Look Beneath the Skin

The debate is raging right now over whether the pagan label is still useful.  Links to quite a few of the articles written pertaining to it can be found at Pantheon.

I'll be honest, I've not read all of them.  But here are my thoughts on the matter, none the less.

I think it's ridiculous.  Maybe because I don't see it as bothering me, or having a great impact on my life, I see it differently.

It's a name.  A label.  A jumble of letters put together to form sounds.  I have no issue with what people want to call me.  Wiccan, Witch, Pagan, Heathen, or anything else.  The labels don't matter.  What I believe does.

My belief does not require labels.  My faith does not ask of me what label I define my beliefs by.  Let's pose something hypothetical:  Let's put a couple of pagans in a room together.  A Wiccan, a Heathen, and maybe one or two others of different pagan religions.

If you walked into that room, chances are you would be able to discern which was which.  Or, which Witch was which.  Sorry, couldn't help that one.  The Wiccan might have a triple moon about her, a necklace or bracelet or some such thing.  A Heathen might have a Thor's hammer.  A Druid might have a symbol of a tree about them.

Since that is what is seen, those are the assumptions drawn by labeling.  To truly see, one must look beneath the skin.

Underneath the label, underneath the differences of those religions, we all believe a lot of same thing, and disbelieve a lot of the same things.

We believe in walking our own paths.  We believe (for the most part) in tolerance.  We are pagan because it is a philosophy; a way of doing things which our pagan religions all subscribe to.  The philosophy of paganism is our connecting thread.  One the surface one might see Wicca, Heathen, Druid.  Underneath that we have so many similarities, and that is what the focus should be on.  What makes us the same, not what makes us different.   

Goddess Bless,

Stacy

P.S.  Sorry if this comes off slightly jumbled.  My brain is le dead.

Monday, Monday, Monday!!

After the events of last week, the interwebz seem to be quieting down.  Thank the Gods.

Last week we really showed the interweb that the Pagan community (no words on the call ourselves pagan debate here today) can really band together.  Not only that, we showed ourselves.  I think a lot of us were surprised at the response of fellow pagans.  It makes me incredibly proud to be part of this community.

Congrats to Natasha, who won the giveaway of my artwork over at Rainy of the Dark.

On to big news today!!  Coupons!  Or rather, a coupon code.


TAKE10


That unassuming jumble of letters and numbers means 10% off purchases in my store!  It will be good until the end of June.  I've just added half a dozen new items to the store over the weekend, so go check it out! Remember I do custom orders as well.


Last thing, remember to go vote for our sisters in the running at Circle of Moms!  Pagan Mom Blog is *just* holding on to number 3 spot...go vote for her!


That's it for this Monday, all!  Did everyone have a good weekend?


Goddess Bless,


Stacy

Simply Human

In case some of you don't know the all the crazy that happened on the interwebz yesterday, I'll recap it here for you.

This woman who shall not be named nor linked here (Link can be found on Pagan Mom Blog's Facebook Page) was in the running for Top 25 faith blogs by Moms, via Circle of Mom's.  She stated on her blog how the inclusion of Pagans in this friendly contest is "an attack on Christ", and there are dozens of comments personally attacking pagan moms.  One comment specifically, is this:  "I was so disturbed to see those...especially the blog of the Pagan (witch) mother with a CHRISTIAN husband!?!?! I just can't understand how a Christian could be married to some-one who practices witchcraft!? Scary.  Praying for their children!".  You know, like Angela over at Pagan Mom Blog.  Who is in an interfaith marriage, with a man who believes in the Christian God.  Apparently some types of interfaith marriage acceptable, but others are not.  I had an opportunity to talk to Angela yesterday.  She told me, "I am really saddened that what should be a friendly competition has spiraled into fear mongering.  I hope that the ladies can find some peace in their hearts and live unafraid.".  Her husband had this to say:  "I find it absurd that she chose to single out Pagans, without mentioning any of the other Religious blogs in the running.  Probably felt you were a small enough community not to get blasted too hard.  Guess she learned otherwise.  And it really helps when true faith comes to your defense as well."

