Greetings and welcome to March! This is a month of green, green, and green! St. Patrick’s Day, Spring is finally beginning to show for most of us in the Northern Hemisphere, and people starting plotting and planning how to spend their tax refunds. Here at Pangaia Metaphysical Store we are definitely looking forward to the return to spring and all the green (and yes, we do also mean sales).

With Spring comes Spring Cleaning. And we certainly have ways of helping you with that. Cleaning is not just on a physical level. As we discussed in January’s blog and also in a podcast for Pagan-Musings, Cleansing is an essential part of leading a magical and spiritual lifestyle. You can spend all the time in the world cleaning your home and your personage, but if you neglect to cleanse, you will be just as “dirty” as you were when you started.

In January, I talked about de-cluttering your space and touched upon how to keep your spiritual and metaphysical self clear of other clutter. This month I am going to spend a little bit more time working on de-cluttering yourself and preparing the way for true change, health, and happiness in your life.

When it comes cleansing yourself you have to start by looking at what it is that is holding you down or holding you back. It is not always the most pleasant of things, but if you have taken advantage of the Dark of the Year to do your introspection, you already have an idea of what it is that you need to rid yourself of. Perhaps you even have a detailed picture or plan of what it is that you need to do. Now is the time to put that plan into action. I will use some personal examples here for you:

• Sarah is quitting smoking. She is doing this for many reasons, not the least of which is just a good idea.
• I am working on follow through in my personal life. I often set goals, but it is not so often that I actually manage to go through with them.

Using Sarah’s example first, how does one go about doing something which is very difficult for many people? Tell yourself that you are going to do it; then tell yourself that you have quit smoking. See yourself happier and healthier without the cigarettes. You can even see yourself with all that extra money in the bank or your wallet. Just think of how much you can save by not buying a pack of smokes every time you stop at the local convenience shop or tobacco store. Now that you have that picture in your head, it is just a matter of letting it happen. Yes, I make it sound simple. It is simple. (I say as I ponder reaching for a cigarette while I am writing this.)

Sarah has taken a few extra steps. Magic only works if you do something to make it work. She has purchased some specially blended herbal cigarettes, designed to help you quit smoking. It  may seem odd that one manner of quitting smoking is to smoke something else. I have attempted this method myself in the past, the only reason it did not work is that I did not have the will power to make it happen.

Now, on to my own issue of Follow Through. Why do I have such a problem with follow through? Most of it, I believe, is that I set too many goals for myself. If you have too many goals it is difficult to attain even one of them. So, what does that mean for me? I should set a time schedule for myself with appropriate and attainable goals. I am sometimes not very realistic with my goals. Not that they are unattainable, just that I try to do to much in one day, week, or even year.

Here is a typical To Do List for me, please not that this is supposed to be done in one day:

• Scoop litter
• Do dishes and put away
• Do laundry and put away
• Write at least one personal blog post
• Read two or more chapters of current novel
• Write at least 500 words for book project
• Review music for Murphy’s Magic Mess
• Upload latest permissioned music for Pagan-Musings & Musica Pagani

That doesn’t seem like a lot. But you have to also remember that I work a full time job, am constantly on the prowl for new products and artists for the store, and do try to have a social life. How does that daily list compare to my weekly goals? Well, let’s see:

• Finish reading current novel
• Read book and write book review for Pangaia Metaphysical Store
• Research topic and make show notes for next episode of Pagan-Musings
• Put together set list for Musica Pagani
• Put together master disc for Murphy’s Magic Mess (current theme, Pirates)
• Edit and put together up to 15 minute “talk” segment for Murphy’s Magic Mess (I am working on pitching a talk show for KZUM)
• Write at least 3500 words for book project (but which book? I am working on three.)

As you can see, my weekly list or goals is rather extensive. Shouldn’t be too difficult to manage, though. That is where follow through comes in.

We all have big dreams and plans for ourselves. Where we wish to be by such an age or what we plan to do for our retirement. Even something like where we are going on our next summer vacation. Being able to reach those goals and exceed them is where follow through comes in. Follow through is something that I have always had a problem with. Maybe it is a fear of success, as some psychologists would say. But I think it is more that I am worried about running out of things to do. Believe it or not. There is always so much to do, but the things I truly enjoy doing are not as vast as the things that I MUST do.

As you can probably tell from both these lists, I like to keep myself busy.  Most of what I do to keep myself busy further my own education and experiences. So why do I lack the follow through? I do not really know. I do know that if I set smaller goals it is easier to attain them. Perhaps I could change the 500 words a day to 1000 words a week. Much simpler, and if I exceed that 1000 words, more the better! Means I am that much closer to finishing the actual book.

The most important thing for me to remember, and perhaps for you as well, is to not neglect yourself. Make sure that you are leaving time to do the things that matter and are important. Spending time with friends and family, taking care of yourself, remembering to relax and enjoy what life has to offfer.

Spring Cleaning

Now, as to spring cleaning. As we discussed in January, preparing yourself and your home for new chapters in your life is important to helping those new things manifest. Take a little time to organize and sort through your life and your belongings. Remember the general rule of thumb: If you haven’t used it in 6-12 months, you probably don’t need it. I know, I know. Easier said than done. Take a page from Clean Sweep on HGTV and evaluate your schtuff (scientific term for the crap that accumulates around you). Do you really need it? Are you keeping it because it was a gift, but you will never use it? That sort of thing. If it is something of sentimental value, what value does it really have? Does it remind you of a bad experience? Does it really help you to move forward with your life?

