I do not feel comfortable accepting gifts or compliments but I can dish them out pretty often.....

"According to mathematical theory, a single occurrence is of no statistical importance, a second occurrence might be merely a coincidence, but a third occurrence suggests and immutable law." Basics in Mathematics, Ludlow-Graham, 2009.

Here in Dixie land we have deep rooted beliefs that we really had no idea could be proven in the "educated world".  One that I have always remembered hearing growing up was deaths, or bad things happen in three.  My mother said it, my mamaw, aunts, all the women I knew and it seemed that once they said it you found yourself counting to see what would happen next to make this theory a truth.  As a mystic on a spiritual path I always have said that if I ask for "a message from the universe" regarding a question or something I need to pay attention too...if it happens or is said to me three times; well it is SPIRIT sending me a message. Sometimes I forget this principle but recently it has been re-brought up to my attention by me getting bumps on my head from NOT listening.

Making this more fun is the concept that in Paganism and in many spiritual paths deity is often presented in a triad form.  The Morrigan, (a Celtic Goddess deity) is a prime example of this for she is Danu the wild maiden, or Babd the fertile fiercely protective mother, and Macha the Crone destroyer, grim reaper of the dead. The Hindu take on this (I hope Allison has taught me well) is Kali the oldest of the triple Goddesses she can be Parvati the Creator, Durga the Preserver, and Uma the Destroyer.  In Rome you have the three fates Lachese, Clotho, Atropos, who dictate and handle the threads of life.  There are the Three Sirens, and the Three Graces known as Aglaia (Splendor), Euphrosyne (mirth), and Thalia (good Cheer).  Then lastly, I will bring in to play my three that I have learned Hathor the maiden, Isis the Mother and Sekhmet the Dark Goddess. Thus the Maiden, Mother, Crone triad has come to be a standard thing imbedded in our subconscious as holy, sacred, set-aside as special.

Of course we all know that God the Father, Jesus the Son, and The Holy Spirit (which many call mother) is present in Christianity. Just recently I learned about Eve, Sophia, and Lilith as a possible Gnostic female trinity.  So as you see almost all spirit paths (underneath a thick crispy batter of rituals, buildings, and human made rules) really hold dear the same concept that of a TRIAD.  Not three separate Gods or Goddesses, or three deities, but ONE as three.  Confirming what many in our heart know to be true...we cannot put our finger on something so large and label it for it like us is always changing and moving; and it seems from this perspective is also giving birth to itself constantly in new guises and forms.

Which brings me to the real point of this post, I received an email a few days ago that asked me the following...."Sonya, how do you know when you got an answer from your God or Goddess about a prayer, a conversation, a spell you did?"  I have always replied the same, never knowing the mathematical principle until later...when you get the same answer three times, or notice the same phrase or lesson reiterated to you three times, that is your answer.  THIS is your proof that your spell worked, that help is on its way, that you need to do this thing, that healing is inevitable, that yes the tough times are almost over, and as always your DIVINE is listening and assisting you constantly; all you need to do is ask. 

It is a funny thing, asking for something.  In our society it is seen as a weakness a way of admitting you do not know something, a humbling to where you bow and admit there is a intelligent energy out there with access to more information than you have within you but which can be the bridge to that outside of you that you need access to.   But, as you grow older or wiser you realize that the only way to learn and grow is to ask questions and listen. Thus what you once perceived as a weakness has become your greatest strength.  One of my spiritual teachers told me once, that until you are ready and willing and find yourself WORTHY of receiving all that the Universe has in store for you and you ask for it you cannot expect it to just GIVE it to you.  You have to ask.  You have to seek, and as we all know if you Ask you shall Receive.  If you knock then the door will open for you.

Next time, you hear three different people giving you the same advice that seem random to them but YOU know you have heard three times even if spread out in a two week period....Smile!  Laugh! Dance! Lay out an offering!  Say "Thank you God or Goddess".  Most people go a whole lifetime without knowing or seeing or hearing the voice of the God or Goddess on their ears, and you just did on the tongue of a stranger or friend.  What a miracle!

Just for this week take the time to ask for what you want, knowing you are worthy of it.  Ask a question you want to know the answer to, do not have a problem with stopping your life, or putting something on hold for a moment to ask for directions because you really have no idea how to get to your destination...then wait, listen, hear...and share with others the answer you received from your deity.

Thank you for the gift of your time, and as always Shine bright!

Have a Holly Jolly YULE tide!

