Hope you can entertain a second post from me today -- it's so rare that I have the luxury to post twice in a day! The first time I remember learning about brownies, gnomes, dwarves and elves, was when I was a wee brownie scout in the first grade, and I read a story in my brownie guidebook called "Bairns are a Burden". It was a story about two children (if memory serves me correctly) who found they could learn to be helpful, instead of being a burden to their parents. The origins of the word bairn (meaning "child") are Northumbrian, Scottish and from parts of Northern England. And I remember that a part of the story involved the magic of brownies. Of course I read lots more stories after that, stories about magical and mythological creatures, fairies, elves, gnomes, trolls. And the fascination continued into adulthood where I devoured the Lord of the Rings Series and Harry Potter. Dwarves are a popular theme in Germanic and Norse mythology - I see them pop up frequently in vintage postcards. I hope you enjoy the sweet images of these magical little beings.
Poor little squirrel's house was appropriated!
How the mushrooms REALLY got their spots...
What wonderful images! I can't hear the word "bairn" without picturing Jacques from "Lady and the Tramp." :)
Posted by: Harley | August 06, 2009 at 08:35 PM