I have lots of stuff around my home that is of sentimental value. I have a wood plane that my father made when he was in high school. What value is that? It reminds me to work with my hands, and it reminds me of him. I have a crappy looking clay candle holder with my brother’s name on it. That is something that I should clean up and give back to him. I have mountains of books. Now those I plan to keep most of. I just need to go through them and organize them. I am sure that in amongst the literally thousands of books I will find some duplicates, some that are damaged beyond repair, some that I will not need again (or at least for quite sometime). Asking me to separate myself from my books is like asking someone to cut off their dominate hand. But I can weed out some of the unnecessary.

While you are going through your living space and weeding out the things that you do not use, need, or ever realize that you still have; look around and see what else can be done to spruce up your home life and yourself. Do you need to sort, organize, and replace dishes, pots and pans and the like? Do you need to dig through your clothes closets and set out for charity those things that longer fit?

On a more metaphysical level, does a room or area of your home feel dirty, cloudy, uncomfortable or just not right? Perhaps you need to cleanse it while you are cleaning it. Our item for this month’s drawing is an example of what you can use to do just that. But there are many other things that you can do. Smudging, whether with sage or some other scent that you find restful, is very beneficial to clearing out the ickiness that can surround you in a room. Placement of crystals and stones can also be of benefit. Simply reclaiming a neglected space can brighten it and your whole home beyond belief. Not to mention that a routine or ritual of cleansing your living space can help bust that positive outlook on life and make you and your family happier and healthier.

Here are a few ideas for you:

• Wind Chimes can brighten a porch or balcony and help to dispel negativity.
• Candles of all sorts can help to relieve some of the dreariness left behind by the cold, dark winter months. Not to mention they make a great ritual accent to everything from meditation to quiet dinners to intimate hours spent alone with the person you love.
• Smudging with sage (loose or bundled) or other scents can help clear out the negativity that may have accumulated in your home do to the dark time of the year, your own depression, or some of the issue at home or work.
• La Bomba and other specially blended cleaning supplies can be used to not just clean the surface of your home, but the deeper spiritual layers as well.

Hope that this posting gives you some insights and some ideas on what you can do to make your home and yourself happier and healthier.

-Phil

This is the March blog drawing. To enter the drawing simply leave a comment with content regarding the topic of the blog. This month we are giving away a bottle of La Bomba Cleanser. A wonderful accent to your Spring cleaning efforts, this cleanser will not only help you clean your home, but cleanse it also. From March 1st through the 31st, leave a comment on this blog and you will be entered into the drawing.

PAGAN-MUSINGS ON BLOGTALKRADIO.COM

Pagan-Musings airs live every Saturday morning at 12am CST (10pm Fridays Pacific, 1am Saturdays Eastern).

From time to time, RevKess and KaliSara do get very serious with their topics. This week’s episode is an example of that.

We’ve all seen or heard of, or even experienced, harassment, intolerance and bullying of one kind or another. Everything from kids pushing each other around on the school playground to coworkers sexually harassing each other. But just how seriously do we take such actions? “Kids will be kids” is one thing, when does that lead to kids being bullies or to them growing up and being violent criminals? On the other hand, when does the victim of such circumstances fight back or totally give up?

This week our hosts are going to discuss various forms of intolerance, harassment, and bullying. Not just how it applies to children or work environments. They will also discuss some of the ramifications of such actions on a religio-spiritual level.

February 20th is called Tempest Smith Day. In 2001, after years of harassment and bullying for her religious and personal views, Tempest Smith took her own life. Since then, her mother has built a campaign to fight such intolerance and harassment.

Join your hosts this week as they make a reality check and help you to understand how to take a stand against intolerance, harassment and bullying.

**END**

Pagan-Musings airs live every Saturday morning at 12am Central (10pm Friday Pacific, 1am Saturday Eastern).

Some links you may find useful for this show:

• Tempest Smith Foundation
• The Federation of Circles and Solitaries
• Tempest Smith Memorial
• Family Resource dot Com
• Talk About It – Code of Silence
• Work Trauma dot Org

Welcome to February! The shortest month on our calendar, but one that gets some of the most hype! Valentine’s Day falls within this month and thus it is hyped as a month of love and romance, compassion and tolerance. For some it is the most dreaded month. For others it is full of inspiration and family. This post is going to address much of what I think and feel about such sentiments that have been overly commercialized by modern media and the consumer mindset.

The Beatles had it part right with their song All You Need is Love. You do not need the love of another to be happy. You need to be able to love yourself, then the love of others will come freely to you.

Self love is not a guilty pleasure. It is essential to one’s own happiness. If you love yourself, in all things and all ways, then others will soon follow suit and begin to show that love reflected within themselves.

I am not talking about self pleasuring here, though that could be a part of the love that you have for yourself. Instead, I am talking about being able to love yourself for who and what you are. Even those little flaws in your physical and spiritual being.

I was asked many years ago by a Buddhist psychic if I was happy in my body. When I answered that I was, but that I would like to lose some weight, she said that I was not truly happy. I still am not happy within my own body. I would still like to lose that weight. But I have learned to love many aspects of myself that I once could not love.

How do you do that? A local high priest once said that in order to love yourself you have to say it daily. It may sound cheesy, but getting up morning and looking in the mirror and saying “I love you” to yourself does work.