I had a hangover Monday.  I call it a hangover, because after festivals are over <especially the ones you help throw> you feel hung-over.  No, you do not have a headache…you are just exhausted and partially dehydrated.  Your brain feels like mush, your eyes are dry and you have no idea what you are saying for at least twenty four hours following one…but you are up and moving about since the world requires this of you.

Tuesday, I had festival withdrawal.  After three days and two nights of being spiritually and emotionally fed I was buzzing.  Things that were said, shared, and taught were swimming around in my mind; and they still are.  I was fed from Dagda’s cauldron, I had the privilege of walking with Brigid and sharing her sacred flame with a community I adore.  I got to stand in circle and dispense the sacraments of the Gods with my local hero Rev. Terry Riley!  I got to meet Tish Owens in person who is the reason why I wanted to throw a festival in the first place!  I overheard Rev. Edwina Rickman’s workshop and meditation; Rev. Allison Hancock blew us all away with her beautiful dark Goddess workshop…and right when I thought the weekend could get no better it did.

Main ritual….Rev. Amanda Riley and my husband Rev. Brian Miller did the “traditional Yule log ritual”  all of us thanked the Gods for one thing from the year before, and asked for some guidance in the coming year on an issue.  Every church there (all three) shared their traditions and there were no “rights” or “wrongs”, no criticisms, no drama.  I stood witness as Alfred Willowhawk and his wife Willow announced the addition of a fourth ATC church in the Midsouth and realized we, the Pagans are organizing and gathering together sharing our teachings and traditions like wildfire!  Everyone was high, everyone was happy, everyone sang, everyone had smiles on their faces and laughter in their hearts…and when you looked there were ten children in circle.  Our babies are worshipping along side of us!

I got to do a workshop with Rev. Amanda Riley on practical magick!  Have I ever told you that when I first entered this community I observed and partook in two workshops that she taught and at that time looked at her with awe in my eyes? (pssst I still do)  Several years later and there I stood next to her listening, still learning, but having the great honor of sharing a workshop with her!  Teaching about herbs, washes, oils, and their properties thrilled my heart and I could have went on for hours…but the people would have fallen to sleep by then :)

Children’s workshop with Rev. Allison Hancock she told an old folk tale and all the children gathered together under a blanket giggling and squirming, making animal noises, because sharing and community was the theme and it is fun to be a child.  Then the Befana tale was shared and Befana came out cackling and laughing hugging children and they were all amazed and bewildered!  Who was this Befana?  Of course the adults new it was Rev. Cindy Mcmullin but the children were convinced it could not be anyone they knew, especially Cindy, because they knew that she was in the kitchen!  Thus Befana must be real! 

Rev. Anita Christopher facilitated all the children’s activities to their delight! Cookies were made, snow globes constructed, stories were shared with our tribe (children in our laps), fairy ornaments put together and placed on the tree, the children had rituals…but most of all they bonded just as we the adults did together tromping in the woods, spending time at the lake.  YULE in our Pagan tribe is about the Children; but at the very last we adults acted like children fussing and laughing about gifts while playing Dirty Santa. Oh did I mention I got a Ganesha portrait out of the Dirty Santa game? Now he lives in my hall above a niche where I can feed him with incense and candles.

The time in between all of these rituals, workshops, and craft times was a different kind of spiritual broth.  The time you spend listening, and learning and gathering as your head spins and your ears pop and you know that you may never comprehend everything that was jammed into you in those thirty six hours but you cannot walk away without being filled to the brim.

Magick is addictive, constructive, liberating, and heady but the purpose to me of festivals is for a spirit-filled fix until the next time you hang and sing with that many people.  Thus while I am still digesting like a cow chewing its cud everything shared and told me this weekend, I feel a longing, in my heart, and in my soul. It feels like when I was first in love as a young maiden yearning for a lover (I am sure we all remember those days) that is only temporarily away, but you  know and are certain they are still in love with you and like you are yearning and longing for your merging together once more.  This is how it feels to me, when I part from such a large community gathering.

So until Daughters of the Moon I will yearn, long for, reach out, light candles for, talk to on the phone and face book my Pagan family. In the meantime, know that I am here and that even if we are not together; we shall never be apart… in my heart.

Well Color me Happy, and that means Purple to me!

The soul becomes dyed with the color of its thoughts. 
Marcus Aurelius

 

I love Color!  Well of course I do in the mundane world I work as a hairstylist who specializes in color!  Because of this I find that I pour a lot of meaning into how I implement color on my body.  I thought I would share this with you, because it is fun and makes me feel more confident and happy!  Any magick that makes one feel better  is something you need to share so here I go!

