CONJURINGS

NEW POST ON MY NEW BLOG

2010-02-23T17:56:00.000-08:00

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"I think of myself as a sort of spiritual anthropologist and constant tourist. A priestess of the six billion Dieties that peek out from the eyes of my sisters and brothers upon this planet. A True Believer. A believer in You. A translator, transcriber, archeologist, and linguist."-- From the post A Guided Tour of My Reality

It is time for a new face and a new place! So please follow me!

Conjurings is still a wonderful treasure trove, and I invite you to delve into the archives.

Especially those of you that, several times a week, search for information on Mary Poppins as a witch! (I've two posts: one on the movie, one on the book.)

WOW, IS MY FACE RED OR WHAT?

2010-01-29T15:14:00.000-08:00

...Martian red that is... Mars perigee in Leo, opposing my natal Mars in Aquarius, is kicking my behind. This week I feel like Elphaba, in Wicked. At the beginning of the musical she has a vision of a "celebration throughout Oz that's all because of me!"

Of course, what she is seeing is the celebration of her death. She's not really a wicked witch, she was a political witch-- aligning herself with the talking Animals, demanding fairness and equality. With her principles and her power she was doomed from the start.

This week I've felt like I did all the wrong things for the right reasons. In fact, this week I feel like I am serving time in a reality where everything I do with the "right" intentions, and with genuine desire and willingness, comes out "wrong." And, worse, that like Elphaba, I cannot be who I am authentically without being "wrong."

And then there is all the accidents and aggression that seems to hover just near me. Not to mention really stupid things, like not being able to log into my new blog because I have forgotten my username. (And while I have put in the proper answer to my secret question, it must not be formatted right, because Google keeps rejecting me.)

About the best I have been able to do this week is bite my tongue before I say something I will regret, and just try to muddle through. But there is really nothing worse than trying to your best and discovering that you did the wrong thing!

This is the full moon in Leo, and it will conjunct Mars. I will be doing some sort of meditation tonight, and my best attempt at celebrating. (There is a great song for Leo Full moon rites by Aphrodesia called "Every Day" that will get you up and dancing and you know Leo likes a show off!!!)

But for the most part I think I am going to lay low and avoid the radar.

I hope that you are not in the same space I am in, but if so, take heart. This too shall pass.

Do the best you can.

And if you are doing great and that Mars energy is giving you lots of energy and passion and lovers, well, dance, sing, laugh, cast some spells and be kind to those of us with the flaming faces!!!

PRAISES, THANKS, & BLESSINGS!!!

CHANGE YOUR BOOKMARKS PLEASE!!

2010-01-24T18:44:00.000-08:00

My new blog location:

http://www.laladyrae.blogspot.com/

Please follow me there!!!

MOVING

2010-01-13T12:50:00.000-08:00

I am moving to a new blog address (and name for my psychic services/business). Conjure Woman is what I am-- those of you that have summoned me or been summoned know!-- but I am other things as well, and I like change.

I am moving to my new blog shortly "Rae of Light." Details to follow!

MONEY IS SPIRITUAL

2010-01-01T14:11:00.000-08:00

Happy New Year!

I predict this will be the year that collectively and globally humans will begin to understand money. How much they need what it really represents, and how little they need the actual paper or coinage.

Money is not based on nature. If the monetary value of something was based on nature a hamburger would NOT cost $1, even in the U.S., even at a fast food restaurant. The cost to the sustainability of this planet is much greater. Likewise, less than two apples (what you can get for a buck at the grocery store these days) is not of comparable worth to the planet.

(And note I say "sustainability." We need to think in terms of keeping this planet supportive of us. We need to stay in healthy balance with nature-- that is what the "green" movement is really about. The planet can live without us. Do you think we could live on this planet if it got say, 50 degrees warmer? It's been millions of degrees hotter than it is right now. We would do well to cultivate a temperate climate.)

Money is stored human energy (effort and time) and the collective promises of different entities, groups, and nations to honour it with an approximate exchange value. Money will not buy things that do not exist.

For instance, we cannot buy more honey to keep the honey bees from dying. And we will not be able to continue life as we know it without the honeybee! (Two out of every three bites of food an American takes depends on honeybee pollination.) If we throw off this seemingly small lifeform we put our own lives in peril. Money has no power to rectify this situation.

Yet even when money does have power, it does not always rule in favour of human need. Here we are surrounded by empty houses, yet because of our "economic" situation-- our lack of "money"-- it's empty homes surrounded by homeless people, or people doubled and tripled up. Why? How does this make sense to anyone? There is no "housing shortage" or "housing crunch".

Paradoxically, it will be this "recession" and our understanding of how much we need money-- how much we have created a world where this exchange system rules-- and how it is important to keep the flow of money even and fair (and not too heavy on the side of the buyer or seller, lender or debtor) that we will come to understand what the true power of money really is....

(drumroll? or is it obvious?)

My Own Natural Energy Yield, is how one little green book I read phrased it. Money is human energy and the promise to honour it's assigned value. This is basically an agreement between people.

("Money is people! It's people!" I say, in my best Charlton Heston accent. ;o)

Money is simply the belief that if I give you $400 or $40000 or $4 of my energy you will provide me with something of equal value to me. The over-mortgaged and under-tenanted landlord could provide cheaper housing, but s/he chooses not to, but then complains at the prices at stores, or the utility bills going up, or worse, loses the real estate.

Our economy has moved to far away from our communities. We have forgotten that we need each other. We need to learn to at least tolerate, if not accept, each other, and we need to remember that money is really about our own energy. If we can get other people to join us in working toward a common goal we will not need a lot of money to accomplish it.

If we are willing to put effort into everything that we do, regardless of how much or how little money we get for doing it, then we will only do things that are truly beneficial, and we will create prosperity in our communities, and a network for ourselves. One that is truly powerful.

Or, conversely, our need of money-- energy to use freely, with no obligation or consideration of another person-- will teach us how connected we are, even the parts of the world that we do not like-- even those that we hate, or hate us. I listen to zealots rant against Wal-mart, or Rush Limbaugh (or pick someone on the Left or Right of your choice), but they still buy gas, or work for a Wal-mart affiliate, or some such.

I doubt even the most extreme zealots would turn away money if it came from their hated oppresors/nemesis/opponents. (Probably delight even more in using it against them!) And you cannot exchange energy with someone without learning something about them. Without taking a part of them into you. So eventually, that exchange would create greater understanding and awareness, and hopefully, more healthy diversity and prosperity for all.

Money is king. Money is the thing. Money is what everyone says they want. So remember how super powerful it is, but also never forget where it actually comes from: you. "My Own Natural Energy Yield."

It is important to spend your money (and your time and your energy) wisely this year. Support your local neighborhood-- the people you see every day. And choose the people you see every day. Get yourself into an environment that is nurturing and sustaining, where the Circle of Life, the flow of giving and receiving is obvious.

Find the things you love and give them all the nurturing you have to give this year. Whether it is your dollar or your time and attention.

And try to make yourself a little money and spend when you can, to keep the flow going. Even paying off debts is spending money! This is the year we can all learn to master our finances!

HAPPY NEW YEAR!

PRAISES, THANKS, & BLESSINGS!!!!

The blessings of this year are numerous! The shift in consciousness that we needed to make to move on to the Age Avatars appears to have been navigated successfully! Macro Wo/Man is here, building the way for the world of 2150 AD!!! We are surrounded by love and light! Pure heavenly pink love light!

Hopefully everyone will reach for this new future, but do stay receptive to the karma of those around you, as it may be playing out differently than your own. My advice is to stay as non-judgemental as possible, and of course, keep tapping that serenity and love vibe as often as possible!!!!!

NEW MOON IN SAG 2009

2009-12-15T15:55:00.000-08:00

Tomorrow, Wednesday December 16, is the new moon in Sagittarius. In short, this is the last new moon of the calendar year. However, for witches and other magickal entities, this is the last new moon of the fallow time of the Magickal Year.

The period between Samhain (the ancestor of Halloween and New Year for witches) and the Winter Solstice, Yule, is considered a "fallow time." In the past, this would have been the period after the animals had been slaughtered for food, and the crops harvested. While not a time of idle or leisure-- everything would need to be stored and "put up" for food, plus preparations for the Solstice festivities and feasts-- it was a "fallow" time in terms of harvesting or breeding.

Personally, I don't generally do any magickal work during this time. The moons that fall between this time (generally Scorpio and Sag new, and Taurus and Gemini full) I celebrate, but with a party only, and attendance isn't mandatory. (I suppose even the elementals and other spirits like a holiday! I imagine them, lying on beach in Jamaica, sipping daquiris!)

Tonight is a great night to dream your dreams for the new calendar year. And a nice little soiree tomorrow night for the new moon wouldn't be a bad idea either. The Lady loves to get dressed up and be entertained, and in the fanfare of the Holiday Season she is often overlooked. So give the gal a toast, if you can, and maybe write down a few resolutions for January 1st, if you do that sort of thing.

On December 20th, in the evening after dark, through the night on December 21st, I will be holding a "public" ritual. If you are in St Louis area, certainly you can participate in person (call my voice mail and leave a message 323 856 6193), or you can participate astrally, or just be with us "in spirit."

2010 promises to be, as the Chinese saying goes, "interesting times." Let's greet "the dawn of the year" with a true Feast and Festival!! I am still working out the details and awaiting further "communication" on the exact details, but I think a vigil through the night the 20th, greeting the dawn (perhaps at the riverfront? or Forest Park?), and of course, lots of wine, song, and revelry for the night of the 21st (after an afternoon nap to recover from the vigil).

PRAISES, THANKS, & BLESSINGS!!!

conjurewoman1@yahoo.com

PS-- How is that crazy Mars perigee working for you? Yeah, tell me about it! This "make everyone angry/insane/pumped up/accident prone" is in direct opposition to my natal Mars...grr... ;o)

THINGS I LEARNED FROM WATCHING MANANNAN MACLIR

2009-11-10T20:55:00.000-08:00

Manannan Maclir was the son of the sea god Lir, and a god in his own right as well. Because Manannan could see that all things were essentially one, he rode his horse across the ocean waves as if they were leaves of grass upon a meadow. His horse was shining and bright, and looked like the sparkle of sunshine on the waters.

Had you watched the sunrise over the Pacific ocean the day of Samhain, you might have seen Mannanan upon his horse.

(In Malibu-- because of the coastline, somehow-- the full moon and the rising sun come up over the water. You look out at the water to the East, on the West coast. Even when you look at the map it doesn't fathom, but I admit to having used a compass to make sure.)

I saw the son of Lir and his legendary equine shortly after conversing with his father. Meditating upon the waves I could hear him laughing at me.

"The transformative powers you seek are always here," said the slow, steady heart beat of the tide.

And I understood that, of course, even on the darkest night, the sun has not disappeared. It is on the other side of the world, but it is not gone.

"You are so serious," screeched the seagulls. "Silly girl, you think this time comes only once a year."

The next world, and all that is in it, is always there. But at this time of year we become acutely aware of it-- i.e., the doorway between the worlds opens.

"We are more aware of each other than ever before," whispered the spirit winds.

The winds don't often speak for themselves. (Unless you speak directly to them, as you should when learning to call them, or ask them to stop blowing.) They were speaking for the dead.

I felt the press of the spirits all around me. And so strongly this year. Walking to the bus stop on Saturday afternoon I'd seen two apparitions, women sitting at the bust stop. They disappeared almost in plain sight. And whenever I would pass someone in solitude I would wonder if it were a spirit.

And so many electrical upsets when spirits are out and about. One was good, a friend reported a lamp turning on of its' own accord when she was searching for it. But most were like my computer completely losing power and shutting down while I was writing an email.

And there was a definite evil pixie at work in many of the communication problems of the day-- dropped calls, bad cell service, missed connections. And the bone chilling cold (for So Cal), even Woodland Hills needed a jacket!

This year I was very much reminded that there is a reason the worlds remain seperate. It's just too much. I always feel sorry for those psychics on television shows that can't tell when they are talking to a ghost until someone else comes in the room.

I actually prefer the vague symbolism and squinty eyed peering through the mists that I have to do, because it is just to tiresome to really see everything. (Ever had to "see" someone having diarrhea? uh, yeah, I have, and it is as bad as being present at your own.)

And with six billion people on the planet, the dead need to stay wavery and indistinct.

At least for most of the year.

It is nice to have a night when witches ride purple broomsticks through the sky, and you can borrow magick from stories (like Hellboy 2). The world of imagination is really where all the worlds that leave this one go. Worlds like Tir na nOg, where Mannanan Maclir was from. Or Heaven. And also the world of Star Wars, and Thundercats.

What we call reality is really just the lens of the kaliedescope that we are peering through at the moment. There are many worlds and realities in the universe. Indeed, there are many just in each person-- both living and dead!

And we are now watching the tidal wave of all of these worlds coming together. A New World awaits.

How will we choose? And especially those of us that live in a world where the "otherworldly" is commonplace? Where we do not wonder if there are witches, or psychics or mediums, or if these things are "real"? We who can see through the onion skin of this world.

There aren't that many of us.

But what we "vote" for, the reality we put our energy into, has great influence right now.

That is why it is so important to really listen to what you are saying and thinking, because right now there is so much power in your thoughts, and so often the communication process between conscious and subconscious-- or earthly and astral, or mental and physical-- is such that every thought is a directive about how your own world is.

The (YO)Universe takes your beliefs and judgements about others as a basis for your own karma. How you treat others is how you want to be treated yourself. And if you use your mind for healing, or practice magick, or use prayer to manifest things or changes-- then you are doubly powerful, but also doubly vulnerable.

For all the opening up in beliefs, and visions-- it would still be shocking for most people to witness a levitation that was not a television magician illusionist. (Yes, there is that possibility it is not an illusion. )

And it creeps people out to have their thoughts read. And not just because everyone has something to hide-- in other words, thoughts they do not wish others to see. It is because it is an unfair advantage. It is still a "power" or a sixth sense.

If there is something you desire right now, or that you are working towards, you must try to live as much as possible as if you already have it. I would rule out having any negative thoughts about anyone.

As soon as you find yourself thinking about something that makes you feel bad or is negative, I would find something to say, like a mantra, or an image, and put it right in front of you.

(I am able to offer this suggestion because I must do it myself many, many times ever day! Re-wiring the mind, and maintaining the upgrades, takes vigilance!)

Rock solid faith is the bridge of stones that will arise out of the ocean, one at a time, as you cross it.

See yourself healthy, fit, wealthy, happy, safe, whole, loved, laughing. If you cannot find a way to see someone else who has entered your reality-- for whatever reason-- than try to re-focus your attention on yourself.

There is turmoil in all the world's right now. Go carefully and gently and you should make it through the chaos intact. And by keeping your wits about you will be able to find everything you need for the next part of your journey.

These are the things I learned from watching Mannanan Maclir riding across the waves, as if they were leaves of grass upon a meadow.

PRAISES, THANKS, & BLESSINGS!!!
conjurewoman1@yahoo.com

SAMHAIN 2009

2009-11-04T10:21:00.000-08:00

For anyone in America, even the East Coast, Samhain is this Saturday night, November 7th sunset, to Sunday, November 8th at sunset. (approx 1900 PST)

Samhain (the ancestor of Halloween), the Druidic New Year and feast of the dead, is celebrated when the sun reaches 15 degrees of Scorpio. The Celts believed that a new day began at sunset. Samhain was the sunset of the year, and the period until Yule the darkness before dawn, a fallow time.

To really learn more about Samhain (and its' sister holiday, Bealtaine), search this blog for the label "Samhain."

This year feels spectacularly different than any I've experienced. I believe that this Samhain, and the three to come, are the biggest turning points in the coming new age-- what I call the Age of Avatars. The final turns of the screw in our new consciousness and way of life.

So this time bears some importance, some contemplation, some deliberation, some responsible action. But this is also a time of chaos and disorder and upheaval. Tricky stuff. Just when balance is the most important, it is often the most difficult to maintain. Do your best.

Every year at Samhain the world of the living and the dead converge. All the spirits-- even those that have "crossed over" (that is a whole other blog right there)--can come back to visit.

Because the door between the worlds is open, it is important to be somewhat cautious, though, too. A time to look out for bad spirits - such as those of ancient family grudges, curses, karma, etc.

This year, however, everyone that usually doesn't show up until just around Halloween has been lurking since Midsummer Night. Everyone. And Everything. And it is not just the world of the living and the dead that are becoming fluid and generous with each other, it is also the world of dreams, and of lies, and possibilities, and projections.

Be careful what you wish for, indeed. Try to be very mindful of what you speak about, and how you speak, and to whom you speak. Each word carries three times the weight it normally does.

Now is a time for heroics-- especially heroic feats of self-awareness: change yourself and change the world.

Change your world.

This Samhain I suggest a ritual at sunset, and another at sunrise, with some heavy Universe/God/Consciousness meditation at midnight during a third ritual. I suggest a night of divination, contemplation, and mass immobilising.

(Normally maybe sunrise would not be a necessary component. Sunset and sunset-- but this year, the dawn needs to be greeted as well.)

There is a lot of change taking place right now. Take a moment to be still and exhale. To centre yourself in loving energy and connection to the past, the present, and the future. To all of those that came before you, great with love and thanks, and release as many old negative patterns as you can.

Midnight is probably the best time to burn any letters to the dead, or the living. To make amends and open the door to new possibilities. And to reach out in with a higher consciousness to all in this world, both sleeping and awake, with a vision of a better life, globally.

(RE: Midnight, I actually take the time of sunset to the time of sunrise, divide it in half, and use that as midnight, rather than 12 AM).

There is so much happening right now, and I would like to write more, but I am in the midst of my own changes, which require my full attention.

HAPPY MAGICKAL NEW YEAR!!!

PRAISES, THANKS, & BLESSINGS!!!
What are you doing for Samhain? conjurewoman1@yahoo.com

Edit: The events in Fort Hood make me glad for my ability to see the spiritual side of life. This world needs a lot of love and understanding right now.

2nd Edit: I will be dressed up like Nuala from Hellboy 2. Remember, on the astral plane every one always looks their best, but it is still fun to dress up. Besides, I am going to drop one of those "grow a forest" Titan balls on the planet and see if we can get everything healthy and balanced. A rain forest has a so much life in it and all diverse-- there must be a way for the human species to balance in a beneficial way for everyone. I hope to spy that for a moment during the night's meditations.

SHIFTING SANDS OF TIME

2009-10-15T12:13:00.000-07:00

The kind of shift in our world that is occurring right now is very difficult for many people to navigate. I believe that is the reason so many people are dying. The worlds are very fluid right, shifting into each other, and out of each other.

A witch needs her wits about her. And world walkers need to stay still. And if you are a psychic and have not developed or located your power, I would advise also staying as steady and stationary as possible.

With Pluto in Capricorn, digging up secrets and treasure and overturning graves, this is not a good time to engage in contradiction. This is a time of karma and balance, and lies will tip the scale, and not in your favour.

I would be interested in hearing from any fellow psychics and mediums regarding the amount of spooks and ooks out and about. They are here earlier and in greater force than in past years. (I can only speak with confidence since 1992, but certainly no Samhain doorway has opened as widely or as early since then.)

There is also an element here, as we reach the eye of the storm, of chaos suspended. If we want time to slow down, if we want to live longer, healthier, more satisfying lives-- if we are, in fact, to shift into the Age of Avatars and towards the type of world explored in 2150 AD by Thea Alexander--then we must accept that our journey through the hard times will have to be deliberate, sometimes tedious, and more studious.

If we want the good times to last, we have to wait out the storm with patience.

For witches, Jedi's, and others who strive to maintain the balance/force, this is a time to be especially decorous. I am invoking the great witch Mary Poppins, currently the subject of a Broadway musical, to rule the season.

As things change, some will be in a spirit of new life, and others in a spirit of death. To stroll sedately, to observe without expectation, but to discourage extremes of emotion- Uncle Albert's laughter, the banker father's anger-- will help to balance the contrast of celebrant versus mourner.

Finally, this Sunday is the last new moon before Samhain. Samhain, as the New Year, is the beginning of the fallow season, until Yule. This is a good New Moon to make charms for the coming winter-- travel charms, money candles, love oils, etc. Or to give as Yule/Christmas/Channukah gifts.

The New Moon is in Libra, but goes void immediately. Sunday during the day is good for money and some love spells, I think. Wednesday is stellar for travel and Mercury retrograde charms.

PRAISES, THANKS, & BLESSINGS!!!

Through Samhain (November 7th) I am offering readings of any kind for $31. Please call to schedule an appointment 323.856.6193

IF THERE IS ENOUGH OF SOMETHING

2009-09-23T11:40:00.000-07:00

...YOU DON'T WORRY ABOUT HAVING IT.

This is what the stars told me last at the beach, during a new moon/Mabon ritual and meditation.

I never worry about having a plastic grocery bag. Even when I was out walking a certain dog. You can always find one if you are in the city. In fact, if we don't stop making them soon, they will take over our planet.

I do worry about having enough money and a place to live. I have neither of those right now. This is one of the more difficult times in my life. But sometimes the test of how much power you really have is in the loss of it.

If there is enough of something, you don't worry about having enough of it.

This is the harvest. We approach Samhain and the New Year, and with it the fallow time of year. Let us take a moment to be thankful for what the year has brought, and not what we lack.

And be certain, too, that some crops may need to be harvested late this year. Sometimes patience yields the best fruit of all.

There are big changes happening. On a psychic/spiritual/astral level there are already as many spirits and spooks and ooks out and about now as usually appear around Halloween and Samhain. Why are they early? And why are there so many of them? And so many different kinds of astral dwellers?

And the Mars energy is so intense, especially with Mercury intersolar (the new more accurate term for "retrograde"), and all of those Saturn and Uranus aspects stirring things up. This is the part of the Great Awakening that I think we will later call "The Great Shake-Up."

A shift is about to happen. (Have you heard the wind whispering to you? The dead waking you in the middle of the night? The trees trying to tell you something? Listen.)

A new door to the astral level is opening. More power on a psychic and magickal and spiritual level is coming. Perhaps nothing can be arranged permanently until the shift has occurred.

And as a witch- and a fourth quarter moon in my natal chart, I always recieve the changes first or very last-- I suppose I must float with these currents and demonstrate my power.

Because there is enough for all of us. Enough power, enough love, enough money, enough homes, enough food, enough spirit, enough safety, enough health.

There is enough.

PRAISES, THANKS, AND BLESSINGS!!!!
conjurewoman1@yahoo.com

NINE NINE OH NINE

2009-09-08T22:33:00.001-07:00

I am lagging. I have no excuse! This really just hit me reading an article about the date tomorrow.

9-9-09. The last single digit until next century (2101-01-01). The nines of completion. The nines of mystery; the moment when the centre of the labyrinth is reached; when the enigma is understood.

9's are potent with power, magick, and are the keys to all doorways.

I suggest at 9:09 AM tomorrow--wherever you are, whatever you are doing--you stop and take a moment to make a wish, or say a prayer, or visualise something that you really want.

Let your thoughts and wishes be empowered and energised. Let the energy draw your desires to you.

I don't know if there are people that will experience tomorrow negatively. (I suppose there will be.) I also don't know what to make of this day falling on a Wednesday during the first week of a Mercury retrograde, while the sun is in Mercury's second sign of Virgo.

It seems likely that the magick of tomorrow will answer all of those questions.

Send out a little love to the Universe, and to the earth and all of her creatures!!!!
It will be multiplied not just by 3, but by 3 x 3!!!!!!

PRAISES, THANKS, & BLESSINGS!!!
conjurewoman1@yahoo.com

PS- if you do a Circle, I would suggest chanting "Merry Meet" when closing. I think this can serve to cement a relationship between you, the witch, and the energies. The magickal 9 energy from this day would be good to have a formal relationship with.

Merry meet is really kind of a spell or binding:

As merry we have met
As merry we have been
So merry may we part
And merry meet again!!!

FULL MOON IN PISCES 2009

2009-09-01T22:42:00.000-07:00

First I must point out that in my last post I said Mercury goes "retrograde" on the wrong date. I have corrected the previous post, but I just want to state the correct date: this Sunday at 9:45 PM PDT.

You know the Mercury intersolar drill ("intersolar" is more accurate than retrograde). Revise, rewrite, revisit, but probably no resolutions to problems or challenges until the beginning of October. And try not to sign any iron clad contracts. If you do, go over it three or four times before signing.

This is a great time to get together with old friends, and reconnect with your past. Especially with that super-powerful Mars/Pluto opposition still sending out shockwaves.

(And someone correct me if I am wrong, but didn't we "discover" the Austrian girl who'd been kept captive by her father during a Plutonic aspect to Mars? As I said, skeletons won't just rattle in the closets, they will walk the streets. The ghosts are already here this year, long before Samhain.)

About this full moon- exact tomorrow morning at 9 AM here in Cali, but that most of us witches will be celebrating tonight- what to say?

Remember that scene in Titanic where the ship cracked in half and the realisation that there was no way out was temporarily lost while everyone plummeted toward the water? Yeah. That about sums up my feeling right now.

Things have changed. It will be at least a decade before most of us will really understand what happened. But I assure you, we live in truly historic times. The opportunities right now are abundant. But they are new opportunities.

Trying to rebuild the old structures will only cause loss and delay. Everything has to be revised with new eyes. (So a Mercury intersolar cycle is sometimes a good thing!)

Love yourself unconditionally. Try to accept others unconditionally. Be as honest with yourself as you can and release all judgements, both good and bad.

Sit with yourself in that frame of mind for a few minutes tonight in the light of the full moon. Allow her to work her magick.

And some will be comforted to remember that "Revise in September, harvest in November." If you don't get it by the Equinox, look for it near Samhain and Thanksgiving.

Some people are in the middle of a huge shipwreck- it may not be you- and there could be some delays waiting for your ship to come in.

All hands on deck, and that sort of thing. Be glad your ship is delayed, and not sinking. Do what you can to send some lifeboats while you are waiting.

PRAISES, THANKS, & BLESSINGS!!!
conjurewoman1@yahoo.com

PS-- Rain Dancers, please do a dance for the fire zone Los Angeles!!!

NEW MOON IN LEO 2009

2009-08-20T10:26:00.000-07:00

Everything is changing and everything is changing right now.

That is really all I have to say about the current aspects. Mars is aggravated, and my Saturn is not happy. Karma, cops, and one monster hangover. What ever you are feeling, just know I am feeling it too.

I quote myself: "The cocoon that is nourishing to the caterpillar is suffocating to the butterfly." Our world is not so much in a crisis state as a chrysallis state. This is the scariest part-- just after the death of the old, and just before the birth of the new.

Someone with whom I have a rather complicated past died last week. I had been getting messages from the usual suspects (a rose beetle that is often employed by the spirit of T.S.; the ghost of Don Simpson, my old friend/nemesis that I generally ignore; and my dreams and memories).

But as with all messages, both from the next world and this one, if you don't take a moment to really sit down and deal with them they get all garbled. And perhaps, too, I am beginning to suspect that the more turmoil the information is going to create in my life-- whether I learn it beforehand psychically or after the fact by telephone-- the more I am going to want to avoid it.

If you read this post about my friend T.S. then you know that after a person dies, usually up until the funeral, is a good time to talk and resolve old issues. I learn a lot from spirits at this time. They are still very connected to their lives but are seeing them through the lens of loss. Everything is precious.

Sometimes, too, they will show me the substance of the Universe. Just as bones and muscles are held together by tendons and ligaments, there are sinews of love and hate, joy and pain, that bind us to each other and to all of creation.

Seen from that doorway, looking back, the things that make this life so desirable are often the things that made them so intolerable while we were here. Visible to the spirit is the other side- where all things are perfect, complete, and whole. Where there is only Love.

I think almost every dead person would come back and live the worst day of their life over and over again, if only for just "a little bit more."

And it becomes obvious, too, how privileged we are to know each other. If you believe that we know each other from past lives, then how lucky that we have this chance to work things out. How lucky we are to create new connections to each other.

Of course, if we were to somehow embrace this, and take care of our relationships while we were alive there would be no need for someone like me: a Medium. The number one thing the dead say to the living is "I love you."

It doesn't matter what happened while we were here, we always know each other in "love". (This creates some real dilemmas in regards to pain and punishment and evil and hell and so forth. But that is for another post.)

Some would say we are physical beings inhabited by spirits; others say we are spiritual beings having a physical experience. It doesn't matter, really. There are human spirits in our lives, in bodies and out of bodies. And we are here to love ourselves and each other as best we can.

I have been privelegied to have you as a friend, T.M. My best to you on the next part of your journey.

PRAISES, THANKS, & BLESSINGS!!!

