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Pagans, better than anyone else, understand the power of symbols.

And statues in particular.

It's bad enough that, as you read this, the body of “evangelist” Billy Graham lies in state in the US Capitol rotunda.

Now there's a plan to memorialize him there permanently with a statue.

Graham never held public office. He simply does not deserve to be memorialized in a building dedicated to the preservation of a wall of separation between church and state.

That his body was exhibited at the US Capitol was a slap in the face of every non-Christian in America.

For his statue to stand there would be a knife in every non-Christian heart in the country.

Ye shall be free from slavery.

Witchcraft begins with a slave revolt.

C. G. Leland tells the story in his 1899 Aradia: Gospel of the Witches.

In those days there were on earth many poor and many rich.

The rich made slaves of all the poor....many slaves escaped. They fled to the country....[I]nstead of sleeping by night, they plotted escape and robbed their masters, and then slew them. So they dwelt in the mountains and forests as robbers and assassins, all to avoid slavery.

The Moon, as all-seeing Lady of the Night, witnesses her people's troubles and, in her mighty ruth (mercy), she sends her daughter Aradia to teach them magic and herbcraft, so that they can hex and poison their oppressors.

One of the things I love about being a real estate agent (leasing agent specifically) is the freedom I have. I can set my own hours, I can go on vacation whenever I want, and I can tell people "no" without fear of repercussions. I find I work way past my normal availability and during the summer like it is now, I easily put in 75 hours a week - oftentimes 90. I actually force myself to stay out of my home office on Sundays, which is my self-designated day off, because otherwise I'd work every day of the week. I also take a "day off" in the middle of the week as well, but that's only a day I choose to not do showings. Instead, I schedule for other days and get caught up on paperwork. And lately, those showings have piled up so much I've been all but have been living out of my car.

Today we celebrate in Netherlands 70 years of freedom, On this day 70 years ago the World war II ended in Netherlands. How do you celebrate your freedom today?

I will be celebrating by taking full access to everything there is- whatever that is. Especially my connection with Gaia. There is that much more beauty, more light, more energy available! For me freedom is taking access to all of that.

It starts with my connection to Mother Earth. Allowing it to bloom to it’s full potential. The life energy will surge. Allow my ego to surrender, allow the ecstacy of deep unconditional connection. Will you join me?

In my post “What I used to miss about Christianity” I mentioned the article How Playing a Good Christian Wife Almost Killed Me by Vyckie Garrison. The reason I mentioned Vyckie Garrison’s article was the parallel she drew between literalist biblical theology and the power & control wheel, a tool used for understanding abuse. For her, Christianity and abuse go hand in hand. Garrison opens her story by saying

The more traditional American holidays can leave some of we Wiccans and Pagans feeling a little left out and blue. Here are some ideas for taking pride in ourselves and where we live– as the old Francis Scott Key ditty goes: "the land of the free, and the home of the brave." Get your magical-minded buddies together for an outdoor picnic. For this, I would suggest your friendly, less populated county or state parks. If you are concerned about the forest ranger making the rounds, hold the festivities in your own (or co-host with one of your guests') big back yards instead.

Cook special dishes of significance to you. Cakes and Ale or Cakes and Wine are always an easy crowd-pleaser. Per Patti Wigington, at the about.com website: "The Wiccan ritual known as Cakes and Ale is often celebrated as a way of thanking the gods for their blessings. Cakes are usually just cookies prepared in the shape of crescent moons, and the ale can be alcoholic or it can be apple cider, juice, or even water." Here is her recipe:

A recent household occasion presented an opportunity to implement a natural solution instead of using a chemical-laden product. My daughter Emily is eleven-going-on-20 and upon her happy discovery of my homemade concoction, she sat quietly for a while and then asked, “If you were a normal mom, what would you have done instead?” Huh. If I were a “normal” mom, what would I have done? This question has sat within for a few weeks now and it has led to a good chuckle more than a few times. Emily and I did talk about her question at that moment because I was curious to know what she defined as being a “normal” mom compared to being a mom (perhaps me) who is “not normal”. It generated a lot of laughs between the two of us and offered up great time to connect deeply.

If I had been asked this as an ungrounded new mom years ago, my psyche easily could have taken a backseat on the train toward the villages of Panic and Self-Doubt. I suppose there have been conscious choices which have been made through the years to define myself in her mind as being somewhat “not normal” as she places that language in her mind. Upon inquiry I learned that she sees me laughing. A lot. Singing, playfulness, prayerfulness, and random dance moves are busted out at random times of the day, often early in the morning in the kitchen while I "should be" packing her lunch for school. Dress-up consists of wrapping ourselves with big swatches of colorful fabric and then often these pieces are brought outside on windy, sunny days to watch how they shape-shift in the light and air.