There was talk by Mrs.B of emailing Circle of Moms to let them know of the intolerance the woman in the number two spot was spreading.  I did email them.  We can't just sit by, idle, and let people spread these things. Are we going to tell her she can't believe what she wants?  No.  That doesn't mean we are going to let people say nasty things about us or our beliefs.  Both Angela and Mrs. B handled everything with dignity and grace.  Today, Mrs.B has posted about yesterday's events, as well as this darling quote which I just had to share also:

"Two of my most favorite bloggers are in the top 25 so far at Circle of Moms' Top 25 Faith Blogs. Unfortunately, Circle of Moms' top 25 "faith" blogs includes pagans/witches.  Since yesterday, the pagan soccer mom's blog has moved from the teens to 2nd place, and there aren't very many votes (relatively speaking) separating 1st (a Christian blog) and 2nd place.  Would you guys please help by voting daily till the contest is over? It literally is bringing tears to my eyes to think a pagan blogger could win 1st place in a "Faith Blog" contest. "  You can find the original source on this message board.   (Also, remember to go vote for Mrs.B and all the others!!  Voting is once a day, everyday until June 8.)


Thank Goddess that not all Christians are like that.  Obviously, there is no issue with them having their own faith.  We aren't stopping them from believe what they wish, nor are we ridiculing them for it.  So why don't we get the same courtesy?

In the end, it isn't even about common courtesy.  It's about being human.  What if we were all human enough?  Human Rights applies to all humans...not just a few.  Look at all the times in history where being human wasn't enough...because some people weren't thought of as human?  The Witch Burnings, of course, but also the holocaust, the massacre of Native American peoples, the Slavery of numerous peoples around the world.  All you have to see is a picture of a white man inspecting the teeth of a black man as he would his horse to understand that some people refuse to see the humanity of others.  Though those times are past, the fight to simply be human enough continues.

We are all human enough.  We are all human enough to deserve to live, to deserve to have faith, to make our own decisions.  We are all human enough to deserve to have rights, and we are all human enough to allow other's their rights.  We all deserve to live in our chosen way without ridicule, with common courtesy being shown to us.  There is no message in this world that needs sending more than that of tolerance.

Goddess Bless,

Stacy

An Attack on Christ, I tell you!

Bet I get a lot of views with a title like that!

Circle of Moms has a list going on, the top 25 Faith Blogs by moms.  Believe it or not, there actually several Pagan blogs on the list!  Of course, most of the others are Christian, and one woman has already blogged about how this is an "attack on Christ", to quote her blog.  I'm not going to link here, but you can find the link to the article on The Pagan Mom Blog's Facebook page.  Pagan Mom says above the link, "This lady is not happy about some pagans being in the running for the Top 25.  All I am going to say that it's a massive motivator for me."

In addition to that, on her blog, she lists all the other Pagans in the running...So go and vote!  Let's show people that we deserve the right to call ourselves a faith, to be a Religion along with theirs.  You can vote once a day, so please keep on doing it!


The Pagan Mom Blog

Confessions of a Pagan Soccer Mom

Witchy Mama

Witch Mom: Parenting by the Light of the Moon

Hearth-n-Home

The Teflon Cauldron

One Witch's Wonderland

Earth Mother Musings

After some snooping around, it seems that the woman who is calling this "an attack on Christ" is not an hour and a half away from where I grew up...Bible Belt, Mennonite, Manitoba.

You know, the place where I was taught in school that the color red was evil, because it was the Devil's color?

Explains a lot, doesn't it?  We all know not all Christians believe that...but we still try to educate.

So go and vote!

Goddess Bless,

Stacy

Every human is equal, but some are more equal than others.

I'm really starting to get annoyed by the amount of "professional" bloggers not being professional.

