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I have been guilty of this, myself. In a social situation you are introduced to someone who spies the mystical pendant you wear on a neck chain. Without stopping to think, she exclaims, "Oh!  What a beautiful piece!" and she reaches out and grabs it, to see it more closely.  

Ouch! That hurts! It's a sudden feeling of shock and discomfort. And it's real. You just had your aura violated, directly over your heart chakra. 

(Introductory Disclaimer: As usual, please remember that this blog is an expression of my own personal opinions, based on observations gleaned from my own peculiar experience. At no point do I claim to speak for all Neopagans, nor do I insist that any reader must agree with me.)

It hardly seems fair, does it? Why should the road to hell be paved with our very best motivations and aspirations for this life? 

(Introductory Disclaimer: As usual, please remember that this blog is an expression of my own personal opinions, based on observations gleaned from my own peculiar experience. At no point do I claim to speak for all Neopagans, nor do I insist that any reader must agree with me.)

Often, when deserving people are profiled in the media so their community can raise money for their relief, their gratitude is tempered by the unpleasant realization of how pathetic everyone thinks they are! Until some well-meaning reporter put their situation into words, they had just been doing what was needed to survive. Words hadn't been employed, yet, to embarrass them. 

(Introductory Disclaimer: As usual, please remember that this blog is an expression of my own personal opinions, based on observations gleaned from my own peculiar experience. At no point do I claim to speak for all Neopagans, nor do I insist that any reader must agree with me.)

In the years since September 2001, when our jovial and generous American psyche experienced a profound shift toward cynicism and fear, I have been learning some hard lessons about the workings of negativity. I have been forced to study my own negativity, as well as the negativity of others. Inevitably, they are the same thing.

(Introductory Disclaimer: As usual, please remember that this blog is an expression of my own personal opinions, based on observations gleaned from my own peculiar experience. At no point do I claim to speak for all Neopagans, nor do I insist that any reader must agree with me.)

If you look objectively at this pathetic world (just check out the Internet news any morning), it's clear that we have been the beneficiaries of fantastic luck. Most humans and animals would love to experience our relative lack of concern over basic food and shelter, and our relative safety from the possibility of daily annihilation. While it's true that we have real problems, worries, pains and fears, on a descending scale of international bad fortune we would appear quite near the privileged top. 

The following reflections are intended for those who were raised Judeo-Christian. Those fortunate ones among you who were not burdened with that experience may Go in Peace, and the Goddess Be With You. 

With apologies to the sincere and dedicated Christian ministers who provided my religious instruction, I cannot come back into your fold - not if I must accept the Bible's patriarchal abuse of women, or relinquish my belief in reincarnation, or agree that all non-Christians (i.e., Pagans and other polytheists) are going to Hell.   

In the fall of 1970 my first wife and I moved lock, stock and barrel from Lake Ann, Michigan to Stratford Ontario, Canada - with the single-minded intention of living there so we could audition to become Company members of the Canadian Shakespeare Festival. 

I was 23. She was only 19. We had no money, and no jobs waiting for us. She could live legally in Canada as a British subject, but I was an American citizen and would have to get permission for residency.