When it comes to loving other people, you have to learn to accept their idiosyncraciess. Easier said than done. Tolerance is an important part of things, but it goes beyond tolerance. You have to accept them for who they are. As indicated, if they can love and accept themselves for who they are it comes more easily for others to accept and love them.

Here at Pangaia, we try our best to create a sense of love and understanding for ourselves and for our customers. Not always easy to do, though. There are the constant pressures of doing website updates, deciding on what is worth our time to put up on the site, and dealing with deadlines for things like this very blog. We are always understanding of each other, though, Sarah and I have known each other for over 12 years. We have been through a lot with each other. Somehow, even when we are at each others throats, we manage to remember that we do love each other.

Here are a few things from Pangaia Metaphysical Store that might help you along you journey to better love and understanding of yourself and others:

• Mab & Mercutio by Arden Ellen Nixon – Arden has created a beautiful scene inspired by mythology. With this painting hanging in your home (perhaps above your altar) you are sure to be reminded of love and romance.

• Pass the Energy, Please! by Barbara Shaw McKinney – This book will help you teach your children the value of energy, love, and compassion. By passing the energy from one person or creature to another they will definitely learn what it means to love and care for others.
• Love Heals bumper sticker – Express your desire to heal yourself and the world with this bumper sticker.
• Pink and Red Chime Candles – Use these beautiful candles to aid in attracting love and healing light into your life, or simply burn them to add that touch of atmosphere in the bath or bedroom.
• Scrying Mirrors – With one of these beautifully made scrying mirrors, you can peer into yourself, the past, the future, or even the present to learn what love may have in store for you.
• Lavender Flowers – These fragrant blossoms can aid in relaxation as well as lending their scent to sachets and spells for attracting love.
• Red Rose Buds and Petals - Long used for their ability to attract love and faithfulness, rose petals and buds are an essential for many in doing love magic.
• Amethyst and Claddagh Pendant – The Celts used the Claddagh symbol to represent love and loyalty to one’s chosen partner. Combined with amethyst, this pendant will surely show the world that you are in love.
• Fairy Heart Magic by Gary Stadler and Stephanie – An inspiring collection of soothing, ethereal music; this CD is quite charming and great for back ground when doing self actualization meditation.
• Beltane Bath Set – It is never to early start preparing for Beltane. This bath set will certainly help you do so. Soap, lotion and bath oil, a wonderfully scented and magically charged set to aid you in your love for yourself or for your partner.
• Aphrodite Statue – A beautiful statue of the Greek Goddess of love, this Aphrodite will be right at home on altar, end table, or shelf. Placed in the bedroom, She will shed her light and love upon all those who rest there….or have certain activities there.

A local priest and friend of mine has told me how he learned to love himself. Every morning when he gets up he looks in the mirror and tells himself “I love you.” It may sound corny, but it has worked for him. Long suffering from clinical depression, this simple morning ritual has helped him to learn to love himself for who and what he is. Another friend of mine, a Buddhist psychic, once asked me if I was happy with who I am. When I replied yes, of course…but, I would like to lose some weight she scolded me for not being totally honest with myself. Before you can begin to change your appearance you have to love what you are right now. Both of these are difficult lessons to learn, but learning them is very important to being able to love yourself and thus love others.

A WORD OF CAUTION ON LOVE MAGIC: Many are convinced that if they can just catch that lover or make someone love them that they will be happy and everything will work out perfectly in their lives. They couldn’t be more wrong. Casting a spell or binding another’s will to what you want can only lead to problems down the line. When doing love magic, you should not be casting spells on others. Only on yourself. The best love spell is to teach yourself to love yourself. By being able to accept yourself for who and what you are, you are opening your heart to the love others and making it very apparent that you are a complete individual and thus able to share yourself and your love with another.

This is the February blog drawing. To enter the drawing simply respond with a comment that has real content regarding the blog’s topic. From the posting until March 1st, all respondents will be entered into the drawing. This  month we are giving away a bottle of Prosperity Oil, just in time for adding it to the Luck of the Irish on St. Patrick’s Day. Remember, to qualify, all you have to do is leave a comment with real content. Deadline is midnight March 1st (central time).

Each month, Pangaia Metaphysical Store does a drawing for one of their products offered in the online catalog. To enter the drawing all you have to do is read the blog post and make a comment with real content. One liners are frowned upon, you must be adding something to the thread of thought that the original post contains.

This month’s drawing is for a bottle of Dove’s Blood Ink and a Porcupine Quill.

Out with the Old, In with the New:

That was the title of the first Pagan-Musings episode of 2010. What did the hosts, and the owners of Pangaia Metaphysical Store, mean with that topic?

When the new year rolls around, as it has for us by the secular calendar, it is the perfect opportunity to start clearing out the old and making room, and ready, for the new. That is, clearing away the old negativity, the things that are holding us back in life, as well as getting rid of the physical clutter in our lives. By clearing these things away we make room for all kinds of new and exciting things in our lives. Or, as Sarah put it in the show, “Clean out the old crap so you can make room for new crap!” All kidding aside, she is right. You gotta clean out the old to make room for the new. Crap or otherwise, it is important to get rid of those things that are weighing you down and keeping you from progressing in your life.

Psychological and emotional clutter: We all have some kind of clutter in our lives that is related to psychological and emotional issues. That is not to say that we are all crazy or emotionally unstable. Quite the contrary. It is very normal for a person to have some psychological or emotional hang up that is keeping them from progressing on their path. It is the fate of humanity to carry around these burdens until such time as we are ready to let go.