I'm not going to name names, of course.  What these people do, though, is ridiculous!  They are bullies, plain and simple.

They complain constantly about their lives, and the people in them.  They call out groups of people, like fat people, minority religions, people with disabilities and make fun of them.

They call people words that I wouldn't use for my *cough* dear neighbors.  And believe me, in anger, in the privacy of my home, I've called them a couple of nasty things.

I can here some of you saying, "Well just don't read it!" and you're right, I don't have to.  And when I find out that someone in the blogosphere is like that, I just don't read their blog any more.  I don't go on any campaign to cause them harm.  They are allowed to have their opinion, no matter how hurtful it might be to others.

The thing that really bothers me is how many followers these people have, and the rate of increase.  I've gone back to these blogs out of curiosity, hoping perhaps vainly, that my fellow humans will have some sort of compassion and dignity, and not want to be a part of such childish racism, sexism, and whatever-else-ism.  I've apparently been mistaken, because these people have a jump in followers by 10 or so a day, on average!

I just don't get it.  Why do so many people want to read things making fun of other people?  A huge majority of North Americans are overweight, I would be that most of us know at least 3 people who are overweight.  Including ourselves sometimes.  So why do we want to read a blog bashing fat people?  Most of us are probably related to at least one disable person - be it physically, mentally, or otherwise.  Yet people are reading these blogs that are calling them derogatory names.

How many of our families have people from several different ethnic backgrounds?  How many of us are a genetic "Heinz 57"?  My own back ground is German, English, Irish, and Ukrainian, with a possible hint of Russian thrown in there.  Sean is predominantly Welsh, but strangely enough he is actually part Mexican Indian, albeit a tiny part.  I have a cousin who is married to a man from Mexico.  I have several French relatives.  And in amongst that extended family, there are Catholics, Atheists, Christians, Mennonites and everything (like me!) in between.

So why do we want to read someone's opinion on how everyone other than them is somehow less human?

What do you do when you come across these types of blogs?  If you yourself read some, let me know why!  No fear of bashing, just curiosity.

Goddess Bless,

Stacy

Litha's Gods

In continuation of my post from yesterday, here are some of the Gods we use at Litha.  Gods of Litha are Sun Gods of course, and

Aten

Aten - Egyptian Sun God.  At one time, Aten was an aspect of Ra.  He was symbolized by a solar disc.  King Tutankhamun was originally named Tutankhaten, because his father (Pharaoh Akhenaten, previously known as Amenhotep IV) tried to push Egypt to monotheism... worshiping only Aten and no other Gods or Goddesses.  Tutankhaten literally means "Living Image of Aten".  When his father died, the people of Egypt demanded a return to the old ways.  His advisors told him he should change his name to Tutankhamun - Living Image of Amun - to show that he agreed with the people.  On the back of his throne - and you can still see it at the Cairo Museum - is still the name Tutankhaten.

Thor - Norse God of Thunder and Storms.  Is it any wonder that the God of Thunder and Storms is honored at midsummer?  Especially here in the prairies, where thunderstorms rolling across the sky are common.  Thor is also a God of fertility, because without the storms he brings crops would wither in the fields.

Apollo - God of, well, everything!  Apollo was a Sun God, as well as being a patron of music, poetry, art, and medicine.  He is the brother of Artemis.  Apollo is honored at this time not only because he is a Sun God, but because he is also defender of the herds and the flocks.

Any Sun God or God of Fertility can be honored at Litha - The Oak King, of course; as well as Osiris, Ra, Ares, Dagda, and many more.  Which Gods do you honor at Litha?

Litha's Goddesses

Before I begin this post, I just want to say Happy Victoria Day to all the other Canadians out there!  Hope everyone has a great day.


Midsummer is coming upon us, and finally the weather here in Alberta is warm enough to prove it!  While there are so many Goddesses for us to call upon in our work, we can never name them all.  No matter how much we wish to honor them, we don't really want to stand around reciting names for 3 hours during Ritual.  So we choose a few.  No matter which ones we choose, we choose them with love and honor.  Here are a few of the Goddesses that we can call on at Litha.

