Farmageddon

As someone who actively aspires to be a small scale farmer and sell at farmers markets someday, this movie has blown my mind. Swat teams serving warrants because people have raw milk? Killing large herds of sheep only to find they were in perfect health 8 years later? Madness...

Writer's charm for NaNoWriMo

Two days till I hunker down and try to reach the elusive 50,000 words in November. I was getting my laptop bag ready today, since my plan is to carry it as a purse all month. You never know when I will have time to kill or be struck with inspiration.

So I had a thought. I made a Writer's Charm to attach to my bag.

I used white coral for organization, ametrine to bring my dreams into reality, and bloodstone for self confidence. 

I used some yarn scraps to stitch them up into a little pouch, and attached a faery, a four-leaf clover, and a hematite and carnelian copper wrapped pentacle to it.

I hooked it on to my USB and now I'm set to rock out the pages this November.

When football players have more common sense than politicians...

Morality of Pagans by The Providence

What is paganism?

Paganism is an umbrella term used today by numerous faiths and individuals to describe their spiritual path. Pagan was once a derogatory term meaning "uneducated country dweller" used by Christians to refer to rural folk who had not yet converted to Christianity. The essence of paganism is in honouring the earth, animals and nature as sacred and deserving equal respect from us as humans.

Who practises it?

I've met pagans who are teachers, professors, doctors, police officers, politicians, lawyers, military, investment bankers ....

Paganism as religion:

Paganism itself is not an organized religion, but many of the spiritual paths under its umbrella are recognized as religions such as Druidism, heathenism and Wicca.

Paganism and Halloween:

Halloween has its origins in the fire festivals of the pre-Christian faiths of Europe and the British Isles. In Ireland and Scotland this festival was known as Samhain and great bonfires were built at sunset and kept fed through the night to scare away evil spirits. The Celts, Gaels and heathens shared the belief in an underworld as the land of the dead and at the end of October they believed the separation between our world and the land of the dead was at it's thinnest and the dead were able to roam freely among us.

A pagan service:

A pagan ceremony is generally performed in nature. Pagans do not have churches or specified places of worship. Most pagans would share the sentiment "nature is my church." Ceremonies take place on the full moons and also celebrate the changing of the seasons. A typical ceremony involves everyone standing in a circle around an altar with the priest and/or priestess in the centre. Offerings are given, prayers made and a sacred communion is performed.

THE MORAL QUESTION

The biggest pagan celebration of the year is Oct. 31. Most people know it as Halloween.

"This is the one time of year when magic is acceptable. It's okay to be a pagan," says Sarah Lawless, 28, a Maple Ridge native who got into paganism 10 years ago as a way of celebrating the natural world.

She says it's fun being scared, but most of the time there's no reason to be.

Pagans say Halloween is a festival of the dead. It is known by its Irish name, Samhain.

It's believed that spirits of the dead come out during this time, which marks the beginning of the darkest part of the year, a time when green plants are dying and living animals are going to ground, leaving space for the other side to surface.

"Dead things rule. They can come out," says Lawless.

There are two kinds of spirits: good ones and bad ones.

Good ghosts are the spirits which come from positive energy like deceased family members.

"People invite good spirits into their homes. They welcome back their grandparents and want to nourish them and say they remember them. It's said as long as living people remember you, you are not really dead."

The bad ones are a bit trickier. She says they could be a bit of bad energy left over from someone who died in an unhappy state.

She has known people to look for ghosts in graveyards and come back frightened by something they have experienced.

"They don't want to talk about it," she says. In Metro Vancouver there are spooky crows and hooting owls in forests. City-dwelling coyotes come pretty close to howling wolves.

Masks are put on to frighten away evil spirits. Images are carved on pumpkins to shoo intruders away.

"A lot of pagans believe the spirits are real. I believe in ghosts. Jack o'lanterns keep away evil spirits from the house," she says.

Halloween is the one pagan festival which resonates with others.

"People get dressed up and have fun decorating their houses. The celebration brings people together," she says.

Paganism is similar in some respects to native North American spirituality.

The sun and moon are celebrated, as well as everything in the universe (even rocks). The universe is thought to be one great being.

"We all come from the same matter. No new matter is being created," says Lawless.

She says pagans got a bad name because the church used the word pagan as a name for people who had not converted to the Christian faith.

"Paganism for me is about respect and honour and love.

