Us And The Church

I’ve often thought of all the stories I could tell if I ever had grandchildren, but since I don‘t have any children, I decided to start a blog. There are so many things I remember growing up that I can’t share with anyone any more. My brother and I were buddies. We lived in a neighborhood were we were the only kids, so we had each other as playmates. Sonny died in 1995 from complications of Diabetes, specifically kidney failure. I am an avid supporter of the Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation. I don’t have anyone to annoy with these stories… But there are so many stories…
My Father’s family was Catholic and my Mother tried really hard to be a good Catholic even though she was raised Methodist. We went to Catholic school and took the Sacraments and did everything we were supposed to do. When I was in the fourth grade, our class had to go to confession on the first Thursday of every month because we had to go to Mass with the school on the first Friday. I remember this incident as if it were yesterday. I went into the hall and our make-shift confessional and started “Bless me Father for I have sinned” and then I stopped. I really couldn’t recall anything that I needed to be forgiven for… so I said “ I missed Mass twice since my last confession” The Priest asked why and I told him, my Mom didn’t to Mass either. and I didn’t have a ride. He didn’t seem to think that was enough of a confession so he started asking questions. Did I argue with my brother “well, no. I don’t have anyone else to play with in our neighborhood, so I wouldn’t do that” Did I steal a cookie from the cookie jar, “well no. of course not, if I ask my Mom for a cookie, she’ll give me one”. The Priest seemed frustrated at that point and excused me from the Confessional with a few Hail Mary’s. At lunch time, the Priest called my Mom and told her that I wasn’t taking confession seriously enough and she needed to make sure we understood that it was serious business. We finished out the marking period in that school and then Mom transferred us back to public school. We also started going to a Methodist church soon after our transfer.
Now the Methodist Church was an entirely different world than what we’d been used to. There was singing! And hymns and a choir and a children’s choir and Sunday School! We had stepped into another world! I’ve always loved to sing and as soon as my Mother realized that I was pretty good at it, she started sending me to choir practices and I started singing solos in the church. Music kept me in the Protestant churches for a long time! Of course, like any good child of the 70’s, I questioned everything, especially church doctrine and Bible stories. I remember the first time I read the story of Cain and Abel, I was mortified! How could a loving God not love the idea of a gift of fresh fruits and vegetables, grown with love? Why would a loving God require a blood sacrifice? I could never even kill a fly, let alone an animal! (btw: I still can’t kill a fly. I try to chase them back outdoors). I also questioned the story of Sodom and Gomorrah. After Lot and his daughters left and went into the mountains, the daughters got their Daddy drunk and had their way with him. First; how could he have been that drunk and still been able to “perform” and second; isn’t that incest? Is the Bible saying that incest is ok? I had a lot of questions! No one had the answers. The Sunday School teachers just kind of answered around my questions, but no one seemed to know… We didn’t stay in one church for very long, we changed churches when we moved or when my Mother heard about a great new preacher at another church. That was ok with me, I was still looking for the answers to my questions.
When I was around 13 or 14 I started to hear about some kind of nature religion. I started reading everything I could find about it, without bringing any attention to myself. If you remember, back in those days, everyone knew everyone else’s Mom, so I had to be careful with my transactions at the library. There really wasn’t much information, a few magazine articles here and there and an occasional opportunity to listen in on someone else’s conversation. So, without teachers or a peer group where do you go from there? I learned what I could and realized that I loved the Earth and I loved the idea of a peaceful coexistence with all of creation. I secretly studied and followed this path until I was in my 20’s. When I was a Senior in High School, my then Sunday School teacher asked a very simple question, “do you believe in reincarnation?” “yes” I said, “absolutely”. My reasoning was simple; regardless of how big this heaven is supposed to be and that everyone gets to go there if they ask, shouldn’t it be pretty crowded by now? Think of how many people have died since time began. Are they all there fighting for space to sit at God’s feet and praise Him? I’m really not one for big crowds, can I at least request reincarnation? The Sunday School teacher just gave me the “look” I had grown accustomed to…
Now, when one reaches their 20’s, life happens. School is done and it’s time to be a grown up. Work hard, pay bills. Go to church if you can. I stopped going to church when I started working. Everyone gets to work on Sunday when they first start a new job and I fell out of the habit pretty easily. As I got older and more established in my career, I tried church again. Catholic church first and then back to the Protestant churches. I was invited to sing again. Choir and as soloist! But I still had a million questions that no one could answer. The standard answer was always “Faith is believing without proof”. But that never answered my questions about the Bible stories. And who was this great King James who commissioned the Bible? Who told him what God wanted included? And aren’t the Children of Israel His chosen people? Not personally being of Jewish decent, how is this my God? In summary, I can only assume that the Gentiles are and will always remain second class citizens in His eyes….?
I spent many years in Bible study while attending various churches. I have read and studied the book of Revelation, as well as both the old and new testaments, I can quote Bible verses and know what they mean. Many of the Bible verses that I've memorized over the years are simply proverbs for life in general. Direction for your life and how to get along with others. But, with all of my study, I now have even more questions about inconsistencies and confusing doctrine. I have left the church. I am a Witch.
Now, being a Witch isn’t anything like the Wizard of Oz. I probably won’t melt if it rains and I don’t have any flying monkeys. Being a Witch is about taking care of and respecting the creation, rather than simply praising the creator. My best analogy is this: Imagine that you bought your child the number one, top of the line bicycle. This bicycle is the envy of the neighborhood. You are standing beside the car when you give it to him. Now. Which would you prefer to happen next? Would you prefer that your child follow you around, kissing your toes and thanking you for the bicycle, which by the way is still sitting in the street next to the car? Or would you like to see your child ride the bicycle, take care of it and enjoy it? I have decided that the Creator would, like me, prefer to see the Creation respected, cared for, and enjoyed.

