Greetings my darling ones!
'Tis a chill, rainy afternoon here at the Lair as the Veil thins in preparation for tonight's reunions and visitations. As I gaze without, the stark blackness of a gnarled skeleton of a tree bedecked with bright golden leaves stands out against the muted gray of the stormy sky. All else is illumined in a quiet, dull light save that lustrous tree. It's as if that one, solitary tree has forgotten the day...the weather...and its own slow descent into dormancy.
Amidst the quiet contemplation this day demands, may we be one with that riotous tree--celebratory, mindless of the coming quiescence, and embracing of living life out loud. Truly, Samhain is a reunion celebration with those behind the Veil! Greet the Old Ones in love and light and joy for their shared wisdom and blessing!
May tonight bring each and every one of you joy and focus and peace. May the Old Ones smile upon you. And, may She grace you with plenteous stores for the coming Dark Days.
In the Softness of the Moonlight...
’Tis night for revel, set apart
To reillume the darkened heart,
And rout the hosts of dole.
’Tis night when Goblin, Elf, and Fay,
Come dancing in their best array,
To prank and royster on their way,
And ease the troubled soul.
~John Kendrick Bangs, “Hallowe’en,” Echoes of Cheer, 1912
31 October 2018
29 October 2018
The Wheel Turns Once Again...
...and thoughts are set to preparations for the coming chill and hoped-for snows.
Greetings my darling Lair visitors. 'Tis nearly a year since last I posted and, in that time, much has happened. I've had my office relocate to a new building--a building with a WINDOW where I can see the seasonal changes and all the beauty that She bedecks Herself in with each Sabbat and Cross-Quarter celebration. We've a new inhabitant at the Lair proper--a housemate with respect for and knowledge of the Old Ways (though not a practitioner).
The "season of mists and mellow fruitfulness" is truly upon us. As I glance behind me at the trees without, I note they're beginning to gild themselves in the burnt golds and russets of Autumn. V-shaped formations of wildfowl cut across the skies as the birds make their pilgrimage to their winter grounds. Woodland squirrels are glutting themselves on newly-ripe pecans and late-season berries as they prepare for the derth of winter. The sky itself has started softening from the lush cornflower of midsummer to the quieter powder blue of this season.
Neighborhoods are far from immune from observing the seasonal delights! Houses are decked in bales of hay, chrysanthemums, and all manner of autumnal wreathes and garlands. Pumpkins and gourds of all shapes and sizes now grace entryways and town squares as the Season is welcomed and celebrated by Pagan and Christian, Jew and Muslim, Believer and Atheist alike. Neighbors pause a bit longer to share pleasantries. The scent of wood smoke wafts across the chill breezes--beckoning us to gather 'round the hearth or firepit and share quieter times.
Amidst the chaos and tragedies the temporal world suffers through seemingly daily, we need all the more to open to the warmth of the shortening sunlight, the songs and silences of the Season, and the softness of the ever-present Moonlight. She sustains our hope in the constancy of Her ages. As Rilke observed, "...you must not be frightened if a sadness rises up before you larger than any you have ever seen; if a restiveness, like light and cloudshadows, passes over your hands and over all you do. You must think that something is happening with you, that life has not forgotten you, that it holds you in its hand; it will not let you fall."
My dear ones, may the coming Samhain bless you with renewed faith in the strength of today and the hope of tomorrow. And, may you, my darlings, ever be embraced by the Softness of the Moonlight...
Greetings my darling Lair visitors. 'Tis nearly a year since last I posted and, in that time, much has happened. I've had my office relocate to a new building--a building with a WINDOW where I can see the seasonal changes and all the beauty that She bedecks Herself in with each Sabbat and Cross-Quarter celebration. We've a new inhabitant at the Lair proper--a housemate with respect for and knowledge of the Old Ways (though not a practitioner).
The "season of mists and mellow fruitfulness" is truly upon us. As I glance behind me at the trees without, I note they're beginning to gild themselves in the burnt golds and russets of Autumn. V-shaped formations of wildfowl cut across the skies as the birds make their pilgrimage to their winter grounds. Woodland squirrels are glutting themselves on newly-ripe pecans and late-season berries as they prepare for the derth of winter. The sky itself has started softening from the lush cornflower of midsummer to the quieter powder blue of this season.