Hathor - Goddess of Motherhood, love and joy.  She is represented as a cow in many images, and she is also a Goddess of wisdom.  She is an aspect of Isis.  As Mistress of Jubilation, it is most appropriate to call on her for any joyful event!  More Egyptian festivals were dedicated to her than almost any other deity.

Freya - Goddess of Love, Beauty, Fertility, and a whole lot more.  As fertility Goddess, she is a patron of crops, birth, and flowers.  Fresh flowers are a wonderful offering to Freya, both for their beauty and the fertility and growth they represent.

Hestia - Goddess of Hearth, Domesticity and Family.  Hestia, or Vesta as the Romans called her, she is given both the first and last offerings at ceremonies that are involved in the home.  Freshly baked bread is a wonderful offering to her.  By Zeus' decree, she shares a portion of all homes of the Gods, so an offering should be made to her whenever working with the Hellenic Pantheon.  She also reigns over hospitality, and no one should be turned away in a place where Hestia is revered.

Sol/Sunna - Goddess of the Sun.  This Norse and Germanic Goddess is the Sun personified, and sister of the moon.  It is said that she will be eaten by the Fenris wolf at Ragnarok, but her daughter will then take her place.  She is a Goddess of beauty and love.  Honey or Mead is a good offering for her.

What Goddesses do you honor at Litha?

Goddess Bless,

Stacy

A Lack of Motivation

Good morning, all!

Sorry for the lack of posting yesterday.  I had a great one, I really did!  I didn't finish it though.  I didn't finish a lot of things yesterday.  Okay, I did nothing yesterday.  My motivation left me completely, and it hasn't yet returned.  Luckily, I already had an article done for The Pagan Household, so you have something from me to read today!  Yay!

So hopefully I'll finish some other posts over the weekend.  We are going to see a movie this weekend, Brianna is going to Grandma and Grandpa's!  We're going off to see Thor.  Sean is super excited.  I'm quite looking forward to it, but Sean has been groaning and complaining for the past two weeks that he hasn't seen it yet.

That's going to be our weekend!  What does everyone else have planned?

Goddess Bless,

Stacy

Gratitude and the Gods

Gratitude is something that I think a lot of us have lost.  We just don't think about it anymore.  We look at the things that happen to us in our day to day lives, and we don't see the good things.  We wonder, "Why am I so unlucky as to have this happen to me?", Why couldn't I have gotten THAT thing?  That's what I really wanted.".  We don't see the thing we do have, and we don't see the wonderful things that we get.  I'm not just talking about material things, or thanking the people in our lives who have given things to us, but thanking the Gods for making it possible.

That jerk who cut you off this morning?  I'm betting the reaction was more "@*# you, !@*&#^*!" than anything else.  That's an initial reaction, and it's a reaction to fear and adrenaline, and that it fine.  After that, though, we should take the time to say a quick little prayer of thanks.  This isn't to say that you have to say a thank you to people for being, well, jerks.  We should say thank you - and mean it - for things that we are truly grateful for.

Like not being run off the road by some guy eating, talking on his cell phone, and smoking all at once.  Like having enough money to buy your wants, instead of only your needs - or only half of your needs.  Having a place to call your own, having great friends and a great family.  Having new paths and doors open up for you, and being able to see them.

We should also say thank you for the smaller things; Someone thinks to call you just to see how you were doing, maybe your spouse does a little extra cleaning, or helps cook supper.  Your child giving you a dirty, grimy, half-crushed pine cone like it's the Hope Diamond.

In our modern society, giving thanks seems like it is happening only once or twice a year...and there is usually turkey involved.  Gratitude is something that should flavor our lives all year long.  You can say, "Oh, the Gods know how I feel." only so many times before it becomes a hollow platitude.  Sure, the Gods might know it.  But if it feels good for us to receive gratitude and recognition, it probably feels good for the God and Goddess too.  I would bet most of us even feel slighted when someone doesn't thank us for something we've put our effort into.

