In a quiet village nestled among the lavender hills of Provence, two sisters, Élise and Margot, lived in a small stone cottage surrounded by a forest of the 3 different coloured lilac trees. The deep purple was a firm favourite of Élise with Margot preferring the delicacy of the white blossoms which contrasted with heady perfume of the flower. The traditional lilac colour tree represented their mother long gone but very much present in both their memories. Every spring, they walked to the stream at the bottom of their garden to gather wildflowers, a tradition they’d inherited from their late mother.
This year, the season came with a peculiar magic in the air. The sky was unusually clear, the blossoms more vibrant with the heavenly, scent of lilac perfuming the air. As they strolled through the flourishing forest, Élise began to hum the melody their mother always sang—the “Flower Duet” from Lakmé by Delibes. Margot joined her, their two voices, echoes of each other, gentle and pure.
As the duet rose into the breeze, the flowers around them seemed to lean closer, as though listening. Time slowed. A strange shimmer passed trees. When the final notes faded, the world was somehow changed, somewhat different.
Before them stood a woman cloaked in light, her eyes kind and ageless. “You’ve awakened the Song of the Forrest,” she said. “Few remember it, and fewer still sing it with such love.”
The sisters stood silent, stunned.
“As a gift,” the woman continued, “you may ask for one thing each. Choose wisely.”
Margot asked for her voice to heal sadness, remembering the unadulterated joy her mother’s singing stirred up in their little family while Élise asked for music to never leave their family again.
The woman smiled, placed a hand on each of their hearts, and vanished like morning mist.
Years passed. Margot became a healer—not of the body, but of souls. Her songs brought joy to the grieving, laughter to the lost and a lightness to their spirit. Élise became a music teacher, passing songs, notes and harmonies to children throughout Provence – melodies that the children might never have heard of had it not been for her dedication and passion – tunes which they sang as if it lived in their bones.
Every spring, the two sisters whose lives are distinct yet united come together to gather wild flowers, raising their voices in honour of their beloved mother, offering a moment of serenity and beauty to the listening blossoms, who soak it in knowing that as sure as the seasons they will be here again next year to bare witness to this wonderful duet.
