It is the most magical time of year in Gemstone Glade, when all the fairies and animals of the forest come together for Gemstone glee and the magic of the season. But there is an expectant awe as night falls this second of December. The angels have arrived, bearing the Gemstone Glade Christmas tree! Slowly they lower it, as the fairies fly through the glade giggling in delight.

It is the best ever tree this year. The star at its top suddenly spins up and off, dancing around the glade. White doves nestle in the branches of the tree, cooing softly. The green branches change to purple, then back to green.

The tree is on the ground now, a tiny and intriguing green door at its foot. A giant bauble bears a clock face, set to 2 with 25 hours – or days. The countdown to Christmas has begun! Tiny angels dance around the branches, singing a melody from a far off land.

A unicorn arrives in the glade, and touches his horn to the tree. It is now officially blessed. The unicorn’s horn turns purple, then returns to its usual silver colour.

The fairies clap their hands in delight. It is time for the season to commence! A month of magic and wonder awaits. Will you join us to see what happens next?

Emerald Ella flies round Gemstone Glade, enjoying the winter sun and colourful autumn leaves. Landing on the edge of the fountain, she sighs. Where is the Gemstone Glade magic today?

Ella does not have long to wait. Leaves swirl around her, stroking her green crystalline skin, then a portal opens in the centre of the glade. Ella gasps in delight and disbelief.

It is a tiny green bridge, just the right size for a fairy. In fact, is it Emerald Bridge, the mythic bridge to Emerald Isle, the fairy paradise? Only one way to find out!

Ella sets foot on the emerald bridge, and squeals happily as she feels its emerald energy. The portal closes behind her as she continues up the bridge. Ahead, are green clouds. She enters them with the smile of a hundred summers on her face.

Emerging from the clouds, she sees a peaceful forest glade below. There are many emerald fairies there, drinking tea and dancing. It looks like an emerald fairy reunion. This is why the portal opened for her; it has opened to emerald fairies everywhere.

Laughing, she joins them, and soon has made many friends, from different forests and even different dimensions. But their emerald souls are a connection between them; it is like they have always known each other.

It is said that if you find Emerald Isle, you will find a life mission. It does not take long; there is a large and severe faced emerald fairy handing out cards. “Here you go!” she tells Ella as she regards her coolly. “Your assignment!”

Ella opens the card. “Help a guide dog called Gavina.” Ella smiles. All in good time, first for some fun!

She learns of other forest glades: the Mythic Moments and Hymns in Harmony glades are the most famous. How she would love to see them! A fairy called Edna approaches her. “I am a fairy of the Forest of Fables.” Ella gasps. She has heard a rumour of this forest, but did not believe it to be true. It is home to many magical beings, and used to test knights in training in the mythical kingdom of Tavo. “Can I come to visit you?” she asks Edna in glee. “Of course.”

Ella chuckles. This is the time of her life, she hopes the fun will never end. But then she remembers, there is a human guide dog who needs her emerald magic. It will soon be time to return to Gemstone Glade, and to find another portal: one that will lead to Gavina and her assignment. Somehow, she knows that it will be fun.

But first, dancing before dusk! Ella laughs as she waltzes with her friends. Perhaps this perfect day will never end. The sweet memory will certainly stay with her forever.

Far away, a golden Labrador sits at a door and waits for his owner to return. Somehow, he knows someone is coming to help him. He barks, but there is no one to hear.

Ella continues to dance, as a vision of a lonely dog accosts her. “Sorry folks!” she cries. “I must go! A mission awaits!”

The portal opens up for her again, and she returns to Gemstone Glade via the green bridge. There is a smile on Ella’s face that can never fade. This has been the best day of her life!

Gemma slept deeply, her toy unicorn clutched tightly in her hands as though the night elves might steal it. In her bedroom, the windows of her doll’s house winked in the moonlight.

*

In Gemstone Glade, the moon painted the fountain in shadow and light, poetry glinting in the waters. One of the fairies could not sleep. Rhyolite Robbie flew through the trees, bored and restless. Then he saw it.

The fairy door at the foot of the large oak tree was glowing a soft green. That meant only one thing. There was a child in need of help.

