branches up, roots down

“Sitting in a park in Paris , France , Reading the news, it sure looks bad. They won’t give peace a chance, That was just a dream some of us had. Still a lot of lands to see, But I wouldn’t want to stay here. It’s too old and cold and settled in its ways here. California , I’m coming home. I’m going to see the folks I dig….. California I’m coming home .” Joni Mitchell When I was fifteen, way back in 1970, I came to Europe for the summer. I was forced to come, actually. Shipped off with my twelve year old sister, a list of phone numbers of people my parents knew who were living here (mostly who were working for IBM) , a jar of valium (for jet lag, my mother said), all my life savings, and Joni’s new album (for comfort) in hand. The last thing I wanted to do in the summer of 1970 was be in Europe . Janis was still alive and my best friend’s older brother was always willing to drive us to the city to go to the Fillmore West or Winterland....

Our second day in Paris started with a visit to the Clignancourt flea market . It’s the biggest in Paris , and we spent hours there, but only managed to traverse a small portion of the whole. After blocks of vendors hawking cheap clothing and souvenirs, we turned a corner onto a street that led to a maze of antique dealers. Dusty old dolls, ancient stuffed lions, and mirrors darkened with age surrounded us. Despite thousands of other weird and beautiful old things, we came away with only one purchase, an old Limoges souvenir plate of Paris . The dollar is so low, even the flea market prices seem exorbitant. Then a bus to Montmartre and a walk around the bustling streets filled with other tourists trying to capture the spirit of the place. The artists were priced out almost a century back, and what is left is an aggressive contingent of guys who will sketch a caricature of you for far too much money. And beauty everywhere; with a breath taking view of Paris from the cathedral a...

We are now in Paris and its April and there are cherry- or are they chestnut? - trees in bloom everywhere and there is intermittent rain, but not in a cold way, just enough to give it that classic Parisian atmosphere and not enough to keep us indoors. My girlfriend has shown a knack for renting perfect apartments in just the right place. In Barcelona we were in the old gothic quarter, on a narrow alley in the midst of a maze of streets only open to foot traffic. Here in Paris , we are up three – or is it four? – flights of ancient stairs in a sweet apartment above the Rue des Rivoli, a few blocks from the Seine . Our apartment overlooks an old courtyard, and couldn’t be lovelier except for the fact that it’s about half the price of any “moderate” hotel. Thank the Goddess for Craigslist and a savvy girlfriend. Oh, and by the way, the dollar is at an all time low. There will be no shopping sprees on this trip. The treasures we will be bringing home will be the memories. ...

It’s now a little over two months since I was released from the ring of hell which is commonly known as a hospital. The florescent light, the comings and going at all hours of the night to poke and prick, plus the silent noisiness of the dead, the entire experience has me bound and determined to do everything I can to stay on this side of the ring for the rest of this life. I’m doing well, incredibly so. I am managing the diabetes without medication of any kind. This means being acutely aware of what I am eating and how much I am moving my body. I now am an expert on the glycemic index of almost any food, of knowing just how quickly anything I eat turns to sugar. I have managed to stay well within the normal range for the two months I’ve been out, despite some difficult challenges. For years, especially in witchcamp settings, I had a humorous contempt for all of those with special food needs. Why do lesbians seem to be more lactose intolerant, allergic to gluten, and all a...

Witchcamp is spellwork. It’s also a week of teaching and training others in the art/craft of making magic. But how can you teach or train others in this art without it being unleashed as well? By casting a circle and working in sacred space for a series of days, a spell is inevitably cast. Also it needs to be factored in that as the years have rolled by, less people come to camp to learn magic, but to practice it in a community setting. Seasoned witches abound now at most witchcamps, and even the newbies have read more books than I had on my shelves for the first decade or so of being a witch. From the moment we all join hands in circle, a major magical working begins. Most camps clearly state the intent for the working in the beginning, but sometimes, even with a set intent, the magic takes another turn and something entirely different is brewed. I find this unfolding immensely interesting and I try to pay close attention to what is being mixed in the cauldron of our blended ...

I'm at the kitchen table at Anne-Marie's, using Dawn's laptop. Dawn and I are teaching a "path" at witchcamp on air. We will be working on getting across the idea that our thoughts and words matter, in fact they tend to be part of what creates the matter of our lives, being a large part of directing it. Outside, it's snowing. Like REALLY snowing. I'm a California girl, and not the Tahoe type.  For me, snow has NOTHING to do with spring. We are heading off to camp in a few hours, a camp optimistically entitled "Avalon Spring". So, it's snowing. Oh, and the car broke down yesterday.  So, we are not quite clear now how we will be getting to camp.  My phone didn't work for a few hours right after the car broke down. Every number I called was met by the same response - number not in use. After an offering to the fey, the phone started working again.  That didn't fix the car, but I'm hoping just maybe there will be some good news now on...

I'm sitting at a table writing this amidst a household of chattering witches. We've just finished planning the second night's ritual of Avalon Spring witchcamp . I'm seizing this moment to write a quick blog, as it may be weeks before I have access to another on-line computer. I brought my computer to England, but yesterday it lost it's wireless capacity. Maybe I'm meant to be fully here, and to let go of my connection to cyberspace. We'll see...right now it's in the hands of fate, and more specifically in the hands of the computer technician in the village of Chesham where I left it this morning. Tomorrow we all head off to Epping Forest and Monday witchcamp begins. The following Monday I will head off to Barcelona, then to Paris and then home by Beltane. Will I be blogging about this journey? You who are reading this, imagine the blue wireless button on my HP laptop lighting up. Otherwise, it will be catch as catch can, and there may not be blog her...

It’s such a mystery, the natural ability that some of us have for certain things. Some of us are great at getting parking spots; others always seem to be able to intuit which long line will move the fastest. I seem to have a knack at drawing money to ventures I am involved in. Throughout the years, I’d never describe myself as a competent fund raiser. I’m not well organized enough for that title and since balancing my own check-book remains challenging, I’d never volunteer to raise, manage or direct funds outside my own. Plus, I am deficient in the shmooze factor which allows some people to easily hit up other people for money for causes they believe in. Yet, it is clear I have a talent for throwing parties that successfully benefit things that I support. The Dinner With the Dead that I’ve been part of at Samhain always bring in just enough to fund whatever project is being benefited. Last year we were able to give a nice amount towards the care of Cora Anderson while al...