I wear makeup every day, and I find that when I think about it (now it is hardly ever thought about) I employ tricks to help me magically in my environment and for my own confidence.  Eye makeup has been used for thousands of years to convey messages to onlookers whether it be to let people know what culture you are from, or what goddess you worship.  In Egypt you knew what Goddess a woman or man worshipped based on how they wore their eye makeup!  Some days (since I worship Egyptian deities ) I dedicate my body to a certain deity I am working with or just feel like merging with that day…I talk to them while I am putting on my makeup and then say after I am done.  “May everyone who sees me today see you!  May your words be on my lips, May your hands be my hands.”

I also use the trick of color when it comes to eyeshadow.  To me whatever color I am using is the color people will see and thus…if I want to use all the “tricks in my magickal tool box” then correlating color magick with my makeup only makes sense.  I also use it when I wear lipstick, but understand I only either wear “colored eye makeup” or “colored lipstick” never the two together I feel that is very confusing to people and not clear enough for my intent…when it comes to beauty or color magick like anything else keeping it simple is effective. If you do not wear makeup (and may pagan women do not) you may wear nail polish and use the same tricks; I have found even the most dye hard natural witchling woman employing this magick time and time again.

So, here comes the fun part!  If you color your hair you can also use color magick to change the vibration and resonance around you to what you want to align yourself with.  I am going to explain this sentence because to me this is magick being explained in practical terms.  IF you want to convey passion and excitement dye your hair red!  If you want to convey high energy or have high energy then by all means dye it orange (people call this red but we all know it is not)!  Also keep in mind, that all colors have elemental associations behind them…thus when I color a clients head that I know is already brimming over with fire, and she wants a reddish color I always GROUND it by adding in browns and ashes to make it turn out more auburn, mahogany or burgundy…that way she does not come across as so “harsh”.  

If you know me at all though, you realize I color very nontraditional so I employ literally PURPLE this month, pink last month, green when I was starting a temple, orange after I had my son, Blue when I was doing women work, Red after the three month waiting period of having a child, and so on.  There, see my crazy color ideas do make sense don’t they?  

If you do not use hair color you can use head bands, barrettes, scarfs or hats of course most witchlings just employ the color they want to convey in the clothing that they wear; and that is more than fine too.  Below you will find a color chart that you can print out and use yourself every day and I hope you found this post fun because that is what it is meant to be…fun!

Try not to stress out during this YULE season, and remember COLOR is your friend! (PS if you get your hair colored PLEASE employ a professional they ingest love into your locks, scalp, and body!)

 

Color Associations and Symbolism COLOR ASSOCIATIONS AND SYMBOLS RED Signifies: Strength, health, vigor, lust, danger. Holiday: Yule Planet: Mars Day: Tuesday Astrological Sign: Scorpio ORANGE Signifies: Encouragement, adaptability, stimulation, attraction, plenty, kindness. Holiday: Candlemas Deities: Brigid Planets: Sun, Mars, Mercury Days: Sunday, Tuesday, Wednesday Astrological Sign: Leo, Sagittarius YELLOW Signifies: Knowledge, learning, concentration, persuasion, charm, confidence, jealousy, joy, comfort. Planet: Mercury Day: Wednesday Astrological Sign: Gemini, Leo GREEN Signifies: Finances, fertility, luck, success energy, charity, growth rejuvenation, ambition, counteract greed and jealousy, plants kingdom including herbal healing. Planets: Venus, Mercury Days: Friday, Wednesday Holidays: Spring Equinox, Beltane Astrological Sign: Taurus BLUE Signifies: Tranquility, understanding, patience, health, truth, devotion, sincerity, honor, loyalty, peace, wisdom, protection during sleep, astral projection. Planets: Moon, Venus, Saturn, Jupiter Days: Monday, Friday, Saturday, Thursday Astrological Sign: Libra, Sagittarius VIOLET/PURPLE Signifies: Power, piety, sanctity, sentimentality, tension, sadness amplification of other energies, wisdom, high ideals, spiritual protection and healing, psychic ability, protective energy. Planet: Jupiter Day: Thursday Astrological Sign: Sagittarius BLACK Signifies: Negation without reflecting, unlocking when stuck, banishing evil or negativity. Holiday- Samhain Planet- Saturn Day - Saturday Deities- The Crone Astrological Sign: Scorpio & Capricorn WHITE Signifies: Purity, consecration, meditation, divination, exorcism, the full moon, healing, peace, spiritual strength. (May be substituted for any other color.) Planet: Moon Day: Monday Astrological Sign: Cancer GRAY Signifies: Balance, neutrality, used in erasing, canceling, neutralizing, and return to the universe without repercussion destructive energies. Planet: Moon Day: Monday Deity: Athena Astrological Sign: Virgo PINK Signifies: Healing, familial or emotional love (rather than sexual), friendship, affections, unselfish emotions, spiritual healing, banishing hatred. Gem: Rose quartz Planet: Venus Day: Friday BROWN Signifies: The Earth, grounding, trees, concentration, telepathy, spells to locate lost objects, protection of the familiars, pets, and animals. Planets: Moon (tan browns), Venus (all), Saturn (dark browns) Days: Monday, Friday, Saturday Deity: Gaia Astrological Sign: Capricorn Holiday: Mabon SILVER Signifies: Purity, the moon, treasure, values, female energy, the unconscious mind. Day: Monday Astrological Sign: Gemini Deity: Artemis and other Moon Goddesses GOLD Signifies: The sun, male energy, wealth, financial wisdom, conscious mind, attracting happiness, activity, intelligence. Planet: Sun Day: Sunday Astrological Sign: Leo Deity: Apollo and other Sun Gods *Color chart via http://www.everythingunderthemoon.net

