Monday Meditation: Dauntless Update, 1st Quarter

It's almost the end of March, and as we come to the end of this first quarter, I am checking in on my theme of being "Dauntless" in 2015. For those who read this blog regularly (thank you!), you'll recall that instead of making New Year's goals or resolutions, I chose to go with a theme. So far, I'm really liking this 'theme' idea.

When I've found myself in a dilemma or I don't necessarily want to do something, I am reminded of my theme, and take action accordingly. Unlike working toward a goal, this is living out a keynote, and it's much easier to do.

In my original January post, I chose several tools with which to build upon this 'Dauntless' theme.
So far, here's where I am:

I created a Pinterest board, and have been pinning things to it that remind me of what I want to accomplish this year, or things that fall into the theme's category.

I created my Dauntless Jar, and have been adding at least one or two notes every week that express how I fulfilled that theme.

Blogging: Yes, as evidenced here. I also reinstated The Sunday Stew over on Imramma.

Writing: Eh, nothing even started on a book yet. I still intend to do this, though. I'll be working on that very soon.

Teaching: I have a couple of classes that I'm going to try on Imramma. It'll be more in the late spring timeframe.

Routine: It needs some work there. I'm trying to institute an exercise program in the mornings (when it has the most effect), starting tomorrow. I work from 7am-4pm Monday -Friday, and my work location is a 45 minute commute. So, trying to get it all timed right is taking a little longer than I had hoped, but I am getting there..

"Me" days. I've had a couple of them here and there, but this also needs some tweaking and I need to stick to it. I will say that I'm doing much better this year than I ever have.

Lest you think this is all peaches and creamy goodness, I will tell you that I've had to make some seriously tough decisions so far.

I've had to disconnect from family members who refused to respect me or my boundaries;

I've had to enforce and sometimes reinforce these same boundaries where both family and coworkers are concerned, and as someone who really doesn't like confrontation, I have no hesitation in being confrontational where the situation warrants. Most times, I simply walk away from the situation, but now, I'm standing my ground. And, I'm finding that most people are respecting me more because of it.

I'm working toward living my dream of being a full-time writer. I am learning to appreciate each day and the lessons it brings.

I'm confronting situations head-on where I used to ignore them, and 'nipping them in the bud' before they blow up out of proportion.

It's been enlightening and very empowering for me so far. It's also like exercising. When I first start out, I'm wiped out- muscles I didn't even know existed hurt. My body screams out against it and asks me what it did to offend me that I would put it through such torture. It comes to a critical juncture where I have to decide if I'm willing to push past it and do what's right for me, or if I'm going to give up. When I push past it, amazing things happen. I start feeling better, have more energy, etc... With this theme exercise, I've been to the crossroads several times.

Being dauntless is definitely not for the faint of heart. But, I'm finding that by exercising this courage-muscle, I feel stronger every day.

How about you? For those of you who chose to go with a theme, check in. Are you struggling? Did you give up (no judgment if you did)? What are some tips you have to share with others?

Thanks so much for your support through this year. It means more than this writer can express.

Sláinte!

#Witchy_Wednesday: Mantology

Mantology (n) The act or art of divination.

In most magical practices I've seen, there is at least one (more than one for most) form of divination.

I used the picture here, because it's usually what people who aren't practicing think of.. that or a woman in similar dress with a crystal ball. Because people have taken money in exchange for services rendered, it's yet another practice that has been minimized and marginalized to the point of it being a joke in some circles.

Divination is a very ancient practice. It dates back to the earliest civilizations and has many different forms.

 The High Priests of Egypt and Judea used divination. It's even in the bible ( Ephod- Urim and Thummim, Joseph- who became Pharoah's right-hand man by the use of divination, Moses casting lots, Micah 3:5-6 where God pretty much tells Micah that he is being punished by having his divination taken from him, etc...).

Most of us who use divination find that we have a preferred method by which we connect to Spirit(s). Some methods are as follows (I'll only use a few here.. the list is long):

• crystal ball
• tarot cards
• dice
• runes
• bones
• feathers
• water
• mirror
• fire
• dreams
• patterns in nature
• tea leaves
• coffee grounds
• garden tools
• planetary movements
• soil, rocks, sand
• boards (like Ouija)

I tend to connect best by using Tarot cards. How about you? Do you practice divination? If so, what form? Any tips for new-comers? Any advantages/disadvantages to practicing mantology you'd like to share?