"We're really quite normal, everyday people, with ethics and morals and values."

kspencer@ theprovince.com

twitter.com/ kentspencer2

© Copyright (c) The Province

Read more: http://www.theprovince.com/Moral+Question+Pagans/7459666/story.html#ixzz2AiX2b0fU

Pagan beliefs live on locally

Pagan beliefs live on locally

By Chris Bergeron/Daily News staff

The MetroWest Daily News

Posted Oct 29, 2012 @ 12:01 AM

Trick-or-treaters who knock on Heather Jacob’s door this Halloween might be surprised to learn they are

getting candy from a pagan who pray s to ancient deities like Isis and worships the cycles of nature.

A self-described “eclectic pagan’’ who teaches at two area colleges, the Ashland resident believes in “reverence toward

nature and being in touch with its rhythms as a real force.’’

Raised as an Episcopalian, Jacob began studying pre-Christian religions in her late teens and became a practicing pagan in

college.

“That story wasn’t doing it for me. It didn’t fit what my life was coming to,’’ said Jacob. “I’ve always liked studying other

cultures and what truths they held. I want to know what wisdom the ancients had and how to apply that knowledge.’’

Across the region, pagans and Wiccans, a 20th century popularization of pagan beliefs that often includes witchcraft, will

gather this week in homes, bookstores and covens to celebrate the full moon and Samhain, a Gaelic festival usually held on

Oct. 31 , to mark the end of the harvest season and beginning of winter.

Though difficult to confirm, they say their numbers are growing as more young people seek religions that honor nature and

practice tolerance toward those with different orientations.

Baptized a Catholic, Amy Supernor began embracing Wicca at 14 as a way to connect with her Nipmuck heritage.

She took a course in “Wicca 101 ’’ at The Robin’s Nest, a Bellingham store that sells “supplies for all your spiritual and

magickal needs’’ including Tarot cards, incense, herbs and crystals.

A 24-y ear-old massage therapist who works in Hopkinton, Supernor described Wicca as a “nature-based religion similar to

Native American beliefs’’ that celebrates the rhythms of nature and practices “spell work to improve yourself and remove

obstacles.’’

“We’re all on the same path to the same destination, to find our connection with the divine, the divine within us or some

higher power,’’ she said.

Supernor said people sometimes misunderstand the five-starred pentacle bracelet she wears and have asked if she

“worships the devil or casts evil spells.’’

“Particularly around Halloween, I don’t go out of my way to say I’m Wiccan. But I don’t say I’m not,’’ she said.

But Ariana, who asked to only be identified by her Wiccan name, worried her employer and others might misunderstand

why she left the Catholic Church to pursue her interest in “supernatural things.’’

“I’ve always been drawn to nature and found more solace in the ocean or a beautiful sunset than the Bible. I enjoy magic.

Everyone has magical energy that provides an enhanced knowledge of things even if they don’t know it,’’ she said.

But two older men who formerly owned The New Moon occult bookstore said they ’re now pursuing spiritual goals in private

way s away from the public eye.

Bob MacDonald, who first owned the bookstore in Marlborough, said he’d “retreated into private practice’’ in Northborough

where he runs a boarding kennel.

MacDonald, 59, now attends a Unitarian Universalist church but still believes, like Wiccans, he can touch the divine through

nature.

“When I worship I go in the backyard and look around. I don’t feel I need a medium or a preacher to interpret God’s words,’’

he said.

Looking back on his years organizing Wiccan activities from his bookstore, MacDonald said wistfully , “A lot of times it just

got silly .’’

“We attracted a lot of kids. Sometimes it seemed like they just wanted a Goth costume party ,’’ he said. “Now I like to get

together with close friends. Speaking just for my self, by recognizing a divinity in nature, you can be fed by it, nurtured by

it.’’

Once one of the most visible practitioners of Wicca in the region, Sabazius Athame, who later bought the New Moon, said,

“I’ve walked away and fallen in love with God.’’

Born Charles Urban and raised in Framingham, Athame became a Christian minister in Missouri after serving in the U.S. Air

Force. Feeling he “wasn’t connecting with the deepest sources,’’ he studied Asian philosophy , and eventually embraced

Wicca. He took his Wiccan name in 1999 as “part of my passage to the occult.’’

Athame moved the New Moon to Princeton and sold it before moving to Worcester. Now 62, he said he’d felt “some

disenchantment’’ because some Wiccans were becoming so “organized’’ they were cutting themselves off from their pagan

roots.