Southerners did not invent simple pleasures, we just refined them!

TRUTH:  I have a recurring feeling  every night and have for as long as I can remember…when I lay down to go to sleep I feel the Goddess wrap her arms around me, and I feel her lightly brush my face in love.

 So where have I been, don’t I have a Blog to run or something?  I have been here fellow Southern Witchlings!  Here in Memphis, Tennessee plodding through the day to day things we all do.  I wash dishes, I do laundry, I mop floors (with special scents of course), I cook dinner, fix lunch; prepare breakfast, and all of Cayden’s snacks.  I tend to my little toddler Cayden who while not yet a year and a half has the attitude of a two-year old.  I sit still at times, and close my eyes and listen to the hum of the world as it spins, sings, and speaks to me.

Since the last time I have spoken to you all I had Thanksgiving at two homes, and assisted my husband do a new moon ritual for “career changes or a new job” spells.  I listened and learned as he shared with me and many others the history and stories of the Sumerian Gods and Goddesses.  I spent time talking to and calling “Ki” the Sumerian Earth Goddess and she fascinated me and enthralled me at the same time. I celebrated his birthday with the  Pagan Community he loves so much during his much loved "Meetup and Pagan Roundup" time where he shared thoughts on making things manifest.

I have had visitors drop in and out of our home; some to just talk and spend time with us, some in joy, some in sorrow, but it is all part of life.  I have had an eldest man-child finally finish an album he has worked on for over two years and see him go “hmmm”.  Of course, he did not like it that when I shared with him the title of the project “Tree of leaves and fire” sort of doomed it to take that long…yet ensured it Bigger success than he realized.  Then, I am a Mother, and I did change his diapers and stare into his big voluminous eyes for hours in fascination at the creation I saw swimming beneath his surface.

I have found out my husband has COPD, which has stopped him and I short and slowed us down a bit more…as if a baby had not done the job.  I have re-discovered emotions like Compassion, Understanding, Hope (which tends to peek its head out right when we are throwing our arms up to the universe in a giving up gesture).  I have come to understand that I have will power (duh I am a witch!) and I can stop smoking!  I have also learned this means that just because I can quit does not mean I should expect my partner to do it just as fast.

In a few weeks Temple books and new guidelines, and ways of doing things have stopped swirling about and started to take form; just like my baby who is now almost climbing over fences!  In a few weeks I have found myself loving my husband more openly, and being more soft and tender to people because now I understand like never before the fragility of life. In a few weeks, I have gotten excited about Yule found myself “dancing inside” when I think about seeing all my friends, and pagan family together for Winterfest.  In a few weeks, you do realize that in some TIME ZONE this could have been twenty years…but definitely more than two days.  

TRUTH:  When I am going through a really really tough or sad or scary time in my life.  I sit real still and close my eyes, and reach my arms up and imagine myself being picked up by my big Goddess Mommy and she scoops me up, and pats my back, and washes my face, and smooths my hair, and rocks me back and forth and tells me…"Everything is going to be all right, that she is here and will always be here; and that no one can hurt me while mommy is around."  You know, it always works!

What has happened in your two weeks? OH, and did I thank you all for hanging around and sharing the gift of your time?  THANK YOU