Neighborhoods are far from immune from observing the seasonal delights! Houses are decked in bales of hay, chrysanthemums, and all manner of autumnal wreathes and garlands. Pumpkins and gourds of all shapes and sizes now grace entryways and town squares as the Season is welcomed and celebrated by Pagan and Christian, Jew and Muslim, Believer and Atheist alike. Neighbors pause a bit longer to share pleasantries. The scent of wood smoke wafts across the chill breezes--beckoning us to gather 'round the hearth or firepit and share quieter times.
Amidst the chaos and tragedies the temporal world suffers through seemingly daily, we need all the more to open to the warmth of the shortening sunlight, the songs and silences of the Season, and the softness of the ever-present Moonlight. She sustains our hope in the constancy of Her ages. As Rilke observed, "...you must not be frightened if a sadness rises up before you larger than any you have ever seen; if a restiveness, like light and cloudshadows, passes over your hands and over all you do. You must think that something is happening with you, that life has not forgotten you, that it holds you in its hand; it will not let you fall."
My dear ones, may the coming Samhain bless you with renewed faith in the strength of today and the hope of tomorrow. And, may you, my darlings, ever be embraced by the Softness of the Moonlight...
08 November 2017
The Chill of Autumn has Arrived...
Greetings darling Lair visitors! 'Tis been an age and yet feels a breath since I last visited with you. I eschewed my traditional Samhain post this turning for the mood was "off".
But, now, my darlings, the Spirit of our blessed season of mists and shadows has embraced the lands of the Lair. Yesterday brought the softened light of an overcast sky and the cooling winds of a shift of focus. Today, a chill rain is soaking the dormant ground. The world is quiet...preparing for its hibernation...preparing for the Darkness.
My dearest ones, we need--as always--embrace the Darkness and mists. They open our inward eye to the promise and the beauty of our world even in the absence of our Maiden. These are the times of introspection...of self-discovery...of quiet contemplation. These are the times of welcoming hearth fires, of simmering kettles and cauldrons, of fresh-from-the-oven breads and cakes, of familial warmth. It's the coming home--regardless of what "home" means to you and yours. This is our preparatory moment.
As the Wheel turns ever-onward, be mindful of the thin Veil surrounding us and allow yourself to be open to the Wisdom beyond...the wisdom just 'round that next shadow or wrapped in that bit of brume. Listen to them...can't you hear the whisper of the ages in each chill breeze and leaf-fall?
While composing today's reflection, I ran across this excerpt from "Samhain" by Annie Finch. I find it reaffirms that which has just been stated. I hope you enjoy it...
Now when dying grasses veil
earth from the sky in one last pale
wave, as autumn dies to bring
winter back, and then the spring,
we who die ourselves can peel
back another kind of veil
that hangs among us like thick smoke.
Tonight at last I feel it shake.
I feel the nights stretching away
thousands long behind the days
till they reach the darkness where
all of me is ancestor.
I move my hand and feel a touch
move with me, and when I brush
my own mind across another,
I am with my mother's mother.
Sure as footsteps in my waiting
self, I find her, and she brings
arms that carry answers for me,
intimate, a waiting bounty.
But, now, my darlings, the Spirit of our blessed season of mists and shadows has embraced the lands of the Lair. Yesterday brought the softened light of an overcast sky and the cooling winds of a shift of focus. Today, a chill rain is soaking the dormant ground. The world is quiet...preparing for its hibernation...preparing for the Darkness.
My dearest ones, we need--as always--embrace the Darkness and mists. They open our inward eye to the promise and the beauty of our world even in the absence of our Maiden. These are the times of introspection...of self-discovery...of quiet contemplation. These are the times of welcoming hearth fires, of simmering kettles and cauldrons, of fresh-from-the-oven breads and cakes, of familial warmth. It's the coming home--regardless of what "home" means to you and yours. This is our preparatory moment.