After battling heart disease and cancer, he said he was sustained through his medical problems “by the one-to-one

relationship with God.’’

“I left the organization but my walk continues,’’ he said.

A witch, pagan and business owner, Tara “Lady T’’ Projin hopes her new store, Charmed, which she describes as a

“metaphysical and occult boutique’’ in downtown Marlborough, provides a welcoming home for “those searching for their

own Magickal path.’’

Located at 163 Main St. in sight of city hall, it sells books, candles, magical supplies and works by local artists.

Jason Matthews, a self-described “psychic empath’’ who can “pick up on the emotional climate of a room or person,’’ gives

astrological readings.

Wayne Needler gives seminars in Wicca and holds a monthly workshop “to make your own wand’’ to use in rituals and

casting spells.

Lady T said Charmed will hold monthly full moon ceremonies and will host a traditional Samhain “dumb supper’’ on Oct. 31

when “the veil between the living and the dead opens at its widest.’’

The meal will feature five courses served in reverse, with desert first, and be eaten in silence so ancestral voices can be

heard from the beyond.

Lady T said she became interested in paganism as a child from her late father’s interest in Gaelic culture and Tarot readings.

She said Charmed staff won’t do readings or sell religious items to customers under 18 without their parents’ permission. She

added that women between 13- and 34-y ears-old are “Wicca’s “fastest growing group.’’

“People are always searching for something more,’’ said Lady T. “People fear what they don’t understand. We’re about

ancient wisdom and respecting people. There’s nothing to fear from us.’’

Copyright 2012 The MetroWest Daily News. Some right s reserved

\

Hunter's Moon for a scared rabbit

Tonight is the Full Hunter's Moon.

According to the Farmer's Almanac, it is a time when the fields have been cleared and hunters could see their  quarry clearly. A great chance to store up for the coming winter.

According to me, in my own words, it is a time to get in touch with your inner Virgin Huntress and remember that "virgin" means not sexually untouched, but not belonging to a man.

Right now my Huntress is wounded, afraid, and hiding in a hole while my man has become my shield against the world. This is a good thing, because I have a man who will willingly and lovingly shield me from a world that I do not have the strength or skills to face alone right now.

But at this moment, the moon is shining Her perfect light down on me, and so I will go outside and sit with her. I will hope that the next Hunter's Moon that rolls around I will feel like the Huntress and not the Quarry.

Something about Mary

I've mentioned before that I am in an incredibly rough patch at this point in my life. That being said, I have been trying to find comfort wherever I can. I can barely quiet my mind enough to sleep, let alone meditate for more than a few minutes. I have been tending my altars, and in my prayers and offerings, I have felt called by  a Goddess I would have never expected to reach out to me...Mary

Yes, that Mary.

 I came from a Christian background in my teens, and when I left the Baptist Church, it was not with anger or disdain.  I simply was no longer happy as a Christian in my heart, and when I found Wicca, and then the broader scope of Paganism in general, I simply felt like I was finally home. I always looked on the Christian God as one of the many Gods I know and recognize, and Mary (both the Virgin Mary and Mary Magdalene) as Christian Goddesses. 

Many years ago, when I was in the hospital after hand surgery, a co-worker very respectfully gave me a Rosary and a book about the history of the Rosary. I still have the Rosary today, because prayer is prayer and there was a lot of love in that gift.

So when things went way south a couple months ago, I dug out that Rosary and prayed it. It felt a little weird, so I made my own Morrigan Rosary and reworked the prayers to fit my needs. (I will post on that hopefully next week) Apparently, the contact with my Christian days, once or maybe even twice removed because I had never been Catholic, and had been given the Rosary a few years into my Pagan life was all the invitation that was needed.

That first week after we closed the shop doors and were at the grocery trying to stretch the last of our money into as many cheap meals as possible. I walked away from the cart, and plucked a candle off the shelf. The Virgin of Guadalupe. I have gone through 7 candles now, and have actually made one of the empty jars into an oil lamp because I have no money to buy more.