Letting go is the hardest part, especially when these issues are things that we are unwilling or unable to acknowledge. For example, it is very possible that someone reading this article right now has an issue from their past that they are consciously unaware of. This could be something as simple as an aversion to a particular cooking spice because it reminds them of the neglectful mother who always put too much spice in the spaghetti sauce; or it could be something as intense as a blind spot to a particular color because the stranger who touched you inappropriately when you were a child was wearing that color of shirt.

I know, that was a very extreme example. But it is important to note that sometimes our fears, blind spots, and phobias are rooted in something that has happened to us in the past. Sometimes these past experiences are from a different life, but often they are associated with something that we have experienced this time around. Why is it important that we address these issues and let them go? If we didn’t, they would stick with us and continue to prevent us from moving on with our lives.

I am not saying that right now is the perfect time to get rid of all these issues. Not all at once. If you are carrying around emotional and psychological baggage that could lead you to severe trauma if they were suddenly dropped, then perhaps you should consider seeking out professional assistance. Either a psychologist or psychiatrist or a member of your clergy. Someone who is trained to help people with these matters.

The physical schtuff (scientific term for crap) that you horde in your life is much easier to address. Though it is often tied up in some way with some of the emotional and psychological baggage that you carry inside. There is a general rule of thumb that is important to remember when it comes to all this schtuff that people carry with them or secret away into boxes and closets. If you haven’t used it in six month to a year, then you probably do not need it. Obviously, this would not apply to something that you only use once or twice a year (holiday decorations, dress clothes, etc) or to those things that are of important sentimental value (grandma’s crystal goblets, dad’s gold cuff links), but it does apply to all the schtuff that just hangs around with out a definable purpose. I am talking about clothes that don’t fit anymore, shoes you never wear, dishes that are hiding in the upper cupboards, puzzles you’ll never put together. Stuff like that.

What do you do with these things? Take the time this month to go through your closets, attics, basements, under the bed. Pull everything out that you can and look at it. Do you really need it? Are you going to use it? Or is it just schtuff that you are hording for no reason?

Create piles for your stuff:

1. Keep – these are things that even though you do not use them regularly you know you will or they need to be kept for some other reason. Heirlooms, out-of-season clothes that still fit, etc.
2. Donations – these are things that are in perfectly good condition but you will not be using anytime soon. Clothes do not fit, duplicate books or movies, etc.
3. Re-Gifts – these are things that were given to you, perhaps as recently as Yule, that you will never use but you would feel guilty giving them to a stranger or throwing them away. Clothes that didn’t fit, books you will never read, etc.
4. Trash – these are things that are beyond repair and no one in their right mind would want them. Shoes with worn out soles, clothes that are moth eaten, books with missing pages, etc.

Now, ideally when you get done with this sorting you keep pile will be much smaller than your other piles combined. And let us hope that your trash pile is almost non-existent. If it was trashed, why were you keeping it in the first place!?

Time to take out the trash, etc…. It is now time to take out the trash, give things away, and take your schtuff to the nearest thrift store for donation. After you have sorted through everything and put away the stuff that you are keeping, it is time to get the other stuff out of your home! Do it right now, do not wait for another day. Take the trash to the curb or to the dumpster. Take the donations to some charitable thrift store and let them deal with it. Wrap up or simply give the re-gifts away as soon as possible. If you let any of the schtuff sit in your home it will migrate back into your closets, attics, or even under your bed. If it sits around for any length of time you might start thinking that you DO have a use for it. And that is a bad way of getting rid of clutter.

Ever seen a TV show called Clean Sweep? That is what I am talking about.

Resources for donating items:

1. Free Cycle
2. The Arc
3. City Mission in your area…
4. Pagan Pantry – Some pagan communities have some like a pagan pantry or some other location to donate clothing, house hold items, personal hygiene products, and non-perishable food items. The Pagan Alliance Network, Lincoln, Ne chapter, has such a location.

Of course, there is always yard/garage sales as a means of getting rid of your unwanted but perfectly usable items. You can use the money you raise to buy more crap or donate it to a local charity.

I will cover spiritual cleansing in a future blog post.

This is the January Blog Comment Content Drawing post.

Each month, Pangaia Metaphysical Store does a drawing for one of their products offered in the online catalog. To enter the drawing all you have to do is read the blog post and make a comment with real content. One liners are frowned upon, you must be adding something to the thread of thought that the original post contains.

This month’s drawing is for a bottle of Dove’s Blood Ink and a Porcupine Quill.

Arden Ellen Nixon is our first artist of the month. Visit our front page to get a little bio-blurb on Arden and check out her art work in our online catalog.  And just a bit more about Arden:

I met Arden purely by accident. One day in September I was on lunch break at a hellish job and decided to go for a walk downtown. I stopped in at my favorite used book store, A Novel Idea, and visited with the owner. It is so rare that I get to visit with her as she is usually gone when I am able to come in. Anyways, as we were talking she remembered that a local artist had brought something in for her to look at that morning. And what was that item? It was a deck of playing cards, slightly over sized, created by none other than Arden Ellen Nixon. This deck is part of her art work inspired by Alice in Wonderland.

I thumbed through the deck and liked what I saw. The Queen of Hearts in particular was quite eye-catching. With her bloody scythe and maniacal grin I instantly saw Death from a Tarot deck. Simply stunning! Cinnamon at A Novel Idea gave me the deck, “I think this might be more up your alley.” Which it definitely has been! Included in the deck was contact information for this wonderfully talented artist. I called her right away.