The door changed colour according to the nature of the child; weeks could go by and there was no colour, and then every day for a month there would be a new colour each night, sometimes even a rainbow medley of colours, and then you knew that there was a very special child indeed somewhere – crying for help.

Robbie knew that the green colour denoted friendship; the child needed a friend. He smiled. There was a reason he could not sleep.

But he could not do it himself. Merlinite Matilda was the best person to help. She was a magician fairy, with untold tricks and spells up her purple sleeves.

Matilda was only too happy to assist. Nervously, Robbie knocked at the little green door. Slowly it opened out towards them. A green tunnel confronted them. Where would it lead?

Then they were there, in a little girl’s bedroom. Pictures of unicorns adorned the walls. The child breathed deeply, a unicorn toy in her arms.

“Let’s get to work!” whispered Matilda. “The doll’s house! Let’s create doll’s house heaven!”

The house was large and a perfect fairy size to play in! White curtains hid simple rooms with doll’s house furniture. Matilda tossed her wand. Chains of tiny crystals assembled on the walls of each room. Matilda threw her wand again. Magical fairy lights formed on the ceilings, all different rainbow colours. They ran upstairs and found the bedroom. Matilda laughed as she waved her wand. Tiny but real gold jewellery appeared on the dressing table. Finally, it was time for bathroom bliss. Matilda filled the bath with pink rose quartz water, complete with rose petals.

“What else?” asked Matilda. “What about the outside of the house?” suggested Robbie.

So Matilda flew round the house, sprinkling gold dust on the walls. “It looks like a candy box now!” she laughed.

Gemma turned over. Robbie and Matilda froze. Had they woken her? But no, her deep sleep breathing continued.

“One final touch,” breathed Matilda. She waved her wand seven times. Two tiny bluebirds appeared on the roof of the house. “Tomorrow they will fly away, finding their way home to our magical forest. But just for tonight, they are the doll’s house guardians.”

Gemma turned over again. The two fairies took their cue, and jumped in to the green portal of light, which instantly closed behind them, and was gone.

In the morning, Gemma awoke slowly. Rubbing her eyes, she sat up. Then she saw it. Her sparkling doll’s house with two tiny blue birds on top. She cried with delight. What had happened? Had she been visited by a fairy godmother?

As she knelt by the doll’s house, Gemma felt happiness pirouette in her heart. The bluebirds flew around her head, and then were gone. A tiny blue feather fell in to her hand. She would keep it forever, in that secret place that no one else knew about. But one day, she would find it and remember. For now, she was in it, the perfect memory. Let’s make it last, the day can wait. She laughed again, delight in her eyes and magic in her hands. Perhaps this memory could last forever, a morning etched on time in indelible ink. The best memories fill our heart with joy, and never leave us. Like a bluebird, they leave a piece of themselves behind, to cherish for all time.

Unicorn foal Amethyst slowly enters the glade, as if nervous of hidden dangers. His horn glows violet: it is made of crystal amethyst, making him a very rare foal indeed. It is not Gemstone Glade he fears, it is the words that whisper in his mind. The voices of distraught children, shivering in their beds, their tears forming in his own eyes.

Amethyst pauses at the fountain and drinks. The waters begin to glow purple, mirroring his horn.

He raises his head as a fairy flies round him. It is Moldavite Molly. “I have come to heal your tears!” she sings. “I am full of the magic of crystal moldavite, a master healer! Tell me, what would make you feel better?”

“The children,” whispers Amethyst. “So many unhappy children.”

“Then let me give them gifts! I can sneak in to rooms while they sleep. Just like this I can create magic!”

She claps her hands. Beneath her five tiny moldavite unicorn figurines appear.

“What are the most unhappy children called? Can you pick up their names? Let me find them!”

Amethyst thinks hard. “Charlie, Michael, Judith, Tina and Josie.”

“Let me go right now.”

Molly snaps her fingers and the unicorn figurines follow her, glowing in the end of day sunlight.

Amethyst stands alone, thoughts trembling in his mind. Will Molly find them?