May Faire 2010 at Mystik Dove

When: May. 1st. 2010
Where: McGaheysville, Virginia

A Grand Celebration!

Event Details: We will be holding our Third Annual May Faire on May 1, 2010. Activities will begin at 10 am. There will be a Craft Show, Game Booths, Food, and Music. The store will be open and we have many items on sale. The Meditation Garden will be open for anyone who wishes to use this beautiful space.
At 4pm we will dance the May Pole in celebration of Beltane.
Beltane Ritual will begin at 8pm, followed by a time of fellowship, relaxation and supper.

Please join us!
Everyone is welcome!

If you are under age 14 we ask that a parent or guardian accompany you to this event.
If you are under age 18, you must have a parental permission form on file in order to participate in Ritual. You are welcome to join us for all other event activities.
Please keep pets and familiars at home. There will be too much excitement for them to feel comfortable.

Event Location: 11268 Piano Lane in McGaheysville
Event TIME Details: 10am to 4pm

Directions: From I81: take exit 247A (toward Elkton) onto Rt33 East. Follow for approximately 11 miles. Turn Right at the Thunderbird Diner (Island Ford Rd) . At the very first cross road turn Left onto McGaheysville Rd. Follow to the end. Pandora's Box will be on the right. This event is being held at Pandora's Box.

