Scorpio Horoscope 21st November by Rick Levine.


'The Moon's visit to your 12th House of Secrets may have you slipping back into your past in order to find the inspiration you need to handle current events. Fortunately, you're a champion at connecting with life's subtle mysteries and you're willing to dig as deep as necessary now to uncover the answers. Keep in mind that your realizations may be so complex that you cannot explain them to anyone else, anyhow. However, there's no pressure to share your discoveries until you're ready.'


Mmmm..maybe not just me then..

The Dark Half

So, after some neglect blog-wise, the wanderer returns. 
The above pic was taken a few mornings ago, from one of the few windows at work. Of the dawn sun breaking through the darkness that is now the reality going to and from work.
I feel like a mole, like I always do this time of year.
The dark of the year seeping into everything, stealthily. 
Not depressing but inevitable. 


It's been a busy few months. Assignments to be completed, work, more learning, catching up with folk not seen for a while, holidays to be had, birthdays and the odd crisis to deal with.
You know-'normal' life.


I don't find it a time of rest when the season shifts to the dark, there is a lot to be found in it, a lot going on. It's not necessarily comfortable-though I like the sloppy jumpers, stews, mist and fog, bonfires and fireworks.


I look back to look forward.
In the dark months last year I wanted to achieve lot's of things, many of which I really have, and many of which were seeds planted that will continue for many years to come.
Learning about heritage, an ever present resource-looking back for the future.
Building on relationship formed with the local land and working with it, slowly developing skills with wood.
And there are changes on the home front-lot's of potential, but a couple of possible directions.

So there is still much to be done.
Obstacles to be navigated, blockages to be opened, paths travelled, challenges met.
It is in the dark where illumination might be found.


More and more this year, I have had increasing difficulty with words. Peculiar that it should be being as it's been a year where I've also dabbled with social networking in it's many forms (albeit as a techno-pleb novice)-or perhaps that's what might have made it all the more noticeable.
Twitter, Tumblr, forums. I have enjoyed lot's about them-there are truly many inspirational folk out there that I wouldn't have known about otherwise-and they have provided a place simply to be amongst others-which I really do appreciate.
But it's made it all the more difficult this word thing.
Perhaps it doesn't help that naturally I'm not a wordsmith, I'm a keeper of secrets by nature.
I like them-with secrets I'm amongst friends. It's my most natural instinct. You don't need words for secrets either, they exist without them.
Those secrets are'nt mysterious, arcane knowledge or power, or anything necessarily special at all, they are thought,  feeling, instinct, intuition. 
I have though at times felt that perhaps this really isn't right, I should be sharing much more for my own benefit, and who knows-someone else's perhaps?
If it hadn't been for others sharing, then perhaps I'd have missed quite a few things?
Perhaps those secrets are a cop-out, easier to keep than give physical form?
So perhaps it was Fate-led that I happened across the interesting guest articles by Robin Artisson on the lovely website American Folkloric Witchcraft.
Well worth a read, and food for thought and practice for me over the dark months.
And who knows? By spring I might be ready to spend less time with my secrets..perhaps.


And I wonder what else the dark will bring....

"Widdershins whirleth the Dance of the Dead;-
I go back to my bones.
Great Lord of the nighted graveyard and the tomb,
The Spade, the Coffin and the shady Yew,
Thou are Reverser, Separator,
Unveiler of that which is concealed from the beginning.
Black Lord of the Skull and Cross'd Bones,
Send thou the scouring black wind of the North,
To tear away times transient rags,
Laying bare the timeless seed within"


From 'The Ceremony of the Red Bones'  The Masks of Misrule-Nigel Jackson.

Bloodstone Bay: Before You Sleep...

Bloodstone Bay: Before You Sleep...: "...softly whisper these words to yourself. May your dreams be peaceful."

Amongst the Green...