Arden and I met over hot cocoa at Meadowlark Coffee House and made arrangements for Pangaia Metaphysical Store to take a selection of her fabulous art with us to Mystic Fest 2009 in Omaha, NE. We took quite the selection with us, include her remaining Alice decks and nearly sold out of them at the show. Her other art was very popular as well.  We enjoyed working together so well that we decided to continue the venture and have added nearly forty items to Pangaia’s catalog and are working with Arden to design our new store logo.

Sarah and I are very excited to be working with Arden and we hope to continue to do so in the future. We are very much looking forward to the finished logo. Everyone who visits Pangaia Metaphysical Store will definitely be seeing that piece of Arden’s work prominently displayed as soon as we get it!

Remember to check out Arden’s work. And remember, these are original pieces of art! We are working on a deal to get some prints made of the most popular pieces, but in the mean time….when you buy one of Arden’s paintings from Pangaia Metaphysical Store you are buying a one of a kind piece of art!

Other new stuff for Pangaia Metaphysical:

Pangaia Metaphysical Store is now on Facebook. Become a fan!

New logo design in the works with Arden Ellen Nixon.

More indepth and informative blog articles by the owners and guest bloggers, such as Cairelle of WitchyLiving.

New exclusive wood crafts being added to Runic Creations.

we are planning on do so much more with the store in 2010, so keep your eyes peeled and check us out on a regular basis. You may be surprised what you will find when visiting Pangaia Metaphysical Store.

Brightest Blessings upon You in this New Year!

-Phil & Sarah

This is the December Blog Comment Content Contest. To enter your name into the monthly drawing, please leave a comment to this post containing content related to the post. Why do we require you to leave real content? This cuts down on bots, spammers, and non-information being posted. The drawing will be held on January 2nd, allowing you one extra day to enter the drawing.

This month’s winner will receive a copy of Happy Songs of Death by Marc Gunn.

Greetings and well met, our friends and customers (if you are a customer, you are a friend!)!

Yule is upon us in only a few short weeks. This time of year always brings to mind memories both happy and sad. The cold winter months, as I spoke of in the last blog contest post, are a time for introspection and reflection on the past, as well as a time for preparing for the future. I am going to reflect today on some of my past memories of this season.

When I was a little boy we lived in the boonies of Colorado. Or should I say, out in the middle of no where! lol It was a wonderful place to live, but very primitive by today’s standards. We didn’t even have an indoor bathroom and shared our phone line with our nearest neighbors. Some of the readers of this post may be old enough to remember times like that, but I am talking about the early 1980′s here, a time when most everyone in the “civilized” world had indoor plumbing, private phone lines and cable TV was becoming common. But not for my little family. I lived with my mother, father, and one of my older siblings during much of my time in Colorado. We were a close-knit group and had many other relatives in the area, all of whom were very warm and loving towards us (and still are!).

Winters were cold and harsh for us, our little house had a gas heater in the kitchen, my parents used an electric heater in their bedroom. My brother and I shared a bedroom at the time. Our room was right off the kitchen. Large even by today’s standards, the bedroom was covered in dark wood paneling and had linoleum flooring. Only one window, north facing. The room was often on the cold side during this time of year.

But despite all the apparent “hardships” of the home, we were a happy and loving family, never really lacking for warmth and company. We were less than 15 miles from the nearest two towns and would often go into town to see friends and family. I was only in second grade when we  moved to Nebraska, so my memories of childhood are sometimes confused. However, I do remember that we would set up our Christmas shortly after Thanksgiving each year. It was a big day. My parents would get into the holiday spirit early and my brother and I would follow suit. For a time some of our other siblings lived in the area or even with us, so our home was always full of family and friends.

I remember one Christmas in Colorado when my brother and I were being sneaky and peaked at our Christmas presents after they had been wrapped and placed under the tree. Our parents knew we were going to do it, hard to hide things from your parents when you are just small children. Henry is five years older than I, but this particular Christmas that would have made him only about 10. I do not remember exactly what our presents were that year, but they were what we wanted. I do know that. I believe we both got hand knitted slippers from our aunt who lived about 15 miles away. I remember those slippers because I wore them until my big toes stuck out the ends.

Christmas was important to my family then, as my father was very ill and we never were sure what holiday would be the last one he was with us. But he never let his illness get in the way of making his family and friends happy. I remember that he was very active in the church that we attended and made sure that everything went smoothly when the pastor was elsewhere (there were two sister churches to our’s). For my family, our church was our family. We had many friends that we were close with in that congregation, and some of which we still have contact with today, almost thirty years after moving to Nebraska.

Aside from memories of past winter holidays, this time of year brings to mind many other thoughts and ideas. I look at this time of year as a chance to remember my friends that I do not get to see very often, as well as a time to look forward to the coming seasons. The days are still growing shorter, which means that the return of the Sun is approaching. though we may be going into the coldest time of the year, the return of the Sun at Solstice is a reminder that the darkest and coldest hour is but a passing thing.  The warmth and light of the spring and summer are not that far away.

The Winter Solstice, Yule, is a time of celebration. It may have been usurped by other religions as Christmas or what have you, but any way that you look at it, this holiday is a time to celebrate life and love and family and friends.