Witches, WorldWalkers, Jedi Knights, Mystics, Mediums, and other Magickal creatures: Have you been feeling it? Email me and let me know what Tor in your area. Also, Samhain is when the sun reaches 15 degrees of Scorpio, not on a fixed date.

FULL MOON IN AQUARIUS 2009

2009-08-05T08:12:00.000-07:00

There are six eclipses this year, instead of the usual four. Tonight is the fifth, the first of the "extras".

Our primal brain--that stem at the base of the neck, our "snake" brain--has not forgotten that this time, when the sun is Leo, is the most critical point of the year.

Imagine a world where everything hinged on the almost ripe fields making it to harvest. Even the king would starve if there was a natural disaster, storm, or drought. Money could not-- and still cannot- buy food when there is none.

With summer's lush fullness and fertility came the greatest threats. And the most heat. In the humming, bee-laden, indolence of summer's great abundance is the threat of a hungry winter.

This is the time of year when dreams for the future are at their most fragile.

There is alot of Mars action this month. (If you haven't read Nolle's August Astro-pro forecast, I would, it explains a lot about what is happening right now.) Expect a lot of anger in the air. If you are empathic or psychic, I would say be on guard against "infection" from it.

This month, "de-FRAG" often (rid yourself of fear, resentment, anger, and guilt). Those are the magnets for punishment, pain, and conflict. Do not think that vigilance is always the answer. Too much fear or anger, and you become a psychic magnet for predators and crazies.

Tonight is the best night of the year to gaze at the moon and take her light into your eyes. She illuminates everything, let her shine into your soul.

PRAISES, THANKS, & BLESSINGS!!!
conjurewoman1@yahoo.com

PS-- The "real" Lughnassadh, or Lammas, when the sun reaches 15 degrees of Leo, is Friday sunset to Saturday sundown.

Also-- Mercury goes retrograde on the 24th of August.

HURRY UP AND WAIT

2009-07-31T22:33:00.000-07:00

I realised today that I have not posted at all in July. And that is too bad, because this was a very magickal month, filled with all sorts of energies and entities, the likes of which I've not seen for awhile. And not in such simultaneous abundance.

I believe more than ever before that we are moving towards the world described in the novel 2150 A.D. by Thea Alexander. One thing that really made me realise this was Michael Jackson's death. It really made me think about "stars" and how celebrities affect us. (It took Jackson's light going out for us to realise just how brightly it had shone while he was alive.)

I think that celebrities are a way for us to become comfortable with ourselves. Michael was willing to sing and dance about the things that most of us try to hide: our feelings, our hopes and fears, love and heartbreak. Artists and entertainers not only take us out of our mundane lives (sometimes elevating that mundane life to superb or sacred), they also show us our hidden selves.

One thought that often occurs to me is that, in the case of actors, we need to watch someone else be all different kinds of people (good, bad, indifferent, etc) and behave in ways that we cannot. This is partly how we are learning to accept ourselves- and all of our murderous impulses and nasty habits-- by watching Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie as murderers, or thieves, or Saints.

(And we like these people to be physically beautiful. Which is a discussion for another time.)

The only other thing I want to say before I get to the main point of this post-- the title point-- is that a swarm of inter-dimensional and/or non-human spirits have entered our world and are making their way among us. I think it is because the Age of Avatars approaches, but it could also be a "last chance" party.

If we don't hop to it on saving the planet (and by that I mean "from ourselves" and "for ourselves", because really, the planet will do just fine without us- if you see what I am saying) there isn't going to be another "age" for humans on Earth.

Okay, so, everything is happening, right? But everything is stuck, or in slow motion, or coming at you all wrong or out of sequence?

Well, you are still "king of the world", at least of your world, but that ship called "collective reality" you were on hit an iceberg and now we are all swimming through the debris. It just hasn't really sunk in yet.

Or, more precisely, all the stuff that you have been trying to hang onto is headed to the bottom of the ocean. Just let it go. And go slow. There is wreckage everywhere, and people are still in shock. It will probably be at least this time next year before the bulk of the populace really begins to wake up.

(Although look out for the crazies! And the fanatics! They will drown you with their flailing and thrashing.)

Everybody wants what they want right now. Everybody wants to speak and no one wants to listen. Everyone wants to lead and no one wants to follow. Everyone wants to be right and no one wants to be wrong. There is a lot being worked out and renegotiated right now. Just be aware of it.

Make sure you keep voting for the reality you want, just don't get dragged down or sucked under, capeesh?

The single most important thing that you can do right now (for humanity as a whole and for yourself) is to release all judgments about yourself and other people, and to love yourself unconditionally as much as possible.

And take stock of what is in the lifeboat. Get all the essentials in order and be prepared to wait for the rescue team.

You knew that ship was sinking, and you knew what you needed to do. You either did it or not. Whether you are dog-paddling in a life vest or sitting in a well-prepared private raft, you just have to wait.

Don't worry about sharks, or any danger right now. Despite my shipwreck metaphor, I think if you are always re-centring your heart in unconditional love, you will make it through fine.

We all will.

PRAISES, THANKS, & BLESSINGS!!!
conjurewoman1@yahoo.com

MIDSUMMER NIGHT'S EVE 2009

2009-06-23T13:11:00.000-07:00

I was going to repost last year's video attempt, but I can't figure out how to copy the video from blogger.

http://conjurings.blogspot.com/2008/06/midsummer-nights-eve.html

I hope your night is filled with magick and merriment, revelry and laughter, and the gifts of the nature spirits and wee folk!!!

PRAISES, THANKS, & BLESSINGS!!!

THE UNCONDITIONAL LOVE "ACID TEST"

2009-06-16T12:30:00.000-07:00

When I was a kid people used to say, when trying to prove that a theory was correct, that there was an "acid test." The statement was always something like "well, that's the acid test to prove that theory."

Of course, I was a kid in the early 70's, so probably it was some hippie joke about LSD. But the saying always stuck with me. I feel like my whole intellectual life is spent doing the "acid test" on every theory I encounter or that I conjure.

For instance, the theory of loving and approving of yourself unconditionally.

Not only do I sometimes (rather sporadically and erratically) hand out pink flyers suggesting as much, but recently I posted this suggestion on my facebook status line. As with the flyers, there is usually one person who voices the opinion that not everyone should love and approve of themselves unconditionally.

There are, after all, "bad" people out there. Moreover, we all do things that we shouldn't. We all behave badly. So we must keep the threat of punishment always at the ready. Fear must guard the borders like a fierce, aggressive dog.

I guess that might work for some people. It has never worked for me. Lost parts of myself that I needed in order to feel whole were always trapped on the other side of the walls. The dogs were always ripping me to shreds whenever I would try to retrieve my wholeness.

And then, too, if I had to make myself afraid of certain actions or behaviours to keep myself in-line, then obviously everyone else would need to be doing that, too! And, obviously, they weren't!

All this belief system did was make me critical, intolerant, cynical and feeling worse about myself. This did not contribute to my healthy growth and self-esteem, or contribute to my becoming the kind of perfect, serene, wise, and slender person I knew I was destined to be.

There had to be another way.

When the student is ready the teacher will appear. One day it occurred to me that I had loved many people in my life despite their fat thighs, bad tempers, guilty pasts, and so forth. And I had forgiven people that had done terrible things to me-- things that could get them locked in jail.

And yet I could not accept my own thighs, bad temper, guilty past, or even my own much lesser criminal activities. Soon thereafter a friend loaned me a copy of You Can Heal Your Life, by Louise L. Hay.

The acid test for anything, in my opinion, is "how does this benefit all of humanity?" In other words, it does not benefit a thief to live in a world of theft. It does not benefit a killer to live in world of killers. An intolerant person cannot thrive in an environment of intolerance. A glutton can neither thrive in a world of gluttons, or a world of starving people (who will eventually kill him for his food).

It would benefit all of society if everyone had enough to eat, a safe place to sleep, a community that cared about them and loved them. How I wish that Hitler had learned to love and approve of himself unconditionally! The outer world always reflects the inner world. Had Hitler been able to love the Jewish part of himself he would not have had to kill it in the outside world.

I have known some pretty seriously dangerous men in my life. I was just writing on another blog of mine about many men who become criminals (and cops!) are afraid of feelings, especially tender ones, or any feelings of pain or separation from love.

Hardened criminals, like the Aryan Brotherhood (and hate always eventually hardens into some sort of racist hate, the walls and the guard dogs must be clearly marked in black and white) and other gangs define their acceptance of (love of) others by not harming them. And by helping each other physically hurt "others". That is the purpose of a gang. (And perhaps also the purpose of an army. But I sense a long digression there.)

(And a whole long digression on gangs-- street and prison-- as just restructured families based on fighting "others" and centred on anger, pain, hate, and violence. Also, the less comfortable someone is with their feelings- from the gang member to the police officer- the more likely they are to need a high degree of order. If they are able to achieve that order they are more like to work within highly tribal but socially sanctioned groups like the police. If they are not able to achieve the order, or become socially acceptable-- as is the case with black people until very recently, or immigrants, the Italian mafia for instance--it is more likely that need for order will come out in illegal gangs.)

It is awful to think that the answer is to love our enemies. Our enemies have hurt us so much! But that really is the answer, because it benefits everyone.

I know you are thinking "well, if I love those others, they will just come and hurt me as soon as they know that I am unarmed."

Well, this is another misconception- that love is "unarmed." As I have written before, if you want to destroy vampires, don't be Buffy or Blade-- don't be the vampire's opposite, the other, the nemesis-- be the sun.

In this metaphor, love is the sun. It has no judgement against the vampire, nothing to gain (or lose) by killing it. It just simply is the power that causes the vampire to turn to ashes. It's that simple.

And that powerful.

Having love for someone does not mean that you give up your love for yourself. It is not love if you let the junkie rob you (acid test: a junkie does not benefit from a world of addicts- for one thing, who is making the drugs? everyone is too busy nodding out!).

It is not love if you allow yourself to walk all over other people, or others to walk all over you (the acid test should be obvious by now).

You can want what you want, you can still think you are "right", you can still want to change, you can still strive for greater elevation in all of your endeavours.

You just don't have to kick yourself (or part of yourself), or anyone else, out of your heart. You just don't have to be unhappy or miserable. Even if you can't actually reach forgiveness, you just have to leave a space for it. A marker. Because when you can start forgiving yourself you will be able to forgive others. And it won't be as difficult as it seems once you stop living the world with razor wire, vicious guard dogs, and high walls.

If you really learn to love and approve of yourself unconditionally, you will eventually stop doing all of those things you have been trying to control through fear and threats of punishment. And you will probably be able to achieve your other goals more efficiently, too!

That's my experience. I truly believe that if you love and approve of yourself unconditionally, if you truly understand that you are doing the best you can; if you can accept that sometimes you are going to behave in ways that you do not think you should, and still extend love and approval and understanding to yourself, then I think that everything in your life will start to fall into place.

Loving yourself is not selfish-- in fact, it is a great act of charity to the world! Give a loving person to the world everyday! Give someone to the world that is happy, whole, fulfilled, grateful, loving, and understanding! What a miracle for the planet!

And no one is more loving than the person that can love themselves through good times and bad.

I know so many people- men and women- who are looking for a love from another person to complete them, to make them feel whole. I was this way for many years. Only recently have I started to look for the love I need for myself inside of myself.

And the more love I have to give myself, the more loved I feel, the more love I have for others, the more loving people I attract into my life.

It's just karma

I don't have to fight off the negative people and emotional (and psychic, physical, etc) vampires because I am not their "slayer". I am often aware of them, but they do not trouble me so much anymore. They are not my opponents. They are simply people without enough love for themselves, seeing something they don't like about themselves reflected in me. And since I love myself unconditionally, perhaps they will see how they can do the same for themselves, as well.

The love in my heart is like the sun.

And I feel certain that I will only grow stronger in learning to love, and that my love will grow stronger, and that the world will be a better place for it.

If nothing else, there is one less bitter, angry, hurtful, resentful (etc.) person out there.

Well, most days, anyhow. But because I know that my love for myself will not be withdrawn if I should stumble, I recover more quickly. Love is steadying hand is all situations. And its' constant companions are understanding and tolerance. And very often joy and happiness.

So, give it a try. Just for a week, maybe. Just try saying "I love and approve of myself unconditionally" for five or so minutes. If nothing else you will be able to identify all the things you are beating yourself up over, and be able to consciously examine them and decide if they are helping you-- or maybe they are hurting you.

PRAISES, THANKS, & BLESSINGS!!!

conjurewoman1@yahoo.com

Still doing these posts in one sitting. Will try to come back and edit when I have more time. Forgive errors.

CREATED OUT OF AWARENESS

2009-05-16T21:06:00.000-07:00

I often say that Mediums are more popular with the dead than the living. In fact, I said it just a few hours ago.

Something I don't say nearly enough is that the living person contains more ghosts and spirits than the dead.

How's that, you say? Is this something like the Robert Frost poem, where the dead have souls?

Well, the dead do have souls. The spirits of the dead have souls. But what we think of as "I" is in many ways a collection of consciousnesses/spirits, organised around a central Medium, or observer.

The human spirit is an amazing thing. It is a container for so many entities-- in the same way that the human body contains heart, liver, skin, bones, and the brain. (And the brain is a container for the mind and the emotions, the skin is a container for the body, etc.)

The human spirit must also contain the soul, and in the afterlife the memory of the body (and of this life). And memory of all these different components that make-up that indvidual package called "me, myself, and I."

Beyond the physical there is the spirits of the physical. The spirit of health, or perhaps disease. And the spirits of the mental and emotional. The spirit of kindness or cruelty, of anger or affection. And then there are ideas, behaviours, thought forms-- some have spirits, some are the offspring of spirits.

The ancient Greek playwrights believed that comedy and tragedy were two different ways of looking at the same situations. And of the two, that comedy was the more challenging to write.

I believe that this is true in life as well. Tragedy is easier to see in most situations than comedy.

Tears are easier than laughter, or laughter is used to fight off tears. But to be able to have true Laughter and Joy close at hand, in all situations, is rare. Especially when tragedy is present. Tragedy is selfish and demands attention and always stands right in front of the camera.

I think it is a matter of proximity. Some spirits hover closer to us. To reach regeneration, perhaps some of us must first travel through the spirits of self-destruction. We are here in this imperfect life to experience imperfection. We come from a place of perfection.

Perhaps all of these "bad" things are just the opposite of love. There are moments, and they do seem to come more frequently these days, when I realise that my fears and worries are all just a reflection of my lack of love for myself.

My belief (i.e., idea, programming, expectation, opinion, feeling, and probably sub- or unconscious) that my imperfection in this life means that I am damaged, or incomplete, or wrong.

My worry about the future is really just a belief that I do not deserve happiness, or that it is not possible for me. Even if the exact same circumstances in the past have always worked out to my advantage, my fear is that this time I will be punished for not being good enough, or for having made a mistake.

If I cannot find enough love for myself then I will have no love to offer other people. I will not be able to nourish my environment, or trust it to thrive. Therefore, I must always find the way through pain (or anger or fear) to love, patience, and understanding. Once that is my central focus, everything will organise itself around those things, instead of tragedy or suffering.

And I know when I am in the right place ("head-space") when everything around me is healthy and growing. Or at the very least, when I am able to tend it, and improve it, without bringing harm to myself.

The situation, or circumstances might even stay the same, but I will be different. I will be in a place of awareness of love, and therefore have the spirit of Love always at the ready, always at hand.

We see everything as if in a mirror. Everything has a reflection. We can only see ourselves in other people. We appreciate our blessings because of our burdens. It seem the human failing- we cannot have joy without sorrow, love without hate.

I think actually, this is a strength. This is why we come to this life. Joy is made more precious by sorrow. So many situations that I see in my life is that I am given poverty in order to make wealth, or anger to transform into happiness, and I fail to use--or even recognise-- my own power.

In recognising this it is no longer necessary to suffer needlessly or deeply. I believe an awareness of the potential for suffering is usually enough to avoid it. Much like heat creates an awareness of the danger of fire, without having to be burned.

God/dess did not create you to be unhappy, or alone, or miserable. You were created out of awareness. The Divine is all things- and here in this life we are aware of all things, joy as well as sorrow. And we have been given Free Will.

Choice.

With Free Will comes a Divine responsibility: even in the worst of times, you must choose happiness. The spirit of Happiness must be summoned when her reflection is most dim. Space must be made for her in yourself when it is most crowded with her opposites.

We can always decide to be happy. And once that is decided, happiness radiates outward and magnetically pulls too us all of the situations we need to be happy. And even when the clouds come along, we are aware that they are momentary, and that the sunshine is still there, just waiting to appear again.

Decide to somehow find love and understanding for everything the comes into your world, into your consciousness, for the next five days, or weeks, or minutes. Repeat this as necessary.

I promise you that once you find that place of non-judgement, the spirit of happiness will be hovering close by, and ready to be recieved by you, at any time and in any circumstance.

PRAISES, THANKS, & BLESSINGS!!!
conjurewoman1@yahoo.com

BEALTAINE WINDS

2009-05-06T20:28:00.000-07:00

Last night the winds began blowing here in Los Angeles. It is not just romance or fancy that makes one hear the wind whispering with the leaves-- spring winds are what wake up trees from their winter hibernation. Strong gusts get sleepy limbs limbered up and circulation active from root to tip, and remove any remaining dead twigs and debris.

The Celts celebrated only two major fire festivals a year: Samhain, when the sun is at 15 degrees of Scorpio, and Bealtaine, when the sun reaches 15 degrees of Taurus. Samhain and Beltaine divided the year into halves: waning and waxing. So strong were these divisions that they are still the names for November and May in Irish, respectively.

The Celts (like another nomadic, pastoral people, the Jews) found meaning in a day that began in darkness- that is, the new day was born when the sun set on the old one. The same with the year. Samhain was the twilight of the year. A new year, true, but with a fallow period until the sun was re-born strong again at the Winter Solstice, or Yule.

So if Yule is the daybreak of the year, the promise that each dawn brings, then Bealtaine is perhaps the commencement of the day's work. The first weeding of the greening fields or the first fertilizer, the first breeding of the cattle, the first glimpse of the harvest to come in fall.

It is the most scandalous of Pagan holidays because it encourages sex in the fields. It was often the second or the last day of a trial marriage (marriage of a year and a day), and so signaled freedom to indulge in a new partner, or satisfy new love's appetite. (It is the holiday that is made sinister in the original Wicker Man movie.)

Is it just because I am witch that everywhere today I was surrounded by lovers kissing and holding hands? Were the men I encountered more aggressive in their pursuit because of the fertility spirits crowding the air around them, unseen to most humans? And what about the crazy woman on the train that shouted in Spanish about Jesus Christ, and church and God. No one paid her any attention, except for me, when she began talking about devils and witches (brujos) and the evil of this city.

I took her as a sign that witchcraft is gaining acceptance, and that as more and more people understand what it really means to be a witch, those that find us evil will be speaking another language and won't be listened to, anyhow.

The winds are here, and they bring strong magick, and strong warnings, too. Whatever it is, get it done. Do not leave loose ends any longer. Do not procrastinate those things you must take care of. This year will not go kindly for many people. There will have to be room in your awareness for misery without allowing it to encompass your life.

This will be a year, too, when being able to call a wind to you, or ask one to stop, will be of utmost importance. Being able to ask deadly things that come through the air, like the spirits and germs of illness, to change their course and travel away from you, that could be a lifesaver.

Having a few birds that you feed and water, a circle of earth you watch change with the seasons, a breeze you know as a friend, an old tree that knows your name--these will be the allies we will need to face the changes ahead. "Big changes are coming/ here they come."

Begin to pay attention to the shifts in consciousness the earth and nature go through. Sunrise and sunset are daily transformations, and very obvious, as are the seasons. Pay a little closer attention and you will feel the more subtle shifts.

Bealtaine is birth: new spirits entering the world. Samhain is death: spirits leaving the earth. And both are times when the veil between the worlds is thin. If ghosts are going to visit en masse (without birth, death, or anniversary passports), it will be during these two times of the year.

One thing I truly believe is that we are all becoming more aware of each other, and in turn, more aware of ourselves. The Internet, television, radio, cell phones, and all of these mass "instant" communication devices are simply preparing us for mass telepathy and psychic powers.

I do believe that we are on the brink of a new age- an Age of Avatars. Each person will move to a higher level of being equaled in the past only by avatars like Jesus and Buddha. This will be painful to the stubborn, the inflexible, and the judgemental.

I believe that every person is growing in power right now. And growing in the only true power: power of Self. By focusing on our own behaviour, growth, and development we can truly change the world. We must all have faith (in whatever we have faith in) that whatever comes to us is ours, and that we will be guided to our best choices and opportunities.

And we must give up what is not ours, or the belief that anyone else can have our portion of life. Only what is yours can come to you. No one can take anything that is yours away from you. And no one can give you anything that does not belong to you. Each person lives under the rules of his own consciousness, karma, and choices.

The winds that came with Bealtaine are the winds of change. Bend, don't break. Shake off that which no longer serves you, and debris of all kinds. Get outdoors and get the circulation going from root to tip. Let the winds speak to you, and carry your messages to the spirits of new growth.

One last thought: In regards to Mercury intersolar and tonight's "retrograde". This is a Wednesday (ruled by Mercury), and Mercury had just entered its home sign of Gemini. There is also the Scorpio full moon on Friday night. This week is a powerhouse!

I think that many old debts are going to be settled, and many resolutions to long standing issues. Even those that may have started centuries ago. As I said earlier, this is a good thing, but it may not feel good to those that are too firmly entrenched in one opinion. And especially if there is an overriding need to be right.

Many people would rather be right than happy. This is not the year to want to be "right". This is a year to be happy, and to take happiness anywhere you find it. Think of all the things it would be nice to be wrong about: global warming, clean water shortages, other people's inability to change, your inability to change, that humans can't find solutions to poverty, hunger, war, and illness.

These are all things that the winds spoke to me about today, a truly beautiful and spectacular day- and "holy" day- for me. Not so wonderful for the people hit by wildfires in Santa Barbara.

Take happiness where you can find it.

Happy Bealtaine!!!

PRAISES, THANKS, & BLESSINGS!!!
conjurewoman1@yahoo.com

MAY DAY

2009-05-01T16:21:00.000-07:00

Hey hey it's the first of May, outdoor f---ing begins today...

Actually, Bealtaine, the "real" May Day, isn't until next Tuesday at sunset. The sun reaches 15 degrees of Taurus on the 6th, and all the really good pagan feast days start at sunset on the night before. (The "eve".)

Bealtaine is the start of the waxing half of the year, just as Samhain (the ancestor of Halloween) heralds the waning half of the year. Ironically, this year's Bealtaine is accompanied by a Mercury "retrograde" cycle. And on a Wednesday to boot, so you know that there will be some computer and travel issues, as well as a flood of visitors and returns from the past. (Old friends, lost items, thieves, writing & communications. All the usual Mercury ruled stuff.)

I wonder if this retro period will get me back to posting here more regularly, or if my attention to this blog is perhaps winding down. Each time I go to post I feel as if I am saying the same things that I have said many times before. However, the changes that will be taking place in our world over this summer will be so deeply felt that I think maybe by fall I will have lots of new things to say. And new issues to address.

So today is a good day to prepare for next week's ritual. The carnal celebration and feast should be on the night of the 5th-- perfect for Cinco de Mayo here in Los Angeles! But the ritual should be at dawn on the morning of the sixth. If you don't have any lovely naked young ladies to jump over the bonfire, or any cattle to be blessed, or Wicker men to burn, then just plan on getting up and greeting the sunrise.

Say a blessing, or a prayer. Thank the green earth for her goodness and tell the winds and the spirits what you are hoping to grow in your life this year. The veil between the world's is thin at this time of year- more so than any other day except Samhain. And Bealtaine is about new spirits, and fertility. Not the dead and haunted, as it is a Samhain.

With the swine flu epidemic and the concern with global warming and peak oil, peak clean water, and all of the problems we have created for ourselves in regards to the earth, I suggest turning Bealtaine into a kind of Valentine's Day (or Mother's day) for Mother Nature. Nothing makes a woman happier than appreciation, so be sure to thank the violets and daffodils, and the little grubs and worms, and the bees and birds, and anything else that you love about this planet.

In fact, don't wait until Bealtaine. Today is a lovely day, the first of May, to spend a few moments in a beautiful, outdoor place (like a garden or park) really appreciating the power of spring and the explosion of new growth and colour.

PRAISES, THANKS, AND BLESSINGS!!!
conjurewoman1@yahoo.com

ALL DREAMS DAY 2009

2009-04-01T19:31:00.000-07:00

If you are not familiar with my campaign to transform All Fools Day, or April Fools Day, to All Dreams Day, you can read about it here:

http://conjurings.blogspot.com/2008/03/power-of-dreaming.
http://conjurings.blogspot.com/2008/04/all-dreams-day.htmlhtml
http://conjurings.blogspot.com/2007/03/all-dreams-day.html

So…the Fool is crowned King for a day, and the King is to play the role of court jester. Anything is possible today, and the normally iron clad rules of karma are (mostly) suspended.

In the spirit of jokes and merriment, freedom and laughter, and the type of child-like play that produces genius creativity, what would you do if you ruled the world for a day?

What if you could change any law? Establish any policy? What if all the world was ready to do your bidding?

I am not suggesting this as an idle exercise. Everything in civilization was created first in the dreams and musings of the human mind. If we are to rescue the planet from the destruction modern developed nations have wreaked upon it, if we are to finally solve the most long-standing of problems: poverty, malnutrition and hunger, violence and war, rape, racism, etc—then we need a day like All Dreams.

Over the last four years I have talked about what I would do if I were the omnipotent Queen of all the nations on earth. This year I am going to explore what the world would be like if All Dreams were a reality.

Teachers would have been prepping their children for the last few weeks to write their “If I Could Rule The World” essays. Of course, these would be due the day before, because to really celebrate All Dreams properly, it would have to be a global holiday.

An active, social holiday. Like Mardi Gras, or Saint Patrick’s, but without the alcohol. That sounds impossible, I know. But I think the appeal of make believe and pretend would overcome the urge to obliterate one’s imagination with alcohol. (For most people, anyhow.)

In the morning there would be many conferences and public seminars and meetings. World leaders would gather- but not together. Rather, they would go to the playgrounds and sandboxes of the world and consult with children on perplexing matters of state.

Since this holiday is also one of “opposites” the scientists would gather in churches, and the meta-physician would listen to the opinions of the empiricist. Everyone would just go and look at the side of things that was not “their” side, or the “right” side of things. Not just look, but actually try to understand and appreciate.

In the afternoon there would be parades and general silliness. People—especially adults--- would dress up in costumes. There needs to be more than one holiday a year where people can be someone, or something, else. And Halloween is just so much gloom and graveyards.

Truthfully I picture something along the lines of Renaissance Faire, with Morris dancers skipping through the streets, but more outrageous and Mardi Gras-esque. Not to the point of Britt Ekland naked, pounding on the wall, as she did in the original Wicker Man. A film about Bealtaine, or May Day, by the way.

All Dreams’ Day is the natural precursor to Bealtaine, because it is the creative breath of conception.

Bealtaine is the second major Pagan festival of the year. Like its’ brother Samhain, or Halloween, it is a time when the veil between the worlds is lifted, and the spirits move among us freely. But at May Day it is the new spirits coming in, not the old going out.

At May Day the crops have broken through the soi, the bull roams among the herds, and the life of the year is growing. But at All Dreams’ Day we only know that we have just made it through the cold, dark winter. Whatever hopes and wishes we have been able to keep alive during those barren months we must plant now.

We must breathe our warm breath onto them, like precious seeds in the palm of our hands. Place them gently in the soil with a little pat and some water.

We will see if they have sprouted at May Day, at Bealtaine.

But today is a day of dreams and hopes and wishes. A day of Dreams. A day when a Fool can be King, and a King can be a court Jester.

A day when anything is possible.

...I suspect this holiday might have a high incident of hallucinogenic drugs, as opposed to alcohol...

HAPPY ALL DREAMS’ DAY!!!

PRAISES, THANKS, AND BLESSINGS!!!
Conjurewoman1@yahoo.com

A CONSCIOUS AGENT OF EARTH AND HEAVEN

2009-03-28T13:16:00.000-07:00

TONIGHT IS EARTH HOUR!!! 830-930 PM in your time zone, all over the Globe!!! TURN EVERYTHING OFF FOR AN HOUR!!!

This post is a bit of a mix of both personal and spiritual (and political). For readers that are not familiar with my health situation let me explain that in September of 2008 I became so anemic that I fainted several times and ended up in the hospital for a blood transfusion. The really sad fact is that this was the second time I'd fainted due to a low blood count, the first time in July of '07 when I was in St. Louis.

