Winds of Change

Today the winds are howling in New Jersey and it seems pretty fitting. I have this theory that the moment I get comfortable with complacency, the Universe kicks me into gear. I’ve asked to learn through joy and love and peace – and in many aspects I am starting to do so. But there is a part of me that resists, clings to old patterns of pain, and only responds when my world is shaken up a bit.

Air is a magnificent element; it can turn a spark into a devastating forest fire. Air can magnify anything, smolder the best intention, or simply be a gentle knowing nudge. Sometimes the winds of change blow so fiercely, it almost feels like an unbearable punishment but we should know better than that. When we are stuck, when we have not progressed as we should, and when time wasted starts outweighing forward motion…the Universe takes drastic measures to get our attention.

The challenge then is not to resist when the winds of change blow something new into your life. If we are being truly honest with ourselves, the resistance is likely fear and the Universe is simply giving us the push we need to transcend. So let the winds of change blow your hair around a bit and enjoy the ride!

A Year Without

A whole year has passed since my last blog. However, time is not linear to those of us walking an esoteric path. So in my reality, I am always blogging. Ideas come to me everywhere, everyday, always. The wind blows and I long to write about its refreshing powers. The sun rises and my heart soars. The sun sets and I contemplate solace. Rain falls and I am renewed again. Weather is an ever present source of inspiration and yet the powers of Mother Nature ought not to be taken lightly. The Source of all that is can not (and will not) be contained merely in a thunderstorm or a tornado. We hide behind technology and sequester ourselves with ideas and yet when Mother Nature flexes her muscles we are helpless.

Do not let an entire year pass without doing that which most brings joy into your life. Smell the roses but mind the thorns. And in the meantime, I'll whip this blog into shape!

Don't Be Such A Witch!

Throughout the course of time, the Path has been challenging for its followers. Certainly, calling oneself a “witch” can have consequences in the modern world as well. Many people conjure up Hollywood illusions as a means to define what they perceive to be true about witches today. In fact, integrating the witchy me and the real world me has proven to be much more difficult than I can express.

Truth be told, I have spent many lifetimes walking this Path. However, as much as I yearn to stalk off to the forest and live under the stars…the reality is that I live in New Jersey. Incorporating my views with the broader population, living my beliefs without losing sight of reality, and deciphering exactly what that means for me in this lifetime – are some of the challenges I face as a Daughter of the Moon.

I have never done “normal” particularly well. Crows and ravens follow me where ever I go, I can sense what you’re feeling whether you express it or not, and making “things” happen is my specialty. So you can imagine that dating is a bit difficult for me too. However, walking a spiritual path in New Jersey does have its advantages though. After all, this is a mysterious state in itself, with tales of a Devil, and a richly Weird history worth deeper exploration. I know the Universe has placed me here for a reason and I look forward to seeing what’s next.

Conversely, it matters not whether we call ourselves Lightworkers, Witches, Jews, or Gentiles. We all must face the uncertainty, adversity and temptation of the modern world as we seek to uncover the mysteries of our soul…

Aries Full Moon Spells Action!

"Corn and grain, corn and grain,All that falls shall rise again."- Wiccan Harvest Chant

True faith can only be found in action. It is in the DOING of something we may not be 100 percent sure how to even do that courage is born. Faith is not a collection of meaningless words, it is not a burden or even a religious creed to be followed numbly. Rather it is the very tool, a gift from Spirit to aide in achieving the impossible.

Every single time that we step forward on faith, we reward Spirit by trusting that the Great Creator will light your way. The dark roads of life can only be illuminated in this way. Our faith is not like night-vision goggles but rather it is found in the trusting that all will be revealed as needed along the way.

We may know what we want but Spirit knows what we need. Always and ever. When we have faith, we abandon our selfish desire to control the boat, trusting the winds of change to direct us properly. All is NOT blind and the action of Faith must always have a starting point. The starting point of Faith is NOW. It isn't when we have more money, or less pressures on our time and energy. It isn't when we've graduated from night classes or when the little ones leave the nest. The starting point of Faith is not some distant future destination - it is right now, exactly we stand in this moment.

The miracle happens when we have the headache, when we are working on no sleep, when we are emotionally drained, defeated or afraid. Certainly, Faith is an action and when it happens in these moments, it is even more powerful than we can imagine.

Give thanks for that stale bread, the leaky roof, the rickety car. Bless your circumstances and they will bless you. We must appreciate what we have, otherwise Spirit will never bless us with more. If we live in a perpetual state of lacking - we will always continue to want more and feel empty. Conversely, when we take the time to find things to be grateful for...Spirit takes the time to bestow us with more abundance than we could ever imagine.

So today, bless your circumstances exactly as they are. Find five things every day to be grateful for, write them in your gratitude journal and honor them with all of your heart. We can learn through joy but only when we carry that joy in our hearts first. Spirit is the mirror of what we hold, Spirit hears the repetition in our thoughts and watches our actions. If we understand that Spirit will reflect back to us what we show, we must make these reflections positive ones.

