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Subscribe to this list via RSS Blog posts tagged in 2018
Crocus Lawns & Indoor Miracles: Tips for Priming for Spring

 



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Posted by on in Culture Blogs
Sown Seeds & Garden Dreams at Imbolc

No one loves Imbolc as much as me. Well, okay, that’s probably not true but this point on the wheel of the year is one of my favorites. As an avid gardener, I may in fact savor it even more than Ostara. By the time spring equinox rolls around, new life is everywhere--birds back from southern points, baby bunnies peeking out of shrubs, early spring flowers blooming. At Imbolc, it’s still at least part dream, and a beautiful dream at that! When we walk into the woods, the kids notice that in some spots the ground is no longer crunchy and frozen under foot.There are little patches of green, likely the hairy bittercress and henbit that will soon make neighboring lawn fanatics crazy. The cold world is gradually warming and stirring, ready to come back to life before long.

 

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Recent Comments - Show all comments
  • Martha
    Martha says #
    I am also a garden lover and I am maintaining a good garden so far. But I am always open for ideas on how to make my garden more a
  • Carl Neal
    Carl Neal says #
    I love Imbolc as well! We will make crosses tonight and I will start my favored seeds tomorrow. Bright Blessings!!!

Posted by on in Culture Blogs
Why I Stopped Writing

I am writing again (obviously). But the simple act of sitting down and letting my fingers dance across the keyboard took months of struggle. Last year I would panic at the mere thought of writing. I thought I’d never publish another word, ever again.

Writing isn’t something I can do casually. Some writers can kick back and type out page after page in a single afternoon, but I’m not like that. For me, writing is a gut-wrenching, soul-baring practice. I cannot write without reaching deep inside of me. Often I end up encountering aspects of myself from which I would rather hide. Writing peels away my defenses and confronts me with the secrets I keep from myself.

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Recent Comments - Show all comments
  • Lizann Bassham
    Lizann Bassham says #
    This is exquisite - so glad to have your voice back in the commons my dear.
  • Carl Neal
    Carl Neal says #
    Good for you! I also have struggled in the past year trying to reestablish my writing voice. Although my situation was drastical
  • Annika Mongan
    Annika Mongan says #
    Thank you, Carl, I appreciate it!

Posted by on in Studies Blogs
Staying Positive for 2018
I have this ear worm today that happens to be a hit song from back in the seventies.... it is reminding me that even when everything looks bad, we need to remain positive. The song was written by someone with the unfortunate name of Wet Willie:
 
Well you say you got the blues, 
Got holes in both of your shoes, 
Feelin' alone and confused, 
You got to keep on smilin', keep on smilin' 
 
....Keep on smilin' through the rain, laughin' at the pain 
Rollin with the changes til the sun comes out again 
Keep on smilin' through the rain, laughin' at the pain 
Rollin with the changes, singin' this refrain 
 
 
Indeed the sun MUST come out again, the pendulum has to swing back to a better outlook for everyone. I say this as I cringe reading the news every single day for the past year at least. I am really sick of seeing the current president of the US seemingly get a pass for his bad behavior in the face of the #me too movement. I am so tired of knowing that our coastlines are shrinking, and water is not drinkable in so many communities..... It can overwhelm us if we let it. What can we do to keep on smiling? To remain bright?
 
For me, it has come down to sticking to my resolutions of making art and writing every single day. (OK, I missed  yesterday, but I AM human), as well as following my own fitness goals and sticking to achieving them. I don't have any control at all over the outside world. I do have control on what happens in my own little sphere of influence, and I can control what goes into my body, and the care I take of my body. Have been amazed at the positive outcomes I have seen from just a few weeks of exercise. 
 
Getting back to my artistic practice, making art everyday has made me so much better as as artist. I have been drawing anything and everything - I like to capture my cats as they stare at me, waiting for me to feed them. I like to try to imagine difficult angles to be posing in, and then I draw them. I have taken photos of myself in poses I want to try to capture and this has assisted me in becoming a better observer of everything around me. 
 
Is any of this influencing the world at large? No, not in the slightest... unless it means that doing the small things that keep my personal microcosm happily humming along is being passed onto other people that I encounter, and to whom I can be just a wee bit more pleasant. I do think that this kind of work is a "pay it forward" sort of thing - why inflict my bad moods on the unsuspecting people I have to see every day if I can fo something to make them smile instead? Even if it is as small as saying "thank you." or chatting up the person behind the counter. 
 
Wag more, whine less. These are more goals for 2018.
Last modified on

Posted by on in Culture Blogs

2017 was a rough year for many of us.  The year seemed to fly by and yet it seemed to crawl so slowly.

b2ap3_thumbnail_Wish_You_Happy_New_Year_YS.JPG

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Posted by on in Culture Blogs
78 Tarot Tips For The New Year

Imagine the cards of Tarot lined up to give you advice for the New Year. First the Major Arcana cards, followed by the Wands, Swords, Coins and Cups suit. Each card considers the wisdom it offers to you, and melds it with the anticipated wisdom of the next card.

Which of following 78 Tarot Tips for the New Year resonates most with you?

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Posted by on in SageWoman Blogs
Exciting Homecomings - A Triad

Three things I'm excited about exploring in 2018:

Elen of the Ways - I discovered this goddess a little over a year ago, and felt instant belonging and surprise that I hadn't heard of her before, and that I hadn't thought to go looking for such a goddess. It felt like remembering I have a mother, or something. :) A horned/antlered goddess and lady of the green... how perfect for me! I've been reading everything I can about her, and I signed up for a now-filled course offered by a priestess of Elen (Walking the Antlered Road) that includes a year of lessons, journaling, movement-meditations, soundings, chants with wrist malas, and an oracle deck. It has been amazingly exciting to get to know Elen, and to start to see how many of the goddesses I've already been drawn to are probably-to-definitely versions of her paleolithic, pan-Indo-European (and perhaps beyond) presence and enduring veneration. The Welsh name, Elen, is but one. You might be as surprised and delighted as I to discover where the others have been all this time! So I recommend Caroline Wise's book, "Finding Elen: The Quest for Elen of the Ways," as well as Elen Sentier's books, and I will be writing more about her in this blog in 2018, and suggesting the connections I have seen.

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