Thanking the Gods can be as simple as lighting a candle and saying a quick prayer, or as elaborate as a full ritual.  The important thing is making the effort to show it.

How do you thank the people and Gods for the things in your life?

Goddess Bless,

Stacy

An Update on some Neighborly Issues

*****For some reason, this post was kicked back showing it hadn't been posted, so I'm posting it again.*****

Some of you probably remember the issues we have with our neighbors (and their parents) from my previous blog post.  You can read that one Here.  If you haven't read it, go ahead.  I'll wait.



So.  That incident of music was the first ticket that they got, since then they have gotten another one because the music hasn't stopped!  We've had no more issue with the threatening father, although the manager of the park we live in has.



The recent incident?



They threw nails and screws under and behind our car.  Thank the gods we noticed them before we drove away, because we need new tires those nails would have sliced into ours like butter.  Obviously, we don't know for certain that it was them.  We have no hard evidence, other than the fact that they think we are impeding on their right to party constantly.



So yesterday we went and bought a locking gas cap.  Can't be too careful after the nail incident, since *someone* is apparently willing to put our lives in danger.



Things ARE being done about it all, unfortunately due process is slow.



So I want to say thanks to everyone, for all your well wishes and good energy from the last post (and since).  I truly believe it helped us.



Goddess Bless,



Stacy

A Disaster Close To Home

While perhaps not as media streamed as the terrible tornado outbreak last month, there is a disaster occurring so close to home (and close to some people I know) that it scares me.  We are having a very dry spring here in Alberta, so much so that the northern part of the province has been engulfed in flames.  Usually, we don't deal with wildfires on this huge scale, and firefighters from the rest of Western Canada are being flown in to help.

But damage has already been done.

Slave Lake is, or perhaps was, a small town about 3 or 4 hours northwest of me.  They were ordered an emergency evacuation, all phones were out, the highway going in and out of town was blocked by fire.  It's not nearly over, the fire is still going, but as of yesterday one third of the town was gone.

I know that many of my American readers will have already donated to their tornado recovery funds, but I know that I have some Canadian readers also.

So here is the link to the Canadian Red Cross.  Here in town we are having a "Slave Lake needs everything drive", started by a great woman who I'm sure had no idea how much sorting of stuff she would have to do.  We went and bought a bunch of things to donate yesterday; most of what they need is the basic necessitous.  Those little things that make us feel human: deodorant, toothbrushes, shampoo.  They are even running short on food.

The Canadian Red Cross donations will go toward things like emergency medical help, care for elderly, food, shelter and probably some clothes for the now-displaced residents of Slave Lake.

Thank you all for what you can do, even if it is just sending them good energy.

Goddess Bless,

Stacy

***All photos are property of their respective News Sources***

Full Moon Magick

Well, my friends, the full moon is upon us again!

A wonderful time for healing, prophecy and divination, any magick to bring something to you or a goal to fruition.    I personally use this time to brush up on my divinations skills.  I'm still learning to use Tarot, so that will be my endeavor tonight!

If you want to learn a new divination skill, now is the time to do it!  A great resource for learning Tarot can be found at the About.com Pagan/Wiccan pages.  It's great fun learning to use a pendulum, I've found that each pendulum I've owned speaks a different "language".  My current pendulum circles clockwise for yes and counter clockwise for no, with a bunch of extra squiggles for not now or soon.  Asking a series of questions you already know the answer to will help you figure out how your pendulum is speaking to you.

There is a whole range of different types of divination!  And there are some strange ones out there, let me tell you.

Axiomancy is divination through the observation of how an axe/hatchet quivers or points when driven into wood.

Cephalomancy uses the skulls or heads of donkeys and goats for divination.

Oinomancy uses wine for divination...I could handle a little more of that!

Hippomancy is divination using the neighing and stamping of horses.