Gods rest ye merry Pagan folk

Let nothing ye dismay

Remember that Sun returns

Upon this Solstice day

The growing dark is ending now

And Spring is on her way

Those lines are from the Pagan Yule carol that some of us are familiar with, and others know as “God Rest Ye Gentlemen.” Last Yule, the Pagan Alliance Network celebrated Yule with ritual and song. We sang carols, old and new. That was one of them.

Yule is a time to celebrate life, love, friends, and family. As Pagans, many of us often feel that in order to celebrate the season with family we must compromise our beliefs and attend Sunday services with our Christian relatives, or light the candles of the Menorah , or any number of other non-Pagan beliefs. We are not compromising ourselves to do this. Celebrating with our non-Pagan families is a way to bring their love closer to ourselves. There is nothing wrong with wishing to spend time with them and celebrate with them in their way.

Perhaps this year, or the next (as this may take extra planning), you could ask your more open-minded family members to help you celebrate your beliefs at this season. I am not suggesting that you make them stand Circle with you and sing the praises of your particular God or Goddess (or combination there of). But I am suggesting that you share some of your beliefs with them at this time of year. It is a tradition amongst many Christian denominations to have a candle vigil at Solstice. They do so to celebrate the birth of Jesus, we do so to celebrate the return of the Sun. If you look at the mythologies of various religions and cultures, you can draw the parallels that show that the birth of Jesus and the return of the Sun are very similar and could be construed as one and the same. Nancy Chandler Pittman, the founder of the Trinitarian Wiccan Tradition, has shown many of these parallels.

Now, how do you celebrate this season?

I celebrate it by sharing my life and my love with my friends and family. I used to make sure that I dropped my pocket change into the bell ringer’s bucket at every store that I went into when shopping. I do not do that any longer, my charity starts at home. What do I mean by that? When I have the spare change or the spare time, I donate it to those in my community who may be in need. That may mean that I visit a friend who is unable to go places on here do to disability; I may cook a meal for my friends who are struggling to make ends meet on a single income; or I may go spend time in a local soup kitchen. Other ways that I celebrate by sharing are to visit with my friends, maybe give them a hand crafted gift or help them to clean their homes. I have many friends who are not able to do everything that they need to do. I spend the cold months, especially, helping them when I can.

I do buy presents for family and friends. I do decorate when I can. But I do not, or at least try not, fall to the commercialization of the season. Sometimes it is unavoidable, but I do my best.

A friend of mine and I have begun a new tradition. It may seem silly, but we make sure to get together at least once in the month of December to watch Meet Me in St Louis.

This is the December Blog Comment Content Contest. To enter your name into the monthly drawing, please leave a comment to this post containing content related to the post. Why do we require you to leave real content? This cuts down on bots, spammers, and non-information being posted. The drawing will be held on January 2nd, allowing you one extra day to enter the drawing.

This month’s winner will receive a copy of Happy Songs of Death by Marc Gunn.

A note on Happy Songs of Death by Marc Gunn. This is a collection of songs from his writing and career, as well as songs that have inspired him over the years, that celebrate death. Though we are in the season of Yule, we are also in the Dark of the Year. This is a very appropriate collection of songs for anyone. I am sure that you will find it to be uplifting, not depressing. You can learn more about Marc and his other projects by going to www.marcgunn.com.

Remember to do some of your holiday shopping with Pangaia Metaphysical Store. We have a collection of unique and hand crafted items for your Witchy needs, as well as a selection of books, music, accessories and apparel to satisfy your most discerning of friends and family.

Today is Veterans Day in the U.S. A time to remember our fallen heroes and to think about our men and women in the armed services. Though war is not the answer, many of our spiritual brothers and sisters have chosen to join the armed forces and protect our rights and fight for the freedom of others around the globe. Many have fallen or been injured, many are still out there fighting. On Veterans Day we remember them. One day is not enough, we should remember them at all times.

Though we may disagree with the various wars that are being fought across this Earth, we cannot brush away thoughts of the brave men and women who are fighting those wars. They are putting themselves at risk for our betterment. Not just to better the United States, but to better the world as a whole.

Light a candle today for them and remember them throughout the day.

A MEMORY OF A VETERAN:

My father, may his soul find happiness in its current incarnation, was a veteran of the Korean War. He served in the Airforce, stationed in Alaska. He may not have seen combat, but he was a hero for his efforts. He did not speak much of his time in the service, but he carried himself with a pride well earned. He passed away in his sleep in hospital nearly 25 years ago, but his influence on my life has been strong and stable throughout my journey.

All entries must be received by midnight on Monday, November 30th.

The Winner of the October contest was Kiersten Kabob. She received a bottle of Protection Oil.  Congratulations to Kiersten!

We are entering into the dark time of the year. This is a time for introspection and for planning what to do with OURSELVES. Though secularly, this time of year is one rife with family obligations, pressures from end-of-the-year budgets and plans, as well as the ME ME ME attitude of commercial-America, it is still very possible to sit back and review what is most important to us as Pagans and Witches of all sorts.

The dark of the year begins at Mabon with the Equinox, but does not really become apparent until closer to Samhain, when the  days become noticeably shorter and the nights come upon us so much faster. This year it seemed to happen so much more distinctly in the United States. At 2am on November 1 we set our clocks back an hour. Sundown was all the sudden an hour earlier than it was the day before and some who suffer from seasonal depression were thrown right into that quagmire so much more quickly.

INTROSPECTION: This is a wonderful time of year to look inwards, for introspection. What I mean here is that you should look into yourself and see what and who are now. As it is also the time of year where the Celtics and many Wiccans celebrate the new year. So this is a time to review the past year and begin planning for the next year.

