Pagan Pride Day

On October 1st Pagan Pride Day 2011 will be held here in Middleton at Lakeview Park. I'm so excited and am looking forward to attending my first 'pride day'.

The day begins at 10:00 am with an opening ritual. There will be vendors, workshops and entertainment. There are two workshops that I'm particularly interested in attending. The first is 'Green Burial & Green Cemetaries' presented by Kelly Dwyer. Kelly will lead a discussion on green burials and green cemeteries and what they consist of, how greening the end-of-life is both a personal and an environmental healing process, and how greening the end-of-life relates to Paganism. Kelly also provided support and service to Circle Sanctuary's, Circle Cemetery, and the cemetery's first green burial in the Spring of 2011.

The second workshop I'll be attending is 'Living Heathen 101' presented by Christine Ponder. Lately I've been interested in Asatru, particularly in regards to runes, so this workshop will provide some much needed information. Christine will provide a basic overview of Heathenry/Asatru, history, lore, values, and beliefs, and will provide clarification regarding some ideas and dispell common misconceptions.

There are a few other workshops that I'd be interested in attending, like the one on Dianic Wicca and the one on finding which form of divination is right for you, unfortunately they're at the same time as the other two.

So along with the workshops, strolling through the vendors and catching some of the entertainment, it will be a full day and one I'm looking forward to. And if you haven't already, maybe you'd like to catch Pagan Pride Day when it arrives in your area.

12 Days of Yule - Day 7

7th Day of Yule – Remembering the Noble Virtue of Hospitality
December 26th

"Welcome those into your house and your life as you can. In today’s world, we cannot trust everyone with whom we come in contact, but we can exercise caution and be as welcoming as possible. Similarly, be a proper and respectful guest when you are welcomed."

With most of my family up in Canada, a niece down in Florida, and one of my sisters on her way to Africa, I don't get to spend as much time with them as I would like. But they all know that my door is open to them at any time.

It seems that with my friends too, most of our time spent together is in eating out at a restaurant, taking in a movie, or hanging out at Barnes and Noble. It seems to me that the fine art of entertaining or 'hospitality' is just that . . . a fine art like that you'd see hanging in a museum.

With people spending so much time at work, running around doing errands, or grocery shopping, it can feel that when one gets home it's time to kick off the shoes, brew a cup of tea and just relax by a warm fire. It can sometimes seem that the mere thought of hospitality is enough to exhaust even the most stoic of us.

In the end though, when one does make the effort to invite a few family or friends over, the feelings of connection and being linked in to the world can be a pretty good tonic. Here's a toast to all of you who make the effort and to those of you who enjoy those efforts!

A Reason . . .

There's a saying that goes "People come into your life for a reason, a season or a lifetime".

The older I get, the more I understand this simple phrase. Let me explain . . .

A REASON . . .

A number of years ago I went on a trip with a couple of friends to Las Vegas where we were meeting up with my mom and a friend of hers. The trip started out well enough with a few blips from one of the ladies I was with. We got to Vegas and made it through the first day without any problem. Then on the second day, right from morning breakfast on throughout the day it became a disaster. Oh, did I mention it was also my birthday? Anyway, we got through breakfast and decided to go check out the strip. We shopped in a few little boothes along the way, settled at an outdoor cafe for a drink and some entertainment and then were heading back to the hotel for some rest before our big night out.

At this point one of the ladies I came with decided that she needed to do some shopping for pantyhose. So we all went along for what we thought would be a quick ten minute shopping excursion. Well, she decides to do some real shopping! After about half an hour I was loosing my patience. I mean, I didn't come to Las Vegas to shop much less follow her around shopping. So my patience expelled I as much said so and walked away. She didn't flinch an inch and continued shopping. My mom now is losing her patience and she as much said so. At this point we agreed that my mom, her friend and I would head back to the hotel and my other friend would stay with 'this lady'.

A short time later my friend came knocking on the door and started screaming at us about how upset 'the lady' was and that she was crying . . .