In the face of obstacles I have the ability to be persistent to the point of stubborn stupidity. Even my health is not enough to deter me from whatever it is that I am trying to do. (Case in point, for many years I was addicted to things that were downright dangerous to my health.) With the situation causing my anemia I just did not feel I could stop and get the treatment I needed-- in fact, given the situation with my health insurance, I knew that I wouldn't get the treatment that I wanted.

The positive side is that, because I was ambulatory, I eventually ended up at UCLA Olive View. It's reputation is the hospital of the transient, the poor immigrant, the amputee heroin addict, etc. I have learned, however, that it is an excellent facility, filled with caring doctors, nurses, administrators, and lots of medical students, interns and residents. The care I have recieved there is better than the care I recieved at the private hospital, or even from my former (private) ob/gyn.

I just went back for another progress check (surgery in late May at this point), and I got the chance to share with my doctor there (a real doctor- not a med student or intern) how much better I was feeling now that I have enough blood and enough iron in my blood. (And I quit smoking cigarettes... again!!!) I spend a lot of time looking at the mind/body connection from the perspective of how the mind effects the body. My return to full wellness has taught me a lot about how even moderately low levels of iron can affect mood and outlook.

For the last two years I have trudged through the archaeology of my life. Getting my mother's storage locker organised, inventorying my own life and possessions, making up for lost time, and paying off old debts-- monetary and karmic. I attributed much of my depression-- and that may be a bit too strong a word, but I've certainly had moments of nearly overwhelming despair-- to the sheer amount of effort, discipline, and lack I've had to live with.

Recently I've really come to understand that many of these feelings were because of my health. And that has led me to really think about why we are here in this dimension, and on this planet.

When I give my guided meditation to cleanse the chakras, I always try to mention the heart chakra's "other" function, which is to bring together the energies of both earth and heaven. In modern metaphysical usage (not Hindu/yoga systems), the heart chakra is actually two chakras: pink, for the love of humans and human life, and green, for the love of nature, the universe, and all of creation.

We are both physical beings having a spiritual experience of this life, and spiritual beings experiencing the physical. We must encompass both to live fully. There is no death or loss on "the other side". As I have said many times before, I believe that we come here NOT to learn about life- for we live eternally and infinitely on the other side! Before we are born here, and after we die, we are eternal. Death and loss are not only what make this life different, but also what make it unbelievably precious.

Becoming a conscious agent of both earth and heaven means that we have to accept that defecation in an outhouse is as miraculous and awesome as dining on a delicious meal at a 12 star Parisian restaurant. (Many jokes to be made there, I know... ;o) Anger, even hatred, is as sacred as prayer, or unity with the Divine.

Whatever you experience here in this life you will take with you when you die. I was thinking about this the other day when I was listening to someone complain. I spend a good deal of time listening to people complain. (That includes myself in my own head.)

I should mention that I have a new part-time job. And I should mention that I love it more than I thought was possible. It pays about half of what I consider to be my "minimum" wage. It almost a four hour commute everyday (on public transit). I tell you all of this first so you will really understand that I seriously love my new job. I am a type of telemarketer. A paid fundraiser.

That's right. I call people at home and ask them to give money to organisations that they have supported in the past. I have heard every sad story about the economy there is to hear. Between this job and being psychic I wonder how any of us manage to get out of bed in the morning! (Coffee, hummingbirds buzzing, the orange blossoms perfuming the air outside my bedroom window, the colours of sunrise.)

And I wonder, a lot more frequently, how God/dess puts up with us. How must it feel to be prayed to and hear nothing but complaints? Desperate entreaties for the fulfillment of constant desires? Thanks only when hungers have been, or are about to be, fulfilled? I am glad I am only human, because human patience is not large enough to understand or tolerate its' host. Only the Divine could put up with our constant complaints and still offer unconditional Love.

I think the economic crisis is the greatest thing to happen to this world since fire, or the invention of the wheel. Thank the God/dess! We are finally beginning to understand that money and the human economy CANNOT be basis of life here on this planet anymore. It was different back when there were more animals than humans, more trees than buildings, more non-human nature than humans. That world is gone. We have conquered darkness, hunger, exposure, thirst. Now we must conquer our greedy selves.

Whether the economy is good or bad, money will not buy arable, fertile land, or clean air, or drinkable water. It will not buy back a species that we have forced into extinction. Money cannot even buy back lost health. It can buy healthcare, but not health. Money won't buy happiness- it can buy things that will make you temporarily feel pleasure and serenity and joy, but it cannot buy those actual feelings. This I have learned all too well over the last few years.

We must learn to base our economy on the things that are truly valuable: our fragile existence on this planet, and a sustaining relationship with our world and ourselves. And I do not believe that complaints - about ourselves or others or our situations- will be conduits to a sustainable, thriving and healthy future and planet. I think only appreciation will.

Frankly, many of us- and I do mean to include myself here- are learning that all of that past misery was wasted! If only we could regain that lifestyle that wasn't "good enough" a few years ago! If only we could go back to the woes of yesterday! How abundant was our misery in that job we hated and have now lost! That home that was too small or in the wrong neighbourhood that has now been foreclosed!

About a month ago I woke up one morning terrified about my bills, and unhappy with my recent weight gain, my faltering relationship, and the dismal selection of my wardrobe. But later that day I was outside and they sky was so beautiful, and the mountains were so green (a rarity), and the lantana and lilacs smelled so sweet, I realised how ridiculous I was!

Whatever you experience in this life you take with you when you leave. Don't take the bills, the dissatisfaction, the ugliness, the pain. Take every moment of joy and beauty and pleasure that you can. Cultivate habits and pastimes that will reward you regardless of your bank balance-- or the bank bailouts!

And always keep in mind the two things that you cannot live without: your health, and the health of this planet.

Tonight from 830-930 PM turn off all of the lights and appliances that you can. There are Earth hour festivals in many cities, but I actually think that this a good hour to meditate. Beam some love out from your heart chakra to the whole planet and everything on it. (Or think about All Dreams Day on April 1st, and what you would do if you ruled the world for a day!)

Even the things that you don't like. Remember, a big part of the economic crisis is the loss of those formerly hated mortgages and bosses and bills! Sometimes, living without the things you don't like is worse than living with them!

PRAISES, THANKS, & BLESSINGS!!!
conjurewoman1@yahoo.com

(A quick note: I am still on borrowed internet, and have been writing these posts lately in one sitting with almost no editing time. Please forgive all the errors!)

NEW MOON IN ARIES 2009

2009-03-26T19:38:00.000-07:00

If you don't already know about my campaign to transform April Fools' Day into All Dreams Day, please read my last post (just below this one-- or if you came by direct link in an email, click on the Conjurings title bar and scroll down, or click "older posts").

Okay, so what is up with the new moon, you might be asking?

I don't even know anymore, truthfully. There are so many cycles in motion right now; so many reliable structures about to collapse and so many unreliable people and situations about to become stalwarts and mainstays.

Everything right now is so topsy turvy that I feel every person and every situation must be addressed specifically.

You know what you needed to do take advantage of the opportunities that are coming your way, and to avoid the obstacles that will come with them (probably as a disguise).

So, the question is: did you do the things you needed to do? And if you didn't, can you find a way to take care of business now?

Things are changing. For better or worse I cannot say. But I do know that this will be the new moon that, in future years, will be remembered as "the beginning."

Find your centre. Make peace with who you are and how your life has been up until now.

PRAISES, THANKS, & BLESSINGS!!!

CHANGES ARE COMING

2009-03-17T18:28:00.001-07:00

I just want to remind everyone about my campaign to transform All Fools' Day to All Dreams Day. We really need one day a year where everyone dreams about how the world would be, or could be. To see my older posts on All Dreams Day:

http://conjurings.blogspot.com/2008/03/power-of-dreaming.html
http://conjurings.blogspot.com/2008/04/all-dreams-day.html
http://conjurings.blogspot.com/2007/03/all-dreams-day.html

A few years ago I posted on the Spring Equinox basically saying "all of the bones have risen from the tombs, and the stones now lie scattered in the fields; if you want to plant new seeds, you have to clear away the graves first."

Well, if for some reason that mystic message passed you by, or you weren't able to clear the field, I think that now you are seeing how the crops must struggle to grow around the stones. The bright shiny future is arriving, but perhaps, like me, you are bit scruffy and struggling for the proper light, ground and air.

Fear not. The Spring Equinox, Ostara, is this Friday. This whole year is going to be a doozy, so have a nice salad and a nice glass of wine, and raise a toast to the reborn earth while Mother Nature is still our friend.

And don't forget to pick up the new Witches Almanac.

PRAISES, THANKS, & BLESSINGS!!!
conjurewoman1@yahoo.com

THE STRICT FULL MOON

2009-03-09T18:02:00.000-07:00

The moon is full tomorrow night (Tuesday) in Virgo. What was happening in your life at the end of August during the Virgo new moon? The growth in your life since September is about to be measured and/or tested.

Virgo is the only barren earth sign. She is the harvest. She is the fulfillment of the seed promises of spring, and the nurturing growth and work of summer. She is the expression of fertility, but she herself is barren.

That Virgo is the virgin, in my opinion, has more to do with Persephone's departure from Demeter. Demeter will not be a mother for the next six months- nor will the earth hold any promise of creation. And Persephone departs as her mother's virgin daughter to go underground and live as her husband's consort.

The Virgo full moon, like all full moon's, is a sun-moon opposition. Here, at the end of winter, when the sun is in the last house of the zodiac- the house of sacrifice and martyrs-- we eat the last remnants of the Harvest. We look for signs of green and the awakening earth. We prepare for Persephone's return.

Myth is the language of astrology. It is how we understand ourselves as part of the dance of the universe.

Virgo is a stickler for the details, and with Saturn the stern task-master and lord of Karma transiting her house, I'd say that things are going to be very challenging. Especially if you are not doing what you need to do.

However, if you've done your homework and are thoroughly prepared for a pop-quiz then you will be okay. Maybe even pleasantly surprised.

And if you have been working to turn things around in your life and have felt frustrated, this should be a time when what you are doing right will finally start to work. Saturn is stern, but he is not unresponsive.

If you are doing a ritual, a traditional one- like Ceremonial magick, or a mass- is probably best. At least get out the good silver and make sure the offerings aren't saltines and two buck chuck. (Guilty!)

On the other hand, prudence and thrift are admired by Saturn, so don't go too far in the other direction.

Anything that feeds the earth or her creatures is good at this time of year, ritual offering or otherwise. Fresh bird seed, suet and peanut butter, corn and peanuts for the squirrels- these are all excellent.

Based on the dreams I've been having, now is a great time to work on your astral projection skills. Just make sure you are tethered to your life and yourself. The documentary "Unknown White Male" comes to mind when thinking about serious astral travel mishaps.

PRAISES, THANKS, & BLESSINGS!!!

THE AGE OF AVATARS

2009-02-25T11:27:00.000-08:00

When people ask me what I think about the Mayan Doomsday predictions, "the end of the world as we know it", set to happen when the sun lines up with centre of the Milky Way galaxy in 2012, my answer is that it will be dawning of the "Age of Avatars."

In order to survive on a planet with 6 billion people, each person will have to become, by necessity, the most spiritually evolved person they are capable of becoming. Each person will have to become an "avatar." Jesus, Buddha, and Mohammad are all well-known examples of avatars. I think it is possible, although not entirely probable, to achieve this by 2150 A.D. (Shoot for the moon, land on the roof, as the old saying goes.)

The novel 2150 A.D. by Thea Alexander is the best realisation of this new world that I have seen. In the novel a man from the 1970's travels there in his dreams and attempts to cross from his life as a twentieth century "micro-man" to a twenty-second century Macro-man.

In the novel over 300 million inhabitants live in world free of disease, poverty, war, and malnutrition. People live simply but comfortabley. Most travel is done through astral projection, including travel to other planets and galaxies. These people are called "Macro" men because they see the world through an inclusive, extremely self-aware lens.

The few "micro" men left are living in a society recreating our existence now. They co-exist in the world with Macro man mostly for purposes of storytelling, but also because in 2150 A.D. there will still be people desiring a micro life in this incarnation who have unenlightened karma left over from previous lifetimes.

As a psychic I have witnessed so many things that to our "micro" minds seem completely unrealistic. That may be why I believe that the Age of Avatars is the next logical step in human evolution. I think that computers and the internet are the first step in creating an awareness of the other minds that share the world with us.

I believe that the reason there is so much interest in psychics and mediums and the "supernatural" right now is that we are getting ready to evolve to a world where everyone is a psychic and a medium. And I believe that the interest in pagan, nature based religions is partly because we no longer live in a world where nature is greater than man- where there are more animals than there are humans- but also partly because we must reconnect with nature spiritually before we can create a relationship with this planet that can truly sustain us.

Each person lives under the laws of their own consciousness. And each person contributes to the collective "pool" of the human mind, spirit, and body. Every time you elevate your consciousness or conquer your personal demons, you elevate the rest of us, you show the rest of us how to slay our own demons. Remember when Nadia Comenici did that perfect "10"? No one had ever seen skill like that before and it was considered very rare. Gymnasts now do much more difficult routines.

What is your perfect "10"? Now is the time to start preparing for the end of the world: by reaching for the stars in your own life; by making the changes that only you can make. The dreamy Pisces New moon is backing you.

Over the next few weeks, dream a dream of a new world.

PRAISES, THANKS, & BLESSINGS!!!

FUTURE HISTORY

2009-02-21T16:14:00.000-08:00

For some years now I have been haunted with images of a not-distant-enough future that I describe as being a cross between the movies Road Warrior, Tank Girl, Soylent Green, and now, Wall-E, without the comfy spaceships.

Basically, a hot, trash-filled planet where humans eat whatever they have to in order to survive. And survival in formerly developed countries like ours, is more difficult than in poor countries.

So far, I have only had those glimpses and feelings to back it up. Until I saw this article:
http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20090221/ap_on_sc/af_climate_stranded

It's about two years ahead of when I felt something like this would be in the headlines, so I have alot of hope. Maybe we are finally waking up to the fact that the planet will surely survive without us, regardless of how hot or cold, or dry or wet, the earth becomes.

But we humans can only survive if the Lady Nature remains within a certain temperature range, and supplies us with a very specific ratio of elements (breathable air, drinkable water, etc).

At last, it seems we are going to give the Lady the respect she deserves. But how to repair the mess we are already in?

I think that really it is going to come down to each individual taking a tough look at his/her own life. The only way to live in a nurturing, sustainable world is to become a nurtured and sustained person. And that means learning to love ourselves pronto.

It is lack of love that drives greed, hate, destruction of precious resources, and disrespect for our environments. If you love yourself, you cannot harm yourself and you cannot harm others.

I recommend the "novel" 2150 A.D. by Thea Alexander as a guidebook for where our compass needs to be set to navigate to a better future. And, of course, Louise Hay's You Can Heal Your Life.

The television series Heroes had a tagline "Save the Cheerleader, Save the World." I would paraphrase: Heal yourself, heal the planet... And save the world.

I will be exploring this topic over the next few weeks as the sun transits Pisces. I hope you will join me in searching for a roadmap to a better future.

PRAISES, THANKS, & BLESSINGS!!!
conjurewoman1@yahoo.com

AGE OF AQUARIUS MEDITATION

2009-02-13T11:15:00.000-08:00

Someone sent me an email that had been forwarded too many times to copy, so I direct you to this site:

http://groups.yahoo.com/group/DiscerningAngels/message/44082

If the musical HAIR was right, and it probably is, then tonight from 11:25 PM PST until 11:43 PM PST you might want to join the world-wide meditation to welcome the Age of Aquariaus, or the Age of Avatars, as I have named it. ****

(It's at 7:25AM GMT on February 14th, which means that here in the US it is on Valentines Day as well for everyone except those of us in the Pacific time zone.)

I have been hearing about a lot of hardships and suffering from people. Many have asked me if there is a planetary aspect causing this, or if astrology offers some "help". Ironically, despite tonight's alignment I don't know how much help astrology is going to be for the next few years, because at this point so many powerhouse aspects in the last year (few years) have started ripple, and tidal wave, effects that the events we are all dealing with in our daily lives can't always be traced to the aspects of any given day.

You probably know what you need to be doing. But if you aren't doing it, if you are hiding your head in the sand, the sand is about to get blown away. And if you are doing what you need to do, you might be getting frustrated that things keep going topsy turvy.

The most important thing is that you are here, in this life and on this planet. One thing the dead have told me is that almost every spirit would come back and live the worst day of their life again and again, if given the chance. From the "other side" suffering is as precious as joy. And the suffering that one experiences in this life is always surrounded by hope- there is always the possibility of creating a new outcome.

Once you have passed to the other side, there is no more hope of changing the events (or your perspective) on what happened here. Whatever you are going through, think of it as the restructuring you need to become aligned with your authentic life- the life you were meant to live.

Tonight is the perfect time to tap into the Universal wisdom and understanding of the stars and planets, and to join your thoughts with other "avatars in training."

Tonight is surely a night for miracles.

PRAISES, THANKS, & BLESSINGS!!!
conjurewoman1@yahoo.com

**** Nolle just confirmed the alignment was actually THIS morning, on the witches day, Friday, February 13, but the people organising it seem to be swept up in the image of the alignment being on Valentine's Day (obviously they aren't witches or they would know a Friday the 13th is good day too! Maybe better!!!). I think it will be fine though, as far as "meditation as magick" goes. Although it is always a little troubling when things like this happen, because it sort of confirms the idea that people who follow astrology are so flakey they can't even get their own information right.

FALLOUT SHELTERS

2009-02-10T13:43:00.000-08:00

Within the last seven days we have experienced Imbolc, another Saturn-Uranus opposition (the last was at election time), a full moon, and lunar eclipse.

And the impact of these events will, for the most part, take awhile to really affect (and effect) us. So over the course of the next few weeks, prepare for some deep and significant changes to take place in your life. And in the lives of those around you.

The Mayan doomsday and the Age of Aquarius are upon us. (I have renamed these the "Great Awakening" and the "Age of Avatars", respectively.) December 21, 2012 might still be a few years away, but I think that we can reasonably expect a few "previews" in the next month. In particular, I feel seismic rumbles in the Pacific Rim, including the SoCal region. Be prepared.

Also look for sudden and startling clarity on issues that had previously eluded you. And for what I have begun to call the "reverse-negative effect". For instance, jealousy, when repackaged or viewed as admiration, becomes the boost your nemesis needed to get out of his/her slump. And karmically, you will get a boost as well.

Let the stasis and/or challenges of the moment do their work in bringing you the biggest surprises of your life over the next two months.

PRAISES, THANKS, & BLESSINGS!!!

IMBOLC

2009-02-04T16:45:00.001-08:00

The sun reached 15 degrees of Aquarius last night, making today Imbolc (from last night at sundown until tonight at sundown).

This is the Feast of first milk, for the winter-born lamb, and also the mass of candles "Candlemass." This is the lesser quarter day of the Celtic calendar of fire festivals.

I would write more, but I am up to my ears in trying to reinvent my life and clean up and clear out all the old stuff that just isn't working for me anymore. Not a bad time of year to do so. Clean out the closets and clean out the mind.

Join me if you'd like. It may be awhile until spring arrives, but when it does, I will be ready for new life and new growth.

PRAISES, THANKS, & BLESSINGS!!!
conjurewoman1@yahoo.com

A NEW BEGINNING

2009-01-23T15:50:00.000-08:00

Tuesday's Inauguration heralded a new beginning for this country. The new moon on Monday kicks off the Chinese New Year (the year of the Ox). New beginnings, new hope, new opportunities and ventures, and many miracles are scattered like seeds in every moment these days. Plant a few for yourself.

It is my intention to return to regular blog postings next week. I am still on a "technology fast" that began during my illness in September. I've had to completely re-route and re-fashion my life in order to become truly healthy.

Thanks to all of my friends, clients, and readers that have stuck with me through this absence! And sorry for the delays in answering emails. I will be more prompt in the future.

PRAISES, THANKS, & BLESSINGS!!!
conjurewoman1@yahoo.com

THE FALLOW TIME OF YEAR

2008-11-02T18:31:00.000-08:00

From Samhain (the sun at 15 degress of Scorpio) until Yule (the winter Solstice) it is the fallow time of year for spirits and magick. Pack up your altar and give yourself, and everyone and every "thing" a day off, too.

Make your list of goals for the next year, plan holiday gifts and suprises, put your back into the yearly harvest and preparation for the winter ahead.

Take time every day to walk outside and commune with the earth. Set up a bird feeder and watch the birds. Take time to admire the changing trees, the growing winds, the moody sky.

The old (Magickal) year is dead. The new year is concieved, to be born at Yule. Take a moment to look back with thanks, forgiveness, and completion, and then take another moment to look ahead with wishes, hopes, and blessings.

PRAISES, THANKS, & BLESSINGS!!!

SAMHAIN SEASON

2008-10-21T13:36:00.000-07:00

The ancestor of Halloween is called Samhain ("sow-en"). It was discovered and named by the Druids.

Twice a year the doorway between the worlds opens. In Spring it is to let in the new spirits, the spirits of fertility and those about to be born, when the sun reaches 15 degrees of Taurus at the beginning of May.

When the sun reaches 15 degrees of Scorpio (this year on the 7th, after sunset in Los Angeles) the dead roam the earth. The spirits of those that have departed are amongst us again. It is a good night for divination and prophecy and communication with the unseen.

The feast of Samhain, like the other Celtic fire festivals, begins at sunset. That is why it is significant to know at what time the sun reaches 15 degrees of Scorpio. This year Samhain is from sunset on the 7th to sunset on the 8th.

However, as the most significant festival of the entire year, and the end of the old year and beginning of the new for witches, it is not inappropriate to celebrate for a week: 3 days before, the day of, and 3 days after.

From Samhain to Yule, the winter solstice, it is the fallow time of year- for magick and for mortal endeavours. The New Moon near Halloween will be the last time to do magick until just before Christmas.

The next weeks are good for meditating on what you want to harvest from the year. It's a time to wrap things up, to start preparing for the holidays, and to simply let go of the old and unnecessary. Samhain was the slaughtering time. The herds were thinned out, the larder stocked, and prayers were said for the year ahead.

What is it that you want to nurture and sustain until spring? And what do you want to leave behind?

PRAISES, THANKS, & BLESSINGS!!!
conjurewoman1@yahoo.com

My apologies for my continuing absence and sporadic posts. I am still recovering from my illness. I am able to do readings, however. Feel free to contact me at the email address above for an appointment.

FEELING FREE AND LIGHT

2008-09-28T13:10:00.000-07:00

I must apologise for my lengthy absence. I have been ill and I am recuperating very slowly.

If you want to feel free and light regardless of how stressful your situation is, try meditating every day. I use the Zen breath counting method from Dr. Andrew Weil (http://www.drweil.com/drw/u/ART00521/three-breathing-exercises.html). It has remarkable restorative powers. It cleanses away all of the repeating thoughts, obsessions, worries, and brings back a sense of balance.

I frequently suggest breath meditation to clients and friends, because it helps me so much.

Sit comfortably in a chair with your back supported. Centre your attention on your breath. Begin counting each exhale, from one through five, and repeat for 10 minutes to 45 minutes (or longer, I suppose if you are disciplined or dedicated). Do not count past 5.

What happens is, about count 3, your conscious mind will figure out a way to start running thoughts through the "hamster wheel" while it continues to count. Suddenly, you find yourself at 8, or worse, with no idea how you got there.

You can't stop your mind from thinking, but you can keep releasing the thoughts as they come. The "hamster wheel" of worry relies on recurring thoughts to run it. Breath counting requires focus, but it is relaxing and balancing.

There have been times when the "hamster wheel" spun so fast and furiously that I couldn't focus for even ten minutes of breath counting, but those days are rare, and even the attempt helps to calm and soothe me a bit.

Try it for a few days, and probably you will like it enough to continue.

PRAISES, THANKS, & BLESSINGS!!!
conjurewoman1@yahoo.com

** I wouldn't meditate under the influence- not of weed, or alcohol, or vicodin, or shrooms, or even mugwort. Learn to get there from the baseline, first.

THE OPPOSITE SIDE

2008-09-06T22:03:00.000-07:00

This is a time in my life where I really see the opposite side of everything. All of the opinions that I've held over the years, and all of the judgments I've held about myself and other people, all of these created karma.

I think if you really hold onto a belief too long and/or too tightly it leaves marks; it shapes you. You have to fill in the negative space; create dissonance among order.

Sometimes you have to move completely into the other side. You have to become the thing that restricted you. If you were the victim, you become a predator; if you were the robber, you become a cop. It may not even be equal in magnitude or in length, but you will find yourself, somehow, on the other side of a familiar situation.

If you offended me, I must now offend you. If you dumped me when I loved you so much, I must now leave a lover of equal ardor. If I made a deal with the devil, I must now go to lure my soul away from Paradise.

The great thing about karma is that once you recognise that it is happening -- even if it was a mistake, or you were misunderstood, or you weren't aware-- you can correct it. It's like playing a video game and finding a secret key or door or extra energy . It speeds up progress to the next level.

If, like me, you are going through a time in your life where you are changing sides, or conversely, hearing the other side at full volume and with a lot of reaction, just relax. Beliefs are just the opinions that run our operating systems. Opinions are just choices and observations, and those can both be changed.

The thing that I keep learning, over and over again, is that the more I demand from myself in terms of releasing old behaviours and patterns, loving myself unconditionally, and learning to see life in a new and positive way, the more I find myself in new and surprising places.

Like the opposite side of the fence. And not the side that has the greener grass. No, this is the fence that used to be the line that I couldn't cross; the boundary that I saw as a guardian of the very edge of what was "right."

But what used to be "right" was also that I was a failure, unloved, uncared for, in a dangerous world that would never be "right". And that things would not ever really get better, and the best that I could hope for was to hang on to my dreams and never let them go.

So if I must sacrifice a few opinions to get to live beyond such a limited and damaged worldview, so be it. And if it means that I have to see the less than perfect parts of myself, so be it. Because if everything is possible- even that I could hold the opposite of a dearly cherished "belief"-- then I can live in a safe and caring world, and I am doing the best I can, and things will change as I change.

Sometimes I think our best beliefs need to be stretched, like our muscles. They have to stay flexible to really support us properly- so sometimes that means reach all the way up, as far as you can go. Being able to stretch out and touch the opposite side keeps the muscle healthy. It keeps us in a position to always feel the kind of unity and wholeness we call "happiness."

PRAISES, THANKS, & BLESSINGS!!!
conjurewoman1@yahoo.com

THE FUTURE IS NOT SET

2008-08-20T13:14:00.001-07:00

As a psychic, I often share with people visions of the future. One thing that many people find confusing is "if the future is not set, than isn't any prophecy potentially wrong?" No, and yes.

We have free will. We always have choices in how we are going to respond to events in our lives. As far as I can tell, we have alot more free will than say, a tree or an animal or a rock. A tree cannot choose to grow straight and rob light from other trees. If there are other trees too close to it, it must grow where there is light available, even if it means having a crooked trunk.

Moreover, in each moment in time there are countless possibilities available to us. Usually we choose what is familiar, what seems most likely for success, and what we are comfortable choosing. I have seen many people, especially recently, make significant changes to their lives by making different choices.

I do not just see this world, but other worlds as well, and I see how those other worlds effect ours. Every possibility is available in every moment, it's just that some are much closer and more likely than others. Future moments are determined by the choices we make in the present, and all of the choices we made in the past.

Each moment in our lives is similar to the process of creating a necklace of beads or pearls. The string is the timeline of lives, and the beads are the choices that we make. Until the day we leave this life the necklace is unfinished. And often the length of the string is determined by the choices we make. Choose a bead that breaks the string, and the necklace is done.

Even the best psychic is only seeing the most likely of possible outcomes.

Surrounding each person is a kind of magnetic force field. Part of this field is the aura. Each person's thoughts, beliefs, health, and feelings create this force field. Since all possibilities are present, the force field acts as an attractant to the beads that are most likely to be chosen. For instance, if you feel success is likely in a certain situation, that "success" bead is hovering near to you.

However, if you feel that something is unlikely, or won't work out, or your core beliefs contradict what you want emotionally or mentally, the "bead" that has the strongest attraction will override the others. And usually that magnet will be your core beliefs.

If you have anger at a certain person or situation, and you believe that anger is justified, likely you will keep attracting anger. If you believe there is a loving outcome, you will attract that loving outcome- although in this example, if the other person is still feeling anger, it may be that you simply do not ever see the person again.