Monday Meditation: Seeing Through the Proper Lens

I woke up Saturday morning and took a picture of the first sunrise of spring. Cameras can never do justice to our experience, no matter how technologically advanced they are. What you don't see here is the steam rising up from the ground, creating a foggy atmosphere that was simply delightful. Life is a lot like that, my friends. These online encounters are wonderful, but never let them replace a walk in the woods, digging in the dirt, and listening to the music of the birds and frogs as they welcome the new season.

When Spring Goes By

Duncan Campbell Scott

The winds that on the uplands softly lie,

Grow keener where the ice is lingering still

Where the first robin on the sheltered hill

Pipes blithely to the tune, "When Spring goes by!"

Hear him again, "Spring! Spring!" He seems to cry,

Haunting the fall of the flute-throated rill,

That keeps a gentle, constant, silver thrill,

While he is restless in his ecstasy.

Ah! the soft budding of the virginal woods,

Of the frail fruit trees by the vanishing lakes:

There's the new moon where the clear sunset floods,

A trace of dew upon the rose leaf sky;

And hark! what rapture the glad robin wakes-

"When Spring goes by; Spring! Spring! When

Spring goes by.

The Appointment

The Appointment

The time has come for her to visit in what has become our annual ritual. As she catches me by the arm, and as a polite gesture, I feign surprise. I am not at all startled; subtlety has never been her strong suit. She is bubbly, chatty and full of energy, and now she wants to show me her art. I have to admit, it’s difficult to remain dispassionate in the presence of such infectious effervescence. She is enthusiastic about everything.

We walk along the corridor, she is sure to stop me to show off her first works; she calls them her “green phase”. She knows this is my favorite color, and she has certainly used every shade the eye can see. As a mixed-media artist, her verdant work is breath-taking.  I can’t help but admire her talent.

We move to her newer creations, and I can see how she’s progressing in her craft. She’s added splashes of pale colors and uneven textures that capture my attention and draw me into her vision. The smells run the gamut from fresh to loamy, and seem to add to the cacophony of the whole. She claps in delight as she takes in my reaction to it all.

Quite pleased with herself, she hugs me tightly. “See?” she whispers, “It’s not so bad. It’s just my turn on the wheel. Come on, let me show you something else I’m working on.” She brushes one of her long champagne curls from her face as she puts her finger to her lips, then motions for me to kneel down next to her. She pulls back some brush to reveal a litter of bunnies, just a few days old. I gasp, and she giggles, then pulls me away before the mother rabbit can see us.

She whirls me around in an ebullient dance, and just as I am getting my bearings, I notice the seedlings at the edge of the forest. I laugh, in spite of myself, “Witch Hazel? Really?” She roars, tears streaming down her face. “I couldn’t help it. The irony was too tempting. I knew if all else failed, you’d have to appreciate that, my beloved Witch.”

She does this to me every year; melts my heart with her playful presence. She draws me out of my introversion and brings me into her embrace. She never takes my reluctance as insult. Rather, she accepts the challenge with glee. She coaxes me back into my role as plant-whisperer and wildlife rescuer, every single time. I take her hand, and we dance in what will become a field of sunflowers. She lets go of my hand and pirouettes to the end one of the rows. I yell, “Spring has sprung!” and she guffaws as she waves and moves on. Next year, I’ll try not to be so reticent.

Kallan Kennedy is a Celtic-American Witch from the Mid-Atlantic region of the U.S. She is a writer, educator, public speaker and Morrigan-child. You can find her blogging at theamericanwitch.org or here at imramma.com. 

Friday Favorites: Happy Birthday, Laurie Cabot!

One of my favorite witches in the world is Laurie Cabot. I like the way she writes and thinks. Her books were some of the first I read when it came to learning The Craft. I like that she approaches Witchcraft with the idea of science in mind. I remember the first time I saw her was on "The Oprah Winfrey Show".  I so admired her for being who she was and for being willing to go on a television program to educate people, even though it was clear that she was lured on to the set for ratings and ridicule. She held her own, and has always done so. She was named "The Official Witch of Salem" by the governor of Massachusetts, and has done everything from writing books to owning a shop, to helping solve crimes.

Here is her bio: http://www.witchcraftandwitches.com/witches_cabot.html

Today is Laurie's birthday.

Some of my favorite books by Laurie:
The Power of the Witch
The Witch in Every Woman
Celebrate the Earth





Here is a video from her Youtube Channel explaining the controversial National Geographic photo taken of Laurie and her group:

Here is the Nat Geo photo:

Here is Laurie's Official Website

Her Twitter

Her Facebook Page

She's influenced a lot of us, and has been instrumental in paving the way for Witches in America to come out of the broom closet. If you have a moment and are so inclined, send her a quick birthday greeting and a thank you for all she's done.