Kerr Cuhulain, in his Full Contact Magick, talks extensively about what he does at this time of year: Every year he looks back over his accomplishments and failures and evaluates why they were one or the other. Then he decides if the failures were truly failures and if they are worth the time and effort to readdress and attempt to turn into successes. This is something that you might want to do yourself. Review your past year and look at each accomplishment and failure. What do they mean to you? Were the failures really failures? Are they worth looking at again?

This is also a time of year to begin planning for the next year. Evaluate what it is that you want to do. Prioritize what you want to do. Be realistic.

A lot of what I do this time of year is look at the things I have planned to do and see what I have accomplished. This past year has been full of ups and downs for me. Mainly ups. But a lot of downs, as well.

1. Lost my job in January
2. Did the Mind~Body~Spirit Expo in March and made lots of money
3. Mom broke her ankle in March
4. Launched Pangaia  Metaphysical Store with my friend and business partner in April
5. Did the Earth~Spirit Celebration in June and was very successful
6. Launched Pagan-Musings on Blog Talk Radio in June
7. Had a short term job in June and July
8. My Great-Aunt died in July
9. Had another short term job in August and September
10. Had a wonderful job handed to me the end of September
11. Did the Mystic Fest in October

That’s a lot of ups and downs, but over all it has been a wonderful year. With the success of both Pangaia and Pagan-Musings the year has been fun and exciting. And we are looking forward to another successful year.

What did I not accomplish that I set out to do? A lot, unfortunately: I had set out to write at least one book this year. I have gotten a lot accomplished for two different books, but neither one of them is actually taking form. That is a goal for 2010 and one that I am firmly committed to working very hard on. These two book ideas are Ground, Center, Shield: the Three Basics of Metaphysics, which you can see some of the notes for that on this blog; the other book is an anthropological, sociological, archaeological, and psychological look at the tarot as it can be interpreted for today. Both are very ambitious and should be well worth the time and effort.

I am not asking you to lay out for our readers what your failures and successes have been. But feel free to comment about what introspection means to you.

This is the November Blog Comment Content Contest. To enter, leave a comment to this post and remember that it needs to have REAL content. Each entry will qualify for a drawing for a bottle of Yule Oil. This special blend is formulated to help you attune to the season of Yule. This blend is also very appropriate to use for Yule ritual or celebration. As well as it makes a wonderful gift.

All entries must be received by midnight on Monday, November 30th.

The Winner of the October contest was Kiersten Kabob. She received a bottle of Protection Oil.  Congratulations to Kiersten!

ALL HALLOW’S EVE or Samhain, an essay by Mike Nichols

All Hallow’s Eve is the eve of All Hallow’s Day (November 1st). And for once, even popular tradition remembers that the Eve is more important than the Day itself, the traditional celebration focusing on October 31st, beginning at sundown. And this seems only fitting for the great Celtic New Year’s festival. Not that the holiday was Celtic only. In fact, it is startling how many ancient and unconnected cultures (the Egyptians and pre-Spanish Mexicans, for example) celebrated this as a festival of the dead. But the majority of our modern traditions can be traced to the British Isles.

The Celts called it Samhain, which means ‘summer’s end’, according to their ancient two-fold division of the year, when summer ran from Beltane to Samhain and winter ran from Samhain to Beltane. (Some modern Covens echo this structure by letting the High Priest ‘rule’ the Coven beginning on Samhain, with rulership returned to the High Priestess at Beltane.) According to the later four-fold division of the year, Samhain is seen as ‘autumn’s end’ and the beginning of winter. Samhain is pronounced (depending on where you’re from) as ‘sow-in’ (in Ireland), or ‘sow-een’ (in Wales), or ‘sav-en’ (in Scotland), or (inevitably) ‘sam-hane’ (in the U.S., where we don’t speak Gaelic).

Not only is Samhain the end of autumn; it is also, more importantly, the end of the old year and the beginning of the new. Celtic New Year’s Eve, when the new year begins with the onset of the dark phase of the year, just as the new day begins at sundown. There are many representations of Celtic gods with two faces, and it surely must have been one of them who held sway over Samhain. Like his Greek counterpart Janus, he would straddle the threshold, one face turned toward the past in commemoration of those who died during the last year, and one face gazing hopefully toward the future, mystic eyes attempting to pierce the veil and divine what the coming year holds. These two themes, celebrating the dead and divining the future, are inexorably intertwined in Samhain, as they are likely to be in any New Year’s celebration.

As a feast of the dead, it was believed the dead could, if they wished, return to the land of the living for this one night, to celebrate with their family, tribe, or clan. And so the great burial mounds of Ireland (sidh mounds) were opened up, with lighted torches lining the walls, so the dead could find their way. Extra places were set at the table and food set out for any who had died that year. And there are many stories that tell of Irish heroes making raids on the Underworld while the gates of faery stood open, though all must return to their appointed places by cock-crow.

As a feast of divination, this was the night par excellence for peering into the future. The reason for this has to do with the Celtic view of time. In a culture that uses a linear concept of time, like our modern one, New Year’s Eve is simply a milestone on a very long road that stretches in a straight line from birth to death. Thus, the New Year’s festival is a part of time. The ancient Celtic view of time, however, is cyclical. And in this framework, New Year’s Eve represents a point outside of time, when the natural order of the universe dissolves back into primordial chaos, preparatory to re- establishing itself in a new order. Thus, Samhain is a night that exists outside of time and hence it may be used to view any other point in time. At no other holiday is a tarot card reading, crystal reading, or tea-leaf reading so likely to succeed.