All of our experiences begin in ourselves. Each thought creates a magnet that either attracts or repels. Luckily there is one magnet that will never steer you wrong: unconditional Love. By staying rooted in Love for yourself and for others, you will always attract the best possible outcome in any given situation. With Love there is no need for judgments. If you are trying to attract a lover or a job, just know that whatever it is you are ready to accept will come to you.

Perhaps some of the undesirable job offers or lovers are simply from old magnets that you created in the past. Whatever choices you made before, you were doing the best you could. And unless you have a working time machine, you cannot go back and change those choices. Trust that you are growing organically and authentically in each moment.

Love yourself and accept yourself as you are. You are not like anyone else that has ever lived before, or anyone that will ever live again. You are perfect, whole and complete as yourself. You are only imperfect if you judge yourself against another. Do not condemn your limitations. They are part of what makes you authentic. Learn to embrace them. I know that I am a perfect Rae, but I am a very imperfect Angelina Jolie, or anyone else for that matter. Why choose anything but perfection?

All of us are here to journey through the countless, endless possibilities that each moment of our lives offers us. The more aligned you are with your true self and with Love, the more that exactly what you need will come to you. The future is not set. You have many choices to make, and each day is a journey that brings you closer to the realisation and expression of your perfect, whole, and complete self, and your authentic life.

PRAISES, THANKS, & BLESSINGS!!!

conjurewoman1@yahoo.com

FULL MOON AND THE MAGICK OF LOVE

2008-08-16T15:31:00.000-07:00

I forgot to post that today was the full moon and partial lunar eclipse. As always I sent out Love to everyone on the planet and healing. (You can too. Follow the link to my chakra cleansing meditation.)

The only true message of the ritual today was Love. Perhaps the same message I am always receiving (and giving), but one that bears repeating.

Love yourself the way you Love others. The way you Love a lover, or your children, or your sports team, or your favourite band, or designer, or whatever. You are the person that you will be with for your entire life. It is not selfish to Love yourself first and foremost. You have an endless well of Love inside of you. You can never give away all the Love in your heart. You are here to Love yourself and everything in your life.

You must Love yourself first and foremost.

No matter where you are right now, or what is happening in your life, Love yourself. And if other people make you somehow feel diminished, remind yourself that you Love yourself more. You don't need to judge or dislike other people to Love yourself. You do not need to reject them, but do reject any opinion or judgement, from yourself or other people, that makes you Love yourself less.

The whole Universe has entrusted you with the package of skin and bones and thoughts and feelings and spirit and creativity and dreams and hopes that you are. Love it.

Love yourself unconditionally.

PRAISES, THANKS, & BLESSINGS!!!

conjurewoman1@yahoo.com

WHY RITUAL?

2008-08-11T14:36:00.000-07:00

I actually did my ritual for Lughnassadh on the day itself, and not the Eve, as I had planned. Generally I try not to postpone rituals. I've had a number of people question why I feel it is important to do say, new moon rites on the night of the new moon, and not when it is convenient. Personally, I feel the energy of whatever is being celebrated. It's perhaps somewhat similar to having a birthday party on your actual birthday. Or perhaps more like witnessing the birth itself, instead of showing up with cigars later.

And many people have questioned why ritual itself is important? Since the energy is there at the time, why not just tune into it while you are doing whatever else it is that you need or want to be doing, and not have to take time out of your schedule?

In these days of "multi-tasking" that seems legitimate. But you can't multi-task with the spirit world, or the astral plane, or non-human nature spirits. Being a witch is alot like being a priest, there are certain times and days that need to be observed. It is a conversation, or perhaps more of a dinner party, for the entities involved in the ritual. You can't have a dinner party while you are out running errands or at someone else's party, etc.

The ritual, like a dinner party, has several aspects: the feast, friends, and a place to gather. You cast the Circle and create a space for these entities to inhabit. Usually I have an altar set up for that particular ritual: representations of earth, air, fire, water, and I usually have out feathers to represent the winds as well. I call Guardians (personally I use the Sons of Horus from the Egyptians and modern Egyptian practitioners), beings that are friends from the astral plane, ancestor spirits, the elemental kingdoms and their rulers, and I invite my angels.

(Two other entities that usually attend are "Star", a star spirit that rarely speaks to me but that I feel. The other is "Singer" which I think is also a star spirit, or perhaps the same star spirit. She is very interesting to me because she comes only to hear the offering song. She has communicated to me that just as we humans have particular music that we like, for her the sound of the human voice is one of the most beautiful sounds in the Universe. Sometimes when I am singing during daily activities she drops by to give me kudos for engaging in her favourite activity.)

Generally I invoke only the Deities I am working with or honouring in that ritual (although I do know of one coven that uses ancient Celtic Gods as their Circle guardians; a practice I do not feel comfortable with). I always try to have offerings of both food, drink, and something else- coins, or flowers, whatever is appropriate. And I always sing a song as an offering as well. (My standard Circle song is 'Tis A Gift To Be Simple, a Quaker hymn that I adapted-- instead of "valley of love and delight" I sing "a Circle of love and delight".)

I try to have something appropriate for the purpose of the ritual. If I am honouring the moon, as I do twice every twenty eight days (new moon and full moon) I try to have something prepared to do or say- much like the toast at a dinner party to the guest of honour. And if I am doing magick I usually have whatever materials I need and offerings for the blessings that are given to my spells. (This aspect can be compared to a fundraising dinner party, where your guests are people that you are asking for financial or other support for your cause.)

The reasons for ritual are so numerous. I learn so much from the beings that attend my Circle. The "conversation" with the Divine and with nature and nature spirits is similar to conversations with friends: ignore them for too long and you lose touch.

Moreover, as a natural witch, if I do not do ritual to use my inherent magickal energy, it builds up and can become negative. It is like psychic energy, you have to expend it so that it doesn't clog up or stagnate and work against you. For example, as many of us know all too well, if you eat more than you exercise you gain weight. It is the same with spiritual energy. There needs to be a balance of meditation, study, prayer or magick, and ritual.

I am not a Wiccan, but I do recommend Scott Cunningham's Guide For The Solitary Practitioner. Marian Greene is also an excellent beginner's resource for ritual.

PRAISES, THANKS, & BLESSINGS!!!

conjurewoman1@yahoo.com

LUGHNASSADH, LAMMAS, 2008

2008-08-06T21:57:00.000-07:00

The sun reaches 15 degrees of Leo on August 8th. This is one of the lesser quarter days, when the veil between the worlds is thinner, and when feasting and celebration is called for.

In modern Pagan calendars this is celebrated as an agricultural festival: the Feast of First Harvest. If it was marked at all by the Druids, it would most probably have been the last mating of the summer or the beginning of fattening the animals slated for slaughter at Samhain.

The grain is strong, and Lugh the Long Arm, the sun god, roams among us. Celtic fire festivals are typically celebrated at dusk the night before, as the Celts believed that the old day died when the sun set, and the new day was born in darkness.

Drinking beer, eating bread stuffed with summer vegetables, making offerings of canned goods to a local shelter, all of these are good things to do tomorrow night or on Friday.

You cannot plant in a field that is ripe and ready for harvest. This is a night for thanksgiving and celebration of what you have. For really appreciating all the blessings in your life. A time not to dwell on what you don't have, but to really praise all that you do have.

The God Lugh loves gardeners. Don't be surprised if he shows up at your Circle or ritual.

PRAISES, THANKS, & BLESSINGS!!!

conjurewoman1@yahoo.com

NEW MOON IN LEO AND SOLAR ECLIPSE

2008-07-31T12:57:00.000-07:00

The new moon in Leo happens late tonight/early Friday morning at 3:13 AM PDT. The solar eclipse is a few minutes later.

New moons are the time of growth beneath the surface. A time to plant seeds of inspiration and hope that will grow and take root between now and the full moon. Eclipses usually take something away or block something from sight. Eclipses can also be times of miracles-- keeping in mind that often one man's miracle is another man's disaster.

For example, if our financial institutions get the repairs and overhaul they need to create a truly sustainable and healthy economy, most of us would benefit. At least in the long run. But many people who have been reaping the rewards of our "fast money for no work" system would find their lives and pocketbooks in shambles.

Magickly and spiritually, tonight is the night for meditation and cleansing. Tomorrow night is the night for intention. And Saturday night is the night for purpose and action. Light a candle tonight and see that the things you don't need in your life, that are holding you back- habits, possessions, lifestyle choices, etc- are being "eclipsed." Picture these things leaving you, flowing away on the death-tide of the old moon.

On Friday night do your New Moon circle and sing praises to the moon as the Dark Lady, hidden from our view. As an article in this year's Witches Almanac explains, the New Moon is a time when the seed is still below ground. No growth has emerged yet, but it is there. About to push through the surface. Visualise strongly the things that you are bringing into your life. As the moon's crescent grows over the next two weeks, be sure that your dreams will emerge as well.

On Saturday night consecrate the actions you have taken to bring your new dreams to fruition. For me that means mailing out my manuscript to a publisher, throwing out old clothes that no longer fit me, and making sure that old business is wrapped up as much as possible.

Someone asked me today if I have been getting any "feelings" about 8-8-08. Until she asked me that, I hadn't. The 8th is one of the quarter days. Lughnasadh, or Lammas, when the sun reaches 15 degrees of Leo. This is a lesser quarter day, the greater quarter days being Samhain and Bealtaine, the ancestors of Halloween and May Day respectively. Among modern pagans it is celebrated as the Feast of First Harvest. Among the Druids it may or may not have been celebrated, and if it was, probably more as pastoral holiday- fattening up the sheep when the grass is high, and perhaps the last mating before winter.

It is also two days after the Uranus- Mars opposition. My feeling about this coming week, not necessarily just the 8th, is that a big shift is occurring, and probably will be felt even by the most oblivious "muggles"- or non-magickal people.

Personally, I have been thinking alot about this blog, and why I write these posts. I haven't been posting much lately because the truth is, I feel like I have said everything I can say about the times we are in. I've been saying the same things for the last four years. This year and next are the biggest turning points in the "end of the world as all the people who came before us knew it." The Mayan Doomsday cycle to some, the Great Awakening, as I call it, to others.

Self-awareness, unconditional love for self and others (as much as possible), preparation for natural disasters (a lot of storms and seismic activity will be present in the next week or two), releasing all criticism, anger, resentment, fear, and guilt- these are things that must be attended to most urgently.

In the Moonsurfing newsletter Claudia says that this is a time when you will discover what you are meant to be-- not do. I would add to that by saying "be who you really are, and what you are meant to do will naturally follow."

Hold steady while the boat rocks, and keep on course, no matter what tempests and storms may blow.

PRAISES, THANKS, & BLESSINGS!!!

PSYCHIC POWER AND SPIRIT GUIDES

2008-07-27T17:35:00.000-07:00

The other day someone commented that I was lucky to have spirits "feeding me information." While it is true that my Guides often act as translators for other spirits, and for visions that aren't clear, my powers as a psychic and medium are my own.

In fact, I often see things that my Guides would prefer I couldn't see. Like all humans, if I am anxious about something, or desire a particular outcome, my visions can sometimes work against my best interests.

For example, let's say that I really like a particular man but the relationship would really not be in my best interest. But if I have latched onto the idea of a relationship with him and I can "see" that he wants me, too, I am less likely to listen when my Guides say "leave him alone."

The same is true for certain jobs. I can see how to get the job-- the right thing to say in the interview, etc-- but perhaps my Guides know that there is a better job that will lead me down a better path. If I can see the job in front of me, but not the job they want me to pursue, I am generally less inclined to listen to them.

Which brings up another point or two. Having spirits give you advice is in many ways no different from having another human give you advice. You may or may not listen, no matter how wise or correct the person/spirit has been in the past. Sometimes I just want what I want, the way I want it, and I don't listen to reason.

Moreover, the future is not certain or set. There are possibilities, and usually one or two possibilities is so great as to be almost certain, but the more variables and time involved, the more things can change. It still surprises me how quickly things can shift. And there are many times when my Guides cannot direct me in my choices. We humans have free will and we are here to exercise that free will. Sometimes a left turn is a better choice than a right turn, but sometimes it is simply a matter of making a choice and taking responsibility for the outcome.

Over the years I have gotten better at having worded conversations with spirits, but the spirit world and the world of future possibilities is not rational. Language is rational. The dead and possibilities speak in symbols; the lexicon of dreams and mysticism. Even when talking directly with my Guides there are times when human language doesn't translate; when I "hear" them in symbols, shadows, feelings, and mystic visions.

The truth is, I don't fully understand how all of this works. If you have strong enough psychic abilities you probably have Guides. Everyone has spirit guides with them, but in my experience most people's spirit guides are family members, usually one or two generations back, and no further. One of my guides is related to me, but from very, very far back. The others are not relations. Basically, it is their "job" to work with me. Like me, they were mediums, mystics, and/or witches while they were alive.

Interestingly, not too long ago I asked if I could get a Guide specifically for medium work, since I have a difficult time understanding spirits who have been dead for along time, were cut off from their family members, or died in traumatic circumstances. I also have a hard time with names.

My Guides told me that the type of Guide I was asking for was difficult for someone that was not a "career" psychic to obtain. In other words, I would need to show much greater dedication to developing my gifts and be willing to become much more public (television and other media, police work if necessary, making it my career, etc). They also pointed out that I could use them more than I had been to facilitate readings.

Since I did not want the life that they showed me I've been trying to use my current Guides more during client readings. Generally the people that come to me for readings do not need police psychics, or need to have complicated discussions with long dead relatives, or speak to their spirits in ancient languages, etc. If they do I can refer them to Alison DuBois, Janet Mayer, Laurie Campbell, or celebrities like Lisa Williams and Sylvia Brown. Also I feel, and my Guides agree, that writing is my true career.

The only other thing I would like to add is that lately I have been encountering a number of people that I call "family mediums." In other words, they have some psychic and medium abilities that are limited to the scope of their own lives and their family members. Most families have issues that have developed over several generations, and often the ancestors are attempting to put right what went wrong back in their lifetimes. The family medium is very important to these ancestors, and to the family members living now.

I will post later this week on the upcoming new moon and eclipse. In the meantime, my advice is to spend as much time as possible over the next few days clearing out the past and resolving old issues. Whatever is undone, try to get it done.

PRAISES, THANKS, & BLESSINGS!!!

conjurewoman1@yahoo.com

SELENE AND ENDYMION

2008-07-17T21:13:00.000-07:00

The Capricorn full moon is usually the Wishing Moon of the year. You can wish on any moon, of course. But the Capricorn full moon is usually right after the Summer Solstice, and everything is in bloom and full again. There is abundance and fertility enough to go around.

I have not recently told the story of the Lady the Moon, the Mistress of Magick and Enchantment. When you wish to the moon, wish to the Lady Selene. She was the body of the moon in some systems of Greek mythology. Selene loved a beautiful shepherd, Endymion. He was so beautiful that the Gods became jealous. Selene begged his life and beauty be spared, so he sleeps eternally on Mount Latmus.

Since Selene can only gaze upon him, and not love him as she would like, each month she struggles with her desire. As the moon waxes, she turns her face toward the object of her desire. When she is full she is gazing at the sleeping form of her lover. As the moon wanes she is overcome and turns away.

Only a woman that knows love and longing can grant wishes and make magick. Selene was a Titan, and speaks the old language. In many ways she is a "better" witch's Goddess than Hecate. Hecate knows the secrets of the earth and the Gods. She wanders the world at night and can be found loitering at crossroads on dark moon nights- in particular where three roads meet.

Hecate carries with her knowledge and illumination of this earthly dimension and human existence. Selene speaks the older language of the stars and planets, and forces beyond even the Gods themselves.

Lucky for witches, we don't have to choose just one Diety. When summoning spirits and seeking mortal knowledge, appeal to Hecate. When gazing at the full moon with longing in your heart, call to Selene. She will hear you, and she will answer.

PRAISES, THANKS, & BLESSINGS!!!

conjurewoman1@yahoo.com

EDIT: When you make a wish to the moon, gaze at her and think about how beautiful she is. She is a woman, true, but this is how she feels when she looks at Endymion. So she will understand your longing, and grant you the object of your desire.

CAPRICORN FULL MOON 2008

2008-07-15T08:11:00.000-07:00

Very early Friday morning is the full moon in Capricorn. A witches day rarely follows clock time, so even though the full moon occurs in all U.S. time zones after midnight, technically on Friday, the full moon is taking place for magickal purposes on Thursday, under Jupiter's rule. (I was going to cover planetary hours in this post, but it was too lengthy. I will do a more complete post at a later time.)

Saturn, Capricorn's ruler, is in Virgo, the sign of health and hygiene. Jupiter, ruler of Sagittarius and co-ruler of Pisces, is in Capricorn. I do not think it is a coincidence that many people I know are making changes in diet and lifestyle. In particular, myself and another Cap witch I know have both decided to quit smoking (she cold turkey, me taking it a little more gradually). Moreover, a Sag friend emailed me yesterday that she too is planning to quit smoking.

Especially if your sun sign is Capricorn, or if you have Cap rising, this full moon usually has super mojo for expansion in monetary matters, business, and wealth. However, Jupiter is retrograde right now. This full moon is about a cosmic "do-over." What went "wrong" back around the holidays? What promising situation failed to come to fruition? And what health issues have you been dealing with since last fall?

Now is the time to clear away the old, the dead, the debris. Did your plans fail to take root at the start of the year because they were planted on shaky ground? Or was there something you overlooked? Perhaps you were trying to move ahead without fully confronting the obstacles old patterns have created in your life.

And, most especially, ask yourself: are you living beyond your means? And by that I don't just mean finances, I mean health and body, too. What unhealthy "spending" habits are creating "debt" in your body? And possessions. Are you being crushed by clutter and payments for things you don't really need (second car, extra computers, electricity guzzling televisions)?

Pluto is retrograde right now too, and has left Cap to spend a bit more time in Sagittarius. Pluto likes to bring up secrets and shake out those skeletons in the closet. Even though Jupiter is retrograde, I think with Pluto out of the picture this full moon might bring the opportunity that slipped out of your grasp back in January. If you are prepared for it.

While Saturn and Cap normally honour the past and tradition, loyalty, karma, and debts, this year's full moon in Capricorn is all about clearing out structures that don't work anymore. This is Saturn's destructive element, coupled with Jupiter's need to expand. You just have to be patient while the old stuff is cleared away, and not freak out too much when something you thought you really needed makes an exit. This is a time to examine structures that support you and to make changes and repairs.

For witches especially, this full moon is the power for chances and choices. Look for kinks, for chips in the armour, for old patterns that are limiting you in new situations. The power is there, it's just not readily apparent until you dig through the muck and search the past for clues.

With the right intention, and proper alignment to your true, authentic self and the tasks that you have undertaken for this life, this full moon could literally change your world. Be prepared to receive, but also be prepared to let go. Transformation brings about change. I predict that people from your past will be popping up in unlikely places, and people from your present will be falling by the wayside.

Remember a full moon is a sun-moon opposition. The sun is in Cancer, ruled by the moon and represented by the crab. If you can do your magick at the beach or near water you will get an extra boost of mojo.

And take a minute to really appreciate the earth and all of her creatures and growing things and elements. This full moon is about the relationship between the sun and the earth, the moon and the human heart. Send some Love out to nature and to the healing and health of this planet.

PRAISES, THANKS, & BLESSINGS!!!

RESISTANCE

2008-07-13T10:30:00.003-07:00

Sitting here in Limbo/ Waiting for the tide to turn/... So many things I've got to learn/ Meanwhile they're putting up resistance/ But I know that my faith will lead me on..."

--Jimmy Cliff

Most of us spend a good deal of time resisting certain feelings, situations, interactions with other people, changes, etc. Resistance is easier than change. In fact, I think most humans fear change more than they fear death. Death is something everyone knows they will have to deal with someday. But change, it's easier to "put up resistance."

Resistance takes a lot of forms. Procrastinating, watching television or movies, reading, eating, partying, busywork, fixing someone else's problems, finding excuses, creating drama, getting angry or depressed, complaining, or having the expectation or desire that things change instantly and completely to a desired outcome, etc. But resistance only makes the force for changes stronger. Or makes the need for them stronger.

A lot of clients will say to me "I don't feel like I am doing what I am supposed to be doing with my life." What this usually means is that is that the person is not happy with their job. (Sometimes other aspects of their life.) Usually what they feel they are "supposed" to be doing is something that they like to do, or that they want to do. However, the resistance to the current situation is usually a big part of the obstacle in getting to what the person feels would be a better situation. (And it may or may not be. As everyone has experienced: "be careful what you wish for," etc.)

I worked with this guy briefly who was studying to be a masseur. We were both waiters at this awful chain restaurant. The clientele rarely tipped more than ten percent, and it was one of those places with never ending refills on certain menu items. Servers did a lot of work, especially for people that only ordered the never ending items, and rarely got a decent tip.

My co-worker would go into these rages-- breaking dishes, yelling, etc-- over certain customers. But he would also talk a lot about how he wasn't "supposed" to be working at that job, or at that place. He felt that he was meant for a "higher" spiritual purpose. He spent more intense emotional energy resisting his current situation than he did creating a new one. (Yelling and complaining as opposed to building clientele, following up on leads, preparing for the exam to get his license, and so forth.)

At the time I had still not learned to keep my mouth shut unless someone actually asked for my advice (okay, I still haven't fully learned that lesson ;o), and one day I offered the example of Zen monks. I don't recall where I read this, but in Zen monasteries it is the head priest that cleans the toilets. The higher up the monk, the more menial the tasks the monk is assigned.

Naturally, this did not make my co-worker any more accepting of his current employment. Nor did my suggestions that the highest spiritual reality can be found right here, right now, on this planet, in this life, doing whatever you are doing at that moment. Or that massaging these bad customers that upset him so much would not be fundamentally different from serving them food. In fact, dealing with someone's body issues, health, etc, could end up being more thankless than bringing them four bowls of soup and 3 glasses of water and getting a dollar tip.

We are all here to serve each other, in some way. It is how we serve, and how we view the task of serving.

I believe that whatever you are doing right now is what you are meant to be doing at this time. I do not believe that we are here on this planet and this life to be happy, or to do what we want to do when we want to do it. Those are welcome by-products of living the life we are meant to live, but I don't believe that is why we are here. And resisting a current problem will not give the Universe much faith that you can handle larger ones.

And that is not to say that my former co-worker should not have pursued work that he would have found more rewarding. But all of that resistance to his current situation didn't leave much room or energy for anything new. He spent most of his free time out partying and blowing off steam (i.e., getting into fights) to relieve himself of all the stress he felt at work.

Resisting never creates new opportunities. It doesn't create change. And while I have not heard from him since I left that job, it seems likely that he is at another job that he hates equally. Or that when he did become a masseuse that he would not eventually create the same resistance patterns and frustration in that profession. Because resistance just keeps creating the same situation over and over again, stronger each time. Especially if it is a problem that needs to be solved so that you can move on to the next level in your journey here, in this life.

And my co-workers real problem was with his resistance, not necessarily the work he was doing.

I believe that we are here to solve the problems that come to us. In fact, I think the problems that come up again and again are the main reason we are here. I use the analogy of raindrops: molecules of water attach themselves to particles of dirt or smoke and ascend to the sky. They join with other water and dirt molecules and become clouds. Then they fall to earth and release their "carriers" i.e, the dirt, and become pure water again.

We all come here with "carriers"-- not particles of dirt, but problems. However, when we hit the ground, we often have trouble releasing our "carriers". What was good in the sky is not good on the ground. But it is hard to let go. However, the only way to ascend to the heavens again is to release the old carrier and wait to receive a new one.

Another belief I have is that you can only attract into your life what you are. If there are problems in your life you attracted them. Blame is just a form of resistance, like excuses. Every thought and belief and emotion that we hold is like a magnet. It attracts certain energy. Or repels certain energy.

Our spiritual, emotional, and mental bodies are like our physical bodies in that we can never see all of ourselves at once. Even with a mirror. You can see the front or the back, but not both at once. Even in a roomful of mirrors.

If there is deep resistance, if the change is really significant, it will run very deep and be difficult to see clearly. So it will manifest in people and situations around you. I have actually come to welcome difficulties in my life when the same one crops up in many areas, with many different people. It is usually a sign that there is something I need to release, that I am ready to release, but that I am resisting.

This week I found myself in several conversations with people where either I was asking them for something, or they were asking me for something. Regardless of which direction the favour was going, I was getting a lot of resistance. Either the person I was asking the favour from did not want to do it, but instead of saying "no" would instead try to dissuade me of my need, or criticise me for having the problem. Or, if I was the one being asked, the person would launch into a lengthy story trying to "pre"-convince me of what they wanted me to do.

Both of these patterns are very familiar to me from my family and my childhood. I have spent a lot of time and energy trying to break them in myself. (Asking for and doing favours directly, without expectation of obligation, answering with "yes" or "no" answers, and always being prepared to accept an other's "no" when I am doing the asking.) Needless to say, it concerned me to find this coming up in so many different situations and with different people, mostly casual acquaintances and people I was dealing with in a professional capacity.

I still don't have a firm grasp on what it is in myself I have been resisting, that would run so deep that I would need it reflected back at me from so many different angles. But I've found a few threads. Without going into the particulars too much, which aren't that important to this post, basically I have isolated myself from certain interactions with people because I want to avoid conflict at any cost, because I have pride that is out of balance with my current situation, and because I don't like being obligated to other people, but so often am, I usually let other people off the hook in being obligated to me when I do favours. Somewhere I have become off balance, or this way of doing things no longer works for me.

Obviously I need to change some aspect of how I relate to others. And I have no doubt that it is necessary for my growth. I have never learned to negotiate conflict in a way that is comfortable for me. I either walk away or get really angry and out of control. If I let my fear of conflict continue, and continue my past patterns, I will not be able to engage fully in the situations that will be coming to me in the near future.

I don't know what these situations will be, I just know from past experience that if it is time to release or change a pattern, challenging situations are going to arrive on the heels of all these reflections. And resistance-- IE, trying to continue with the old behaviour-- is only going to make the unwanted situation stronger.

Moreover, I feel certain that the energy of this time- of moving the heavy furniture- is going to demand deep changes in the behaviour patterns of almost everyone on this planet. I believe that globally we are all being challenged to change our most hidden behavioural patterns. Whether this will bring about Karmageddon or usher in the Age of Avatars and higher consciousness is dependent on subjective, personal transformation. Hopefully this post will be helpful.

I will end with a quote from Louise Hay: When you change, they (the problem people or situations) change, or they go away.

It all starts with internal changes and releasing resistance.

PRAISES, THANKS, & BLESSINGS!!!

THE BIG SHIFT

2008-07-08T10:39:00.000-07:00

We are going through a very major shift in energy right now. The funny thing is, it doesn't feel like it. I have been thinking about that a lot lately. This big shift is one of the reasons so many bad spirits are active right now, and why visible manifestations of the "other side" or, more accurately, the other sides, are so visible right now.

As I have mentioned many times before, the changes that are taking place right now are global in scale, but affect each of us subjectively. Our personal lives are transforming in order that the world might be transformed. In some ways that is always true, but it is more significant right now than ever before. I believe that the change in consciousness that we are going through right now is as impacting as the mastery of fire, the time of an avatar- like Jesus, the Buddha, etc-or the invention of the internal combustion engine.

In human history we are at a major turning point. And in this turning point there are many spirals and levels in our advancement. What we have been going through in the last cycle, this last year or so, has been very rapid changes, with many of them coming in fast succession. And then recently, at the brink of the biggest shift of all, the energy seemed to slow down and almost stagnate. Why?

Let's use the example that we are thoroughly cleaning and remodelling a house. We have to move almost everything out. The first thing we do is pack everything up, and then we begin moving the smaller items. Once they are out of the way we move the big heavy items. This is real labour. Slow, careful, concentrating, breathing and watching that you don't strain your back or knees. Don't drop that end of the sofa on your foot; look out, that hallway is too narrow, we will have to move this item out the other way.

That is why the energy feels so much slower, and heavier, after all of that running around. Maybe we should have moved the big items first, but so many of them were blocked. Now there is room to do the work of restructuring. Don't waste time bemoaning the past or having regrets. Now is the time look forward to a brighter future.

I am going to address bad spirits more fully in another post. But for now I advise listening to my chakra cleansing meditation (see last post), really loving yourself unconditionally as much as possible, releasing all judgments about the situations and people that come to you. Don't be surprised if people and situations from the deep past resurface right now. This is what happens when you really clean house. Let all of those things that have been living in dark, dusty places scuttle away.

We are almost there. Once we get all of these heavy items out we can take a quick break, and then we can begin creating a whole new world to inhabit. Everything can be re-designed and renewed. Stay steady. Breathe deep. Don't strain yourself.