As the Wheel turns ever-onward, be mindful of the thin Veil surrounding us and allow yourself to be open to the Wisdom beyond...the wisdom just 'round that next shadow or wrapped in that bit of brume. Listen to them...can't you hear the whisper of the ages in each chill breeze and leaf-fall?
While composing today's reflection, I ran across this excerpt from "Samhain" by Annie Finch. I find it reaffirms that which has just been stated. I hope you enjoy it...
Now when dying grasses veil
earth from the sky in one last pale
wave, as autumn dies to bring
winter back, and then the spring,
we who die ourselves can peel
back another kind of veil
that hangs among us like thick smoke.
Tonight at last I feel it shake.
I feel the nights stretching away
thousands long behind the days
till they reach the darkness where
all of me is ancestor.
I move my hand and feel a touch
move with me, and when I brush
my own mind across another,
I am with my mother's mother.
Sure as footsteps in my waiting
self, I find her, and she brings
arms that carry answers for me,
intimate, a waiting bounty.
14 August 2017
Different Spaces...Different Faces...
Good day my dear Lair inhabitants! I've been away for too long...
In the past three weeks, I've traveled to two separate states and have lost myself to the beauty and mystery which always seems to gather 'round me. I hadn't realized how deeply entrenched I've become in the "everyday-ness" of my Visitors from the Veil. Between my beloved Cottage Fae (pranksters though they are), my Visitors, and the natural world's personable critters, I'm truly never really alone. Fancy that!...a Solitary who's never in perfect solitude.
In our humdrum daily lives, how many times are we graced with the presence of the Others? How many "unexplainable" moments of grace or visions of beauty would be lost were they not there to guide us to the sights and experiences that so many outside our world simply take as happenstance? The pure warmth of the Others (Visitors, Fae, etc) gently embracing us and--if we're lucky enough to know and encourage their presence--guiding us toward the magickal wonderment around us is astounding.
Thanks to the Others, others of our Path are oftimes revealed. Those revelations are the most precious for the trust that the Others put on us to embrace and cast a protective veil of silken compassion around those whose hearts are interconnected to our own. That, my dearest ones, is what our Path ought be--one of compassion, mutuality, and gentle love--as we're shown with every turn of the Wheel...with every Moonrise...with every soft mist or gentle breeze or quiet whisper of Her existence in every breath we take.
My darling ones, look to the shadows, listen to the silences, and feel the wonderment envelop you in its splendor. And, thank them.
In the softness of the Moonlight....
In the past three weeks, I've traveled to two separate states and have lost myself to the beauty and mystery which always seems to gather 'round me. I hadn't realized how deeply entrenched I've become in the "everyday-ness" of my Visitors from the Veil. Between my beloved Cottage Fae (pranksters though they are), my Visitors, and the natural world's personable critters, I'm truly never really alone. Fancy that!...a Solitary who's never in perfect solitude.
In our humdrum daily lives, how many times are we graced with the presence of the Others? How many "unexplainable" moments of grace or visions of beauty would be lost were they not there to guide us to the sights and experiences that so many outside our world simply take as happenstance? The pure warmth of the Others (Visitors, Fae, etc) gently embracing us and--if we're lucky enough to know and encourage their presence--guiding us toward the magickal wonderment around us is astounding.
Thanks to the Others, others of our Path are oftimes revealed. Those revelations are the most precious for the trust that the Others put on us to embrace and cast a protective veil of silken compassion around those whose hearts are interconnected to our own. That, my dearest ones, is what our Path ought be--one of compassion, mutuality, and gentle love--as we're shown with every turn of the Wheel...with every Moonrise...with every soft mist or gentle breeze or quiet whisper of Her existence in every breath we take.
My darling ones, look to the shadows, listen to the silences, and feel the wonderment envelop you in its splendor. And, thank them.
In the softness of the Moonlight....
02 March 2016
Quandry...
Greetings, my dear ones!