Stolisomancy considers omens seen in the way people dress.

A whole huge list of common and uncommon forms of divination can be found here.  I've always like blibliomancy; divination by book!

What, if any, forms of divination do you use?  What will you do with your full moon?

Goddess Bless,

Stacy

A Productive Day

Well.  When I logged in to the computer this morning, low and behold Blogger was down for maintenance.  Again.  Having no idea when blogger would decide to come back online, I delved into other things for the day.

Man, am I productive when Blogger is down!  I baked muffins (Orange ones!) I finished (and started!) a couple of crochet drawstring bags, and I created a couple of new recipes for my cookbook.

Not to mention chasing around silly toddlers who have learned (somehow) to enjoy throwing the mouse behind the computer desk...

Ridiculous Babies.

I think this is what is called a full, rich, day!  We also recently got some exciting news, there is finally going to be a pagan meet-up in our city!  I had been debating starting one for a while, and then someone who is obviously either more ambitious or less busy than I am went ahead and did it.  I''m quite looking forward to it, even though the pagan community (that I know of) in our city is all of about 20 people.

I hope everyone is have a good Friday the 13th!  Strangely enough, even before finding Wicca Friday the 13th was always my lucky day, haha!  Maybe that's why I was so productive...Either way, tonight we are planning a ritual to give thanks for all of the protection we have been given over the past few months.  It was so much more than a stroke of luck that we noticed the nails behind our car, and that Sean didn't get hurt when that man came over here threatening us.

Other than that, my weekend will consist of recipe hunting!

Have a good weekend, everyone!

Goddess Bless,

Stacy

Living the Threefold Law

The Threefold law is something that is intrinsic to Wicca.  We all know and have alluded to it's similarity with Christianity's Golden Rule, and while it is different, I think that a normal person's reaction to it is about the same.

They ignore it.

As modern people, we need to do more than just take what works for us and toss the rest to the side.  The easier path is just that, easier.  The worthwhile path is always the hardest.

All of us want to believe we stand for truth and honor.  The Threefold law goes hand in hand with Harming None, and most of us believe in it.  But how many of is truly live it?

I started thinking of this yesterday, as we limped my injured knee to the store to get a few groceries and some prescription meds.  We were walking by the meat counter, because Sean always wants to check out the competition.  There were a bunch of steaks in the counter...I mean, meat looks like meat to me, but Sean said that they weren't what they were labeled as, and they were priced wrong.  WAY wrong, like the store would lose 3$ a pound if they sold them that way.

Sean is still learning about Wicca.  He only became interested in it when we started dating, and I was explaining my beliefs to him.  His response to what I told him? "Wow, that sounds what like I believe except without the fancy words!"  He asked to point out specific things when they came up, because he finds that is the best way to make things stick in his head.  While he has read a lot, there is nothing like hands on experience.

So when he was about to walk away from the meat counter yesterday, I asked him, "Aren't you going to tell them?"

"Tell them what?"

"Umm, about the meat being the wrong price?"

"Well, I guess...but that takes effort."

Like most of us, we want to take the easiest path.  No one is free from it.  We all do it.  I've no issue admitting that I do it also.  But when certain things could truly harm someone, you have to look at the ripples that one decision would make.  What if these things kept being labeled incorrectly?  What if so much money was eventually lost that someone lost their job?  Are these things likely to happen?  No, but they could.

At Sean's work they are all about numbers.  If the numbers come back good next month, Sean gets a raise.  So I asked Sean, "What will it do to their numbers?  What would you want someone to do?"

So he did go and tell them, and they thanked him profusely.

The right thing is not always the easiest thing, and I think that is the main point behind how the threefold law works.  If we do nothing, we get nothing in return.  But if we expend the energy to do something good for other people, we get more of that energy in return.  Call it a karmic tithe.

I know for a fact that I don't live the Threefold Law as often as I should, or would like to.  But I am working on it, and moving forward.  Isn't that what life is all about?

