and put it in the petals of a flower with the fairy wing. Then you go away and wait."
It worked. It really worked. Because I played the game fairly and never peeked, the fairy answered. I was enraptured. I had many questions. Cousin Dorothy guarded the wing and limited my queries.
Not a single suspicion did I have until one of the fairy responses contained a misspelled word. I have no idea what caused me to believe fairies were good spellers.
Cousin Dorothy freely admitted she had authored the fairy responses. Game over.