Rain has started to fall a bit in some parts of the country, and that means it’s the beginning of the fall mushroom season.
I’m not a forager myself. I was raised with what’s referred to as “fungiphobia”. My parents, who were the consummate hunter-gatherers, warned me never to touch a mushroom. But now I have a multitude of friends and family that forage for mushies and they are teaching me that the world of mycology is a world of wonder!
I don’t think I’m going to become a serious fungi forager, but I am taking notice of the amazing variety of fabulous fungi that surrounds us. My sis has been taking my granddaughters on mushie hunts, as they are low to the ground and great spotters! They love stomping around in the underbrush and the thrill of discovery. They also love to make up or hear other’s made up stories of the faerie folk that live amongst the toadstools and parachutes poking out of the duff.
Just for fun, I posted a picture of a vibrant amanita I’d stumbled up during a walk, and asked my social media followers to tell me a story about the faeries that might live underneath…
I loved the responses, here’s a few of my favorites:
Linda
Fair of face and full of grace, Lily, the sweetest of fairies, bakes mini dandelion pies for her neighbors. Her small acts of kindness spreads joy across the fields of the fairy folk.
Nikki :
Gaeilge the fairy lived alone and was content to drink her shamrock tea and listen to her wee fairy radio every evening in her mushroom cottage .. It brought her great joy and peace as she listened to the voice of Delilah and all the wonderful kins folk that called in to her show.
Lady Delilah's radio show was a way to connect by voice and by heart to all the fairy kingdom, and for Gaeilge this gave her comfort. For a fairy voice wasn't just simply noise but their words of their hopes, dreams, and yes even sorrows were like musical notes flowing through the passage of time...
It was said that every word uttered by fairies would transform in the corridors of melody near the emerald sea into a strong symphony. Humans only hear the winds blowing there but fairies could hear the songs of their kind from past to present every so pleasantly.
This united song of all the voices of the fairies kept dreams and memories alive. In other words it brought hope to the fairies like Gaeilge who lived alone ... for she never truly had to feel lonely if she just took the time to listen.
Andrea:
Wee tiny Reba Mac, a sweet purring calico cat , curls up under her mushie 🍄🟫 cap… And dreams of mice peeking over the edge of this lovely roof in the magical forest of faeries.
And this one, which has kind of a Grimms Brother’s spin to it (ha ha!):
Cristin
…They all died because they tried eating the mushroom, but it was poisonous. Thats why we don't see fairy folk. The end.
This fall, as the rain begins in earnest, take a mushie walk. If you have littles, have them look for mushrooms, and let them know it’s ok to touch, but not to eat. A good thing for them—and all of us—to know, is that unlike berries, no mushroom should be eaten raw.
Find a mushroom guide for your area. The symbiotic relationship between fungi, and well, all life, is nearly beyond comprehension.
