We’ve been enamored of the work of Bridget Beth Collins, a.k.a. Flora Forager, for some time.

She’s a self-described petal painter, light seeker, magic weaver, and flower nymph, as well as the author of several books, including The Fairy Journals, Flora Forager ABC, and the recently released Moth Dust, which she describes as “an Edwardian, flowery, starry smorgasbord of everything I love.” We asked if she’d write something for our theme, “about the magic of flowers and webs and dewdrops and what have you.” Below is what she sent us.

There is a place I like to go when the world becomes too big. I shrink down down down in my mind, to where no human eyes can see me. Dewdrops sparkle as giant orbs; diamonds drift in a muted landscape of blue-green. A flower unfurls and I clamber inside.

The moon brightens its petals until I’m wrapped in a glowing lantern of light. Fresh, curling air fills my lungs, which have felt clamped until this very moment. Like an elixir in a dry desert, the sweet-smelling newness of growing things delights me. Here, anything is possible. I could shimmer into stardust, or hold tight to the ruby feathers of a hummingbird as we flit through the sweet peas. I could dust my cheeks with the rainbow mist from a waterfall, or fall madly in love with a summer breeze.

Somehow, I always get tearful in this dreamy state, thinking of how easy it is to forget the enchantment of this world. I think the shift in perspective comes from remembering what truly matters. Why am I fretting over the worries of the material world when the magical one has so much to offer me? And here’s the most beautiful secret: It is real too.

Wander into the garden or put your nose in the little tuft of wildflowers along the pavement and look: The daisies have their crowns, the beetles have their armor, the snails have their forever homes swirling around them.

The flora and fauna of our world are but a mirror of your own glimmering soul. You have a kingdom, shining armor, and a crown at your disposal if you have the eyes to see them. Surely there are fairies crafting iridescent wings for us each time we view something extravagant or precious in nature … Haven’t you ever felt your heart soar?

Sometimes it can be too hard to see beyond the veil of this ordinary world, which as children we could brush aside and tumble through. Life draws a curtain of sorrow and drudgery that can be hard to look beyond. But that doesn’t mean that magic isn’t there right now, shimmering in the shadows, waiting for our return.

Sometimes just the thought of it waiting beyond my window is enough to get me through.

See more of Bridget Beth Collins’s work at floraforager.com and visit her on Instagram @flora.forager.