I was, once again, faced with a quandry whether to be "totally" out as a Solitary or to acquiesce to societal norms. My habit, for the past twenty-three years (since I discovered this Path and came to terms with my personal beliefs), has been to "blend" in in deference to our rule to "Harm None" (myself included). Perhaps, to some of you, this will come across as deceptive. I think not.
Would it not be a worse offence to risk alienating or distancing relationships? The "Harm" would be done and there is the potential, thanks to preconceptions that we must deal with daily, understanding would not be forthcoming. Thus, "Harm" would continue.
It's a personal decision, understandably, and not for everyone, to live pseudo-broom closeted in certain situations...but it maintains an equilibrium. Perhaps it's fear that keeps the Lair relatively private...but it's that very privacy which nurtures my little Solitary life. The scent of the seasons, the warmth of the Sun, the loving shadows cast nightly by the Moonglow...these are individual enjoyments that connect me to Her and to our interwoven Path.
Truly, dear ones, this was merely a "vent"...a quick blog to collect my thoughts and feel your presence in this topsy-turvy world. Thank you, my pets...your existence enriches and encourages.
In the softness of the Moonlight...
I was, once again, faced with a quandry whether to be "totally" out as a Solitary or to acquiesce to societal norms. My habit, for the past twenty-three years (since I discovered this Path and came to terms with my personal beliefs), has been to "blend" in in deference to our rule to "Harm None" (myself included). Perhaps, to some of you, this will come across as deceptive. I think not.
Would it not be a worse offence to risk alienating or distancing relationships? The "Harm" would be done and there is the potential, thanks to preconceptions that we must deal with daily, understanding would not be forthcoming. Thus, "Harm" would continue.
It's a personal decision, understandably, and not for everyone, to live pseudo-broom closeted in certain situations...but it maintains an equilibrium. Perhaps it's fear that keeps the Lair relatively private...but it's that very privacy which nurtures my little Solitary life. The scent of the seasons, the warmth of the Sun, the loving shadows cast nightly by the Moonglow...these are individual enjoyments that connect me to Her and to our interwoven Path.
Truly, dear ones, this was merely a "vent"...a quick blog to collect my thoughts and feel your presence in this topsy-turvy world. Thank you, my pets...your existence enriches and encourages.
In the softness of the Moonlight...
29 February 2016
Leap Day Magick
Greetings, my darling visitors to our quiet corner of reflection!
Today is Leap Day...a day outside of time in a manner. It's not the Wheel, yet it resets the Wheel. It's a day of limitless possibility, for who can limit that which is outside of the constraints of normal time? As with the day, who ought constrain themselves on this auspicious day?!
What are you intentions, my dear ones? What wonders will you allow to unfold or magick to flow unchecked today? What delights will be yours on this transformative day?
Go outside...inhale the intoxicating scents of our Lady as she bedecks herself for the coming Season of Renewal! Embrace the sunbeams glittering through the mists of early morning...the blush of early petals on the trees...the tentative chirrup of the returning songbirds. Know that She is just beyond the horizon. Spring is nearly upon us and this, Leap Day, is a day of potential and anticipation.
In the softness of the Moonlight...
Today is Leap Day...a day outside of time in a manner. It's not the Wheel, yet it resets the Wheel. It's a day of limitless possibility, for who can limit that which is outside of the constraints of normal time? As with the day, who ought constrain themselves on this auspicious day?!
What are you intentions, my dear ones? What wonders will you allow to unfold or magick to flow unchecked today? What delights will be yours on this transformative day?
Go outside...inhale the intoxicating scents of our Lady as she bedecks herself for the coming Season of Renewal! Embrace the sunbeams glittering through the mists of early morning...the blush of early petals on the trees...the tentative chirrup of the returning songbirds. Know that She is just beyond the horizon. Spring is nearly upon us and this, Leap Day, is a day of potential and anticipation.
In the softness of the Moonlight...
17 November 2015
Reflections in this New Reality
It's been far too long since my shadow darkened the entrance to this comforting Lair. Professional responsibilities, personal interests, and the daily grind had preempted my time here. Alas, these draws are insubstantial in the face of all that's occurred over the course of the last five days.
