This week’s Sidhe Shots theme is autumn, in honour of the recent Autumn Equinox/Mabon. Here in Southern Ontario we are finally experience hot, summer-like weather after our relatively cool summer, so it was difficult to find anything that brought to mind autumn. Within the next month, most of the trees will be turning brilliant shades of red, orange, and yellow. But for now, I had to be content with a few early leaves lying on the pavement.
The Pond has been on hiatus for the last ten days because I was taking some time to do some re-evaluation of different aspects of my life, projects that I am working on, and other things. Closets were cleaned, items were put up on eBay, decisions were made about where my course of study should and shouldn’t go. I am pleased with what I did, and I look forward to seeing the final results.
I should be back on schedule with (near) daily entries. 🙂
I’ve received a few questions via comments and emails, so I thought I would take a moment to answer them.
Linda, the ** beside some of the blogs in my “Recommended” list means that those blogs have been updated recently. Some of the blogs may have been updated but not have **, and that is because the authors of those blogs don’t ping Blogrolling. (Blogrolling is the service I use to track updated blogs, and to ping it means to tell it that you have updated your blog.)
Cayce, gMail is an online mail service offered by the people who gave us Google. It is a much nicer service then Hotmail, and it offers you a lot more room. (1 gig, for those to whom that number makes sense.) It is currently invitation only to get an account, since the service is still in its beta testing phase. I still have four invites left, if anyone is interested.
Autumn, I tried to do NaNoWriMo last year, but I got so discouraged. I was far too much of a perfectionist. I am planning on giving it another try this year, with lowered expectations. 😉
I’ve moved beyond the stage of not writing because I felt that I didn’t have anything to say. I’m now in the perfectionist stage–unsure of the strength of my voice, the validity of my message, and fearing I lack the skills to pull it off. I’m tired of being stuck in this rut, but I am afraid to move forward. It is safe to stay where I am; there is no risk and no chance of failure.
I realize that I am failing to live up to my dreams and my potential. I am wasting so much time thinking and complaining about my lack of progress. I am also procrastinating by finding books to read on creativity (Ha!) and by doing endless amounts of research. Every once in a while, I say to myself “Enough is enough! Sit down and write the damn thing before your head explodes.” But I don’t, because I have some obligation to fulfill or something “more important” comes up.
So why don’t I start on my book tonight? Well, I have a couple of obligations to fulfill, and I hate to let people down… expect myself, obviously.
I have six Gmail invites to give away to the first six people to leave a comment (with their vaild email address!). Get ’em while their hot… or at least luke warm. *shrug*
I’m a couple of days behind with my weekly memes. I kept myself busy this weekend with working, washing, reading, and napping. Now it is nearly time to head back to work for a (thankfully) shortened work week. Last week was my first six day week, but I am treated to a four day week this week due to the Monday holiday and having this coming Saturday off. I’d head to work full of smiles either way, since I am really enjoying what I am doing.
On to the memes!
Witches Weekly – Teachers and Training
This weeks questions donated by: Autumn
1. What kind of training (if any) have you had in your chosen spiritual path (workshops, seminary, coven, courses, etc)?
Most of training has been done independently. I’m the sort of person who prefers to figure things out on their own. Although, for nearly two years I was part of the Delphi Coven, which as a group within The Coven of the Far Flung Net, an online training coven. I tried to remain part of CFFN even after its restructuring, but I discovered that UEW was not the right tradition for me the deeper I got into the training. I have also taken part in a few Witch School courses, but this is another tradition I do not feel any affinity for.
2. Who have been the people who have influenced you the most along your spiritual path?
The members of Delphi Coven influenced me in wonderful ways, encouraging me to think about what I really believed. The head of CFFN also influenced me, but mostly by representing the opposite of what I was looking for. (I wouldn’t trade my time in CFFN for anything though, since I did learn a great deal from her that I totally agree with.)
A lot of others, many who are nameless, have influenced me through their bad history and misinformation. I have been driven to seek out my own truths because of these things.
3. What skills, values, and/or areas of expertise do you seek in a spiritual mentor or teacher?
Firstly, I need someone that I can get along with and who shares a similar world view. Secondly, I need someone who is confident in their own faith (of course, we all have questions) and who doesn’t feel the need to bash others of the same or different faiths. Thirdly, I need someone who is knowledgable about both occult and mundane topics, and is willing to use mundane tools in order to teach and learn. And, perhaps most importantly, I need someone who has a secure relationship with the divine.
Unconscious Mutterings: Week 83
This week’s Sidhe Shots theme is Spirit, continuing the Element theme of the past weeks. I have been having a difficult time coming up with a picture that captures my idea of Spirit, also known as Akasha. I see it as the animating force, that thing (whatever it is) that allows us to live and thrive. I also see it as the force that allows magic to happen. Then it came to me: a picture showing life triumphing in an unexpected place. The picture below is of wild flowers growing through a crack in the sidewalk near the busy Lakeshore Road in Toronto. It was an unexpected joy to see them.
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Also known as Silverlotus & Stitchinglotus
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