Today, as the winds begin to chill, the growing moon hangs full and low in the October night sky, and these magical leaves begin to change colors rest assured that it's never too late to begin anew. You know, us witches believe there is magic in the changing leaves...if they can transform so beautifully before they die...so too can we.

Harvesting Your Soul: Autumnal Equinox

Ecclesiastes 3:1 says,"To everything there is a season, and a time to every purpose under the heaven.” And at no time is this cycle felt more relevantly than at the Autumnal Equinox when the long lazy days of summer officially give way to the crisp rich energy of fall. As the Sun moves into the balanced sign of Libra, we will begin to reap what we have sown over the past months of Light. Now is the perfect time to examine where you are in your life and use the stored up energy of Autumn to push forward as you enter the next phases of your life.

I have always been in love with the fall season above all the others. Something in my Sagittarius soul welcomes this time of year with arms wide open. I am more prolific, more energized, more in tuned with the IS that IS. Knowing, the time of year that resonates within you can be the key to optimally planning your year and maximizing the energy that works best with you. For me, fall is the springtime of my life. Each beautifully colored leaf represents a flower of possibility waiting to be accomplished.

09-09-09 and the Power of Three

When mystical meets mathematics, the result can be a combination that literally brings magic to life. Today the Internet is a blaze with tips about what makes 09-09-09 so interesting. In numerology, nine is one of the most spiritual numbers. It's firmly related to prophesy, intuition, psychic flashes, clairvoyance, and inborn wisdom...the energy of this day flows like water. With three 9's in this day, the energy is magnified by the all encompassing Power of Three as 3 signifies Divine completion. Today, as many couples race to the alter, witches will surely utilize their favorite divination tools and no doubt marketers in this struggling economy will capitalize. But no matter where we fall into this equation, the deeper question we should ponder is how can we harness the unseen and use it in our everyday lives especially on those days when magical numbers seem to elude us?

The number 9 relating to a balanced numerological personality or cyclical timing energy is most often associated with tolerance, generosity, forgiveness, passion, creative energy, success, romance, benevolence, and a deep love of life. Choose one of these areas today and create a few affirmations that you can place on your alter, in your power journals or strewn about where you'll be able to see them.

As nine is the last of the digits, it marks an end...with the waning moon, today could also be a terrific time to clear out the old in preparation of magnificent gifts to follow. What has been holding you back in your relationships, what stumbling blocks have hindered your career, what has prevented your spiritual journey? Be still and let Spirit whisper the answers to you...today and everyday.

The Spiritual Closet Part One: Awakening

"If every day is an awakening, you will never grow old. You will just keep growing." ~ Gail Sheehy

For those of us consciously walking a spiritual path, it can sometimes be a daunting task deciding when to publicly introduce our “spiritual-self” to the rest of the world. Integrating the two worlds is even more challenged when your “religion” is not of the mainstream variety.

And no matter what you call yourself be it pagan, witch, or simply of The Path…our beliefs being mystic in nature have long caused backlash, exclusion, ridicule and even death in some cases.

I was raised Roman Catholic and attended Catholic school until I was sixteen years old. You can imagine the guilt, confusion and loneliness that shrouded my journey to discovering my truth. As a teenager I began reading about many other religions, devouring books on Buddhism, Islam, Jewish Mysticism, and Wicca. I was determined to find “IT”…but what I found was more questions, struggle and uncertainty.

For reasons not totally revealed to me this day, I have difficulty recalling large portions of my childhood. However, as my clarity and spiritual strength has grown so too have the meanings behind some aspects of my youth. Each person’s journey is uniquely woven together with lessons, highlighted by karma and punctuated with fate. Only when we pause, be still and reflect can we fully see the cyclical nature of time and appreciate each detail, relishing in its significance.

As a young girl, being raised in the church meant that my “authority” was limited so I often struggled to find my spiritual voice. I can vividly remember saying “mass” to a group of my favorite stuffed animals and giving homilies modeled after the one’s I heard from the priest at Sunday services. But though I was connected to Jesus and Christianity, I felt limited by the outdated, iron fist approach that the church seemed to thrust upon its believers.

Nature always called to me in a way that words fail to accurately describe. I could hear music in a gently blown breeze that rustled the leaves and felt that God was singing just for me. And as a woman, I had a hard time believing in the law of duality without acknowledging the feminine aspects of The All that Is.

For me, coming out the Spiritual Closest means finding a balance between the solitary and public aspects of what it means to walk The Path. Often times I am so connected to this world that I run the risk of drowning out messages from other worlds in the process. As mystical people in a society fueled largely by negative energy we have been called here as Lightworkers and that means part of our very mission is to bring light into this darkness. Awakening to this calling is the first step…and as they say, the journey of many miles begins with the first step.