Charlie turns over in bed, nightmares tearing his mind in two like a piece of paper thrown in the trash. Then he wakes. Something is different. He moves his hand and touches something cold. Putting on the light, he finds a tiny green unicorn figurine. He laughs, nightmares drifting away like dew in the sunlight. Happy, he clutches the unicorn to his chest and sleeps again. He dreams of unicorns and magic forest glades, and in his sleep he smiles.

Tina finds her figurine in the morning. Bemused, she holds it in her hands. Smiling, she later slips it in her pocket, suddenly feeling strong and ready to face the school bullies.

Michael loves his figurine. It stands on his bedside table every night. It is midnight and the house sleeps. The unicorn figurine begins to glow, emitting green light. Michael turns over, restless. Then he wakes up. Beside his bed is a full-size green unicorn. He gasps.

“I have come to life, and I am to take you on a journey.” The unicorn stares in to his eyes and speaks in his mind.

Michael smiles. “An adventure! Just like in a story book!”

“Jump on my back!” instructs the unicorn. “My name is Moldavite Mark. My body is made of magical crystal. But my heart is real.”

Michael closes his eyes as he places his hands in the unicorn’s mane, as soft as baby shampooed hair. Wind rustles his own hair, as he opens his eyes to a scene of clouds, racing past. Then they are descending. Beneath them, a quiet forest glade is cloaked in gentle moonlight, shimmering in the waters of a carved fountain.

“This is Gemstone Glade, hidden deep in a secret forest, a special place where you can find your soul and reignite your heart. Whenever you wish to visit here, just call for me at night and I will come for you.”

A small white unicorn with a purple horn rushes up to them. “You have come! One of the children is here! I can’t believe it!”

Michael spends an hour in heaven, or so it feels. He plays with fairies, drinks from the fountain and is bewitched by unicorn stories. “You should write a book!” he exclaims to Amethyst.

Moldavite Molly, who has joined them, points to a corner of the glade. “There is a magic notebook buried there!”

Michael digs his hands in the loose soil. Soon he finds it – a large leather notebook, strange symbols on its cover.

Amethyst begins to write with his horn, purple patterns appearing on the old and frayed paper. As he writes, a children’s author awakes from a deep slumber. There is a smile on Melissa’s sleepy face. She has just dreamt of an entire short novel. Grabbing a pencil and notepad, she frantically begins to write.

“Amethyst the Unicorn” becomes a bestseller. The real Amethyst is content, as he dreams of the children reading the book. Their happiness forms tears in his eyes, purple pinpoints of light that fall to the fountain waters beneath him. The Gemstone Glade fountain is always there, soaking up his tears, and turning them to rainbows. Amethyst sighs. It is time to write in the magic notebook once more.

(c) Can Stock Photo / Catmando

Rana, Ula and Thor, three of the most majestic Gemstone Glade unicorns, arrive at the fountain and drink. The water kisses their soul. They can’t get enough, it is like they have not been in Gemstone Glade for months. And they haven’t! On 31 December 2018 they left the glade on a magic bridge to Rainbow Land. Read more here: A Unicorn Happy New Year

They have lived with the rainbow unicorns since then, learning their magic.

Home again, they are delighted to show their new skills! Rana raises her head, blinks her eyes, and a mini rainbow appears above her. She neighs in appreciation. Lowering her head, the rainbow moves towards her. She points with her horn. The rainbow enters the fountain waters, blessing them with rainbow joy. The waters sparkle as colours chase each other round and round.

Ula raises her head next. She trots swiftly round the glade. The rose quartz crystals at the edges begin to sing. A matrix of rainbows suddenly connects the four large crystals. Bridges form above them, gateways to more magical worlds.

Two fairies fly in to the glade – Fluorite Fiona and Sugilite Sally – and disappear in to the rainbow matrix. Their laughter can be heard from afar.

Thor surveys the glade with wise eyes. It is his turn to show some magic. He neighs, and his horn turns in to all the colours of the rainbow. Shaking his head, his horn starts to paint coloured words in the air. Love. Joy. Unity. Freedom. Peace.

The pastel coloured words float in to the sky, and blow in the wind to wherever they are needed.