PRAISES, THANKS, & BLESSINGS!!!

Chakra Cleansing Meditation

2008-07-03T18:30:00.000-07:00

This is the guided meditation I use for all readings and magick. There is a sound issue at the very end but it is not significant. It runs 20 minutes long. I think even if you just listen while doing any sort of routine task it will cleanse your chakras.

Enigma did the production and pictures, recording (and re-recording) and compressing the film to a compressed mpeg format. She did a fabulous job. Enjoy!

http://conjurings.podbean.com/2008/07/03/chakra-cleansing-meditation/

PRAISES, THANKS, & BLESSINGS!!!

POLTERGEISTS

2008-06-29T10:51:00.000-07:00

Yesterday I heard two accounts from two different people about spirits physically manifesting. In one account the person was momentarily restrained from movement, this I received as an email. In the other situation, one a friend has been experiencing, the spirits made visible marks on the world, most recently footprints on a dusty table.

I have stated before, although I cannot recall in what post, that I believe that poltergeists and hauntings are usually the product of the person or persons experiencing them. If you are psychic and you are not working with your gift consciously the energy can make you unstable and leave you open to negative experiences. Think of your gift as a fertilised garden plot- if you do not cultivate it weeds will take root.

Further, if you can only accept that the afterlife exists if you have physical proof (if you don't trust your gift) than you leave yourself open to bad energy and spirits like poltergeists. The dead have no place in this world. They cannot exist here without our energy to feed on. Rarely are spirits tied to a "place." And even when they are, as in the case of "haunted houses" I believe it is still the energy of the person experiencing the haunting.

Good spirits work through the upper chakras and are not as tied to this world and to suffering. They cannot even reach us through negative energy. (Which is why so many people feel that their angels and guardian spirits have abandoned them in times of depression or unhappiness. It's not a judgment against us- it's simply that the pipeline is too clogged up.)

Negative spirits work through disruption. They are heavy feeders and consume the waste of the lower chakras- feelings of unworthiness, lack of support, egotism, fear, resentment, guilt, etc. The ones that I encountered recently were generations of trapped family members, still feeding off the legacy of anger and despair inherited by one of their descendants.

Rarely do I let bad spirits pull me into "fighting" them. It only makes them stronger. But I was feeling very macho and protective. After a few minutes I realised I was fighting a losing battle. For one thing, the person that was supplying the "food" or energy for the spirit to consume was not ready to release them, or rather the anger that they were feeding on. (The person I was working with was a secondary member of the household. The homeowner was the source of the hauntings.)

I also had some insight into why poltergeists affect children, and why obnoxious and dangerous spirits often manifest as smaller than an adult human, even if they died as adults. Especially in family situations, the patterns of anger and resentment are repeated in each generation. Sometimes the "good" in bad spirits can only be reached as children.

There is really only one way to fight a bad spirit- with Love. Every spirit that walked this earth experienced love at some point. Evil is an extreme lack of Love. It is the antithesis of Love.

And evil cannot draw power from Love or overcome Love.

"Do you remember who you were?" I asked the entity.

The dark, shifting, lumpy mass of negative energy that had been at different points a man with a fist raised, another man yelling in anger, another man swinging an ax and making threatening remarks, and so on, became four small children. Even though the "bad" spirits continued to make threats and try to affect the physical world, the four children remained as well.

I sent as much Love as I could*** to the children, the bad spirits, the home, my friend, and her relative.

"Every time they make a noise or flicker a light, or leave marks, ask them if they remember who they were, and send Love to them."

I also advised more meditation and contact with angels and guardian spirits to develop her gift and her faith in her gift. And to release as many of the old patterns as she could that she herself had inherited from the family legacy.

PRAISES, THANKS, & BLESSINGS!!!

*** In my next video post I will demonstrate chakra cleansings and how to let the energies of earth and heaven run through the chakras, in order to beam Love from the heart chakra to the world or to any person or entity. (I promise to wear make-up and look at the camera. ;o)

EACH OTHERS MEMORIES

2008-06-27T17:29:00.000-07:00

A friend called me about a situation that she felt she needed to make a decision about. I listened to her and gave her the advice she gives me when I feel pressured.

"Just relax," I counselled. "You are always doing the best you can. If you could be doing any better you would be. So no regrets, no fear, no anger, no guilt, and no resentment. The less judgement the better. Just keep loving yourself unconditionally."

"But how did I attract this situation?" She wondered.

"Asking that question in judgement is the same as regret. Only ask it if the purpose is to clarify something in yourself that you feel you no longer have a need for. This is just another chance to release something that you have outgrown. It's an ongoing process."

We talked more about the specifics, and how everyone is really going through a great transformation right now in their personal lives.

The cocoon of the worm is confining to the butterfly. There is always a passage through change. It happens continually. There is no need to resist it or resent it. Each situation in our lives is there to transform us in some way. To guide us more fully to our authentic selves.

"You're right," she said. "I just need to focus on myself."

"I'm just telling you the same thing you always tell me," I confessed.

We are each other's memory. All of us. We are here to remember each other, and how we experienced the world.

PRAISES , THANKS, & BLESSINGS!!!

MIDSUMMER NIGHT'S EVE

2008-06-23T16:34:00.000-07:00

My first video post.

PRAISES, THANKS & BLESSINGS!!!

TO DRIVE AWAY VAMPIRES

2008-06-14T17:13:00.000-07:00

... You only need to guide them into the light. --Michael Franti

I think most people have encountered psychic vampires. People who just drain the lifeblood out of you. Their bad mood permeates your entire being, and you cannot shake it off even after you have left them. People that talk at you without pausing to draw a breath. People who insist you do everything their way, or on their timetable, or only what they want to do. People who just leave you feeling emotionally, spiritually, and/or mentally exhausted after you see them.

Since we attract what we are, I always have to ask myself what I have done to bring a psychic vampire into my reality. I always check my interactions with other people. Have I been draining someone? Or am I holding on to some energy that vampires like to feed on (anger, resentment, guilt, unhappiness, fear)? Have I been avoiding confrontation or difficult situations with people?

Vampires are tricky things. You know they are soulless and evil, but they can be very seductive. It's easy to get addicted to that feeling when they bite you, taking you to the very edge. And the promise of feeding on their blood, that you might become like them and live eternally in their dead world.

I don't think there are any physical vampires. I don't know that the human mind is capable of living in a static, nocturnal world forever. We aren't meant to stay here. We aren't meant to step that far out of the cycle of life in this dimension. I think any real vampires probably watched the sunrise after 150 years. A endless lifetime, with no chance of transforming with the people around you, going through the different stages of life? I don't believe humans have that capacity at this point in time, or any previous one.

But energy vampires abound. They've surrendered the struggle. Locked in their private world of darkness, feeling lost from their souls, unloved and loveless, not able to nourish themselves in any way that does not suck the life force from another person-- they have given up.

One of my best analogies for how to fight evil (and one of the reasons why I don't fear "bad spirits", especially when performing magick or doing any sort of witchcraft or energy work) is to compare the slaying methods of a vampire hunter versus the sun.

Don't be a vampire hunter. Don't fight them on their level. They are stronger and faster than the average mortal. Even Buffy was always getting her ass knocked down on the ground. She died two or three times in fewer than eight seasons.

Don't go hunt them down in their lair or hang around old tombs, looking for them. Stay out of their world as much as possible. Fighting vampires is serious business. Let Blade do that. Being a powerful person, or witch, or shaman, does not mean you must run out and find "evil" to fight and declare victory over. You may not be driven by vanity, but by something worse: lack of belief in your own strength.

You don't need stakes, or crosses, or holy water. You just need light. Strong, pure light. The sun is not a vampire hunter. Sunlight does not "fight" vampires. It incinerates them. The properties of sunlight are simply death to a vampire.

You already know what that light is, right? Of course. It's Love.

Love yourself. Search your karma. Release those things that vampires feed off of: fear, resentment, anger, guilt. Watch the vampire vanish.

Love yourself unconditionally. Even if you are the vampire at times, Love yourself and those lifeless parts of you will turn to ashes. (Or go read this post on what to do if you are the vampire. ;o)

PRAISES, THANKS, & BLESSINGS!!!

TRUE POWER

2008-06-10T07:37:00.000-07:00

I had to do a ritual for myself last night. (Mostly for myself.) I asked several people to join me, and many faraway friends to pray for me, if they could, while the ritual was going on. I've done solitary rituals for myself, but it is rare that I have asked other witches to give me a boost. It wasn't that I felt I would be "draining" someone else, or using their power. And it wasn't even in vanity- i.e., that I am a better witch and shouldn't have to ask for help.

Each witch's, and person's, power is very personal. I've always believed that it should be self-sufficient. But there are times when one reaches an opening to another level and one gets stuck. The passage way seems to narrow. Suddenly you are trapped halfway between the last level and the next. And at other times, the passageway opens, but it is too wide, and all you can do is hang onto the edges. The current upgrade has felt something akin to be thrown in the water and told to "swim!"

I am not the only person that is getting an upgrade right now. There is so much shifting in the world around us. There is a theory that a butterfly's wings in Argentina can effect a cyclone in Asia. (The chaos theory. It's main proponent passed away just recently and the theory received some press.)

Right now there are many butterfly wings, and many cyclones. This time calls for great flexibility. Things change rapidly from moment to moment. The decisions each person makes have a greater impact on the direction the world is taking. And power upgrades and fluctuations take more mindfulness and more control.

There are two main types of power. Like all power, and everything in our plane of existence, it is dialectical. One pushes, the other pulls. The first is perfect alignment. You drive to the bank, all the lights are green, there is a parking spot right near the entrance, there is no one in line at the bank, etc. The second is perfect attraction. You need to hear from a certain person, you think about them, they call. Or you need a certain item, and it comes to you at just the right moment.

In truth all of us are always exercising both forms of power, but usually not perfectly and usually not all the time. Expectations, desires, beliefs, and all of the thoughts and worry we clog our heads up with block off the energies of alignment and attraction. Or align and attract things that we think we do not want. But you can only attract what you are.

You cannot attract someone else's good fortune. You can only attract your good fortune. You cannot attract someone else's bad fortune. Whatever you have in your life right now, you brought to yourself. Books like Louise Hay's can help you understand the process of how to attract better things into your life, and align yourself with the world around you better, but the process itself really cannot be controlled directly.

In 2003 my spirits told me I was ready to do psychic and medium readings for other people-paying clients, not just friends. I felt very unsure. I didn't really understand how I was seeing what I was seeing. I felt like I needed to understand the process. I needed to be sure that I was going to be in control. I tried to "see" readings before they happened, would challenge myself to "tests" to see if my "power" was working, etc.

But when I simply jumped in and followed their advice I was fine. I began to understand that there was no way to control the process. And that I would not attract any clients that weren't "right" for me. (This is one of the main reasons I began charging for readings. To keep the karma balanced and to attract only those who saw readings as valuable.) Even when I did attract clients that were not satisfied (and thankfully I have had very few), I was always able to see afterward how something in me had attracted them.

(For example, when I first returned to St. Louis, I was not used to the more conservative and fearful views about witchcraft and psychic energy. I often took people's fear as directed at me personally. The more fearful the client, the more uncertain I would feel about myself--that I was doing something "wrong"- the more difficult it would be for me to read accurately.)

I am learning as a witch right now that to have power is to relinquish all control over the power. I cannot watch, monitor, understand or control the power. I can only direct it. In some ways it is not an upgrade I have received so much as the ability to channel larger amounts of power. I am a vessel, not a source. The true obstacle was not that the opening to the next level was either too narrow or too wide, but that I was too narrow or too wide.

No matter how powerful any of us become, we cannot control the world outside of ourselves. Things do not always go as planned. Pinning your power, or the power that flows through you, to certain outcomes can be a mistake. That is not to say that spells and prayers for specific intentions should be avoided. But there has to be a willingness to accept that the outcomes won't always be what you expected. And there must be complete and total faith. Moment to moment, again and again.

True magick must have complete freedom. And true power can only exist in the moment. There must be a relinquishing of assurance about the future (i.e., "I will always be able to summon exactly what I ask for at the moment I ask for it in the manner I want it") and a release of judgment about the past. ("This didn't work last time I did it.")

In the last two weeks I have had these strange rashes- like poison oak or ivy- appear on my ankles after a day cleaning out the storage locker here. (The storage locker is one of the main reasons I came back from Los Angeles. It has been hanging over my head, and my family's, for ten years.) I have also had all of these little bug bites. My ankles are always itching.

The outer world will always reflect the inner. Strange ailments and irritations are always a mark of something that is happening inside. I realised after last night's ritual that I have been shackled to my past for so long I don't even remember what it is like to walk free. I've been chained to the past for so long I have become numb to the chafing.

The only true Power is Love. There must always be a connection to the heart. Your heart is really the vessel that power flows through. Your heart will stop talking to you if you are chained to the past. The heart can only speak in the present moment.

I had lost the ability to really listen to my heart. I was so filled with fantasies about what would make my life "perfect", and things that I felt I needed or wanted, or how I "should" be, and then all the worry and judgements and criticism about the past, that I had lost the ability to really feel myself. To just listen to what my heart was saying.

I can't change the past. I can't control the future. I can only stay mindful in the present moment. I can only release the past and look to the future with Love and acceptance. There is nothing for any of us to do but have faith that our power- that the vessel of our hearts- will draw to us exactly what we are. At this moment.

And sometimes, all it takes is to see yourself through the eyes of the people that love you and believe in you. Sometimes all you need is a friend to pull you up. And by doing so you give your friend the chance to feel their own power- that they are strong enough to lift you up. Power is never for ourselves alone. We cannot possibly use all of our power or all the love in our hearts for ourselves. And to give love freely is to increase it.

By asking for the prayers of the people that love me, I have not been selfish, or insufficient. I have asked only that others increase their own stores of love and power by sending some to me. And it is a humbling experience, to really feel what others feel for you. To allow yourself to be a vessel for the love others have for you is in some ways a greater power than to send love out.

I am still not on top of my new upgrade, as this rambling post makes obvious, but the Love of friends has given me the faith to see that soon I will be.

PRAISES, THANKS, & BLESSINGS!!!

P.L. TRAVERS' MAGICKAL MARY POPPINS

2008-06-08T06:37:00.000-07:00

I get about three or four search hits a week from people looking for information on Mary Poppins, the witch. When I wrote my previous post I had not read the original P.L. Travers book that the movie was based on. (The book I had as a child was apparently a novelisation of the Disney movie.)

The book is a great children's book- if a little dated and probably far to "British" for American children (more on that after the witchy stuff)- and very meaty in the mystical. Mary Poppins is actually a very ancient entity, if the clues are interpreted correctly. In fact, if there were a Ph.D. programme for witches this book would be a great thesis.

I've used the chapter headings as a guide.

East Wind: Mary Poppins rides in on the East Wind. Not on a broom- Nanny's aren't scullery girls after all--but by holding up her open umbrella. An umbrella that has such a smart handle (the parrot) that vain Nanny Poppins often carries on those rare London sunny days. Including her day out with suitor Bert in the next chapter.

The east is the direction of new beginnings. And all witches are friends with the winds.

The Day Out: Mary Poppins takes Bert the Match Man, her suitor, on a day out into one of his chalk drawings. (The children are not along in the book.)

Laughing Gas: Mary has a magickal family. Albert Whigg is Mary's Uncle, and when his birthday lands on a Friday he gets filled up with laughing gas. The children rise of their own accord, but it is Nanny Poppins who brings the tea table up and also gives the shocked maid a good lift when she serves the hot water.

Miss Lark's Andrew: Nanny Poppins talks to animals. She is the translator for snooty Miss Lark's little dog Andrew. Andrew has made friends with some undesirable mutts in the neighborhood and also does not like the way Miss Lark fusses over him. Mary is there for his rebellion and translates each bark and growl.

The Dancing Cow: When a cow comes wandering down the street, the children are very excited at this strange occurrence. Nanny Poppins informs them that she knows that cow personally. "She was a great friend of my mother, and I'll thank you to speak politely of her." She tells the children the cows story. A story partially based on "the cow jumped over the moon" and also on an older British folk song, about a witch, a cow and the moon. (I have it in a book of folk songs back in Los Angeles, but cannot recall the title.)

Mary's mother, as we will see in Full Moon, was not just a witch, but a very powerful entity. Worthy of the respect, as is Mary, of the entire animal kingdom.

Bad Tuesday: Michael has a very naughty day and has been very bad and in a terrible mood. At the park he finds a compass which Nanny Poppins uses to take the children round the world (astral project?), visiting different creatures and habitats, much like Merlin in White's ONCE & FUTURE KING).

At the end when Nanny Poppins leaves Michael discovers the compass is broken.

The Bird Woman: This is more the children's story, and quite different from the movie. The children have invested certain witch/guardian attributes to the Bird Woman. (She speaks in bird language and cares for the birds at night.)

Mrs. Corry: The origins of Hansel and Gretel, with a smidge of the Greek Titans and perhaps the inhabitants of the three worlds of the Teutonic Gods.

Nanny Poppins takes the children for gingerbread. Mrs. Corry's shop appears out of nowhere and disappears when they leave. Her two fat, (giantess) daughters are a bane to her. Worker drones, and she treats them as such.

Mrs. Corry is older than this Universe, can snap her fingers off and have them become sticks of candy, with new fingers growing right back. Her coat is covered with coins. When they purchase the gingerbread each of them, Nanny Poppins too, must press the coins into Mrs. Corry's coat for payment.

Nanny Poppins is not just buying the children gingerbread. There is an offering to Mrs. Corry the Entity. Interest is expressed by Mrs. Corry as to where the children save the gilt paper stars from the gingerbread? The children inform her of their hiding places for the saved stars.

Later that night they observe Mary stealing their boxes of stars and helping Mrs. Corry paste them in the night sky. Fannie and Annie bring and hold the ladders and the bucket of glue.

John and Barbara's Story: This is a beautiful chapter, about how the two babies (also not in the movie) can talk to sunlight and birds. At the end of the chapter, when the babies have "shifted" into this reality and lost their ability, as do all children, to understand the language of creation, Mary Poppins teases the starling. "Crying?" she asks the bird. Of course, not he tells her staunchly, he just has a wee cold.

Full Moon: Mary herself is so powerful and respected that her birthday party is at the zoo, hosted by all the animals, including the king of the beasts, an old serpent. Mary's mother is mentioned in this chapter again.

There are so many Goddesses that are associated with serpents and snake wisdom I do not even begin to try to list them.

Christmas Shopping: One of the Pleides, Maia, comes down to Herrods to go Christmas shopping for her six sisters. Even stern, proper Nanny Poppins is overcome with awe at meeting this delightful creature.

West Wind: She rode in on the East Wind, and she leaves on the West Wind. She is perfectly balanced with nature and knows when it is time to leave. Or perhaps it is her restless witch spirit that cannot stay in one place for too long?

The characters are very different from the movie. And don't always translate well in America. Nanny Poppins seems very dark without an understanding of British culture and society.

For instance, when Mary Poppins tells Mr. Banks that she makes it a rule never to give references, it is really the relationship between servant and employer that is at play. "I make it a point never to give references," she informs Mr. Banks. "It's quite out-of-date."

In the next chapter Nanny Poppins is very insistent with Mrs. Banks about her time off. "The best people, ma'am... give every second Thursday, and one til six." And Mrs. Banks relents, wishing that Nanny Poppins "did not know so much about the best people." In British society, servants often do know more about the "best people" and are often more proper and bigger sticklers for the rules and traditions of the upper classes than their employers.

Nanny Poppins stoic nature and insistence on what is proper is also in keeping with her place in British society. It would not do for a Nanny to become to attached to her charges, or encourage them in any way except in developing an unsentimental and courageous nature themselves.

School teachers, like Nannies, had to be unmarried, very proper women. In VILLAGE SCHOOL by 'Miss Read', memoirs and stories of an English country village, one of the other teachers, Miss Clare, is leaving after many, many years of service. She is honoured with a speech by the Vicar and presented with a gift.

Miss Read describes the scene:
"Miss Clare replied with composure, and I never admired her more than on this occasion. A reserved woman herself, I think that this was the first time that she realised how warmly we all felt towards her. She thanked us simply and quietly, and only the brightness of her eyes as she looked at the happy children told of the tears that could so easily have come to a less courageous woman."

The first Mary Poppins book is great, and well worth reading. I am planning to read the whole series. Modern witches have a lot to learn from Nanny Poppins.

EDIT: I didn't read Wiki's article before I wrote this. Her name, for one thing: merry pop-in's. And it led me to thinking about how all Nanny's are magickal to children. For one thing, they know people in the lower classes, other servants-- perhaps even chimney sweeps and match-men. Again, nannies were not really an American phenomenon.

I was also thinking about Mary's vanity. This, too, must seem out of place in our world. Mary wasn't so much vain as proud. She took great pride in her appearance and in holding herself up as an example. Her perfect white kid gloves, her new brown shoes. Mary could always be assured of herself, regardless of floating tea-parties and conversing with cows and stars. But this might also be another nod to her profession. Nannies were not respectable if they were unkempt or untidy, no matter how spotless they kept their charges. Also, Nannies were employed women. And employed caring for children above their own class. If you wanted a Nanny, you'd best be prepared to marry her and keep her in comfort. She didn't need a man. Not with that smart new pink rose hat on.

PRAISES, THANKS, & BLESSINGS!!!

NIGHT OF THE WATCHERS

2008-06-05T11:54:00.000-07:00

The Witches Almanac has for many years included a listing on 5 June for "Night of the Watchers." The fallen Angels who came to earth and mated with mortal women. Unfortunately, this year's article is not included in their on-line edition. (The Witches Almanac is a "must-have" for all witches, so it wouldn't hurt to buy one.)

I don't have strong feelings about this night. For one thing, usually these old calendar days come from an astrological event, and the fixed date is usually wrong. And there is so little information on the origins of the Watchers and their night that it is hard to know what sort of astrological sign we would be looking for.

However, short of unleashing Azazel from his imprisonment, I would say tonight is a good night to reach out to Angels of all kinds. A good night for mysticism and magick. To glimpse the world beyond this one, and to look at the heavenly realms. A night to make appeals to Higher powers for the guidance and knowledge to make it through the next few months.

Things are about to get even more interesting. Expect more aftershocks, storms, skeletons rattling their way out of the closet, and downright shocking surprises.

Light a candle, say a prayer, stretch out your Angel wings, and give thanks for all the goodness in your life.

PRAISES, THANKS, & BLESSINGS!!!

MORE ON THE WATCHERS:
Wikipedia's article on The Book of Enoch

I found this little article. The linguistic theories and interpretations are academically unsound, but the article is interesting. I just wouldn't take it at face value:
http://www.scribd.com/doc/72940/The-Watchers

THE NUMBER ONE THING THE DEAD SAY TO THE LIVING AND WHY

2008-06-03T10:04:00.000-07:00

The number one message that the dead ask to pass on to the living is "I love you."

When the relationship between the client and the deceased was difficult when both parties were alive, the living have a hard time accepting the message.

"No," I had a client tell me once, "that couldn't be my father. All he did was critisise me when he was alive."

Whatever your relationship was with someone while they were alive, they can only love you once they reach the other side. In fact, as far as I can tell, the only reason that the dead continue to contact the living is to say "I love you." (Except those trapped by curses or fear, etc. "Ghosts", in other words.)

We are here for perhaps of variety a reasons. We are here to solve the problems that come up again and again in our lives, for I believe that often those problems were our vehicles for coming here; part of our contract for this life.

We are here to gather the experiences of this life, whether we gather pearls or oyster shells. We are here to learn about death. And we are here, most importantly, to learn to love unconditionally, both ourselves and other people.

Many spirits, even those that did not commit suicide or murder (ghosts), are trapped here because they failed to do the things that they needed to do. Usually not being loving enough.

That is why Mediums are more popular with (and necessary for) the dead. I was thinking the other day that maybe our "Higher Self" is really our spirit reaching us from the other side.

Everything that has happened, and will happen, and is happening, is already present on the other side. Our spirit is already there, waiting for us when we die. Because on the other side we have already died.

And in each present and future moment all possibilites are available. Perhaps not probable or likely, but present nonetheless. And because we come here to learn about death, and because we have complete free will in our lives, our spirit must be present in each moment.

And if our own spirit does not have to greet itself at the doorway between the worlds, than what else has it do but whisper words of encouragement, love, and advice? It may be that we move through eternity, giving love to each moment.

Moreover, the idea of eternity as a never ending series of chronological moments does not appear to be correct. There is no time on the other side. Everything on the other side is present at once. Our lives here serve to string moments together like beads on a necklace.

And each string is woven together with other strands. Once a moment has been placed on a strand it can't be unwoven, even from the other side. You cannot change the past, only create beauty with the pattern in the moment.

Love is powerful enough to reach us from the other side. And Love is the only true Power.

PRAISES, THANKS, & BLESSINGS!!!

WHAT THE THUNDER GOD SAID

2008-06-01T06:47:00.000-07:00

(EDIT: I needed to differentiate, perhaps, between working with a Diety in a Circle, or praying, or doing any Magick, etc, and actually having One manifest. The best way I can think to describe it is the difference between going to Church and talking to the burning bush. Or the difference between receiving messages from the dead as a Medium, and living in a haunted house. Not good examples, but the only ones I could think of.)

When the old Gods appear, it is as if They are as surprised as you are. I met the God Lugh once, in my backyard in Los Angeles, on Lughnassadh.** He looked around curiously before accepting my offering.

"Thanks for this," He told me, holding up the ear of corn I'd put on my altar. (It's essence, or spirit- the corn didn't actually levitate). "And for all of this," He added, indicating the vegetable garden. The offering was the only ear of corn my garden produced, tiny and stunted. I planted them in a straight line and they didn't cross pollinate. He accepted it as graciously as if it had been a cornucopia of healthy vegetables.

Then He left. Which was too bad, because He was the best looking God I'd ever seen. And there is no blasphemous guilt in lusting after the pagan Gods.

Returning to the weather of the mid-west has really taught me some humility in terms of being a witch. I always felt so proud in L.A. when I could call a wind or a breeze on a motionless day. Here I have discovered that getting the winds to cease is a much greater skill. And until very recently I could never accurately predict the weather.

In fact, it has taken me over a year to understand that in St. ("if you don't like the weather wait five mintues") Louis you have to actually pay attention to the weather. (Over two decades of Southern Cali's 350 days a year of sunshine. What can I say?)

So I was more than a little surprised when one of the Thunder Gods showed up in the living room Thursday night. Just a brief, introductory appearance, and then the storm didn't arrive until Friday night.

Coming home on the train with all of the Cardinals fans on Saturday evening, I felt Him again. Maybe no game this night. But it was still sunny when He appeared. However, by the time I got off the train the sky had darkened. Distant rumbles threatened.

I was home before the rain started. I needed to eat and make phone calls, change my clothes, get something to drink. I wasn't in the frame of mind that I normally am when a God makes an appearance.

"I am here," He said, appearing behind me like the spirits do, and speaking to me directly this time. "What have you to say to Me?"

He was definitely commanding. You wouldn't dare forget to capitilise every pronoun when writing about Him.

"Praises, Thanks, and Blessings to You," I told Him. "I welcome You here now, and Your presence in my life."

This pleased Him. "Come, watch the storm rise and take hold," He bade me. "Listen to My voice. Talk with Me and admire My Children the lightning."

He was like a kid, so excited to have me go to the window and watch the storm build and the rain begin.

"Are You going to be done soon? I have to walk over to the laundromat," I asked Him distractedly, and perhaps far too casually, as a steady rain took hold.

He roared with laughter, both His presence, and a thunderclap from outside.

"You think I can arrange my schedule to all of the things you humans do? Ball games, weddings, laundry." He threw His head back and laughed some more. (He actually slapped His thigh. Never seen a God do that before.)

These Gods may not be the all-powerful Jehovah who can part the seas and raise the dead, but They aren't to be trifled with. They aren't the elemental kingdoms, who can be summoned and commanded by ceremonial magickians and insistent witches.

As I contemplated Him it came to me that He resembled someone I used to know a long time ago, whose spirit is often around me now. A gay Chippendales stripper that died of AIDS back in the 1980's. When we would go over to Illinois to dance at Faces, my stripper friend used to wear tight leather pants or jeans and no shirt and a silver chest harness of twisting, interlocking snakes. He drove all the boys and she-males mad with desire. And all of the breeder girls, too, me included.

The thunder God wore a harness over His bare chest, made of what looked like black leather and shiny studs. But I knew that it was the darkness and power of two clouds clashing woven together, and the flash of electricty about to be unleashed. His breeches and his boots were woven of the same material. His strong wrists were girded with thick, metal-like cuffs, loud and fierce.

