April 30th, 2013

I started reading Margot Adler's Drawing Down the Moon today, and even though I'm not twenty pages in, I'm in love! This fascinating text is a completely revised and updated history of the Pagan movement in the United States, including information on the many paths of Paganism, how Pagans apply their beliefs to "real life", and what festivals and rituals are like. She draws from thousands of interviews, includes pictures, and generally writes in a style that thus far is unbiased and relatable. Can't wait to read more!
In other news (I use that expression a lot, don't I?), my AP Environmental class went outside today, just to enjoy the 70+ degree weather. My school has a restored prairie on one side, containing native grasses, wild flowers, and some trees, and it was through here that we got to walk. It's very pretty, even though many of the plants won't put out leaves until late May, and we saw several ducks swimming in a puddle. Right now, our class is growing various native plants indoors, and once the last chance of frost is over, we'll plant them out in a new section of prairie. It's really cool to get to connect with nature in a way that is actively restoring habitat, and it's even better to be able to do so in a way that promotes further human interaction with the landscape. Most people don't understand the need to conserve nature until they've been out in it.

April 29th, 2013

Due to a musical festival going on at my school this afternoon, we were released early, and I got home at 11:30! I was struck while walking back from the bus stop by just how nice today's weather is. In my little corner of the world, it's a balmy 70 degrees with a gentle breeze, birds singing, trees budding, and dozens of perky dandelions popping up to see what's going on. I get grumpy during the winter, being cooped up inside all day, and now that we're getting deep into spring I just feel like opening all the windows and drinking in the fresh air.
In thinking of all things Pagan, it occurred to me just now that Beltane is this Wednesday! It looks like the good weather hit just in time for the sabbat, folks. I won't be doing a big Maypole dance or anything (non-Pagan parents and all), but I have a miniature version I crafted last year that's both cute and simple.

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To make an altar-sized Maypole, you will need:

• One wooden dowel
• Two ribbons 
• One red, one white, and both double the length of the dowel
• A thumb tack
• Any desired paints or decorations

If you wish to do so, decorate the dowel with paints, glitter, stickers, and any

other desired mediums. This is an easy projects for kids, so feel free to get the little ones involved. Hold the finished dowel firmly in place. If you have a narrow vase you can put it in, or a ball of play-doh in which to stick the end, that works too (1). Lay the middle of the two ribbons over the end of the dowel, crossing each other, so that the halves of each ribbon hang down the sides in equal length (2). It should look like you have four shorter ribbons attached to the pole's top. Then secure the ribbons in place by driving the thumb tack all the way into the dowel through the ribbons (3). Depending on your dowel size, it looks something like a little cap on the rod's end.
That's all there is to it - in ritual or at another desired time, braid the ribbons around the dowel as you would a larger Maypole. I only used the two long ribbons because four shorter ones were all I could handle alone. If you plan to use your altar Maypole with a friend or two, add more ribbons as desired.

April 25th, 2013

.....

I got my books today!

The left book is Scott Cunningham's Earth, Air, Fire, & Water, a book about
elemental magick, and the one on the right is Drawing Down the Moon, by Margot Adler, which is about the history of Paganism in the United States. I'm finishing up the last book in The Lord of the Rings right now; these are on my list-of-things-to-read as soon as I'm done! In the meantime, I'll just have to sit and stare at them...

April 24th, 2013

At long last, spring seems to be getting settled. We had clear skies today and relatively warm weather, the daffodils are blooming, and Hazelnut's cat, Gypsy, just had kittens! I can't wait to see pictures!

Due to big standardized tests today and yesterday, our school was let out at 12:40 instead of 2:55, so I have a little more free time today than I usually do, especially now that I have my homework all done. I think I'll use some of that time to set up my Beltane altar, and then... I don't know. It's such a novel experience to not have things to do!

This picture is from a few days ago - we don't have snow anymore!

April 23rd, 2013

Happy belated Earth Day! My family celebrated in a couple of ways - on Saturday, we went to a forest preserve nearby where they were working on restoring the area to its natural Oak Savannah state. We ripped out invasive plants - buckthorn, honeysuckle, and non-native wild rose - to allow native wild flowers and grasses to grow in around the Oak trees. Since Oak Savannah is home to more endangered plants than any other terrestrial biome, this was an especially important project.

Here's what it looked like after a few hours of work. We burned the invasive plants in a giant bonfire - that's why it's so smoky. Then yesterday, my mom and brothers went to another forest preserve to pick up trash. I'd have gone with, but I had a ton of homework to do.
It also occurred to me yesterday that I had several Barnes and Noble gift cards to use, so I ordered Scott Cunningham's Earth, Air, Fire & Water and Margot Adler's Drawing Down the Moon. I love Scott Cunningham, and I've heard a lot about Alder's work, so I'm extremely happy with my choices. Hopefully they'll arrive this week!

April 14th, 2013

I don't even know what to do with myself right now. After four and a half months of some of the hardest work I've ever done, my high school's production of Les Miserables was absolutely astounding. Our final show out of seven was last night, and frankly, it was Broadway-quality. We were all crying backstage before the show (I don't think there was a dry eye in the cast), and some of us continued to cry while we were performing. Luckily, Les Mis is a show where that's totally in-character.
Last week Wednesday we had a preview rehearsal-show where kids from local elementary and middle schools came in to see us perform. Before we started that day, I took a little bottle of blessed salt water and sprinkled it around the stage to invoke creative positive energy and all that good jazz. Before each show, I also called on the Lady Minerva and Lord Dionysus, Goddess and God of theatre, to keep everyone's voices sounding awesome, to keep the microphones working, to have the lights be correct, for the orchestra pit to be awesome... The list goes on. It was probably a five to ten minute little ritual of mine, and in the end, it totally paid off; in my time at that school, we performed The Phantom of the Opera and West Side Story, both of which were fantastic shows, but Les Miserables blew everything my school has ever done out of the water. Almost a third of the cast is graduating this year, and I'll miss everyone terribly - if you're reading this, it'd be great if you could send them all some positive energy for their life at college and beyond.