The three unicorns join each other, pointing their horns to the ground together. It begins to rain, sparkling rainbow drops full of blessings. The unicorns neigh in appreciation.

It is just another day in Gemstone Glade. A day of magical surprises and crystal wisdom. What will tomorrow bring? Check back soon and find out!

c) Can Stock Photo / Catmando

Snow Quartz Sylvie loves springtime, and is in the mood today to make a little seasonal magic. Just a little …

The tiny white fairy glides through the snowdrops that have turned Gemstone Glade in to a white wonderland. She blesses each one with fairy glitter, laughing as she goes. The snowdrops begin to emit snow quartz serenity, as a heart-hugging peace envelopes the glade.

Snow Quartz Sylvie laughs. She flies in to the sky, taking the essence of snowdrop energy in her hands. She lands in a cloud, and claps. All around her snowdrops appear. The inside of the cloud becomes a snowdrop glade: a paradise world for the fairies.  Petalite Polly and Jasper Jim join her, giggling in delight. The cloud moves across the sky, just a normal cloud on the outside but hiding a fairy festival inside.

So next time you look in to a cloud-studded spring sky, just imagine, there could be a fairy party above you, a snowdrop world of abundant love and never-ending joy. Allow yourself to sky gaze, and dream of all you can not see.

It is the 31^st December in Gemstone Glade. Unicorns assemble at the fountain to say their prayers for 2019. They place their horns in the water, which turns purple then pink with unicorn magic.

Then they come to the centre of the glade and touch their horns to the ground, blessing it in preparation for the new year. They softly neigh in the cold December night.

Real magic begins to unfold. A purple bridge appears before them; it is a portal to another unicorn world, where rainbow unicorns live in a multi-coloured land of pretty pastels and soothing shades, all the colours of the rainbow creating a paradise of living colour.

Slowly they jump on to the wooden bridge and begin their journey to a new world. Wonders will unfold before dawn. When they return, they will bring a little bit of rainbow magic with them. Please come back to learn about their adventures!

Happy New Year from the Gemstone Glade Unicorns, may 2019 bring you all you wish for and even more.

© Can Stock Photo / Ancello

Ruby Rihanna flies round the glade, excitement electrifying her body. She is still recovering from her adventures with last year’s Christmas advent calendar, read all about it here.

Today, she will touch a magic bauble on the Gemstone Glade Christmas Tree. Her fingers flutter with glee. Christmas is such fun in Gemstone Glade!

She has made a choice, flying towards a red bauble, her own colour. Tentatively, she touches it. The bauble disappears with a pop! In her hands she is holding a feather, double the size of her. Perhaps it is holding her! Golden with glitter, it encases her in a deep spell of winter wonder.

© Can Stock Photo / hibrida13

Rihanna hangs on the feather with both hands as it slowly rises, soaring ever higher. They fly over the trees, until a golden tunnel appears before them. Rihanna is dazzled by shining gold as they enter the tunnel. Just when she thinks the tunnel will never end, it does just that, and they are confronted by a golden forest glade.

Golden trees, a golden fountain with golden water, golden roses … and golden crystals at the edge of the glade, iron pyrite and citrine towers. Jumping off the feather, Rihanna flies around the new glade, drunk on golden delight. It is a sister glade to Gemstone Glade, but gold, and magical beyond comprehension.

A unicorn appears, a horn of gold glowing in the low winter sun. He nods to her, as he slowly walks through the glade, and drinks from the fountain. Rihanna joins him, washing her face in the golden waters and feeling refreshed as she has never felt before.

Image courtesy of Victor Habbick at FreeDigitalPhotos.net

Golden fairies fly in to the glade. “Who are you?” they cry with golden smiles on glittering faces.

They explain that the feather has opened a portal to their world, the golden paradise of sacred gold healing waves. “We send gold healing wherever it is needed, it is our job!”

“Can we ride the feather with you back to your world? We would love to see it!” exclaims Gold Gretchen.

“We can teach you so much!” adds Gold Gideon.