Like I said, there is no guilt in lusting after the Pagan Gods.*** Pagans do not endorse this notion that one realm is above another. The material plane is no less sacred than the "heavenly" plane. Sex is the main human embodiment of the sacred dance of the Lord and the Lady. Lust is a compliment, an offering, worship.

"Yes, it pleases me to take a form that pleases you," He responded, answering my question before I'd asked it. "To remind you of an old friend, for that is what we are, witch. But I also look like this."

Beautiful, regal, African Oya, bearing her stormcloud headdress and lightning sceptre, appeared next to Him. I nodded to Her in deference, and She vanished.

"Why do you seek me out?" I asked Him.

"Because you seek me," He responded. "I have been lonely for very long. I am always present, but few speak directly to Me. And even fewer have the power to summon Me in human shape."

I forgot to say thank you for the compliment, because I was stunned that He would be lonely. What about all of those people begging Him to let the game go on, or to hold back for a trip to the laundromat, or the store?

"You are a witch, are you not?" He asked me in response, with a curious tone and expression.

I was properly chastised. He comes with the storm. He is part of it. Thunder alone does not stop a game, or prevent a walk to the laundromat. But He was also telling me something else. People pleading for personal favour are not a conversation for Him. Or for anyone, for that matter.

A witch must mantain more than just human friendships. And I like it when my friends read my blogs ;o) or applaud my endeavours. It stands to reason that the God/desses would feel the same. That They enjoy appreciation for Their work.

I have been a witch for so long now, I have stopped "practicing." I have learned all the pantheons, studied so many of the paths, that I have become stale. I had forgotten what a thrill it was to simply have a conversation with a Diety that I'd never met before and wasn't working with directly.

I had forgotten how lucky I am to be a witch. Witches can take part in the conversation that Nature is always having. Witches have friends who are trees, animals, winds, rocks, rivers, and hills. We know what bridges trolls live under, and how much payment they demand. We know what the twinkling stars are singing about. We know a God when we see One, and we know that S/He is a friend.

The storm Gods here are different from the ones in Los Angeles. Every region has different spirits, different entities, and different power. That it has taken me a year to introduce myself to this one shames me.

I have been writing a lot lately about how important it is for more witches to answer their powers, and take part in this conversation, mostly because of the environmental crisis we are in globally. Yet I had forgotten that it is an ongoing process. And one that is meaningful to both parties. And it is not meaningful if it is one-sided. If it is only one side asking a favour.

"Praises, Thanks, and Blessings to you again," I said to Him, making it an offering of Love and appreciation and nothing else.

He smiled at me, pleased, and accepted it. His grin widened. "Laundry!" His laughter roared across the sky, and He vanished from my sight.

PRAISES, THANKS, & BLESSINGS!!!

** Lughnassadh is not August 1st usually. Modern day Pagan calendars use the fixed dates of the Catholic Church. (I don't know why. There is no reason for this mistake. The Quarter days are astrological occurences.) Lughnassadh occurs when the sun reaches 15 degrees of Leo.

*** This is not to say one should ritually or otherwise follow the old mythologies and have intercourse with a God/dess. It is powerful enough, in my experience, to draw down Their power into yourself and a human partner, usually for rare ritual purposes. And even then should not be taken lightly. But I believe that some modern day Pagans would disagree with me on this.

THE SUBJECTIVE APOCALYPSE

2008-05-30T16:52:00.000-07:00

This is really a continuation of my last post: The Four Horsemen.

The Mayans prophesised that the end of the world as they knew it would come in 2012. They were just a little further sighted than other prophecies. Every world comes to an end. The world of each of the ages of man. Each of our private worlds will come to an end when we die.

And on the other side, everything is happening all at once: the Apocalypse, Gotterdamerung, but also Creation, the Big Bang, all of the moments that came before this one, and this moment, and not just all the moments to follow, but the possibilities of every moment to follow. All at once.

In some ways, the end of the world prophecies like the one in the biblical book of Revelations are just the end of those Gods, or a way of life. Or an era in human history. After all, it is not the end of the planet and the Universe that we fear, but an end to ourselves. To our culture, to familiarity, to tomorrow being the same as yesterday, even though it never is.

As I have said many times, the old world cannot continue. There are too many of us on this planet. Technology has ushered in a new era. A Mayan or a Biblical prophet might have been able to recognise the world up until the 1900's, but not anymore. The lifestyles, patterns, and even religions that we have will not continue to serve us.

It is my belief that widescale changes will happen in two ways. First, that natural and economic disasters, shortages, wars and conflicts, and loss of environmental resources will force us globally to make changes. And probably in ways that are unnecessarily painful.

Second, that individual people will begin to have breakthroughs in consciousness that will enable them to drastically change the course of their own lives. This will happen through psychic "upgrades", an opening to the Angels and the spirit world, and attunement with the natural world including an increase in witches and shamans.

There will also be a rise in religious fanaticism among some that are really resistant to change, but I believe that global upheavals over the next few years will prevent them from taking hold. And probably more of the "get back to nature/the old ways" like the Mormon sect that has been all over the news, survivalists, renewed interest in groups like the Amish, and even modern day Druid groups like ADF and others that think the future can be saved by going back to the past.

What I see in my own life and those around me is that personally our old lives can no longer continue. As I said, the ship is sinking. Whatever you try to hold onto that isn't working will only drown you.

Every person is being called upon right now to change. To make the changes that only they can make: in themselves and in their life. Yes, I mean recycling, driving less, and turning lights off, eating healthier food, etc. But I also mean changing the way we relate to ourselves and in turn, how we relate to the world.

Imagine for a moment, that you are looking at a petri dish filled with humanity. Look at it without a micrscope and you just see one, big, quivering mass. It shifts, struggles with itself, changes colour, and changes shape. There are little patches of red, blue, yellow. Sometimes red and yellow come together and make orange, or blue and yellow make green.

Look closer and you can see that each molecule is playing a part in that movement and change. A molecule that was red becomes blue, and merges with another blue, and another, and now you have a big spot of blue. Swiftly moving, fresh molecules interact with seemingly dead ones and the lifeless are revitalised. Resistant molecules create strength in that which they are struggling against, and are overcome, for better or for worse.

It may not seem like your relationship issues, or your family issues, or whatever situation you are facing in your personal life has anything to do with what is happening in the world, but it does. And in some ways more forcefully than all the cyclones and earthquakes combined.

For one thing, all of those other molecules around you are in the same mess (and mass) that you are. You can look around and say "well, that person is okay, they are doing much better than I am, but that person is doing much worse." But you aren't those other people. You cannot change them or become them. And you cannot really know the reality of another person anyhow.

It may not seem like getting your basement cleaned out, or healing the relationship you have with your family or your ex-spouse, or forgiving your enemies, or falling in love is what is going to save the world. But it is.

You know, in your heart of hearts, what holds you back and drags you down. You know the grudges and discontentment and criticisms that you carry and you know how they can affect your day to day life, even on your best days. You know the parts of yourself that you are running from, that you cannot seem to ever overcome, and the problems that show up again and again in your life.

For all of us right now, self-Love and self-acceptance are the first step, the main priority, the most important task. And the present moment, this moment right now and no further forward or back, is the only true power. Start now to love yourself, accept yourself and your limitations and weaknesses especially, and to forgive yourself. (Try looking in the mirror everyday and telling yourself "I love you." See what happens after a week, or even a few days. Print out a pink flyer and post it up somewhere. Read it often.)

Don't worry about anyone else yet. Don't berate yourself or critisise yourself. Let past mistakes and failures go. Release them. Most likely, they will come back, probably more than once. Stay in the present and release them again. Make self-love your highest priority.

When you feel more comfortable, begin expanding your self-awareness. Ask yourself questions when feelings you don't like come up. Search for the root of your beliefs about yourself and the world. Look at new options, find new viewpoints, try new things. Find time everyday just to sit with yourself in silence and see what rises to the surface when all of the distractions and complaints and worry have quieted down. Listen to yourself.

One person that has strong self-awareness and inner guidance is mightier than all the kings, presidents, rich men, terrorists, and dictators combined. I have discussed many times that we are coming into the Age of Avatars, when each person must find space in themselves for God/dess to inhabit.

We don't need another Jesus to come and be crucified for our "sins". Nor does it seem likely that one is coming. We must crucify our own "sinful" lack of self-Love, and the manifestation of that lack in our personal lives, and become our own saviours.

Religions are like languages to God/dess. As our world changes our religions must change. The Bible and the God of the Bible was based on a tribal mentality. God united the tribe. We can no longer be a "tribe of one", we must become a "tribe of One's." We cannot all be the same. It came from a world where nature was the enemy of man. We must learn to embrace nature, and the diversity of nature.

The rise in witchcraft and interest in psychic abilities and the spirit world are part of this shift. In some ways, the author Revelations was right: the Pagan Beast will rise out of the depths and destroy the old world. But the Devil was born from that God. All religions prophesise their own endings. We cannot live in the context of these old "tongues" any longer. The language of our souls is changing. Our world is changing.

Witches and shamans (and psychics and Mediums) especially are being called upon right now to open to their powers and to share them with the rest of the world. Witches talk to nature, and that dialogue is as important as environmental issues in restoring the balance between humans and our planet.

The old concepts that we have of God are speaking to us right now, as are the new ones. We need new mythologies and archetypes. Shamans are needed to bring these new stories into existance. Angels and spirits are reaching out to us, and psychics are needed to bring their knowledge into this world. Heaven (and hell) and the "after"-life, cannot be something we find when we have left this life, we must find them now. The highest spiritual reality can be found here, right now.

But the gifts of the witch, psychic, shaman, and the "ordinary" person, are weakened and confined by lack of self-Love and self-awareness. It is not a judgement- only the "good" are rewarded- but simply that anger, fear, resentment, guilt, depression, etc, tie up the communication lines. Until we make room for our Higher selves we cannot hear the Love and the wisdom that is, literally, being shouted to us right now from the other side. And from the inside.

My spirits told me the other day that I am walking across a bridge that is being built one step at a time. If I try to look a few steps ahead, I might just look down into the abyss. "Trust us," they keep telling me. "Many things are shifting. Do not hold on to any outcomes right now. Release all expectations, even the realistic ones."

Because, realistically, there is no more bridge in front of me than the next step. (Which is, ironically, cleaning out my basement, or storage locker, rather.) They have told me things which seem certain to occur in the future, but they have told me to remain open to all possibilities, and to listen carefully for guidance.

"Sometimes," they tell me, "it is like sticking our hands in a blender. Your mind whirs so fast with so many things. Things that usually aren't even happening at that moment. It is so hard to get through to you, especially when you need to hear our messages most."

And they become downright frustrated with me sometimes, when I ask them over and over again, how is some situation going to work out. "The only way that things can work out right now is to have faith that what you are striving for, or something better, is coming," they tell me.

And the only way to have faith is to learn to listen, and to Love, and to just be calm while Armegeddon rages all around you. And inside of you.

Wait for the next step to materialise, take it, and no further. Love yourself no matter where the journey takes you, and know that you are guided.

Know that you are a force for change unlike any the world has ever seen.

PRAISES, THANKS, & BLESSINGS!!!

THE FOUR HORSEMEN

2008-05-27T11:08:00.000-07:00

It sure seems like the Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse have arrived. Cyclones, tornadoes, earthquakes, active volcanoes, insect plagues (bed bugs, Texas ants, Colorado beetles), food shortages, peak oil fears and survivalist preparations. If you have been reading this blog, or my previous blog, or have been on my personal email list for the last five years, you know that the time we are in is no surprise to me.

I talk alot about the Mayan prophecies. The end of the world as the Mayans knew it. A Mayan would not recognise this world. Someone from four hundred years ago may not recognise this world. In fewer than a hundred years the internal combustion engine- and the fight for dead dinosaurs to fuel it-have changed the planet as to make it unrecognisable to past generations.

Their prediction was based on the astrological Grand Cross of 1999. The Doomsday has come, the time between the Grand Cross and 2012 was simply the end of the old world. That is what we are living in right now.

Humans have never lived in balance with nature. Not since we discovered agriculture and the herding of animals. And with those two things, we learned to hoard. To have excess. Only humans and domesticated animals have excess weight. Only humans hoard items unnecessary to their survival.

If we are to continue it is crucial that we learn to balance. And if we don't, Mother Nature will do it for us. The choice now is do we want to take matters into our own hands, or do we want natural disasters and "global warming"*** to do it for us? Because at this point, that is what is happening.

After the tsunami in Indonesia I wrote "at least these are still considered disasters. We still have time. When tsunamis and other disasters are so commonplace the only the biggest are covered in the news, then it will be too late."

There have been hundreds of tornadoes in the Mid-west and southeastern portion of the U.S. within the last month. There have been an above average amount of seismic tremors all over the world, including our own faultline here in Missouri. Wildfires and floods have been non-stop in different parts of our country.

Unusual and bizarre animal attacks are taking place at a fairly regular rate. Part of this is that there are so many of us, and we are edging them out. We are coming in closer contact with the survivors. Except for insects. We are looking at some (more) serious insect infestations and plagues. They are the only animal species that outnumber us and that can survive us.

We have created an atmosphere where disaster, disease, and infestations can thrive. Nature always balances. The effects of the Chinese earthquake have yet to be felt by the rest of the world, but it will effect us in many ways for years to come. And many of those effects cannot be predicted or prepared for.

After the L.A. earthquake, a number of people in the Northridge area began to exhibit symptoms of what looked like severe chronic fatigue syndrome, but to the point that some people were unable to walk or properly use their limbs. It was discovered that a tiny mite that lived deep in the earth had been released. (I have a personally met a woman who suffers from this, but still regains use of her limbs, although at times she is too overcome with exhaustion to move. And also a friend of hers that is in a wheelchair now.)

We are being told, flat out, by God/dess, the Universe, the Planet, Mother Nature- you name it-that we must learn to redistribute our resources and live more equitably with each other and the planet. And that is that. "Change before you have to," is the motto of one CEO, and I agree.

So, what are we going to do? How are we going to handle this shift?

The survivalist mentality is an interesting juxtaposition: on the one hand we need to scale back and begin to prepare for a time when we need our lawns to grow vegetables, and our driveways will be filled with bicycles. On the other hand we need to believe just the opposite of what the survivalist believes: there is enough for everyone. We can work this out.

Greed and hoarding come from fear. If the only changes we make are from fear that there isn't enough, or that there won't be enough, then that is what the Universe is going to give us. More things to make us fearful so that we will do what we need to do to survive and thrive.

And our "enemies" are going to have to become our greatest friends; and those developing "poor" countries are where we will need to turn for help in surviving.

No one can say for certain when they will die. It is part of the "contract" when you come here. In fact, it is one of the main reasons the contract exist. We do not come here to learn about "life". We have eternal life on the other side. We come here to learn about death. The only way to learn that is to have a life that ends. And that can end at anytime.

However, death, like all other events, is influenced by the possibilities present in each moment, and the choices we make. I have seen people making decisions that shortened their life span, and I have seen others make choices that increased it.

Having said that, I do see my own life fairly clearly. And as my psychic vision is mostly far-sighted, I see from the end of my life backwards, to the present. One of the reasons I know that miraculous change can occur in any given moment (and that miracles can also be overturned in the next) is by viewing my last years on this planet.

With a few brief and shining moments aside, it usually looks like a combination of Tank Girl, the end of Max Max and the beginning of The Road Warrior, Escape From New York, and Soylent Green. Through in a little Omega Man for good measure. (I haven't seen I Am Legend yet.)

My vision shows me that by 2012 the end of the U.S. as we know it will come. It almost doesn't matter that the dollar is declining. Money will not buy rice or tea or wheat or oil or honey when there is none to buy. It will not by clean water. It will not buy healthy meat. It will not buy antidotes that don't exist to super resistant bacteria and viruses.

Money can not buy Internet service when there isn't enough power to run your refrigerator. For many years I have had visions of the twenty-teens, and there are always a lot people burning candles, collecting rain water, and cooking meals with only one or two ingredients.

(These visions usually come when I am with a friend, or have just left them. I have a pretty good idea of the people that will still be in my life ten years from now because of this. Usually I will get a vision of the person in that setting, i.e., "come on in, it's candle night tonight." Or, "I hope you like lima beans- I even made desert with them." And the U.S. has literally gone back to a quasi-Victorian lifestyle in terms of electricity and plumbing, and having farm animals kept, even in the cities. In the twenties the neighbourhoods are filled with piles of trash of useless items- computers, big screen TVs- stripped of every re-usable part.)

Many people I know, and some of them are really surprising, are getting big upgrades in their psychic abilities and interaction with the spirit world. There are numerous reasons for this, but I believe one of them is that greater self-awareness is the key to transforming the future.

The world, and the future, cannot truly change until each of us changes ourselves. I will post on what that means next time.

PRAISES, THANKS, & BLESSINGS!!!

*** The planet has been much hotter, and much colder. Humans cannot survive except in a very narrow temperature range. The planet is not "warming" of it's own accord. We are "warming" ourselves out of a sustainable environment.

I DON'T BELIEVE ANY OF THIS STUFF

2008-05-24T12:42:00.000-07:00

Before I begin, just a reminder that Mercury goes "retrograde" on Monday. (It does not actually travel backward, our rotation passes it up and it appears to be going backward.) During Mercury retrogrades everything Mercury rules- travel, communication, messages, and thieves-- are susceptible to snafus. This Mercury retro takes place when the sun is in Mercury's home sign of Gemini. (Either or worse or better, I cannot say.)

Prepare for delays and lost luggage, double check that everything is signed on the double line, don't get too frustrated if your server goes down. And be very careful driving on Monday. The days of the "flip" usually have a higher than average number of fender benders. More so because this is a holiday weekend. Stay safe.

If you want to invoke another Goddess for the retrograde, I recommend Iris, the Other Messenger God.

I thought I'd take on the sceptics, something I don't normally do. It is my goal to not let other people's beliefs affect the way I interact with them. Attraction works in two ways: what you are- and what you are thinking about, doing, etc- and how much you cling to those beliefs, or feel threatened that they are going to be taken away, or proven "wrong." (And also what you are rejecting in yourself, which counts as the things you think are "wrong.")

To quote Chris Rock's character in the movie DOGMA, it's better to have ideas than beliefs. I have a good idea about God/dess, the afterlife, witchcraft, etc. I try to always be ready to give up any belief I hold, if something that "fits" better comes along. Rigid thinking comes from fear. If you don't have fear that something can be taken away from you, you have no reason to feel threatened. Ironically, the people who are the most relaxed and tolerant are the most certain.

So, with that in mind- because I don't want to argue, just present- what about all this kooky stuff I believe? And I am mostly going to debate the scientific view of my beliefs. I.e., astronomy versus astrology, etc.

Science is a kind of religion. A set of beliefs that says that humans can know, name, and understand everything empirical in the world. If the majority of us see a dandelion as "yellow" it is yellow. People who see orange have something wrong with them. They are colour-blind.

Science is mortal magick. It has to work the same way every time, for every person. If a variation cannot be addressed and agreed upon by a majority, then it must be discounted. It is for this reason that science and extreme forms of religion clash. The foundation of both is that what is "right" or "true" must be right and true for everyone.

In my opinion there is no reason for religion and science to be in contradiction. Both are valid. Humans inhabit both worlds. We contain a private, subjective universe and share a public, objective one. Most humans need both worlds. The material world is the "meeting" place. We need to have one version of it so that we have a point of agreement.

However, there is no proof that the collective of private universes does not alter the public one. Many of the sciences are witchcraft. There is a saying among electronics geeks: "Electricity is magick, but electronics are sorcery" (or black magick, or wizardry). Science is mortal magick. (And probably the magick that most can master. The LCD of witchcraft.) We are coming to a point in human development where I believe the human mind will be shown, scientifically, to effect the material world. (And I believe we are not far from scientific "evidence" of the afterlife.)

I must qualify though, by explaining that it will the collective human mind. The recent surge in psychic abilities among the population is just the beginning of this. The search for proof of the afterlife (oh and do I love talking to spirits who did not believe and religious zealots after they have died!), accurate superbowl score predictions ;o), high-level psychics like Alison Dubois solving crimes are in many ways the breakthroughs of the collective conscious mind. Enough of us believe. Enough of us want to believe. Enough of us think it is possible.

Even science cannot completely rule out the possibility that we have created our "reality" through a series of conscious and unconscious, collective and subjective, decisions.

But what if "when you die you just die"? And "all of these things can be explained by rational explanation and coincidence"? Okay. Well, now it just gets down to what kind of world do you want to live in?

Let's all keep agreeing to agree on gravity, the necessity for humans to breath air and drink water and eat food; let's make all of our decisions based on what we say to each other, empirical and judicial "truth".

But if some of us want to believe that there is an Angel at our shoulder, whispering words of growth and encouragement and Love; if some of us want to believe that an invisible, unscientifically measurable entity called "Karma" rules every interaction we engage in, what is wrong with that?** And why, if science is an unalterable law, and there is no afterlife, does it matter if everyone doesn't agree?

I am not siding here with zealots who insist that we all pray to one God (or even one Goddess), and do it publicly. But I think we must respect the views of even the zealots. (I said "respect." Not capitulate to. But their insistence that they are right is every bit as tiresome as the defenders of science. Maybe a little more, though, because there is always a hell to shake in people's faces with the religious zealots.)

I do think some sort of spiritual training would be beneficial in schools. Although I feel it should be a comparative religion and spiritual study- leaving the student knowledgeable enough to choose an appropriate, individual path. Or a scientific one.

The really ironic thing about science for me, especially the new physics, is that it will one day "prove" many of the things I know to be true in my subjective reality. And even some of the things the Bible-thumping-creationism in schools-zealots believe.

Four hundred years ago astronomy and astrology were the same "science." I believe one day they will be again.

PRAISES, THANKS, & BLESSINGS!!!

** This post would be far too lengthy if I took on Jim Jones and suicide/murder cults. Or to take on how easily human evil seems to be able to inhabit the offices of religion-- sexual molestation, theft, corruption, etc. Each of these need a whole post, at least. But suffice to say, this has less to do with the ethics and morals that come from beliefs-- although that is what it can appear to look like on the surface-- and more to do with the human psyche and capacity for evil when there is not enough self-Love.

PSYCHIC DEVELOPMENT: AT CLOSE RANGE

2008-05-22T17:50:00.000-07:00

One thing I have been learning a lot about is how much our thoughts are influenced by the people in close physical proximity. I have come to the conclusion recently that only about 25% of the thoughts that run through my head are self-generated.

I think this is true for everyone, not just me. I think I am just more aware of it. The stereotype of the psychic is that they know everything- what you are thinking, how you feel about it, what context you are thinking about it in. But that is just not possible. There is only so much room in the human mind at any given time. Most of us can't think about more than a few things at once. And most of us are pretty wrapped up in our own scenarios.

There is a cultural awareness right now of "positive thought" and the "law of attraction." And I talk about those things a lot in my blog posts. But there is another aspect to the effect of close physical proximity: we consciously and unconsciously respond to the feelings, reactions, and responses of other people.

The truth is, most of us are driven by our "addictive demands." We all develop a set of demands of how things "should be" in order to be happy. This includes both our own behaviours and actions, and the behaviours and actions of the people around us. And our environments, and situations in our lives. We "need" ourselves and the outside world to conform to our standards.

You buy a new dress and your boyfriend doesn't notice and it makes you upset. The big concert gets cancelled. The roof leaks. You have to get the roof repaired and it uses up your vacation savings. Your husband leaves you. Your cat dies. You get laid off. There really is no logical reason to let those things affect your happiness, but most of us equate happiness with a spontaneous feeling that comes from a certain set of circumstances being met.

Keyes breaks it down like this: "I create the experience of hurt because my programming demands that Steve say I look good in my new dress." Each addictive demand is motivated by a beneficial intention. "My beneficial intention is to feel beautiful." (The book Gathering Power through Insight and Love breaks down the whole process on how to feel beautiful regardless of how others respond. And how to uplevel addictive demands to preferences, thereby creating more harmony in your life, and actually drawing the things you desire to you faster.)

Most common, everyday interactions are really about addictive demands. I order my coffee in the morning and the server is friendly, brings it on time, it's hot, etc. I have a "good" experience. I have been validated as worthy of friendly, fast service and hot, delicious coffee. If one of those things is missing in the equation, the happiness/validation factor is reduced as well.

Fully half- probably more- of the conversations and interactions we have with each other are based on the fact that an addictive demand is at work, not necessarily what the situation is. I think empaths are more likely to pick up on this because addictive demands are always operating out of emotions, and the lower three chakras: survival, creativity & pleasure, and ego. (Keyes book calls the chakras "Centres of Consciousness" and breaks down the addictive demand and the response by each chakra.)

More and more when I engage in any activity with another human- and especially those that I do not know that well- I try to monitor what I am feeling against what I am picking up from that person. (You cannot get as much outside verification working with people you don't know, but it is easier to be objective.)

I try to watch what chakra I am responding with- where in my body I am feeling the pleasure, or the anger, or the sadness, etc. The coffee experience would affect the creativity/sense pleasure chakra (below your belly button, in the groin). But if I was also feeling entitled to good service, it would affect my ego chakra in the solar plexus. If I was taking clients out for breakfast and the meeting was important to my business it might affect my root "survival" chakra. (Right in the genitals, almost not in the body, between the legs.)

I had a woman come up to me on Delmar the other day and ask me for change. Her energy was so sad and miserable. There are a lot homeless in Los Angeles. A shocking amount. Some wear garbage bags for clothing and are covered in grime. It is not that unusual to see them urinate or defecate in public. But this woman's energy was as broken down as any I'd seen in Los Angeles.

I was really distracted with my scenarios and addictive demands from a day at work (my boss said this and it made me mad, my co-worker did this and it made me "happy", etc). Initially I responded that I had no cash, and while I was polite to her I didn't say my usual "good luck to you" or "bless you." (Homeless and street people are often messengers and advocates of God/desses and Angels. Even if you don't have anything to give them it is a good idea to wish them well.)

A few steps past her my "hamster wheel" of thoughts stopped, and I got the strongest psychic feeling- in words too, but not really her words, just my rational mind finding her feeling easy to translate- of "she just wanted to know if she mattered to anyone." The money problem probably seemed real enough to her, but it was an addictive demand at work that had her out begging.

And an addictive demand that I know well and struggle with often. Money as a form of validation. A lack of self-love that creates a need to be supported by the outside world. Because I struggle with that in myself, that was our attraction to each other for that interaction. And my dislike of that, along with my head being so clogged with my useless rumination on past events and future imaginings, is what created my initial brusque reaction.

Had it been ten years ago I would have been so clogged up with not just that day's crap, but stuff from months and even years ago. I might have launched into a whole conversation with her about my own financial situation, or felt affronted that someone would ask me for money like that- didn't I have my own problems? etc.

If she had been rude to me for refusing her request- which is not uncommon, especially in Los Angeles and New York, and even in Paris I had a woman yell at me as I walked away from her (it wasn't just me, she yelled at everyone, presumabley even if they gave her money)- this simple interaction would have eaten up my whole day with reactions and thoughts about it.

I've found that if I can eliminate the "hamster wheel" of thoughts about past and future situations in my life, and if I am relatively free of emotional reactions- feeling bad because I got irritable with my boss, insulted that someone said something to me that I didn't like, upset that I don't have money or something else that I feel would make me feel more fulfilled, etc- then I can really "hear" what the people around me are feeling.

In Bread Company the other day I was waiting in line, and I was very "empty" that morning. Not quite awake yet, not thinking about the day ahead, or yesterday, or really anything. I suddenly felt very self-conscious about how I was dressed. Clothing is a big issue for me since I've been here. I haven't been able to afford new clothes and I have been losing weight, so nothing fits right.

In the past this would have set off a pattern where the walk to work would be filled with dissatisfaction and unhappiness over my clothes, my finances, etc. But recently I decided that I am not going to let anything be a problem, or create unhappiness in my life. And I've been working on my understanding of psychic awareness at close range.

Surveying the line it was easy to identify what was happening. A very beautiful and stylish young lady was at the counter. She was very insecure: tugging at her jacket and skirt, looking around at the other women and how everyone was dressed. She really became agitated, and appeared quite threatened, which was unnecessary. Her clothing was more attractive and expensive than anyone else in line. Nonetheless, she left Bread Co. clutching her order and tossing her head like she'd just been shunned.

Once she was gone, the feeling was gone with her. She reached me not just because I am psychic, but because I have issues about clothing right now. We attract what we are. And she would have affected other women in line with any of those issues, but most people do not take the time every day to clean out the garbage. (And there are varying levels of psychic abilities. Even at close range.) As I said, ten years ago I would have thought I was just having a crappy morning because I can't afford new clothes.