I'm reminded of a verse by Wm. Wordsworth--
The world is too much with us; late and soon,
Getting and spending, we lay waste our powers;—
Little we see in Nature that is ours;
We have given our hearts away, a sordid boon!
This Sea that bares her bosom to the moon;
The winds that will be howling at all hours,
And are up-gathered now like sleeping flowers;
For this, for everything, we are out of tune;
It moves us not. Great God! I’d rather be
A Pagan suckled in a creed outworn;
So might I, standing on this pleasant lea,
Have glimpses that would make me less forlorn;
Have sight of Proteus rising from the sea;
Or hear old Triton blow his wreathèd horn.
For those of us who empathize "too deeply," the past five days have been utterly exhausting to the emotions and the mind. Negativity and fear-mongering reign on social media and in the news...hatred and bloodshed and pain prevail in areas recently healed or formerly peaceful...confusion is everywhere. Lives are lost, shattered, permanently altered, and yet we are at the periphery--spectators to the living drama unfolding all around us.
This morning, I was awakened by tornado sirens. The skies themselves were boiling with anger and unchecked horrors. As the storms swept past, the rains poured down, and the winds ultimately calmed, She gave us our answer to the confusion. This current storm is in its infancy, but it's ephemeral. It will not last. We ARE "Pagans suckled in a creed outworn" and we DO "Have glimpses that would make [us] less forlorn" and we must not lose sight of that. We must banish the negativity--even if only in ourselves. Mend the broken, be they hearts, relations, or understandings.
Our overarching rule is, regardless of Path, to do no harm. To me, at least, that means we must help those harmed to heal. There are a LOT of folk out there who haven't a warm Lair to enter...who haven't encouragement and concern given them...who haven't hope. They don't understand us (and many still fear us for no logical reason), but they need us. They need our strength, our compassion, and our empathy...and, for them, we may be the only open heart they find.
Be the light, my loves. Be the soft Moonlight in your lives. Be the tenderness and compassion and understanding. Be that which our very nature and belief charges us to be!
In the softness of the Moonlight...
I'm reminded of a verse by Wm. Wordsworth--
The world is too much with us; late and soon,
Getting and spending, we lay waste our powers;—
Little we see in Nature that is ours;
We have given our hearts away, a sordid boon!
This Sea that bares her bosom to the moon;
The winds that will be howling at all hours,
And are up-gathered now like sleeping flowers;
For this, for everything, we are out of tune;
It moves us not. Great God! I’d rather be
A Pagan suckled in a creed outworn;
So might I, standing on this pleasant lea,
Have glimpses that would make me less forlorn;
Have sight of Proteus rising from the sea;
Or hear old Triton blow his wreathèd horn.
For those of us who empathize "too deeply," the past five days have been utterly exhausting to the emotions and the mind. Negativity and fear-mongering reign on social media and in the news...hatred and bloodshed and pain prevail in areas recently healed or formerly peaceful...confusion is everywhere. Lives are lost, shattered, permanently altered, and yet we are at the periphery--spectators to the living drama unfolding all around us.
This morning, I was awakened by tornado sirens. The skies themselves were boiling with anger and unchecked horrors. As the storms swept past, the rains poured down, and the winds ultimately calmed, She gave us our answer to the confusion. This current storm is in its infancy, but it's ephemeral. It will not last. We ARE "Pagans suckled in a creed outworn" and we DO "Have glimpses that would make [us] less forlorn" and we must not lose sight of that. We must banish the negativity--even if only in ourselves. Mend the broken, be they hearts, relations, or understandings.
Our overarching rule is, regardless of Path, to do no harm. To me, at least, that means we must help those harmed to heal. There are a LOT of folk out there who haven't a warm Lair to enter...who haven't encouragement and concern given them...who haven't hope. They don't understand us (and many still fear us for no logical reason), but they need us. They need our strength, our compassion, and our empathy...and, for them, we may be the only open heart they find.
Be the light, my loves. Be the soft Moonlight in your lives. Be the tenderness and compassion and understanding. Be that which our very nature and belief charges us to be!
In the softness of the Moonlight...
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)