So they all ride the feather back to Gemstone Glade. The crystalline fairies there welcome them in true Gemstone Glade style, by throwing a fairy party. In to the early hours there is dancing and feasting. Finally, the golden fairies say they must return to their world.

“But, Rihanna, please take this!” Gold Gretchen hands her a gold wand. “With this, you can weave golden magic too!”

Rihanna fingers the wand reverently, as they wave goodbye to their new friends. “We will be back!” they promise.

The Gemstone Glade Christmas Tree stands still as the party continues, silent witness to the magic of the glade. Soon, it will be Christmas Eve. On this special day, the fairies choose a child to visit, leaving a magic present of their choice. However, Fantastic Fairy Fiona will be zooming to several children this year, with her new superpowers. Recap on her story 

The fairies decide to indulge in some rest before their hardworking Christmas Eve. Peace descends on Gemstone Glade, the sacred peace of Christmas, the silence of every sleeping child’s dreams.

Fluorite Fiona flies in circles round the Christmas Tree, trying to choose a magical bauble to touch. She laughs in anxious anticipation. Then she decides on a shining gold bauble, staring at her reflection before finally, and oh so slowly, touching it.

The bauble is gone with a whoosh! In her hands there appears a silver and gold tiara. It shines in the winter sun like a jewel from heaven.

Fiona sighs. It is so beautiful. Tentatively, she places it on her head. It fits perfectly. The fairies cheer below.

© Can Stock Photo / webking

Then something very strange happens. Her attire changes to a sparkling gold tunic, FANTASTIC FAIRY in silver crystals over her chest. Her arms and hands grow stronger. Fiona laughs with disbelief. She has turned in to the fairy version of Wonder Woman!

And then she hears it, in her head. All the children crying, lonely or bullied. So many voices, all imploring her for help. “I will help,” she murmurs. She flies through a tunnel of wind, to her first child. He is alone in his bedroom, crying because Mum and Dad are arguing. “You are alone no more!” she sings. The boy looks up, a smile slicing in two the stream of tears. Fiona laughs again. She tells the boy a story about Gemstone Glade and its regular visitors. He listens, entranced, all troubles forgotten.

More voices whisper in Fiona’s ear. She whisks off in a cloud of gold bubbles. It is time to break up a fight between two boys. They are amazed to see her, and stop fighting as she gives them some sage suggestions. She giggles. This is easy.

Fiona decides that she likes her new life. Perhaps she will take on this role permanently. It will be a tiara for life, not just for Christmas.

The Gemstone Glade Christmas Tree stands regal in the afternoon winter sun, baubles glittering like promises of a sparkling tomorrow. Amethyst Angelina sits royally at the top of the tree, waving her wand every so often and laughing; she adores the Christmas season and has decided that the Christmas Angel spot is the best in the world.

Kunzite Karl has been nominated to touch the next magical bauble. He is a pink fairy with diamond tipped wings; he decides to fly to a pink crystal. The wind rushes through his wings as he flies playfully around the tree, teasing the audience below and eating expectation like the sweetest candy.

Then he stops at the rose quartz pink bauble, and gently strokes it. Music plays as the bauble fades and then is gone. A small pink cloud appears in its place, growing larger as it floats above the fountain and hovers there. Slowly, glowing pink snowflakes start to fall, mixing with the fountain waters below and turning them pink.

Then the snowflakes take form, turning in to rose pink fairies, fluttering their wings with the wonder of the new born. “Hello!” one of them cries. “We are from Rose Quartz Paradise, you have opened a portal to our world. We are delighted to be here and will stay and play for a while!”

The Gemstone Glade fairies open their arms and flutter their wings in welcome. They all play together in the pink fountain waters. “Let’s stay longer!” sings one of the pink fairies. “Let’s build houses!”

A cloud of fairy wings flies in to the trees, waving magenta pink wands. In the tree branches, there appear tiny pink wooden tree houses.

The Gemstone Glade fairies squeal in delight. Their new friends are a Christmas dream come true! It is time to organise a Gemstone Glade party. The fairies begin to sing their favourite songs, as they gather sweets and logs for a fire. The day will be long, and fairy candles will burn in to the night. Gemstone Glade magic has met its rose pink match.