Blessings Altar

Bright Blessings!

I am reviving my Thursday Healing List, and hopefully many other aspects of this blog. As I was assembling my new Reiki Grid, I decided to make an outdoor space for the Grid, along with a place to meditate, make offerings, and general gratitude and blessings.

Luckily, I have a lovely little space on the West side of our property. 

It is currently the site of another failed attempt to grow veggies in the High Desert climate of Southern Arizona. The small herb garden, however, is thriving and I will concentrate on growing that area. since they seem to resist the critters and the heat.

Sweet mint, chocolate mint, sage, rosemary, and thyme have so far survived. Because I am obsessed with putting rocks around everything in my garden, that is in process, now that I have decided to shrink the garden down to just the herb patch. I took the cinder blocks from around the veggie bed (aka the Pack Rat Buffet) and made a little altar area.

Then I made my Reiki Grid, and added in some offering bowls and my little oil lamp. I added a chair to sit and do my energy work and meditation. I also plan to add some pavers to the area in front of the shrine to put a yoga mat when I go outside. You can see I can store stuff like lamp oil under and smaller items in the cells of the blocks. I have a Mason jar with the Healing List names tucked in under the grid so they don't get wt in the rain or blow away.

It's a work in progress, but it's a start! I'm pretty pleased with it after just an hour of work, so who knows what it will become as I spend time out there and continue to add to it. Also, since it's right under my window I will see the grid even when I'm not outside in the space, and my intention will direct energy into the grid when I catch a glimpse of it.

If you want a name on the Healing List, please comment below or email me at pheonixfae@gmail.com. You can also comment on Facebook or Twitter

A Minute Meditation

The Tuesday Pin:Orange Candle

If you have been on Pinterest at all, you have seen some  version of this pin.

We eat a lot of citrus in the Vardo, and I put the peels in vinegar that I use to make cleaning products, but I still end up throwing some away.

What a great idea to use them! It's a totally natural candle (if you use olive or coconut oil) and orange has awesome Magickal properties for energy and general mood lifting. Two birds, one stone. I have been wanting to give it a try, and I could use all the positive energy I can get!

I'm not gonna lie, it took me 5 tries to get this to work. I tried it with Cuties, and then with Valevcia oranges, no luck. Then I noticed on a different pin that I was working with the wrong end of things. The 'wick' formed by the pith seemed to be thicker and better anchored at the branch end of the orange, rather than the bloom end. Once I corrected this, it worked the first try.

gather your supplies

cut the peel around the center

I used the top to hold a tea light, or you can throw it in the vinegar as I mentioned

Use a spoon to separate the flesh from the peel

I used my fingers to twist the pith together into a wick

fill to just below the top of the wick with oil and light

This could be done with any citrus. Lemon for a more cleansing energy or lime for mental power. It could also be adapted into a spell by using herbs,herb-infused oils and putting stones in the oil. One variation I plan to try is Sea Salt, Lavender, and Amber for peace and calming energy to help me quiet my mind as I  get ready for bed at night.So many possibilities! What variation do you want to try?