Altar time

Effy blogged about witchcraft yesterday. It was a really good read, so anyone who hasn't read it and thinks they may be interested pop over to her blog (using the link above).  She used the blog as an opportunity to 'come out' and say she is a witch and not just a pagan.  For me it is the other way round, I have called myself Witch for many many years now but have only relatively recently been embracing the general pagan side of myself. A side I was 'schooled' to think was fluffy. What a school of thinking indeed! Nonsense! I love being a witch and I lvoe being a pagan. I love doing Crafty things and I love doing lighter pagan things.  My altars are a part of that.
There are people from my past who would hate by altars (strong word, but how I knwo they would feel.) They would think I have sold out, that they aren't witchy enough etc. Well, everyone is entitled to an opinion. I love my altars, they make my home feel special, Beloved. So today I cleansed them and tidied them up a bit.

Spring altar

The above is the main altar that I try to keep in tune with the seasons. Its right next to where I sit on the sofa and opposite where I sit at the table, so its very much in my vision, and in my mind.
Recently my Other Half has taken a keener interest in my Path and has decided he wants an altar to the Lord in our home too *swoon*! So here is his altar:

Altar to the Sacred Masculine

Recently we each pulled an Animal Oracle card.  Kei's was Boar. So when we were in Glastonbury at the weekend he stated he would like "something boar-ish" for his altar. I was expecting a little boar statue etc. and was quite surprised (and well proud, to be honest) when he came back with a boars tail from The Wild Hunt shop! You can just see it resting on top of the wooden square at the feet of Herne.

Well, that's a little glimpse into our pagan home. Yay to Effy for coming out and inspiring this post!
Bye all
x

I decided late last night on my word for 2014. I had been contemplating several words and each time I felt I had made a decision I could see the benefits of the other words! I read something inspiring on the first Moonshine lesson where Effy had referred to a Danielle LaPorte e-book. The idea behind her words is that rather than seeking to achieve goals, we should actually seek to attain a feeling, and emotional state. That the pursuit of goals and plans will follow this much more harmoniously.
Naturally I have been thinking a lot since 28th November and I had pretty much decided to use TRUTH. After reading this article I changed my mind. Truth isn’t an emotional state to me, although I do want to live my truth it didn't quite encapsulate what I want to pursue this year. I settled instead on AUTHENTIC, the idea of living my life and being authentic to my beliefs, my morals, to my Higher Self and who I really am. The trouble with this, the scary part, is that I have completely forgotten who I am! I have lost my authentic self and need to do a lot of soul searching to find myself again before I can even begin to live a life of authenticity.
When I was walking to work this morning I gave this some thought and had some really good insights into my own character. I thought about who I used to be when I was in my late teens, how I acted what I believed:
• I was very organised with people's birthdays and always had cards/presents sorted well in advance,
• I was fascinated by mythology, Egyptology, numerology and astrology.
• I loved crystals
• I loved to learn things and teach myself things
• I enjoyed spending time on my own, never lonely, always busy doing something.
I have lost so much of who I am and what I believe.
My vow for Moonshine, and this New Moon phase, is to do daily journaling to discover who my authentic self really is. I may re-look at the OLW project I started following last year with Ali Edwards. I won't pay to do the project again, but I can use last year notes for this years word and adapt to suit – doing the parts I enjoy and changing the parts I didn't.
All in all I am excited for 2014 – excited for the adventure that is ahead in the reclaiming of my Self and the renewal of my relationship with my Beloved.

Location:Moving forward

Planning

I sat down with my new filofax pages, calendar and diary this evening to prepare for the new year. I love the hope that a blank calendar and diary inspires in me. That belief that things can be different.

My calendar this year is a Gorguss one. It matches my planner cover. I have an Earth Pathways diary again this year. I absolutely love it and have bought one each year since it was first on sale. This year I used it for a gratitude book - writing at the end of each day something I was grateful for. I think I will do this again in 2014.

Here's a quick look at my planning. The photo was taken on my iPhone and then made beautiful using the Rhonda Designs app for iPhone and iPad. It's such a great app, if you haven't seen it before check it out!

Anyway, I better get to sleep. I was meant to be having an early night before work tomorrow and it's already later than I'd planned.

All Hallows

This year has been an amazing year for me! From October last year onwards I was in a very dark place and feeling very down and lost. Slowly I have re-found myself and feel strong once again. I feel like Me again! And what is one outcome of this?? Halloween decor!!!!!
Last year I didn't decorate, which is just ludicrous for me as All Hallows is so special to me.
It is Samhain, the Celtic new year and that is the spiritual Path I follow, so of course it's special to me!
I know pumpkins aren't a tradition Samhain thing, but they are part of our Halloween culture (and anyway, they just look to damn great when carved not to include them!!!)
Here are some snapshots of my day (taken with Hipstamatic app on my iPhone, the film is 'Float' and the lens 'Roboto Glitter'. It is my fave spooky look!) I can't wait to scrapbook these!!!!