SCOUT: “Look! It’s one of those sneaky, naughty poisonous mushrooms, Paddy!” *Glares at toadstool.* “I won’t touch it don’t worry!”
PADDY: “Very good, Scout.”
SCOUT: “I’m going to tell Daddy!”
PADDY: “That’s a good idea, Scout. Daddy would probably like to photograph it.”
SCOUT: “He would, Paddy?” *Scratches head with paw.* “But it’s a nasty, sneaky, bad poisonous mushroom. Why would Daddy want to photograph it? He can photograph us instead. We’re much more photogentic, especially in our nice new winter clothes!” *Preens.*
PADDY: “I agree with you, Scout, but Daddy likes to photograph odd things sometimes.” *Shrugs.*
SCOUT: “Daddy! Daddy come and see what I found! It’s a bad, sneaky, poisonous mushroom!”
DADDY: “Goodness! What a wonderful faerie toadstool, Paddy and Scout. How clever of you to find this for me to photograph. Thank you.”
SCOUT: “Scratches head with paw.* “Daddy? Daddy!”
DADDY: “Yes Scout?”
SCOUT: “Daddy, why did you call this a faerie toadstool. Paddy told me that it is a nasty, mean, sneaky and poisonous toadstool!”
PADDY: “I just said that it was a poisonous toadstool, Scout.”
SCOUT: “Well, I know that anything associated with poison is usually nasty, mean and sneaky, like the wicked queen in Snow White! She poisoned Snow White’s apple, and she was sneaky, nasty and mean, so it is a nasty, mean, sneaky and poisonous toadstool!” *Looks accusingly at toadstool.* “And it may be a faerie toadstool too. How so, Daddy?”
DADDY: “Well, faerie folk are known to skip around toadstools on a full moon.”
SCOUT: “Ooooh!”
PADDY: “And do you remember in the story of the Nightingale, the faeries Primrose and Pansy helped the little Kitchen Maid find the magical ginseng root under a toadstool, so it would cure her ailing mother.”
SCOUT: “Ooooh! That’s right Paddy! I remember now.”
DADDY: “So we better leave this toadstool alone, so that the faeries can dance with it. Faeries and their rights should not be tampered with.”
PADDY: “Do you think the faeries will come and dance around it tonight?”
DADDY: “Maybe, Paddy.”
SCOUT: “Can we come back when it gets dark and look, Daddy?” *Jumps up and down with excitement.*
PADDY: “Oh yes! Can we, Daddy? Can we?” *Jumps up and down with excitement.*
DADDY: “Oh no, Scout and Paddy.” *Shakes head.* “The faeries only come out after good little bears and their daddies and mummies are tucked up in bed.”
PADDY and SCOUT: *Disappointed.*
In May, Paddy, Scout and I took a lovely short holiday to Victoria’s alpine region. This included the lovely little town of Wandiligong, where we stayed and where this photograph was taken. The leaves of Wandiligong both on the trees and in great swathes on the ground were just stunning, and so too were these huge and amazing toadstools!
Being slightly colder in the alpine region, both Paddy and Scout are wearing hand knitted scarves and hats by Lorna's Lovely Looks. Paddy sports a strawberry pin and Scout insisted on wearing a Hungry Caterpillar one, which seems most appropriate. Both were gifts from a good friend who is very fond of Paddy and Scout.
My Paddington Bear came to live with me in London when I was two years old (many, many years ago). He was hand made by my Great Aunt and he has a chocolate coloured felt hat, the brim of which had to be pinned up by a safety pin to stop it getting in his eyes. The collar of his mackintosh is made of the same felt. He wears wellington boots made from the same red leather used to make the toggles on his mackintosh.
He has travelled with me across the world and he and I have had many adventures together over the years. He is a very precious member of my small family.
Scout was a gift to Paddy from my friend. He is a Fair Trade Bear hand knitted in Africa. His name comes from the shop my friend found him in: Scout House. He tells me that life was very different where he came from, and Paddy is helping introduce him to many new experiences. Scout catches on quickly, and has proven to be a cheeky, but very lovable member of our closely knit family.
Wandiligong is a town in north-eastern Victoria in the alpine region around 330 kilometres from Melbourne. Established in the 1850s as part of the Victorian Gold Rush, Wandiligong became a hub for many gold miners, including a large Chinese community. At its peak, the town was home to over two thousand inhabitants and boasted shops, churches, a public library, halls and even an hotel. Much has changed since those heady days of the gold rush, and the picturesque town nestled in a valley and built around the Morses Creek, is now a sleepy little town full of picturesque houses which are often let to visitors to the area. The whole town is registered with the National Trust of Australia for its historic landscape and buildings of historic value.