What do you believe about the threefold law?  Do you live it as often as you should?

Goddess Bless,

Stacy

Also, thanks for the well wishes from yesterday, everyone!  I'm still feeling a little sick, and my knee is still sore, but I can *almost* walk normally on it again.

Temporary incapacitation.

Hello all, this is Sean typing for my wonderful wife who has suffered a painful but not serious knee injury, as well as being ill.
She will be back soon with more wisdom and humor for all. Have a great day.

P.S. Stacy says that me using two fingers to type this is more painful than the knee.

New things in my Etsy Shop!

Morning, all!

Actually, it's more like afternoon.

Afternoon, all!

I thought I would share with you all some new items that have gone up in my Etsy shop as of late.  We have part two and three of my botanical pencil drawings series, part one is being raffled off at Rainy of the Dark's blog.  Only two people have entered, so get over there and do that today!  You'll have a great chance.

Here are parts two and three for your viewing pleasure:

I've also got this beautiful Rustic Handfasting cord.  

And this Radiating Goddess Talisman!

   

Other things are Thor's Hammer pendants, symbol magnets, wands, and a lot more.

Later this month (pay attention!) I might be having a sale!

Hope everyone has a great day! 

Goddess Bless,

Stacy

Updated Pages!

Happy Saturday, all!

Updates going on this morning:

FINALLY updated my blog roll page...Stephanie and Freckles, you are both FINALLY up there!  It only took me a couple weeks, I know.

Also remember I'd like to keep updating my Places to Inspire page, but to do that I need your suggestions and pictures!  Instructions are at the top of the page.

Keep in mind that once I reach 150 followers, I'm having another giveaway!  Share, share, share!

Thats it for today.  Thank all!

Goddess Bless,

Stacy

Yay for Friday!

It's that Friday, again!

Here is the link to the Pagan Household article!  Kitchen Basics - Essential Tools

Go check it out! 

Hope everyone has a great weekend!  Happy Mother's day to all the other mothers out there!

Goddess Bless,

Stacy

Out of the Broom Closet

Yes, yet another post about this.  May 2 was Pagan Coming Out Day.  Did any of you participate?  How did it go?  If you didn't (no judging!) why didn't you feel you were ready?

I truly do understand that not everyone thinks they can be out of the broom closet.  It's a hard decision to make; knowing that you may lose some friends and family members along the way.  In many areas of the world, we who are "out" are still ostracized.  There are certain areas of the world where it can be down-right life-threatening to come out of the broom closet. 

One of the largest issues with Pagans and Wiccans being in the closet is the perpetuation of stereotypes.  That's not to say I think you should come out regardless; If you think your life would be in danger by all means protect your life first.  For those of us, though, who would simply be moderately uncomfortable having to explain to a few people what we believe, that step should be taken.

When people hear about something they know nothing about, one thing happens.  They look for a way to categorize this new information.  In our case, witches, the first thing someone normally thinks of is the green, warty, "traditional" Halloween Witch.  Since obviously we don't have green skin or warts on our nose (at least most of us!) that categorization is out. So they move on to the next one, which, depending on their age and media savvy, is either Harry Potter or the 3 Witches of Macbeth.  And that, my friends, can go either way depending on the view of the person you've told.  Even if you gently explain to them over and over that we don't worship the devil, that we believe in the sacred part of Nature, the duality of deity, etc., some people still will think you are evil.  Some people, on the other hand, will say, "Really?  Like in Harry Potter?!" and look at you with frightening degrees of both reverence and stalker-ness in their eyes. 

So let them.  You can't control their reaction.  You can only control yours.  Those reactions aren't going to change until we educate people on what we truly believe.  Does that mean going door to door with pamphlets?  No.  It just means telling those you care about the truth.  Does that make it any easier?

Heck no, it doesn't.  There will always be trepidation and fear.  The difference is being able to look beyond that fear.

