branches up, roots down

The candles are lit and the house vibrates with the thrum and hum of magic, that change of consciousness that opens up the lines of communication with the elements, with the sacred, with the divine. The tulips, daffodils, and blossoms of plum on the altar attest to the beauty of this green planet, beauty beyond comprehension. Tonight I honored earth, air, fire, water and spirit and asked for their help. I called to the ancestors and those who will come in the future. I invited and invoked the mysterious ones, all those deities and guardians who are able and willing to be of assistance, who might also need or want my assistance, or at the very least my attention. I dropped down and felt the change that has already begun, the polar ice caps that are melting, the rising of the ocean, the changes in temperature, the changes in seasons. How hard it is to really sit with this, to feel it and keep breathing. And I prayed and asked for assistance in people having the strength to change. T...

When I was young I yearned to be Catholic or Jewish. Raised Episcopalian, I found nothing in my family's spiritual practices which seized my imagination. I longed for candle lighting, holy cards, eating proscribed foods, mezuzahs, hairs of saints, bitter herbs, and statues of Mary or Jesus around the house. What I wanted was more stuff. Stuff that symbolized something else, that was ascribed power and meaning. No wonder I eventually chose to become a witch! A Pagan Sojourn turned me on to a great series of articles by Jeff Lilly at DruidJournal on choosing a religion. He makes the excellent point that this is the first time in history that so many of us have choice in regards to religion. In the past, if you were raised in the Catholic, Jewish, or Episcopalian faith, that is what you were. Not now. The majority of us witches come from other faiths, and our children by far know they have choice around whether or not to claim themselves pagan. Even within the Craft, we have a...

I love the Oscars. I’ ve watched them as far back as I can remember, my parents letting me stay up late – a tradition I carried on when I had my own child. If magic is defined as “changing consciousness at will”, then movies are magic. Throughout time, stories have held power. Movies are the stories and myths of popular culture, binding us together and creating frames of reference. On Oscar night we gather around the flicker of the television screen to celebrate the stories and honor and award those who’ ve written, directed, produced, edited, and acted out the stories. Awards are given too to those who created sets, dressed the actors, and made the music that fueled the story. People gather around the screen, debating who they think deserves the award, placing bets, arguing over the significance of the stories. And, of course, dish the fashion. I wouldn ’t miss this for the world. Last year there was a plethora of movies with gay characters, signaling that the closet door of ...