Today is Summer Solstice, the longest day, Sun Still, Midsummer.
A wonderful time of year for me, one filled with happy memories of Midsummer's past, and the cunning plans for those yet to come.
I always spend Midsummer's Eve outdoors-I can't imagine any other way. It will always involve watching the sun set, spending the dark hours in various ways of celebration, ending with the sunrise.
It is as ritualistic a practice as I may get-I book time off work, I plan, and I celebrate. 
What a lot of things there are to celebrate-when you are out there feeling the warm breeze on your face carrying all the scents of summer it's difficult not to.
I've always travelled, Glastonbury Tor, Rollright Stones to join in the throng of folk all celebrating in their own way, this year was very different.
This year has been very much about the land right here around me, so it seemed there was nothing more fitting than to spend it close to home in the woods not too far away where there is a wonderful hill perfect for seeing sunset and sunrise.
On the theme of home and family I asked my eldest son to come too, he's had a tough couple of years but he's coming through slowly and it gave us the chance to really spend some quality time together, just the two of us.
Off we trundled with our camping chairs, candle lantern, organic honey Ale, incense and umbrella to find our spot.
It was a rainy night, but warm and we found the perfect spot at the foot of our hill and set our mini camp underneath the outstretched branches of an old Oak.
My, that Oak kept us warm, protected us from the wind and rain, and out of sight while we burned our incense and gave our thanks, despite the fact he seemed to find us humans a bit foolish. We gave thanks to him too for his humouring us.
We spent the dark hours enjoying each others company, the company of Owl's, Foxes, and other shifting creatures of the night which we could not see and made our way back early this morning tired and happy.
The legacy of this particular night perhaps remains to be seen. My further connection to the land around me, the deepening of my relationship with my son as the man that he is becoming, and how we mark the seasons together.
I know one thing, those damn mozzies have a lot to answer for! 
Skyclad?-bugger that for a lark! I'd be fast food.
My huge bites remind me there is always a price to pay, but it is always worth it.
Recently I read something someone had recommended to fellow pagans/witches.
That was, to get outside and experience the different energies outdoors work with them and see how that differed from usual practice.
I wonder-what other practice is there?

Meet The Terrorist...

Here he is, The Terrorist who happens to be my almost three year old Patterdale Terrier.
Terrorist because he is given half a chance, though I have to say he is settling now he's getting a little older.
Settling means not chewing wooden furniture, though he still has a penchant for socks and the odd bra. It also means he's reasonably happy with a several mile walk a day and some manic runs around the garden which would give a whippet a run for their money!
Train well? Mmmm...my one to one trainer says he has the attention span of a gnat, he will dominate in the blink of an eye, and to quote "I think you may have your work cut out with this one". That said as he disappeared after a squirrel over the fields whilst recall training for the millionth time.
I love him dearly though, he's fun, loving, and he's taught me there are more important things than furniture, cushions, cardigans.......
We have some pretty decent adventures on our walks, though he does'nt seem to be as interested in birds as I do.
He has a thing about dead frogs which I have to keep my eye on, and our shared interest in trees is from a different perspective but all in all he's a great friend and challenger.

To bitch or not to bitch?

I may be missing something here so I'd welcome your feedback on the subject, but it occurred to me recently that at the moment there is a trend online to add the word Bitch to profiles.
I'm not knocking it, just pondering it. I like the word generally-it has a decent sound to it. 


You may be out and proud with your bitch-ness and revel in the fact-many do. You may have a variety of bitch responses to a wide array of subjects that particularly nark or irritate you and you are letting them go-at last! It may be empowering, re-claiming.
After the past years of new age, happy purple, daisy loving, beautiful blonde goddess worshippers we need some balance here. We don't want to be nice, we want to be a bitch.
Goddess is'nt always nice, she can be a bitch!
Thing is, we are all perfectly able to be a bitch some of the time. Should I put it in my profile? 'Sometime bitch'. Is it yet another label we want to add according to trend? Is it a practical issue in this online world where we need to add relevant tags? Is it who we really are, or are we quite nice too? Does it mean that you are a straight-talker, or that you'll shoot someone down for expressing their opinions regardless?
Can you not 'tell it like it is' with diplomacy? Or am I being a little naive here?


I am, for the most part, quite nice I think (not that you won't have suspected that). But i guess quite nice would'nt inspire folk to read- my nark's might inspire it more perhaps?
I do get narked, I get downright annoyed, and sometimes I just want to annoy someone else. Sometimes I want to play devils advocate and wind folk up. But...is'nt everyone like that?