For those who didn't know, Laurie is in one of Godsmack's videos. Yes, the lead singer, Sully Erna, is a Cabot Witch. See for yourself:

Happy Birthday, Laurie!! Thank you so much for all you've done for so many of us. Thank you for being you!

Thursday's Child: Full Moon in Virgo

Thinkstock photo

It's a Full "Storm" Moon on a Thor's Day, and there's a winter storm named "Thor" coming through. I'm taking a break from my usual Thursday's Child series to simply talk about the Full Moon and the Witchy things that some of us do on the Full Moon.

Generally speaking, those of us who utilize the moon's cycles for spiritual growth and connection tend to set our intentions for the month at the New Moon. This is where we choose what we want to work on and how we want to get there over the month. At the Full Moon two weeks' later, we review where we are and make adjustments accordingly. Those of us who do spell-work also utilize the energy of the full moon for certain intentions.

Tonight's moon is tiny. “At 2:33 a.m. EST, the moon stands 252,516 miles (406,384 kilometers) from Earth’s center,” Astronomy.com says. “This makes tonight’s full moon the smallest of 2015.”
According to Earthsky.org, this is called a "mini" or "micro" moon, about 30,000 miles farther away from Earth than September's Harvest moon in 2015. It may be tiny, but it's still packed with energy.

Here are some links to peruse if you're interested in learning more about the magic of this moon.

Full Moon in Virgo: Head vs. Heart Tug-of-War

Virgo Full Moon: The Editor

Full Moon March 2015

When the moon is in Virgo (and it goes void at 1:33pm EST today, then stays that way for the rest of the evening), it's a good time to do work on employment, intellectual, and health/fitness concerns.

Whatever you choose to do, connect and enjoy!

Sláinte!

The Loosely Organized Somewhat Group of Solitary Witches Who Believe Rules Are More Like Guidelines, Anyway

Designed by Colleen Cahoon

We Witches are a strange bunch. We're extremely independent, even if we belong to a coven. No one represents all of us, and we tend to like it that way.

In 1973 consisting of approximately seventy-three members who followed Pagan, Neopagan, or Witchcraft traditions a group called The American Council of Witches convened and disbanded in 1974 after drafting a set of common principles. (paraphrased from Wikipedia)

Basically, this group met up in Michigan and set the 13 Principles of Belief. The U.S. Army adopted them into its Chaplain's Manual in 1978. The group's attempt to unify those of the Pagan/NeoPagan and Witchcraft traditions was, while perhaps laudable on some level, futile in the end. The group disbanded "due to difficulties in reconciling differences among its members' traditions."

In 2011, someone named Kaye Berry attempted to reconstruct this council. She was very secretive, we saw several twists and turns in the story, and it was made pretty clear by the entire conglomerate of communities that call themselves Witches, we don't want another council.


Now, we have "The American Council of Witches 2015".. another secretive group trying to speak for all witches. No one seems to know these people, and those who question them are immediately removed from their Facebook page. They've flipped back and forth on whether there are already council members or not (first no, then yes, some...), and their website is rife with spelling and grammar errors. They've taken one person's questions from their Facebook page and copy/pasted them into their "FAQs". The entire set-up is completely unprofessional, and this is looking like yet another attempt for a group of people to establish themselves as the authority and voice for all American Witches.

 If you want to represent me, you need to ask. You need to go to a lot of trouble to do polling, research and be completely transparent in everything you do. I haven't seen any of the many fractured American Witch communities asking for a council to represent them. If I did want to be represented, I'd want someone who actually does the aforementioned things. I'd want someone with at least a rudimentary knowledge of spelling and grammar, and who knows how to interact with people via social media. I'd also want to have some recognizable names involved in this endeavor.

I don't want anyone who has any kind of sexual deviance associated with them; those folks should immediately be dismissed outright. I don't care how things were in the 70's, this is the 21st century, and we don't need to become the Catholic Church of Paganism.

I'd prefer we had a group comprised of those from diverse backgrounds, and one that welcomed all points of view, including those of the solitary practitioner. This particular group is not willing to represent that demographic.

So, I propose an alternate.. The Loosely Organized Somewhat Group of Solitary Witches Who Believe Rules are More Like Guidelines, Anyway.. or we could just call ourselves pirates and be done with it.

My point here is that no one group is going to be able to speak for all Witches. Our independent spirit is part of who we are, and we're not looking to change what we find charming about ourselves. Witches also tend to know when someone is simply trying to get publicity rather than do good in the world.

I plan to avoid this group like the plague. I hope my witchy compadres will join me.