 I have done some research on her, and one of the aspects that drew me to her, that she represents the Great Mother, has made her a symbol of the Pro-Life and Reproductive Rights battles by the Catholic Church. Regardless of this association, she, as in most cases with Mary, took on the robes and inhabited the sacred sites of the indigenous Goddess, Tonantzin. This is kind of blanket term for Earth Mother Goddesses. The one who caught my eye, not surprisingly, was Cihuacoatl. She is an Aztec Goddess of childbirth, warfare, and crossroads. So, that light is burning, reminding me again that I have warriors and mothers, who are usually one in the same, holding me and helping to remind me that although I am weak now, strength is waiting for me to claim, when I'm ready to claim it.

Feeling the Kindle love

You guys are awesome!

My book Magickal Life, was downloaded 697 times during it's free promotional week on Amazon! I don't care if I never make a dime off of the book, twice I have put my work out there, after being a writer since I was a teenager, and between the two nearly 1,200 people have read my work. It's such an amazing feeling, and it's a good shot in the arm right before NaNoMriMo starts next week. It's been so hard to find positive things to concentrate on, and I'm so glad I took that big first step. 

I have always been so afraid to let anyone see my work. It really sucks that I had to hit total rock bottom emotionally to do it, but it's out there and that big first step is now out of the way. I'll keep you posted on my NaNoWriMo progress. I have book two of the Through the Veil series pretty much outlined and hope to get the first draft of it knocked out for the most part. If I don't drag my feet editing, I hope to have it published on Kindle by the first of the year. Much love and blessings to you all!

2012 Samhain pumpkin

I went with a Day of the Dead/Candy Skull theme. I thought it was appropriate since I now live about 24 miles from Mexico!

Puppy Love... and Loss

Two weeks ago I took a big step and went to an "intake" appointment to begin to get myself some help for my growing anxiety and depression issues. It was very hard for me. One of the major problems for me is talking to people about my anxiety just increases my anxiety because my issues are becoming more and more  social. Apparently  I used up all my "faking it" to pretend I was ok on the Indiana trip. It was like as soon as I held it all together for that, I just let the basket slip the rest of the way out of my hands. I am becoming paralyzed by any little situation that might have the slightest bit of discomfort or confrontation for me. Thank Goddess for Blogger because it is that degree of separation to talk about things.

One of the the things we discussed for my plan was to start training my dog Harlow to be my Service/Comfort animal. We were going to get that ball rolling the beginning of November, and I went home and began to work on reminding Harlow of  the training he already had so he would be ready to go through the "official" training.

That was on a Friday.

On Sunday, Jilly went to take Harlow outside to potty, as she has 100 times over the past year and a half, and he bit her. She didn't startle him, she wasn't rough, she didn't do anything to warrant it. She was raised around dogs and knows how to act around them. I saw the whole incident  and I have no idea what happened or why.

 He didn't break the skin, she inherited her mother's reflexes I guess. I can't tell you how many potentially serious bites I have avoided over my years working with dogs. The problem was, he didn't snap at her...he attacked her. He barked, snarled, and knocked her down to go after her. She saved herself from the first bite, me pulling him off her saved her from whatever he was planning to do.

I knew immediately we would have to find Harlow a new home. I love that dog, I can't say how much, but he is a large Standard Poodle and I am shaking right now thinking how much he could have hurt either of my girls. When The Hubs came home, I told him what happened and gave him a list of rescue/foster groups he could call the next day. 

I shut down. I was barely functional before, and this had me in a constant state of panic. The Hubs worked his ass off with a local rescue group and arranged for his new owners, a retired couple with no children, to come pick him up on Thursday of last week. In that time, we were both watching Craigslist pretty closely for a new dog. We both agreed that we had to get me a dog for both my anguish at having to give away Harlow, but also to continue with the plans to get the Comfort dog program.

We found an ad form a man who needed a home for his 7 month old Australian Shepherd because his plans to move from an apartment to a house fell through and he felt he was not giving him what he deserved cooped up in an apartment alone all day.When he and The Hubs talked on the phone, he said he had already turned down 4 people, and he would have to come meet us first. Here was a guy who loved his dog, but could not keep him and was taking every effort to make sure he got the right home.  Exactly what we were trying to do.

He came over on Wednesday, spent 2 hours with us so we could all get to know each other and make sure: a) We liked the dog and he liked us

b) He was good with the girls, who he allowed to climb all over him and take his chew toys right out of his mouth

c) He got along with Bruno, our Toy Poodle, who is a little bully

d) His former owner was comfortable that we were the right people for him

We all decided it seemed like a good fit, and so with many tears, he left the Aussie, who we decided to name Malcolm, with us. We promised to keep him posted by email on how Mal was doing from time to time.