The Christian religion, with its emphasis on the ‘historical’ Christ and his act of redemption 2000 years ago, is forced into a linear view of time, where ‘seeing the future’ is an illogical proposition. In fact, from the Christian perspective, any attempt to do so is seen as inherently evil. This did not keep the medieval Church from co-opting Samhain’s other motif, commemoration of the dead. To the Church, however, it could never be a feast for all the dead, but only the blessed dead, all those hallowed (made holy) by obedience to God – thus, All Hallow’s, or Hallowmas, later All Saints and All Souls.

There are so many types of divination that are traditional to Hallowstide, it is possible to mention only a few. Girls were told to place hazel nuts along the front of the firegrate, each one to symbolize one of her suitors. She could then divine her future husband by chanting, ‘If you love me, pop and fly; if you hate me, burn and die.’ Several methods used the apple, that most popular of Halloween fruits. You should slice an apple through the equator (to reveal the five-pointed star within) and then eat it by candlelight before a mirror. Your future spouse will then appear over your shoulder. Or, peel an apple, making sure the peeling comes off in one long strand, reciting, ‘I pare this apple round and round again; / My sweetheart’s name to flourish on the plain: / I fling the unbroken paring o’er my head, / My sweetheart’s letter on the ground to read.’ Or, you might set a snail to crawl through the ashes of your hearth. The considerate little creature will then spell out the initial letter as it moves.

Perhaps the most famous icon of the holiday is the jack-o-lantern. Various authorities attribute it to either Scottish or Irish origin. However, it seems clear that it was used as a lantern by people who traveled the road this night, the scary face to frighten away spirits or faeries who might otherwise lead one astray. Set on porches and in windows, they cast the same spell of protection over the household. (The American pumpkin seems to have forever superseded the European gourd as the jack-o-lantern of choice.) Bobbing for apples may well represent the remnants of a Pagan ‘baptism’ rite called a ‘seining’, according to some writers. The water-filled tub is a latter-day Cauldron of Regeneration, into which the novice’s head is immersed. The fact that the participant in this folk game was usually blindfolded with hands tied behind the back also puts one in mind of a traditional Craft initiation ceremony.

The custom of dressing in costume and ‘trick-or-treating’ is of Celtic origin with survivals particularly strong in Scotland. However, there are some important differences from the modern version. In the first place, the custom was not relegated to children, but was actively indulged in by adults as well. Also, the ‘treat’ which was required was often one of spirits (the liquid variety). This has recently been revived by college students who go ‘trick-or-drinking’. And in ancient times, the roving bands would sing seasonal carols from house to house, making the tradition very similar to Yuletide wassailing. In fact, the custom known as ‘caroling’, now connected exclusively with mid-winter, was once practiced at all the major holidays. Finally, in Scotland at least, the tradition of dressing in costume consisted almost exclusively of cross-dressing (i.e., men dressing as women, and women as men). It seems as though ancient societies provided an opportunity for people to ‘try on’ the role of the opposite gender for one night of the year. (Although in Scotland, this is admittedly less dramatic – but more confusing – since men were in the habit of wearing skirt-like kilts anyway. Oh well…)

To Witches, Halloween is one of the four High Holidays, or Greater Sabbats, or cross-quarter days. Because it is the most important holiday of the year, it is sometimes called ‘THE Great Sabbat.’ It is an ironic fact that the newer, self-created Covens tend to use the older name of the holiday, Samhain, which they have discovered through modern research. While the older hereditary and traditional Covens often use the newer name, Halloween, which has been handed down through oral tradition within their Coven. (This is often holds true for the names of the other holidays, as well. One may often get an indication of a Coven’s antiquity by noting what names it uses for the holidays.)

With such an important holiday, Witches often hold two distinct celebrations. First, a large Halloween party for non-Craft friends, often held on the previous weekend. And second, a Coven ritual held on Halloween night itself, late enough so as not to be interrupted by trick-or-treaters. If the rituals are performed properly, there is often the feeling of invisible friends taking part in the rites. Another date which may be utilized in planning celebrations is the actual cross-quarter day, or Old Halloween, or Halloween O.S. (Old Style). This occurs when the sun has reached 15 degrees Scorpio, an astrological ‘power point’ symbolized by the Eagle. This year (1988), the date is November 6th at 10:55 pm CST, with the celebration beginning at sunset. Interestingly, this date (Old Halloween) was also appropriated by the Church as the holiday of Martinmas.

Of all the Witchcraft holidays, Halloween is the only one that still boasts anything near to popular celebration. Even though it is typically relegated to children (and the young-at-heart) and observed as an evening affair only, many of its traditions are firmly rooted in Paganism. Interestingly, some schools have recently attempted to abolish Halloween parties on the grounds that it violates the separation of state and religion. Speaking as a Pagan, I would be saddened by the success of this move, but as a supporter of the concept of religion-free public education, I fear I must concede the point. Nonetheless, it seems only right that there SHOULD be one night of the year when our minds are turned toward thoughts of the supernatural. A night when both Pagans and non-Pagans may ponder the mysteries of the Otherworld and its inhabitants. And if you are one of them, may all your jack-o’lanterns burn bright on this All Hallow’s Eve.