Now you have to understand about this 'lady'. She is a Drama Queen in the largest and fullest extent of those words. This isn't the first time she's blown a situation out of proportion, but it was the last time for me. I'd had it and unfortunately it had to happen at this particular moment.

So, I go across to our room and she's busily and happily putting away all of her new clothes. Not crying, not even a red eye. What the heck? So by this time my friend is finished yelling at my mom and comes over, closes the door and basically blocks my exit. 'The lady' has the nerve to ask ME what's wrong and not wanting to give her drama-like ways an audience, I suggest we go into the bathroom. She heads towards the bathroom, I follow her in and then all of a sudden she realizes she doesn't have an audience, PUSHES me against the wall and makes a hasty exit. By this time, someone has called security, my mom is standing outside the door and I'm inside, all sense of reality has left me and I'm beginning to hyperventilate. Finally, security demands that the door be opened, I exit and go to my mom's room whereupon the drama winds down, an oxygen tank is called for because I'm crying and hyperventilating so bad I can't breathe.

After a time, things settle down, I can breathe again, and I'm left wondering 'what the heck happened'?

After a few more sullen days it's time for me to go home. By myself. I have to endure the long plane ride home by myself knowing the other two are on the same plane. Torture . . . pure torture.

Now here's where it gets interesting and the REASON for the whole story I've just shared . . .

So I'm standing outside of the hotel with my mom waiting for the shuttle bus to come and pick me up. As we're standing there, a limosine pulls up. The driver exits the car comes towards me, looks right at me and says 'you need to come with me'. I politely thank him and tell him that I'm waiting for a shuttle bus (which I booked the night before). He smiles and goes about his business of loading a couple of other passengers. A few minutes later he's pulling away and then does a U-turn, pulls over to the side of the road, exits the car and says to me again 'you NEED to come with me'. I look over at my mom who is incredulous and we both agree that I should go with him. He comes and takes my suitcase, I hug and kiss my mom goodbye, head over to the limo and he escorts me TO THE FRONT SEAT of the car! The whole trip to the airport I felt protected and cared for. Amazing!

So there I am at the airport, the other two ladies arriving by cab at the same exact moment. And there they are, in front of me at the check-in counter. I can't breathe and it's all I can do to hold myself together to make it through the check-in, which I do, barely. After asking to have my seat changed and checking my bag, I make my way through security and wonder around aimlessly for a few minutes. Then I'm able to compose myself and head over to a book store where I pick up a book, purchase it and head over to the gate.

After making myself comfortable I open the book and begin to read. I don't remember the name of the book, but I remember it talking about TOXIC people. I'm beginning to think someone is trying to tell me something. Sitting next to me is a lady who happens to glance over and makes the comment that she's read the book and that's it's a good one. We start talking and I find out she's a MINISTER! We talk about many things and I relay my story to her. She looks on sympathetically and offers such kind words that I'm now left with a sense of relief and peace. The time comes to board the plane, we exchange goodbyes (after discovering that we are not seated anywhere near each other), she gives me her card and the next thing I know I'm seated comfortably near the front of the plane while the other two are at the back.

After landing I make my way through the seemingly endless hallways and finally I'm melting in a heap of tears into Brian's arms. He takes me to the car and goes back for my suitcase. It has never felt so good to come home . . . where it's safe, calm and free from drama.

Some days later and many discussions with my mom, I came to realize that these two people were sent to me. To protect me, to guide me, to offer me comfort. They came into my life for a short time for a REASON and I'm grateful to the universe for sending them to me.

Oh and about my friend and 'the lady'. Well, my friend and I patched things up within a few days of arriving home. 'The lady' is no longer my friend and I'm better off for it. And here's a funny thing I also realized after some time had passed . . . I'd been wanting to end that relationship for some time because it never felt quite right. There was always drama and negativity surrounding her. She was toxic. I always felt it, but never did anything about it because I tend to hang onto relationships, even if they're not good for me. Well, the universe had had enough of it and finally decided to kick me in the butt. And I'm grateful for the butt-kicking . . .