The Ferns - One-Time Box Purchase

In May 2023, subscribers met the Ferns.

Birdmoss is home to thousands of varieties of Ferns. Many of them live together in the Fern Grove. It is a place visited by daily rainshowers; the Ferns, though silent, practice their own weather magic. They have cultivated a place where the air is humid and smells of wet earth. Because the Grove nurtures their intuitive powers, the Ferns are often the first to know of distant earthquakes and floods.

The old stories tell us that the invisible seeds of the Ferns possess special properties: they allow one to “walk invisible”; they remove blindness; they grant insight. Surely the feet of any visitor to the lush Fern Grove would be dusted with these motes.

The Ferns Box includes an abundance of beautiful objects; hints and additions to expand the story; a mysterious document; and a lore card.  

Some items are available for individual purchase.

• Mysterious Document
• An instructional document is augmented with marginalia which will help you interpret clues.  It is available only in the Ferns Box.

• Lore Card
• The Ferns are introduced in a full-color collectible 4x6 inch lore card.  The artwork for this month's lore card was created by Joanna Rzepecka, a Warsaw, Poland-based illustrator. She says, "My work is inspired by biodiversity, mainly animals. Through my work, I'm trying to capture moments where nature is untouched by humans. Peaceful scenery, colors, and rough textures are some things that I enjoy the most."

• Guide To The Fern Grove - Embroidered Tea Towel
• The Foxes have sent you a visual guide to the Fern Grove. They maintain libraries of heavy books and maps, but in the field, they often rely on illustrated textiles which can be knotted into sacks or used in other practical ways.
  
  • If your guide shows you a crescent Moon, this journey takes you inward. You explore your seasons, needs, and path. You grow in self-knowledge.
  • If your guide shows you a Moth, this journey is a conversation with ancestors. You explore your relationships, connections, and inheritance. You receive ancestral wisdom.

• Lightning Quartz - Crystal Points
• You receive two crystal points which have been quickened in a thunderstorm. Use them to answer the crash and flash of the storm with lightning of your own. The light in your hands is small, but it allows you to commune with the colossal clouds and their shaking rumbles.

• Sign In Your Path - Fern Medallion Pendant
• When the storm subsides, you find a sign in your path, indicating that you are approaching the Fern Grove. The windy chaos of the storm has pressed a Fern frond into the mud. As you examine it, golden sunbeams filter through the humid haze.
  
  • If the golden shimmer is strongest on the left side of the Fern, consider the fortuitous marks and patterns that nature creates around you.
  • If it is strongest on the right side of the Fern, ponder your own art and creations: you will receive new opportunities to collaborate with natural elements.
  • If you are uncertain, cultivate openness, because you will encounter more mysteries.

• The Ferns Respond - Sensitive Plant Kit
• When you reach the Grove, the Ferns respond to your presence. They were the first to know of your arrival in Birdmoss, and now they bow and dip as you meet. You stroke their fronds; some return the gesture. Others curl up, perhaps overwhelmed with shyness in the moment.

• Making A Fern-Glyph - Seal Stamp and Wax
• You receive the tools to create a Fern-glyph: a seal stamp and lustrous green wax. You can use the glyph to bring an element of invisibility to your work. Use the glyph to seal documents and correspondence so their secrets will be revealed only to the intended reader.