My New Computer

I think I’m in love with technology! Does that make me a geek? The new lap top was ordered on Monday and arrived on Thursday. Now, keep in mind that the last time I bought a computer was in 1999 when my old windows 3.1 finally needed to be replaced. It was windows 98, which of course went to blue screen soon after. Circuit City ended up replacing it for me with a windows 98se, which worked great until around 2006 when I finally replaced the hard drive and installed windows xp. Well, as of last year, the computer itself had gotten to slow for the programs on the internet, I could only hook up with dial up, it had no Ethernet card, and I decided it wasn’t worth buying one for that computer. So, Rick and I shared his computer, which he bought around 2000. His computer has Ethernet and was already windows xp so it started out a little fasted than mine. Sharing a computer is fine, but now his computer is too slow to play games on facebook. Yes, I moved out of Yoville and Farmville because of my computer! It was a good habit to break in the long run (have you heard about all of the viruses being blamed on Farmville attachments??). So we finally decided it was time. We had to get a new computer! We found a nice Toshiba on walmart.com in our price range and ordered it. Now the fun part. All of my files for the store were written on Microsoft word processor version 2000, now we have version 2007 and the two programs are not compatible. So, I have now begun re-entering all of my store information, all of my Sanctuary information, and all of my previously saved recipes manually. But on the plus side, this computer is so fast, I don’t have time to run to the bathroom while I’m waiting for the page to load! I had gotten in the habit of turning on the computer in the morning when I get home from work, getting changed, emptying the dishwasher and making a bowl of oatmeal while I waited for the computer to boot up and the internet to load, and I still had time to eat my breakfast before it was finished loading! Now, I don’t even have time to fix breakfast before the internet is up and running! I can switch between my facebook page and Rick’s without waiting, and the games load! I’m currently hooked on Mahjong Dimensions, but that’s another story… But I am having so much fun! I have been clicking on icons on this computer to see what they do. I love the sticky notes! I’m a Virgo, I have to have a list… I’ve been using the sticky notes to remind myself of things I need to search and websites I need to go back too. I love it! I don’t have access to the internet connection at work but I can write blogs on the word processor and copy and paste when I get home or when I finish writing. I have also started re-entering all of my store and Sanctuary information. So, I imagine it will be a while before needing an internet connection at work is even an issue. Of course, on the nights that the baby isn’t feeling well or had a late nap I won’t get much done, but as a chronic multi-tasker, I am in my element! It’s always bothered me that I am at work with work to do at home and I can’t do both at once. The lap top is definitely a good choice. Maybe I’m not quite ready for geek-dom, but I have certainly enjoyed the adventure of learning a new computer! I’m thinking about uploading some novels…. Any suggestions?

Ostara

I love summer. There is nothing else that I can say about it. This has probably been the longest, coldest winter that I can remember, which made our Ostara celebration even more special than ever before. We celebrated Ostara on Sunday evening, March 21. It was just Rick and I, a new friend and her 9 year old daughter and a neighbor’s daughter, who is 10. It was a very relaxing and wonderful evening. We celebrated ritual, of course. I had completely forgotten that we would be changing the clocks this early in the season, so it was still quite light out when we started the ritual. After ritual we had snacks and then we got out the Monopoly game! Our neighbor called for her daughter to come home around 9. We had completely lost track of time! Our friends stayed until around 10. Now as we all know, Monopoly can’t be played on a time schedule! We had a great evening!
Ostara is a celebration of the spring. Things are beginning to grow and bloom, the trees are beginning to bud and everything is fresh and new. We had dyed eggs on Saturday, and we were able to use them in our ritual too. The legend behind Ostara is something like this: In the Spring the bunnies come back to the woods to play. One bunny found a beautifully colored egg and he loved eggs. He really wanted to eat the egg, but he loved the Goddess so very much that he decided to give the egg to her instead. He made the Goddess very happy and she loved the bunny very much for his gift of selflessness. Now every year at Ostara we decorate eggs and share them with one another in honor of the gift of the bunny to the Goddess.
The full moon is this Monday. It’s time to make “Granny Clampett’s Spring Tonic”, which is also called Honegar. To make it use equal parts of apple cider vinegar and raw honey. Using a single cupful at a time, place equal parts of honey and apple cider vinegar in a sauce pan. Over medium heat, stir the mixture almost constantly in a clockwise motion with a wooden spoon. Do not allow it to boil. Keep stirring until you feel the heaviness of the mixture break up. Keep stirring until all of the heaviness is gone and the color is consistent, remove it from heat. Keep stirring occasionally while the Honegar cools. When it is cool enough, pour it into a clean, sterile jar and cap it tightly. Store the jars in the refrigerator. It is also traditional to take the jars outside and charge them under the light of the full moon. Hold them up to the light and ask the Mother Goddess to infuse the brew with strength and vitality, imparting the blessings of vigorous good health to all who drink. Dose the Honegar once or twice a day, using 4 to 6 tablespoons to an 8 oz glass of drinking water.
Now, assuming that warm weather is finally on it’s way, I’ll be outside this weekend planting lettuce, peas and carrots! I noticed today that in spite of all of the snow we had this year my pansies are blooming again! I planted them last fall. I walked the property last week and was able to cut back the pampas grass and the butterfly bush. There is plenty of trimming to be done, the apple tree and the peach trees need to be pruned. We bought a bunch of trees from the Arbor Day Foundation, that need to be planted somewhere. We planted them in a vacant garden bed temporarily and it’s time to find them a space of their own, The County came by last week and trimmed some of our trees that were getting to close to the power lines. We needed to have some of them trimmed any way, so they saved us a bunch of money. They’re even going to bring us back the mulch when they have a truck load! I’ve got so many plans for the gardens this year, I can’t wait to get started!