Perhaps it's because I'm always seeking something, or because I generally like people, from all over, whatever particular path they may be on that makes me reluctant to proclaim my bitchness? Perhaps I'm presumptuous and assume folk will know I can be a bitch at times?
I might learn something, I might meet someone 'nice'. Perhaps it's just because I'm 'quite nice'. 
Mmmm...I may add that to my profile as an experiment.

Renaissance

Renaissance.

When men go

And give you

the heave-ho

They leave

such a hole

You know

where their vitriol flowed.

Be slow

to fill it

with another

Hero.

And, don't play the role

of the grieving soul.

Grow trees,

Train fleas,

and never say please.

Easier than you ever think it will be,

living, loving ,sowing, playing

instead of waiting

for

love.

Written about twenty years ago now, I happened to come across this going through some old stuff and liked it very much, whatever my situation seemed to be at the time!

On the subject of Traditional Witchcraft....

Traditional Witchcraft...non-Wiccan, I won't go anywhere near explaining to anyone what it is-I'll leave that to those who do it much better than my simple mind allows:
Sarah Lawless at The Witch of Forest Grove 
Robin Artisson in his essay Becoming a Traditional Witch
Andrew D Chumbley in his essay for Xoanon Press entitiled What is Traditonal Craft


Interesting introductions for enquiring minds, regarding the subject and those involved with it.

Hans Weidlitz

Afflictions.

I am, at the moment, experiencing something I seem to get every now and again and it drives me mad!

Mind Fog.

There are a few ways this manifests. Not being able to order thought, not remembering things I know that I know (if that makes sense), and having so much going on without order that I can't make useful sense out of it. There are probably a couple of other ways it manifests too i suppose but I can't think properly at the moment!

It may help writing things down. I have'nt tended to until I started this blog and I can be utterly rubbish keeping up with posting.

It may help somewhat ordering my learning of the craft, which i have'nt done for a good while now.

It may help being more open generally with others as I don't tend to be. The cogs turn quietly most of the time, with only the furrowed brow that those who know me well giving a clue to what's going on.

Still, it won't last forever, and perhaps a concerted effort on my part to get out of the fog will help.

One of the things on my mind has been how open do I want to be? I'm still thinking on that one.

So on to something else I've been musing on, the way we work together.

I work in a team of about five or six folk, who are part of a department of four teams of the same. It's always an interesting thing i think, working in a team. What I find difficult though is that often those who manage teams have no idea (or that is often the impression given) how to do it. Or, if they do, seem to leave everything they learn about it at the place they learned it and revert to ways of managing that they have experienced themselves regardless of whether they are effective or not.

There seems to be an imbalance between the huge amounts of research, study, and theory done by many folk over the years and the actual practice of it in the workplace. The benefits to employers, and employees could be manyfold.

What a strange thing-but then I'm an Idealist.

In my ideal world working teams would be empowered to find solutions to the daily problems they encounter themselves, as often they are best placed to do so. They would be acknowledged for their good work, and it would be a source of encouragement and a motivation for others.

The quality of work and working conditions and relationships would improve.

But then-I still believe in Santa Claus.....

I've been thinking about being more creative, but I had been thinking along the lines of art and crafts, something I used to do much of when I had more time.

It seems with these few months ahead that I will need to be creative, but in things related to work, as that seems to be the theme at the moment. Perhaps at some point in the not too distant future, it will be the art and crafts I'd like to have time for.
An element of those arts and crafts I intend to put into practice will go towards my cunning plan of preparing in advance for what may be known to many as Imbolc. Though I don't celebrate in quite the same way as some. There is no 'Bride' for me, and the date is open depending on what's going on around me. It's a time to celebrate the passing of sun still and enjoy the more obviously lengthening days. There are tight buds appearing and lambs being born.
Making incense, snake sticks, gathering useful items are all on the list of things to do, in order to make an area of focus to acknowledge the changing tides. 

On a plus point, I seem to have had an easy ride with the lurgy that seems to be going around like wildfire at the moment. I only had a week of laryngitis before the end of last year, rather than flu, swine flu, and Norovirus. Love to all those I know that are recovering from it all, and to those I know who are supporting their loved ones through it.

Now I'm off to do some housework therapy!