I was talking on Facebook Chat yesterday with a friend from my hometown.  I've been friends with her since I was about 6 years old.  I never worried about talking to her, because I thought she knew about me being a Witch.  After all, she was with me through the whole thing.  I remember talking about it to her.  Apparently, she either didn't remember or she thought it was just talk. 

So talking about it with her yesterday, she asked questions and I explained.  We both grew up in the same place, the church on every corner place.  I knew that she wasn't the type to call me the devil and run away, but still my hands were shaking as I was typing.  You never know how someone will react until they do so.  Of course, my initial thought was correct, and she is completely fine with it.  That doesn't stop us from being nervous about how people will react.  We can control, however, how we react to that nervousness and fear.  We can let it stop us from telling people, letting them know what we believe, educating them so they aren't afraid of it.  Or we can simply talk with them, and be candid.  You don't fear what you understand.

What kind of reactions have you had to your faith?  If you had to do it again, what would you do differently?

Goddess Bless,

Stacy

A Historic Day

I know that a vast majority of my readers are American.  So, please, imagine, if you will: 

At the next American election, a resounding show of force by the Democrats suddenly leave Republicans hanging by a thread.  In it's place, people have voted for the Green party, (I just chose one at random.  Fill in as you wish, haha!) and for the first time in there would be major opposition by someone other than one of "the big two".

Hard to imagine, isn't it?  Seems nigh impossible.

Well, that's what happend to Canadian politics yesterday.  Got turned on its arse.  We have 308 seats in our parliament.  Usually, and by usually I mean in Canadian history, those seats are taken up by the Conservatives and the Liberals, with a sprinkling of smaller parties in there.  Look at it this way:

In 2006, the Conservatives had 124 of 308 seats, the Liberals had 103.  The rest were scattered among the smaller parties, the New Democrats (NDP) and Bloc, and also "Other". 

In 2008, the Conservatives had 143 seats, and the Liberals had 77.  The other parties were similar to 2006.

This year?  Conservatives 167, New Democrats, 102, Liberals 34.

For the first time in our history, the New Democrats are the official opposition.

The Bloc, who are the Quebec Separatists, didn't even get enough seats to qualify as an official party anymore.  The Green Party, headed by Elizabeth May, got their first ever seat.  And what a woman she is, she is going to whip parliament into shape I think.

Seriously, it's going to take a while to get used to this.  In any case, lets hope there is less name-calling in parliament now.

Goddess Bless,

Stacy

Giveaway!

Morning all!  I'm sure some of you saw my post from late last night, and for those of you that didn't, it was simply about...hmm...what was that thing?

Just kidding. 

Congratulations to the American people for their hard won victory.

My good friend, Rainy, over at Rainy of the Dark, is having her first giveaway!

What is she giving away, you ask?  A drawing by moi!

What do you think?  If you like it, go over to Rainy's blog and enter the giveaway!  This is the first of 3 botanical drawings, the others, Fig. 2 and Fig. 3 are available on Etsy!

Have a great day, everyone!  And to all the Americans, congrats again and don't have TOO many celebratory drinks ;) ♥

Goddess Bless,

Stacy

A Coup for America

As I'm sure everyone knows, it has been reported on May 1st, 2011 that Osama Bin Laden is dead.

Despite being Canadian, we of course turned on CNN and watch the president's speech.  I couldn't believe the crowds outside the White House, despite it being almost midnight there.  I was reminded of the footage and pictures taken after the surrender of Japan in WWII. 

It's a wonderful victory, both for the American people and for President Obama's re-election campaign. 

While it IS a wonderful thing, it still isn't over.  Questions, of course, abound.  My main thought is:  What will the next 72 hours bring?  What will Al-Queda do now, with their leader dead and an unknown status of the second in command?  Will the bide their time, or will they quickly push back against the west, to show that they don't need Bin Laden to lead them to be dangerous. 

Time will tell.   

On a funny note, this whole thing makes me want to say, "Many Bothans died to bring us this information."

Goddess Bless,

Stacy