The tricky thing is, being psychic can make you more susceptible to the feelings of others that you respond to, but if you are unaware of your abilities and, more importantly, unable to find your "base", you cannot always tell that those aren't your thoughts. ("Oh god, I feel awful about these old, loose clothes." And off goes the hamster wheel.)

This is why I suggest meditating everyday, whether you are psychic or not. Meditation for this purpose is not to make you stop thinking. Or to have grand psychic or spiritual visions. It is simply to detach from the thought process and learn to release each thought as it comes to you. If you do this with breath work you will find that it will create a space where you can always "find" yourself-- even in the middle of the most hectic, hamster-wheel day.

And if you are psychic it will put you in touch with your own energy. If you "see" energy at all (chakras, auras, etc) you will be able to identify when someone else's energy is influencing you. And give you the opportunity to decide how to respond, instead of getting caught up in their addictive demands. (You might still end up knee deep in your own addictive demands, unless you start working at clearing those out, too.)

It's important to journal. You'd be surprised how many situations I thought I would never be able to verify that have revealed themselves to me. Once you begin really paying attention to the world around you, verification will find you. Everyone wants to be validated. Everyone wants to be heard. This includes unconsciously/ psychically. And this includes the dead.

Years ago, before I got the "upgrade", a man was shot outside of my apartment building. This wasn't a bad neighbourhood. This was a rare occurrence. I had a strong psychic experience that night, both awake and in my dreams. My boyfriend at the time actually talked me into going to the police-- who patiently tolerated me and paid no attention to anything I told them.

Years later I met a man who knew all of the parties involved. He came to my door with a neighbourhood petition. I didn't know this man at all. Something prompted me to bring up the shooting, and many of the things I had "seen" were verified. I had no real Medium experience then, just the random occurrence, sometimes a spirit presence, or a feeling, or as with this, a dream.

I only tapped into this situation because I was so close. And because it was two brothers fighting over a woman- something in my past. But mostly the psychic enormity of a death occurring nearby. The validation served me no purpose, other than to tell me that one of my random dreams had been right. But a spirit recently explained to me that often that is the only satisfaction that a spirit can get. At least one outside person knows what happened. The case remains unsolved, but at least I know what happened. The dead need validation as well as the living.

Begin to watch the effect of psychic energies "at close range." You will learn a lot. It may not be fun at first, especially if you really have a lot of addictive demands running, or the hamster wheel is out of control. For one thing, you will have to become really aware of your own thoughts and feelings, even if they are unhappy, or if you find that you are living a life that is not suited to you or you are resisting growth.

But if you are developing psychically, you probably won't be able to cut it off. It will do more harm than good to try. And the more you learn about your own addictive demands the more you will see that the people around you are similar. And the more you love yourself unconditionally, the more you will be able to love them, too.

And the more that you take time every day to meditate and release, to talk to your Spirit Guides and Angels, to pray, and to love yourself, the less you will pulled by the needs and desires of other people. The more you will be able to make conscious decisions based on your best interests, and the best interests of everyone involved.

And you will be able to more clearly see opportunities around you. Once you can get out of the lower three chakras, you will be able to clearly observe the people that can help in your career, or get a loan you need, or start a business, etc.

PRAISES, THANKS, & BLESSINGS!!!

PEARLS OR OYSTER SHELLS

2008-05-20T16:33:00.000-07:00

I did two rituals in the two days since my last post. Both were extremely powerful. The first was to release the dead of their burden- a burden which is a gift to the living. In the moment when a soul has passed from this world, but not yet entered the spirit world, the soul sees all the beauty of the life that is left behind. And sees it clearly with both the eyes of the living and the eyes of the dead.

The pain and suffering of this life is like a band-aid being pulled off once a soul has stepped through the doorway, but to the (just-ceased) living all is in breathtaking relief. You must understand: it does not matter if we gather pearls or the broken shards of oyster shells; whether we harvest tears or laughter. It matters only that we create experiences while we are on this planet. Suffering is as precious in the after-life as joy is.

And it does not matter if you have reincarnated a thousand times, you only have one lifetime. This one. The one you are living now. Once you pass through the doorway it may be that your spirit unites you with the souls of your other lives, but I don't know about that.

Reincarnation does not interest me very much, and it does not matter to me if it is "real" or not. For one thing, there are many journeys into other realms and dimensions that we make on the other side-- and that witches and shamans often make from here-- so we are always "shifting." Reincarnation is just another kind of shift. And the only power we possess is in the present, not last year, or in yesterday, and certainly not in another lifetime.

To really understand how meaningful each moment of this life is, and too really see and feel that, is a rare opportunity for the living. It generally comes accompanied by disaster, when the wailing from the spirit world is as loud as the mourners in this one.

After a ritual like Sunday's, I know that whatever energy and magick was raised will begin to seep down into my day to day life. I don't always know how or when, but I know that I will feel it. During last night's full moon rite (indoors) I went to look at the moon. She was beautiful, as She always is, covered in a thin cloud veil, irridescent with the smooth pink and pearl inside of an oyster shell.

I have a theory that witches are the custodians of this planet. Or perhaps I should say the translators, or maybe the "appreciaters". We are here to see and love and care for all of nature. And to translate the song of the cicadas; to interpret the moonbeams reflected in water; to converse with the winds; to appreciate the lone dandelion growing between cracks in the sidewalk. I feel this in myself when I look at the moon. I have always known her and loved her, and I always will.

And as I looked at her last night, I felt a thousand million eyes that had looked at her as well, through all the ages and empires of man, looking at her through my eyes. And I felt how strongly each of them would like to see her again through their own eyes. And I knew how much I would miss her when I was gone from this life.

The moon is the physical aspect of the Lady. The Sacred Dance of the Lord and the Lady can be seen in all of nature: in sex, in creation, in death. And especially in the dance of the moon and sun. (A new moon is a sun-moon conjunction; a full moon is a sun-moon opposition.) He is the source of light; she is the light in darkness when she is present in the night sky. And her absence is the darkness when She is visible only during the day. She is the mirror, and the reflection. She is the companion and consort.

The Lady speaks to all of us, but witches have learned to listen more closely. The Lady told me that everything I needed was in the palm of my hand. Since my hand held nothing visible with my physical eyes I asked her what did I need to do?

"You must shine as I do. Shine your light. Let your true self rise."

But that is so easy for Her! She has the sun to mirror and reflect, the earth to orbit, the sky to inhabit, the stars and planets for companionship. I feel like I am always trying to rise and shine my light, but gravity keeps slamming back down on the ground.

"It is the same for you as it is for me. If I tried to be other than the moon I would fall out of the sky. I do not concern myself with the journey ahead of me, or that which I have left behind. I do not try to be a star or a planet, or carry the burdens of those things. All humans carry the weight of the past, fear of the future, and needless burdens. You must let go of everything that is weighing you down. Only then can your true self rise, and you will journey across your heaven, and shine a light on your path."

I actually felt an energetic release in my body. Alot of what I can only describe as emotional and psychic goo. (Mostly from my second chakra, where my health issues are, and where all of the suffering I have created in my romantic relationships sticks.) But all it takes is to feel freedom for one second, and it can be recaptured again. Just one glimpse in the right direction is often all it takes.

There is a lot to release right now. I have been discouraged that for all I do, I still struggle. Things do not get "better." And by "better" I mean conforming to my expectations of how I want things to be in order for me to "be happy." I understood that this is an exceptional time. And a difficult one. For me and for everyone in the world. We must release everything that is holding us back, or we will drown. There can be no expectations, only alignment.

We must align with our true selves, with our highest possibilities, and with unconditional love for ourselves and everything that we are trying to do, in order to rise to the surface. That alignment can only happen in each moment as it comes, and no further. Too many things are shifting right now. We must steer our boats very carefully and mindfully through the wreckage, and always keep the shoreline in sight.

In the last two weeks I have been asked by my Spirit Guides to make a lot of choices about my life. Both because of the magickal time that has just passed-- when the future was open and unwritten, between these two consecutive full moons in Scorpio-- and also because we have reached the point where there is no more "whatever happens will happen" or "it will just work out for the best." The ship has sunk beneath the water line. We now must choose "the best" for ourselves and be willing to accept responsibility for the outcome. And we must keep our sights on what we want to happen-- that is, the shoreline.

Thoughts and feelings of the past, or worry about the future, or even creating any expectations from the past or imaginings of the future, are dangerous. In order to keep your vessel from being pulled into the current of the sinking ship, or from being damaged by the wreckage floating in the water, all of your attention must be on the present moment. Negative emotions especially, but anything that keeps you from appreciating the present moment fully is a weight that will drag you down and lead you astray.

Choose to stay on course. Choose to gather pearls, but to appreciate even the broken oyster shells. Every moment of this life is precious. That is the only compass that you will ever need.

PRAISES, THANKS, & BLESSINGS!!!

OPEN RITUAL

2008-05-17T18:02:00.001-07:00

I wish that I had the power of the film and television witch. I would wave my wand and for a few seconds everyone would see the world I see.

When I walk down the street I see not only the people, the cars, the buildings, the trees, birds, etc. I see spirits that accompany all of those things, especially the spirits of living things. I see the energy fields of the people. Aura's, chakras, guides, guardians, angels, and "attachments".

Birds flying overhead, or a passing breeze, or a butterfly crossing my path are generally not just those things. Often they are messages from the earth, or the spirit world, or my own spirits (especially my witch spirits). Sometimes they are messages from the living, that those people cannot say out loud to me.

The moon and the stars speak to me. Trees speak to me. Animals speak to me. Spirits and guardians of magickal places speak to me. They speak to all of us. Witches just listen more closely and more often.

The deaths of so many people in Mynamar and China have created a kind of bottleneck into the spirit world. The grief of the living and the dead is so loud right now. Many prayers are needed. The services of every spiritual person- and that means monks, priests, shamans, witches, and also spiritually minded individuals- are in demand right now.

And there is a tremendous gift available to the living. This gift is always available to the living when someone passes from this world, but because we are at the end of this remarkably magickal time (read this post, and this post) between two consecutive full moons in Scorpio, this gift is even more accessible.

The burden of the dying and the dead is the gift of the living. There is a "moment" before a soul steps through the doorway to the other side where the beauty of each life is achingly evident. When the threads that tie us to each other and to all of creation are visible. Even the worst day of a person's life becomes the most beautiful, precious gift. A gift that the soul about to step through the doorway would turn back and live again and again, if only they could.

The power to heal, to create a new future for ourselves individually and a new world for humanity are available right now. This is because of the magickal time we are in. The power to really appreciate the life you are living, and vision of the life you could be living, is available because of this gift of the dead.

There is no set future right now. All the old bets are off. New bets are being taken. Alignment with the spirit world and the power of unconditional Love are the compass you need. Especially if it feels like you are on the Titanic and it just hit an iceberg. (Even if you know what is going on, it can feel this way. Trust me. Whatever issues you have in your life that make you feel like you are drowning in the middle of the freezing cold ocean, those are probably what are coming up for you right now.)

I'm not going to smack anyone on the forehead like those old-time TV evangelists, but I am going to open up all of my power to this healing and this gift. I may not be able to transform the outer world, but if you attend I will be able to introduce you this inner world, and to alignment with the spirit world and unconditional Love.

Whether you attend or not, please, if you can, say a prayer with me tomorrow at 12 Noon Central time. For the dead and for the living, for the past and the future, for humanity and the world we inhabit.

PRAISES, THANKS, & BLESSINGS!!!

** For more on the full moon in Scorpio please read Moonsurfing's Full Moon update. (You may need to sign up for the free e-zine. )

PLAY NICE IN THE LIFEBOATS

2008-05-15T13:46:00.000-07:00

Last night's Angelic visitation offered some strong insights into what is happening to all of us on a global level. We are in what the Mayans called "the end of the world as we know it." Not since the mastery of fire has our world changed so much. And there are more humans inhabiting this planet than ever before. The old world must end if we are to survive.

If you compare humanity to a family structure, we have, up until now, been able to live as if we were only children in relatively large houses in the same neighbourhood. Our national religions & our collective gods, our governments, our collective cultural and national beliefs, have been the parents in each of those houses.

You had to be home for dinner by 6; I had to be in by 7. My parents sent me to Catholic school; your parents sent you to public school. Down at the other end of the block lived the big Buddhist family, and around the corner lived the Muslims. We didn't play with them so much. They played different games, went to different schools, ate different food, celebrated different holidays, etc.

Now the street is getting really crowded. Almost too crowded. We are competing for resources we have never had to share before. And it's easy to point fingers at "them". Suddenly there are more of "them". But there are more of us, too. And we are all very aware of each other, thanks to technology and mass communication. It affects us a lot more -- and more quickly-- when something happens down the street, or on the next block.

We have to learn to play nice. We are now living in a very large tribe, with many brothers and sisters. The way that we relate to each other must change. We must learn to be more tolerant, respectful, and responsible.

Those other kids eat weird food, listen to strange music, worship alien gods (or no god), celebrate different holidays, and cheer for another team (or play different games altogether). But the point is that we all eat, worship, celebrate, cheer, etc. To live in such a large family we must begin to focus on what we have in common, while learning to respect each other's differences and preferences.

Living in a large family is different than living in a small family. At dinner you have to wait until everyone is served before you take a second helping. Schedules need to be coordinated more carefully. More responsibility must be taken by each member of the family for individual and shared tasks. And each person must learn to find their own "space", both inner and outer.

We live in a Universe that is dialectical. Energy is created and balance maintained through opposing forces. Life and death, entropy and enthropy, good and evil, dark and light, creation and stasis, chaos and order, contraction and expansion. In order to raise our consciousness globally, in order to reach the level of acceptance, tolerance and respect we need to live in this new world, each of us must sink deeper into our own psyches. We must become more aware of ourselves, and more responsible for our inner landscapes.

We are essentially the same: we are all human. Each of us is the same material, poured into different containers. One container is not more "right" than another. Air is not better than water, or water better than food. A mountain is not more "right" than a river. Both serve a purpose, unique to their environment.

Basically, we all have to stop behaving like selfish, spoiled children that want their own way. There has to be more give, more courtesy, and more Love. Learning to Love ourselves unconditionally is the only answer right now. Once we can Love ourselves unconditionally, we can Love others. (The truth is, those that we "hate" are in many ways a better reflection of our true selves than those that we "love." What we cannot tolerate or accept in another is what we cannot tolerate or accept in ourselves.)

Ironically, the shift we are going through right now is the end of the tribal era. We have been successful in "going forth and multiplying". We have gone forth to the very limits of the earth's capacity to sustain us, and we have multiplied beyond the balance of the equation. We must begin to pull back. Conservation, not expansion, must become our new collective culture.

I have said many times before that I believe our next stage is the Age of Avatars, when each person must create a space for God/dess to inhabit. A world of 6 billion humans will not survive comfortably. A world of 6 billion Avatars will find a way. We must become a "tribe of One's". Not a tribe of one- where we are able to get along because we are all "the same"-- but a tribe of individuals that recognise the sacred, separate journey of each soul.

One of the reasons the spirit world is becoming so visible to so many of us-- the increase in psychics and Mediums, and the interest in the paranormal-- is that we need to redefine our understanding of this earthly journey. If this is all there is to life, those dwindling resources and cramped quarters become unbearable. And if we cannot see how precious each soul is- even the soul of our enemy- we will not be able to see our own preciousness.

And one of the reasons there is a renewed interest in witchcraft and pagan religions is that we need to balance with nature. Gods and religions who disdain this earthly life and all of its pleasures and pains will not survive. We must come to an understanding that Earth is every bit as sacred as Heaven. We are the only species that over-consumes; that spoils its own nest. All of these natural disasters, plagues, diseases, and madness are due to the close quarters we are in.

"Factory" farms that raise poultry put the chickens in confining cages, one right next to each other. Chickens really do not function well in flocks over one hundred. Factory chickens have to be de-beaked because they will peck each other to death in those cages. Feet are removed because the claws grow into the cage wire. Many of the chickens lose the feathers on their wings from rubbing against the cage wire and the wings of the chickens next to them. (Don't get me started on layers-- they live in the same conditions, but have a lifespan of about 28 days. The lights are left on 24/7 so that the hen never stops laying eggs. )

When I read the news, it seems as if globally we are packed in like those chickens-- rubbing each other raw, pecking at each other, our feet growing into our cages.

Each of us must find time every day to slow down, meditate, pray, and release. You can watch the news or go on the internet to find out what is happening in any part of the world at any time of day. What we need to start doing is going inside of ourselves. The space that each soul needs to live fully is not going to be so available on the outside anymore, and we must find it on the inside.

We live in a big crowded house, but each of us has our own room. We must begin to live more in that room, and take responsibility for it. Only by creating this culture will we survive.

All of the things that we have taken for granted, that we thought were invicible, are failing us. We can no longer rely on the outside world to carry us. I know many people who feel like their lives are falling apart. Especially, it seems, in the area of their lives that they felt were invincible. Suddenly, everyone is hitting an iceberg. The Titanic is sinking.

If you think your life is changing, even if you think it is falling apart, than that is good! What is really happening is all that stuff that would have drowned you is floating away out of your grasp. Now you can get into a lifeboat.

But unlike the real Titanic, once you get in that lifeboat, you won't need to be rescued. Because you will have a true "life" boat-- you will find the life you really need; the life you were meant to have. There is no room for the unnecessary, the cumbersome, or the extravagant.

But there is plenty of room for you, and all that you were meant to be.

Wayne Dyer says that "Row Your Boat" is really a metaphor for life: "Row, row, row your boat, gently down the stream; Merrily, merrily, merrily, life is but a dream." Row your boat; dream your dream. Make merry.

PRAISES, THANKS, & BLESSINGS!!!

ANGELS ARRIVING

2008-05-13T17:16:00.000-07:00

It feels like a tremendous amount of spiritual energy is in the air right now. (I think this may be the reason so many people I know are falling in love. **) Anything is possible right now, and most especially the opportunity to shift into a more loving world.

There is an overflow into the spirit realm. The cyclone in Myanmar, the earthquake in China, and all of the smaller disasters that seem to be happening everywhere. The tornados, volcanos, storms, wildfires, accidents, etc.

During the tsunami and also after Katrina there was this swell that I felt, and that a lot of other spiritual and psychic people felt as well. I believe that tomorrow night the Angels will be much closer to our plane of existence than they usually are.

I have been feeling a premonition of something big coming, and initially I had gotten a "6" and "5". And it felt "earth-shaking." But today I remembered an article in this year's Witches Almanac about the Night of the Watchers, which is June 5.

And my angels have told me they would be arriving. (Which made my earthquake anxiety worse. Living in Los Angeles for so many years, I am used to earthquakes. But they are not to be taken lightly.) It takes alot of energy for them to manifest physically in this reality. I think that during this time, Divine Aid is needed more than usual.

Tomorrow is a night to open yourself to the presence of the Angels.

One of the ways the Angels manifest is to bring Love and pleasure, and a sense of awareness of the beauty of the moment. They see what is often invisible to the living, and too obvious to the dead.

(I had an interesting tarot reading for myself earlier. I was shown that I was operating out of the principle of self-Love, and allowing myself to feel pleasure and self-love, but I was relating to the experience as some sort of Divine revelation, or an event occurring in my life. I cannot completely rule out an actual seismic event happening in this area, but I think that the earthquake in China has brought me an understanding of what it truly means to love myself. And why it is so important. And why the dead always want to tell the living "I love you.")

To be at one with everything around you, and to not feel separate. To not hold onto any anger or fear or guilt; to live completely in the present moment, and appreciate this life that so many have just left behind. That is the gift that the Angels bring.

I get glimpses of the doorway every now and again, but to feel what the dead feel when they pass beyond- that is rare. And achingly, uncomprehendingly beautiful. There is a moment of looking back, of hearing the cries and tears of a loved one; to really see all the beauty that each soul creates-- and in that moment between life and death, to still be able to feel all the moments that were lost to suffering, worry, anguish, fear, anger, indifference, dis-pleasure, unhappiness.

That appreciation of the gift of life and the beauty of each moment are available to those of us in the world of the living right now. And that is a rare chance indeed. A chance to really rise above the mundane, material world, and see all of the beauty of Heaven; of the Universe.

Angelic energy also fuels miracles. Or what we call miracles- which are truly only possibilities that we have moved too far away from our grasp. Tomorrow night is a good night to dream of miracles, and to know they are available in your life. To know that all good things can come to you.

Some people might question believing in Angels, and some might even question believing in Love. There is no wrong direction with Love. It always guides you to the easiest way, the best answer, the deepest healing, and the truest connection with yourself and other people.

If you live in a world of Love, you also live in a world of Angels. Growth is Love, and Angels are the spirits of God/dess that whisper "grow, grow" to each blade of grass. Angels bring beauty and understanding and illumination. They are the light and warmth of Love in the darkest night, in the thickest forest.

Whatever your dreams, dream them tomorrow night. Dream them with Love. Send praises, thanks, and blessings to the spirit world, and the Angels, and to yourself and to your life. Send Love to everything in your life.

Right now, all things are possible.

PRAISES, THANKS, & BLESSINGS!!!

**If you click this link to Love Potions a Blogger warning bar will come up about adult content. I chose to have that warning come up because I talk about love and sex, including sexual practices that I have encountered. The post itself is simply about that first of fog of love when you meet someone you are really attracted to, and what I think that is all about. And now, I think that the Angels arriving is what is bringing all of this desire for love-- manifesting in the carnal way-- to many of the people in my life.

YOU CAN HEAL YOUR LIFE

2008-05-09T06:38:00.000-07:00

I recently watched the movie YOU CAN HEAL YOUR LIFE, based on the book of the same title by Louise L. Hay. I would recommend this movie over THE SECRET, which focuses on positive thought and entitlement, and is really just a collection of information contained in books like Hay's. THE SECRET too easily sets people up for failure, in my opinion. The principles in YOU CAN HEAL YOUR LIFE will only improve your life, no matter how little time or effort you put into practicing them.

Hay's approach to healing any aspect of your life is simple: Love yourself. Love yourself totally and completely. Love yourself unconditionally. I spent a good portion of my life looking for love from other people to complete me, while at the same time giving them the love that I could not give to myself. It seems rather unproductive (and ironic) to love anyone before you love yourself. It's like giving someone a dollar, and then asking them for another dollar back.

(I do believe that we all have an unlimited supply of Love to give ourselves and other people. The more we give, the more we have to give. It is the giving of it that increases it. But if you give it because you expect it back, then you do not really believe that you have enough. )

If you want love from other people, and especially if you are going to give love to others as well, you might as well cut out the middle man. Essentially, if everyone were able to give themselves all the love they needed and wanted, then everyone would be loved, and all of this suffering over "lack of love" could be eliminated.

"If everyone swept his own doorstep," Goethe said, "the whole world would be clean."

And Hay is not talking about arrogance, or vanity. Both of those traits come from a fear that there is not enough love. Arrogance and vanity are motivated by sense of lack. "I'm better than you" implies that there is shortage of beauty (vanity) or worth (arrogance). By giving to yourself first from that never-ending supply of love in your heart, you can always be sure that there is enough.

And, as she points out, if you love yourself, it will become difficult if not impossible to love others. As I believe, and frequently point out, there really is no "us" and "them". There is only ourselves, and the reflection we see of ourselves in other people. I believe that if we could create a culture of self-love, we would eliminate all of the problems we have in the world.

Haye's first commandmant is to stop all criticism immediately. Of yourself and of other people. Also release all fear, resentment, anger and guilt. (I call this the "de-FRAG" process. Like when you de-frag your computer hard drive and clean up all the errors.)

Guilt creates punishment, resentment creates disease (especially cancer, according to Hay, but releasing it can also heal disease), anger and fear create pain. Psychically, because we are all mirrors of each other, and because our energy patterns attract what we are, by holding on to FRAG, you attract more of it. You are not condoning bad behaviour in others by releasing anger or resentment, you are simply not allowing it to damage you. And living with fear and guilt will only create unhealthy situations in your life.

FRAG also removes you from the present. FRAG is about the past, and projecting it onto the present and the future. All power is in the present moment. You cannot heal the past or create a wonderful future without being rooted fully in the present moment. The past cannot be changed. The future consists only of more "present moments." By rooting yourself in a joyful, loving present, you can rest assured that the future will be bright.

From a psychic standpoint, I especially enjoyed the opening scenes. It showed the internal dialogues of different people as they went about their daily business. It seemed to me a very accurate reflection of what I "see" when I walk down the street. Most of us are so preoccupied with our "problems" we have little energy to pursue solutions. And, as I mentioned, we are just attracting more problems.

"Something happens, and you get angry. Something else happens, and you get angry again," Hay says. "It doesn't make much sense to keep going through that pattern of anger over and over again. It never ends." (I am paraphrasing, I don't remember the actual quote.)

I highly recommend the movie and the book. I began working with the book during the holidays in 2006. Without it I don't know that I could have survived this last year. I believe working with the book has healed my body and my spirit, mind, and heart, more than any other publication like it.

Love is the most powerful force in the Universe. It can heal any disease, soothe any soul, create any possibility. Love is the magick in witchcraft. Love creates only good.

Love yourself, and everything else will fall into place.

PRAISES, THANKS, & BLESSINGS!!!

THE DAWN OF THE YEAR

2008-05-06T17:41:00.001-07:00

Today was the true "Beltaine", or Bealtaine. (See my last post.) Last night I had some interesting visions. (But no true Bealtaine celebration, alas... The carnal life has escaped me... for now, anyhow... )

One thing I had not noted in my previous post is that Bealtaine, falling between a rare two consecutive full moon's in Scorpio, is on a Tuesday (celebrated yesterday at sunset until tonight at sunset). Both Scorpio and Tuesday are ruled by Mars. (Pluto is now the ruler of Scorpio, but Mars continues to be co-ruler.) And the New Moon was on a Monday, her day. Everything is very aligned right now. I think it is really up to us what the alignment is for.

One thing I was instructed to do was look very closely at what I believe. To follow all of my beliefs back to their point of origin. To change the world we must change ourselves and the way we think. Following my beliefs back to the point of origin has shown me that almost nothing I believe to be true about the world is any more true than the opposite of those beliefs.

To examine what you know is to find that you know nothing. And that makes everything possible again, like a new childhood. Or at least the ability to look at life through the eyes of a child.

I also had a rather stunning vision of the afterlife. As some readers know, I had a nervous breakdown in 1992. At the time, I believed that suicide was a "way out" of my misery. Since then I have talked to suicide's on the other side, and I know that is not true. Ending your life in misery anchors you to that misery. Forever. It destroys many of the good things in your life, and those good things are what give our spirits and souls the power to "pass on". **

So I was hesitant to follow my Guide to the night I sat alone in my bedroom, holding a gun. It makes me anxious even now to write about it-- or even to think about it. I have been working to forgive myself and others and to release all anger, fear, resentment, and guilt. I believe that one of the reasons I was led to that night was to overcome that fear and guilt.

Once we arrived, I was led through the doorway-- as if I had died. Had I truly been a suicide and not a visitor, I would not have been able to escape what I can only describe as stickiness. Like a load of glue I would not have been able to push through.

I was however able to pass through it and found that I was in a kind of outer space type of infinity. Before me there stretched back an almost never-ending line of souls. Some my family and ancestors, but most of them simply people I had interacted with in my life. My best friend from childhood, the stranger I said hello to yesterday at the bus stop. Everyone, no matter how brief or inconsequential the interaction.

On the other side, there is no time. Eternity is not like an endless life, of moments going by one by one. Eternity is no time at all. On the other side, you have already died, you are alive, you are never born. Any moment in time can be accessed, and everything is about to happen, or has already happened; never happened, and will surely happen. For this reason, your own spirit is waiting to greet you when you die. And that is why you see everyone, even those that were still on Earth when you passed.

I could not stay for long- it is not a good idea to dawdle in the land of the dead. We arrive there soon enough. But my feeling was that the length of the line didn't matter as much as the quality. Better a short line with smiling faces (good karma) than a long line of frowns (bad karma).

We are part of the Universe, and the Universe is part of us. Everything we do here resonates from the highest to the lowest. We will all meet on the other side. We are all just gypsies here, passing through.

Let's make this dawn the best ever. Let us use this time to transform ourselves and the world. Let's believe new truths, and create a better future. And let us not forget how deeply our lives entwine with others.

PRAISES, THANKS, & BLESSINGS!!!

** Suicide and murder are essentially the same thing. We are here to learn to love unconditionally, and that means ourselves, too. Whatever you do to another, you do to yourself, and vice versa. When we see something horrible that has happened to another person, we are able to percieve it as horrible because we would not want it for ourselves. We envy that in others that we want for ourselves. There really is no "us" or "them". It is really just ourselves, and the reflection we see in the mirror of other people.