Charlie

Charlie is 12 years old now. I got him from the Pound in 1999, he was about a year old then. He is a German Sheppard / Collie mix. Charlie was terrified of everything when I brought him home. Every sound, every person, just everything. He wouldn’t eat anything but table scraps, and he certainly wouldn’t eat if anyone was around. He wouldn’t bark, and he didn’t know how to play “fetch”. I took him to a trainer to have him evaluated. I had decided that if there was no chance of improvement, I wanted to take him back to the Pound before I had a chance to get attached. The trainer explained that he had obviously been mistreated. She said that the way the fur was matted around his neck, even after a few baths, showed that he had been left out on a chain. He was also, in her opinion, left alone most of the time. He was very timid around people. He was terrified of sticks, she thought that this may have indicated that he had been teased, maybe even poked at. But, she also said to give him plenty of time and he would come around. Of course, this was not what I had in mind when I went to get a dog. I’ve always been envious of those folks who can leave their dog off leash and the dog stays with them and never creates a problem… Charlie is still timid around some people, not all, and we’re not sure how he would react if someone tried to hurt me, but what a difference! He loves to be the center of attention, and if the neighborhood kids are outside playing he barks and barks and barks. He wants the kids to come and play or at least talk to him! If he hears one of the kids crying he gets upset and barks and cries until they stop or are out of his hearing range. He loves doggie ice cream (Frosty Paws) and this year during the holiday’s I made home made dog biscuits for him. (no, he’s not spoiled, just well loved!). I’ve always had this vision of the perfect dog for me. This is a dog that can be off leash and stay there beside me. And my “perfect” dog is supposed to “stay” when he’s told, and “come” when he’s told, and not beg at the dinner table… Well. Let me tell you about Charlie… One day last week, Rick and I were sitting at the dining room table working on packaging for Wildflower’s Organics. Charlie must have thought we were eating something. He came dancing into the room, tail wagging, ears up and just as pretty as he could be. He sat pretty, begging for a treat. Rick reached across the table to the bag of dog treats just as Casey, our cat, came flying in through the doggie door. Charlie stopped mid-beg, he had to sniff and nuzzle Casey. By the time he was finished, he had completely forgotten that he was begging for a treat!
Charlie and I usually go for a walk when the weather is nice. Just to the end of our street. He’s still afraid of the traffic and there is almost no traffic on our street. The trainer said teaching him to walk on a leash wouldn’t be too hard. She said start with a longer leash and progress down to a shorter leash. We tried it. It looked like I was skiing on asphalt! He could not remember to stay beside me. If he sees a butterfly, he tries to follow it. If he sees a cat, he tries to follow it, if he sees another dog, he wants to follow him too! We ended up getting a retractable leash! Sometimes, I’ve said that we don’t go for a walk we go for a “sniff-n-pee/stop-n-bark” because that’s what we do! Every blade of grass, every clump of dirt, every mailbox needs to be watered by him! He barks at every dog, and every neighbor he sees., more in greeting than anything else. But if a car comes down the street. He sits exactly where he is. It’s like trying to move a brick wall with kite string!
I said Charlie isn’t spoiled, he’s just well loved and that’s the truth. Rick and I were married in 2007 and Charlie liked Rick from the very beginning (which had a lot to do with marrying him…). Charlie now has a doggie door and a patio completely enclosed by a privacy fence. He has plenty of room to meander and play. He’s even learned to play fetch and sometimes we play “fetch it yourself”! He can see the neighbors through the fence and he loves to bark at whatever it is he thinks he sees in the night. On the days that I help out in our store, Mystik Dove, he spends the day with Rick and I in the store. He doesn’t spend a lot of time alone, and he likes it that way!
Charlie is starting to show his age now. His muzzle is turning gray, we’re not sure how good his vision or hearing are sometimes, he sleeps more than he used to, and some days he seems to have more trouble getting starting in the morning, but if Rick lights the grill, Charlie is like a puppy, all revved up and ready to beg!