The next day, Harlow's new owners came to get him, with a similar degree of care that dog and humans were a good fit. I am ashamed to say I was absent from this process. I took Mal for a walk up Miller Canyon. I knew I was doing the responsible, adult thing by giving Harlow a chance at a home where he would not have to be kept segregated from the family for fear he would hurt the kids, but I was not in a head space to face it.

So for the last week I have been throwing myself into caring for and training Mal so he will be ready for his certification, and to give myself something positive to focus on. I think the only reason giving Harlow away did not put me in the hospital was because Mal was already here. He has already helped me so much. I have had a few panic attacks this week and he always comes right over to me, wanting me to pet him or play fetch with his toy. He already knows his job. Mom is upset, I need to make her happy.

Hopefully everything I have had to let go of in the past few months will have this same theme. Letting go of things that you love deeply, is killing you to lose, and you had wanted for years is horribly painful, but sometimes you have to let go so the next good thing can come.

I hope Harlow feels the same. I hope as much as he loves me he found a better, forever home and people who love him as much as I do.

Hippie's little book of Magick

It's not big, it's not flashy, but I've been working on it on and off for the last year and a half and it's going to be available as a FREE Amazon Kindle download Monday the 22nd to Friday the 26th.

Please just click the book cover and download your FREE copy. I hope you enjoy it and can work some of my ideas into your Magickal practice!

And although you may have missed the free promotion on it, please take a peek at my first fiction book

Bright Blessings!

First spell in a long time.

The Hubs is job hunting like a monster! Nothing has shaken loose yet, but he is working any and every angle he can think of. This morning he got all cleaned up and after he drops Ladybug off at school he is going to print off a fresh batch of résumés and make some more rounds.
There is one place in particular he will be waiting at the door when they open. Because we hope it is THE ONE we worked a little job hunting spell this morning.
I put one of our last phallus candles and his bear paw necklace next to a shell filled with a foreign coin, a buckeye, an emerald,(non jewel grade,obviously.) a bloodstone, and a leopard obsidian.
Over this I sprinkled Yule pine needles (we always keep some needles from our Yule tree) 4-leaf clover powder, and blessed thistle.
Pray for us today, my friends. Hopefully we will have good news to share very soon.

Patagonia Fall Festival

We had a great girls day at the craft fair in Patagonia today. Good food, great crafts and music, and fabulous people!

The Rev.

This was one of the top 5 days of my life!

Everything that has been going on in my crazy life stopped for a day and I proudly married my best friend to the most amazing woman.

It was beautiful, powerful, and I have had few experiences that match knowing that you helped two people join their lives together in love and joy.

That being said, it was incredibly helpful to my mental state to spend two amazing days with wonderful friends I have known since childhood and become my family. We spent a few golden hours, the evening before the wedding, transported to our early twenties. Let's just say a seedy strip club, several lap dances, and a startling amount of booze ensued. Proudly, I got a new nick name out of it. I am now addressed as The Rev.

Even more friends I have not seen for years at the reception, followed by a beautiful last dance, and many tearful goodbyes in the parking lot after we were nudged out the door by the patient staff.

Now we are on our way back home, back to reality and figuring how we are going to put our lives back into some order. I go home, however, with my heart much more full of love and my mind reminded that there are a lot of people out there who love me right back. That seems like a good foundation to build on.

Back home again in Indiana?

Our trip from Arizona back east to Indiana was long, tiring, but beautiful. We drove through southern New Mexico the first day, through gorgeous mountain passes and vast pine forests to Roswell. We would have made better time if we had gone on but after supper we decided to stay the night there. I'm happy to report we were not abducted by aliens...that we can recall.
We arrived in Indiana Monday evening to the house I grew up in that was then my families house, and is now my sister's house. It feels strange. I feel like an intruder. I did not expect to feel this way.
I was well aware that my hometown is no longer "home" to me, but I was not prepared for the house to feel so foreign and almost hostile.
I have been very much enjoying having time with my sister, so I know it's not that. It puzzles me.
I went to the park last night and sat for about an hour. That, at least, felt familiar and welcoming.
Tomorrow is the rehearsal, Saturday is the wedding, and Sunday morning we head back out west where we belong. Our family and friends have been wonderful, but Indiana itself seems to be done with us.