That is why, too, when you love yourself, you love others. When you forgive yourself, you forgive others. And vice versa. When you transform yourself, you transform others. Not just that we attract what we are, but by changing yourself you change the mirror in which others see themselves. Becoming more loving, and others see the love in themselves, etc.

THE TRUE MAY DAY

2008-05-05T06:48:00.000-07:00

The ancient Druids believed that the old day died when the sun set. Their most famous legacy is All Hallows Eve, or Halloween, the descendent of the fire festival Samhain. (When the sun reaches 15 degrees of Scorpio.) We celebrate the "Eve" because of Halloween's Druidic roots. Samhain was the New Year for the ancient Celts. The twilight of the year.

They divided the year into two halves: Samhain ("sou-en") and Bealtaine ("be-all-tin-uh"). Samhain as the waning half of the year, and Bealtaine the waxing. Samahain was dusk til dawn, and Bealtaine dawn til dusk.

Tonight is Bealtaine, or May Eve. (When the sun reaches 15 degrees of Taurus.) The darkness- winter, the long night-- is over. New spirits of fertility and abundance, of life and growth, roam the earth. Bealtaine Eve is an excellent night to celebrate the carnal.

This year Bealtaine falls between two consecutive full moon's in Scorpio. Today is the new moon. This is rare and very powerful. I have been writing in my last few posts about the unparalled power available right now. Volcanos, earthquakes, storms, cyclones, insect plagues (no camping in Colorado this year!), and human disasters-- monsters unmasked, lies uncovered, economic instability, food shortages.

The power of the Universe and the elements is always neutral. It is how we decide to use it. Personal decisions and actions have a greater impact on the people around us and the collective of humanity. This year the power is very strong, and could overwhelm us. If you are psychic or do energy work of any kind, take extra time to ground and center.

Tonight at sunset give thanks, feast with joy, and raise a toast to new life. And don't be surprised if you see the spirits and Sidhe (fairies) having their own feast and celebration!

PRAISES, THANKS, & BLESSINGS!!!

PS-- Wikipedia's entry on Bealtaine is very inaccurate. Regarding Roodmas Eve, the Church appropriated Bealtaine from the Angles. "Root mass" not "Rod mass" (as in rod of christ). You can always tell if there is an "Eve." A good clue that it was grafted onto the Christian calendar from an older pagan feast day.

PLUTO AND THE NEWS

2008-04-29T17:15:00.001-07:00

Every planet rules aspects of human behaviour. And each House of the Zodiac rules aspects of human endeavour. (This is a very broad, or loose, interpretation.) Each planet as it travels through a House, makes aspects to other planets. These are the chords in the song; the markings on the map.

In our developed, modern world we do not seem to feel these "tides of planetary motion" as strongly as our ancestors. But the motion is there just the same. The more planetary factors a situation contains, the more it will react to these tides.

In Vienna a situation where a woman who had been held captive by her father for 24 years, and given birth to seven of his children, was discovered this last week. I found this situation very demonstrative of Pluto's transit through Capricorn, accompanied by Jupiter, while Saturn transits Virgo.

I quote myself:
Since 20 December we have had the current ruler of the gods in grandpapa's house, Capricorn. Expansion in the house of limitation. Things that are bad will get worse.
On Burns Night, 25 January, Pluto will move into Capricorn. Pluto is a slow moving planet, and it has been in Sagitarius since 1996. Be prepared for a major shift. Pluto in the house of Karma is not something to think of lightly. Especially through 2009, during the Jupiter transit of Capricorn. The skeletons won't be rattling in the closet, they will be walking and talking, like all of those zombie movies. (Emphasis added.)

Pluto, the Greek God that ruled Hades, did not release any soul once they entered his realm. However, as a planetary ruler Pluto oversees secrets, hidden things, and skeletons in the closet (and down in the basement). I do not think it is a coincidence that this horror was uncovered during this time.

(It is particularly jolting to me that this woman, who is my age, has been imprisoned since roughly the time I left St. Louis for California! When I think of all things I have done in the last 23 years, while she has spent every day since then locked in a windowless room, being raped by her father and giving birth to his children! Incomprehensible! )

The most telling item in the story, as far as planetary activity is concerned, is that this whole situation was uncovered due to a health issue. (Saturn, the father of the Olympian Gods, is in Virgo, the ruler of health.) One of the children had become severely ill and either was dumped or escaped. When she recovered enough to talk, she led authorities to her mother and siblings, and her father/grandfather, Josef Fritzl.

In Greek mythology, Saturn (Chronos), a Titan, was defeated by his son Jupiter (Zeus), and Jupiter became ruler of the Olympian Gods. (Saturn had imprisoned his own father, Uranus, and was in expectation of this event.) Jupiter gave his brother, Pluto, rule of the Underworld. He gave his sister Demeter (Ceres) rule over human agriculture and harvest (among other things).

Pluto wanted Demeter's maiden daughter Persephone for his wife. Jupiter agreed, but did not inform Demeter or get her consent. When Pluto abducted Persephone, none of the other Gods knew where she was, and Jupiter didn't "fess up." (This is a very simplistic telling of the story, as there are layers and layers to it. Many of the Greek Gods come from older deities.)

Demeter withheld summer until Persephone was returned to her. Unfortunately, Persephone had eaten a pomegranate seed in Hades, and had to return. At least for part of the year. When Persephone is with her husband in the Underworld, there is winter, and no crops can be grown.

Mercury/Hermes and Hecate enter the picture as well. Mercury rules the Internet and messages. Hecate is one of the oldest Goddesses in existence. She is the Goddess of the Three Directions, of the moonless nights (which she illuminates with the light of her knowledge), of witches and witchcraft, and of the darkness. The Romans called her Trivia, and she was worshipped where three roads met. (Some feminist scholars consider Hecate to be another aspect of Persephone, in an earlier pantheon where Persephone ruled the Underworld as her own domain.)

This woman's father had for 24 years told the community that his daughter had run off to join a religious cult. Three of the seven children he fathered with her he raised as his own grandchildren. Naturally, the community is shocked--and betrayed. A man that was thought to be an exemplary father and grandfather has turned out to be the most heinous of monsters.

One of my dilemmas with unconditional Love, and the all-time champion of unconditional Love, Jesus, is that had Hitler prayed for forgiveness he would have recieved it. Human monsters make me wish for a Christian Hell. But I believe too, that what is in one of us, is in all of us. Whether Jesus was "just" a man, or truly an Avatar, he walked this earth as a mortal man. In each of us there is a potential Jesus.

And in each of us there is a potential Hitler, a potential Josef Fritzl, a potential monster.

It seems awful to say. But I do believe it is true. And that is why I believe that self-awareness is the only key for humanity. There are 6 billion people on the planet. We cannot hide from each other or ourselves. I do not believe that stronger laws, or the death penalty, or more bombs, or police, or returning to "traditional" values will save us. We cannot control anyone but ourselves. If every person that is strong enough to do so can open themselves up fully-- can make self-awareness and self-growth a priority-- then we have a chance.

We need a revolution of individuals-- of Higher Consciousness. I think that we must begin to look inside of ourselves. If a butterfly flapping its' wings in Argentina can affect a hurricane in China, than each person has the ability to change the world by changing him/herself. Maybe the admission of one lie in Washington, D.C. can affect the war in Iraq. I believe that the praying hermit high up in Himalayas can affect us as much as the unbalanced, random school shooter. I believe that we are part of collective.

It doesn't always seem that way. And that belief takes a lot of faith, especially in the face of truly shocking news. But I am always able to take comfort in the planets and stars. We are part of a Divine dance.

And right now it is the clearing of skeletons so that new things can be born. Lies and secrets must be uncovered so that Truth can be set free. By staying in tune with the mystic, and the mythic, there is guidance. The more that we align ourselves with currents and tides of the Universe, the easier our journey.

PRAISES, THANKS, & BLESSINGS!!!

BEALTAINE, MAY DAY, AND ROODMAS

2008-04-29T09:43:00.000-07:00

The Druids are credited with discovering the two times of year that the doorway between the worlds was open. Once for the spirits of the dead, and those that have passed from the world, and one day for the new life, the spirits of those about to be born. The Druids divided the year into two halves based on these two days: Samhain (still the name for the month of November in Irish) and Bealtaine (ditto the month of May).

These two fire festivals survive today as Halloween and May Day. The act of giving treats to ghouls on Halloween, and dancing the Maypole and giving out bouquets on May Day are surviving traditions. We celebrate Halloween at night because the Druids believed that the old day died when the sunset, and the new day was born at twilight. May Day is celebrated during the day, usually at dawn, but only because we have lost the more carnal aspect of the holiday- an Eve of sexual coupling in the fields after the great feast and celebration.

Most calendars will list tomorrow evening as Roodmas (root-mass) and Bealtaine Eve. The first of May is Bealtaine on the fixed calendar. But if you want to tap into the energy of the new spirits that are entering the world, you must wait until the sun reaches 15 degrees of Taurus.

This year, Bealtaine begins on the 5th at sunset. This is also the day of the New Moon, in a rare Taurus that is giving us two full moons in Scorpio. (The first full moon was on the 20th of April, at 1 degree of Taurus. The next will be on 19 May.) To have a new moon at Bealtaine is a dream come true for witches and those that interact with the spirit world. A tremendous amount of energy is available.

In my post on the first full moon in Scorpio I said that "This year we must sow the field in a graveyard, and first the tombs and bones must be cleared." It is a time for a whole new world. A truly new beginning. The dead have their place, but we cannot allow their bones to prevent us from planting new seeds. We must clear away the old traditions and beliefs that no longer work. They were valuable in the past. They served us well. We honour them. But now a new crop must be planted. Room must be made for new roots take hold.

Listen, listen to everything around you. The new spirits do not make as much noise as the old. The dead are loud, and they know how to make their voices heard. The spirits of new life and fertility are still young, and you must listen more carefully for them. But they are there. Everything you need is right within your grasp. Listen. Listen to your soul. Listen to the winds. Listen to the birds. Listen to the grass growing. Listen to the stars.

Listen for the heartbeat of your new life.

PRAISES, THANKS, & BLESSINGS!!!

HOW DO YOU KNOW IF YOU ARE A WITCH?

2008-04-25T16:01:00.000-07:00

I might get some hate mail for saying this, but not everyone who practices witchcraft is a what I call a "natural witch." For one thing, energetically, I notice that natural witches usually have a mark at the hairline, right between the Third Eye and the Crown chakra. I've seen purple pentagrams (modern day pagans who either cast spells or have a talent for spells), a star, the Goddess moon "horns" (the waxing crescent, full moon, and waning crescent). Recently I saw a sun symbol.

Witches that I call "world walkers" have a mark, but I haven't been able to identify yet. It's more of a feeling I get when I talking to one. World walkers are humans who have the ability to move between the different astral realms and other dimensions.

Young people, teenagers, and older people who have the gift but have never used it at all, or have actively squelched it, have a kind of blot where the mark should be. The energy hasn't configured yet. And sometimes I see a mark, but I can't identify what it is. It's not a blot, it's more that it is blocked to me.

Different people will have different experiences, but usually there is an affinity with nature. When I was young I was very attracted to the energy of trees. I felt they "talked" to me. Since I've begun actively practicing witchcraft I have learned that trees do indeed talk to humans. But they have almost no words. (The Ents in the Lord of the Rings trilogy are real chatty Cathy's compared to most trees.) Trees refer to humans as "monster". Once I had a tree call me "creature" and I was so happy I almost hugged her. (The mother oak up at Lewis Mitchell park.) Also, young trees rarely speak to humans. Try an old oak for starters.

One of the first things many witches learn to do is call the winds. Ironically, in St. Louis I have been trying to master stopping the winds! (I started practicing witchcraft in California.) The latter is a much harder task. (One thing I can offer newbies, the winds are not instant. Sometimes it takes up to a full minute for a breeze to reach you on a windless day. Don't despair.) And the winds speak, too, but usually with the messages of others.

And then there are animals. Like trees they have few words. Birds seem to have only two words: "danger" and "food." When I feed the birds regularly I enjoy the point where I stop being "danger" and become "danger" and "food." Many witches and world-walkers will find that a particular animal spirit is their protector, or totem. They may have felt drawn to the animal long before they discover their powers.

Like many witches, I was always drawn to fairy and supernatural stories as a child. And also mythology. As a child I read alot about the Greek Gods, and I always felt like they were still here with us. Later, when I began to study astrology and the planetary rulers, I understood that they really are still here with us, at least in one system. And like some other witches I have known, I have a general affinity for "imaginary" creatures and beings. I used to always have little "altars", even when I was an atheist. Sometimes they would be cartoon characters (Cheetara from the Thundercats, Wonder Woman, etc).

Natural witches are often very sensitive to the changing seasons. Or may feel the increased spirit activity around Bealtaine (the ancestor of May Day) and Samhain (the ancestor of Halloween). Things may seem to "happen" more around these days, as there is an increase in psychic and magickal power as well.

A witch might "hear" the moon, or converse with the stars and planets. Sometimes there will be a heightened sense of natural phenomena, i.e., storms, earthquakes, wildfires.

Which brings me to a brief aside: I do believe that the Wabash fault will produce an earthquake of a 6.5 magnitude. This is almost as big as the Los Angeles earthquake in 1994. I have some concerns about the older buildings in this part of the country, and the lack of preparation on the part of the citizens. (Bottled water, at least three gallons per day, per person. Hard shoes next to the bed, flashlight, batteries, candles, etc.) I believe it will occur on the 14th of May, but it might also happen in June. (And hopefully I am wrong, and just caught up in the "hype".)

The Earth does not live by the time of humans. A day is barely a second to the Old Girl. It is not easy to pinpoint natural phenomenon. And an earthquake is barely a belch to the planet- not much commotion at all! But it does affect us, and not just physically. I do not think the recent spike in violent crime and shootings in the Chicago area is a coincidence. One of the reasons the Old Craft is calling so many right now is that there is a need for it.

Modern humans, especially in "developed" countries like ours, have lost the ability to speak to the Earth. And we must remember Her language, all of us, whether we are witches or not. We live in a time unparallelled in human existence. Of all the people who have ever lived, half of them are dead. Our current population is the sum of all those that have lived before us! We need the old stories and Gods, but we need to re-write the stories for this new era, and find new ways of relating to the ancients. We must explain our new world to the Universe.

And the planet is stretched to the limit for humans. The term "global warning" is almost comic. The planet has been much, much hotter. Thousands of degrees. It is only we frail humans that can only survive within such a narrow temperature range. The Earth will survive without us. That is certain. "Depleted resources" means "resources that humans need." We cannot survive if we strip her of the environment that sustains us, or unbalance ourselves.

Witches are needed to translate and communicate. Wake up to your power!

PRAISES, THANKS, & BLESSINGS!!!

PSYCHIC, NOT OMNIPOTENT

2008-04-22T16:25:00.000-07:00

One of the erroneous beliefs about psychic abilities (and the law of attraction, incidentally) is that being psychic makes you omnipotent. For one thing, being able to see something, especially something that is going to happen in future, does not necessarily give you power over the outcome. And the future is very tricky. Change one thing, and everything can change. (I believe this is one of the reasons so many high level psychics do only Medium work. The dead don't change that much.)

Also, when it comes to "reading" other people, we are all limited by our beliefs and judgements about ourselves, and in turn, the world. Think for a minute about the people you see everyday. Perhaps in the elevator or lobby at work, on the street, at your favourite restaurants and stores. We all pass people everyday that we don't "see". I don't mean psychically, necessarily, but that we don't ever register or interact with.

There is a saying I heard alot in the film industry "there are only 2000 real people in the world, the rest are just special effects." In some ways, this is true. We are each our own world. We can only "see" ourselves, including that in ourselves we do not want to see, or refuse to see, or that which we reject in ourselves.

One of the reasons I stopped doing readings for awhile was that I found that I had changed, but I was still seeing other people through my old reflection. (I also have a health issue, which was the main reason I stopped. I expect to begin doing readings again in late June.) We attract what we are, and my clients here were different than the kinds of people I attracted in Los Angeles. It took me awhile to understand that. And to understand that I needed take some time to learn who I was becoming.

The development of psychic abilities has a great deal to do with the development of self-awareness. You must know yourself well enough to know when you are feeling or seeing something that belongs to someone else. (My previous post discusses the need for developing self-honesty in order to recognise that, especially in regards to predators. Or people that would do you harm of any kind.)

And judgements of certain outcomes can be limiting too. If you are reading someone you must be able to clear away your own judgements in order to see things from their point of view. This is one of the main reasons it is so hard to read for one's self, and for people that are close to you. It can be very tricky-- are you telling them what you see, or what you want to see for them?

Many people with psychic abilites-- and it seems to be a hallmark of the least developed abilities, I know, because I have done this-- think that because they can see something, they should say it. I have come to disagree with this practice. If you haven't been asked, you might be telling the person something they aren't ready to hear. It's also something of an invasion of privacy. The psychic equivalent of a peeping tom.

I had a intuitive tell me once that "God sent me here today to meet you and tell you these things." Now, some of the things were true, and even one of her predictions was right-- viewed in a certain light. But none of it was necessarily helpful. And I had even asked her point blank not to read me! She just felt very certain about what she was seeing, and it probably felt very powerful to her when she was seeing it. (There is a kind of "high" that comes with psychic visions, and I think alot of people get hooked on the high. This happens in witchcraft, too. You get Circle junkies. They aren't really witches, they just like the high from casting and being in the Circle.)

The thing about believing that you have power because you can see something other people can't is that you can mistake yourself for that power. God sends the Jehovah's Witnesses to my door on Sunday. Fervent beliefs and a zealous attitude are impediments to psychic and spiritual development. (I do ask people very leading questions if I see something that I really feel compelled to comment on. But I've learned it is best to keep quiet if the person does not seem receptive to the information.)

A psychic talent- whether it be empathic abilities, clairaudience, clairvoyance, psychokinesis- is still limited to the confines of human ability. The best human ear still cannot hear the same high pitches that dogs can hear. The best human eye cannot see the difference between UVA and UVB rays--we only see them as sunlight. Our beliefs and judgements limit us. They are meant to. We all came here to do things that only we can do. We can only attract what we put out. It is meant to be that way. In some ways, we are here to interact with ourselves, as we appear to ourselves in the guise of other people.

No human has the ability to know everything at once. Humans can only absorb so much. And to really live a full life one must always strive to stay rooted in the present. There have been things I have seen in my own future that looked awful, I didn't want them. But when those experiences came they were welcome. And I have seen things I thought were going to fulfill all of my dreams, but when they arrived they brought only heartbreak. Psychic visions are only helpful when they can be viewed in context, or when one is able to release all judgements and expectations- other than the expectation of always being in the right place, attracting what you are perfectly, and living a full and joyous life. Only then can one have any understanding of what is being seen.

And if you are too grapsing of that hidden world, you miss out on what is happening to you. I used to go to the same pub on Friday nights, and half the time I would be so caught up in the things I saw happening to and around other people, I missed the things that were -or could have been- happening to me. I didn't hear the joke my friend told. I was too busy psychically watching the bartender freak out when his wife and secret girlfriend sat down next to each other. I was intoxicated with the power of being able to see things that were happening in other people's lives, and ignoring my own.

One final note: Many people ask me if I see things as I see the physical world. I don't. I don't want to. When I was younger I had too many freaky experiences. That is one of the reasons I shut myself off from the spirit world, and God and religion. The difference between what people really think and feel and how they act and what they say- that is enough for me! What I see-- when I see people's energy patterns or spirits-- is mostly in my inner eye, in my mind. In Los Angeles and larger cities, it is so crowded with humans and their energy, I don't need to be bumping into all of the ghosts as well.

I always feel sorry for the movie and television psychic-- she can never tell when she is talking to a ghost. The Ghost Whisperer's last episode had the main character getting videotaped talking to a ghost, and it looked like she was talking to herself. In the show, the dead seem unable to hear at all if you don't speak to them out loud. It does help to speak to them out loud, but at least pretend you are on your cell phone or something. And they can hear you even if you just think the words.

Being psychic does not necessarily give you great power over others or over yourself. It may or may not make you rich or lead you to your own reality television show. It is the same as any other talent or ability. I compare psychics to cooks. There are cooks in grills and fast food restaurants. There are the cooks in fine restaurants. There are 12 star Parisienne chefs. Any of them can make you a meal, but they are not all the same. And I've had bad food in good restaurants and great meals in greasy spoons.

Whatever your talent, and however great or small it may be, do not expect more from it than you are willing to put into it. And do not define yourself or your achievments by it. It is a talent like any other.

PRAISES, THANKS, & BLESSINGS!!!

THE POWER OF ONE, OR WHY SELF-OBSESSION CAN BE GOOD

2008-04-19T16:59:00.000-07:00

I hope you have read my last post on the first of two consecutive full moons in Scorpio. I have altered my layout temporarily so that two posts show on the page, and I encourage you to scroll down and read it before you read this post.

Let me expand just a bit on what I mean by "no future." I do not mean "our economy is going to hell in a handbasket and our country has no future." I do not mean "jobs are being cut, unemployment is high, the housing market is about to collapse, peak oil is upon us, and we have no future." These statements imply a "bad" future. Or a future that is not the same as the past.

What I mean, and you have to think about this on a mystical level, not a practical one, is that all possible futures are currently being suspended. The actions and events of your life have led you down a path of probabilities. Now those probabilities are going to be suspended. You have the opportunity to re-write your story. To create a new future. But if you leave the old structures intact, then at the end of this "moment" (between tomorrow's full moon and the full moon in May) you might have the same future. Or worse, a future someone else has chosen for you.

Because without all the protection old karma creates in keeping you on the path of your probabilities, those structures might be removed or added to for you. Imagine that gravity were about to be suspended, and you had nailed nothing down?

Someone said to me this morning "if there are 6 billion people on the planet, and only, say 500,000 of them are seeking enlightenment and a spiritual path, how is there any hope of creating a new and better future? And creating new and better Gods?" (Per my last post, I believe the mythic stories of the Gods are being re-written.)

The strongest thought wins. And by strongest I mean, in some ways, most honest. One thing I have learned, and that you will often hear me say is, "at least be honest with yourself." There have been many times in my own life where I could not be honest with other people about what I was doing or what my true motives were. Obviously, honesty is always the best policy. But if you can't be honest with everyone, at least be honest with yourself.

If you can be honest with yourself, you will be the strongest person in the room. Maybe not the richest or the most powerful, but you will be the strongest. You will have your own strength and that will make it impossible for others to pull you in a direction that you don't want to go. Maybe everyone else will jump off that bridge, but you won't.

Being in touch with your own emotions, beliefs, and motives will root you in a way that even the most fervent, blind, tribal devotion to collective beliefs can not. (And honesty with yourself will also move you to create a better life for yourself, based on who you really are, and you will find that you have less need to be dishonest with others.)

Your only real power is the power to be who you are, and to change yourself. Each of us has certain talents and skills that are unique. Each of has a way of being in the world which cannot be duplicated by anyone else. And psychically and spiritually, the only way to really "see" things clearly is to have self-awareness. Only then can you tell if what you "see" belongs to you or someone else.

We are transformed, often unconsciously, by the dreams and visions of other people. Strong leaders have strong visions. That is true for good leaders and for bad leaders. Think Martin Luther King, Jr. versus Osama bin Laden. We might revere King and revile bin Laden, but they are both strong leaders.

And there is another side to this as well. Predators- murderers, rapists, thieves- have strong thoughts. They have a need that is looking to be stronger than yours. They need to take your life, your power, or your money from you, often more than you need to keep it. This can also be said of banks, advertisers, the government, etc. Or just about anyone that wants something from you that you don't want to give, or that may not be in your best interest to give.

But the predator example is particularly illuminating. No one would willingly wander into the path of someone that wanted to do something harmful to them. If you are at a point in your life where you are not being honest with yourself, and if you are hiding from certain truths about your life, or engaging in alot of deceit, (or if you are going through a psychic upgrade, or if you are off-balance because of illness or depression, or you are particularly open empathically and not protected by emotional awareness) you can become a target for a predator.

Without realising it you could unconsciously be drawn to that "stronger" power. Even though a predator is "evil" and it is usually true that good can conquer evil, good needs a source power. And that source power is always honesty. (Or perhaps Love, as honesty with one's self is truly self-Love.) So even if your need is not as consuming as that predators, you will be stronger because you will be rooted in yourself, and no one can take that power away from you once you possess it.

I believe this because of many experiences in my own life. Particularly as a runaway, when I did attract many predators. But even now, even as a "psychic", I find myself responding to people and situations in ways that are not always to my best interest, or at the very least, how I would respond if I were able to be more self-aware.

Mainly this comes up for me romantically. I suppose all of us have an area of our lives where it is difficult to really face our own motivations, because once we do, we know that we will have to make changes. And humans tend to fear change more than we fear death. We want tomorrow to be the same as yesterday. Even if it is not ideal, it is at least safe. We like safe. And the more pain that we have experienced in regards to those changes, the more we will resist. In my case, romantic relationships.

And what will happen to me is, because I am hiding and therefore disconnected to my own motivations (fears), I will sometimes respond to men in the way that they want me to respond. (Often to the point of confusing their desire for me as my own desire for them. I think this is particularly tricky for the psychic and/or intuitive person.)

As the world shifts, there will be alot of strong "pulls" from the unconscious collective mind. Collective beliefs are in many ways democratic. Only the conscious mind is stronger. The unconscious mind has only resistance, and resistance often makes the unwanted belief stronger. It can only fear. But the conscious mind can overcome fear without using resistance.

Being self-aware does not mean that you will always be able to do whatever you want, or always have your way. But it will allow you to see "the forest for the trees." Even when the world grows dark around you, it will be moonlight on the path ahead. You will not mistake the rustling of rabbits for the footfall of a hungry bear. You will not mistakenly be pulled down the wrong path towards that bear.

If you cannot connect with your own power right now, if you cannot be honest with yourself, you will be at the mercy of the whims of others. This is a strange and dark power that is upon us, but it is a necessary one. The old structures are crumbling. We are living in a new world. Even the old Gods do not have the same future any more. The old stories are being re-written, and we are the authors.

Do not let someone else write your story for you. Do not let fear of facing your own darkness keep you from creating a new and brighter future. Because that new future is bright only if we create a better one for ourselves. And by creating a better future for ourselves, we create a better future for the world. For all of us.

I will make a prediction: no matter what, you will not be the same person on May 19th that you are now. Shape that new person with self-awareness and honesty. Do it for yourself, and do it for all of us. Do it for the planet.

Take a few moments tomorrow morning and face your fears. Then bless them and wish them good-bye.

PRAISES, THANKS, & BLESSINGS!!!

THE LORDS OF DEATH & DESTRUCTION

2008-04-18T18:14:00.000-07:00

This Sunday is the first of two full moons in Scorpio. The full moon in May is also in Scorpio. The House of Scorpio was ruled by Mars, the God of War and Aggression, until the planet Pluto was "discovered." Scorpio rules passion, death, rebirth, secrets, and the mysteries of power, especially hidden power.

A full moon is a sun-moon opposition. The sun is in the sign of Taurus, ruled by Mars (Ares) lover and sister of Venus, the Goddess of Love and Fertility (or great aunt, depending on the story of Venus/Aphrodite's origins*). The sun at 15 degrees of Taurus is the ancient Celtic Feast of Bealtaine, a fire festival celebrated to release the spirits of abundance, fertility and new life. The sun at 15 degrees of Scorpio is the Feast of Samhain, when the spirits of the dead roam the earth. At both times of the year the doorway between the worlds is open. The veil is lifted.

This Thursday there will be another in a series of Mars vs. Pluto oppositions. Mars is in Cancer, the House ruled by the Moon. Jupiter, the ruler of the Gods, is in Capricorn with Pluto. Jupiter's father, the Titan Chronos, or Saturn, is in Demeter's House, Virgo, ruled by the Planet Mercury, who is in Taurus. There is a pattern here, a map, if we listen to the old stories, the stories of the Gods, and if we listen in our hearts, to the stories we are writing with our lives.

Those of us in the St. Louis area felt the rumbling of the Underworld this morning. The God Pluto, the Rich One, He who feels no mercy and allows no one who enters His realm to leave it, flexing his muscle. Pluto ruled Hades with his captured wife Persephone. She Herself an older Goddess who once ruled Her own Underworld, until she was abducted by the Greeks and reborn as Demeter's maiden daughter, captured by Hades and made his wife, to rule the Underworld once more.

Think of a dance, a complicated dance. The most precise tango between two of the best dancers. The dance of the Lord and the Lady, the dance of life and death. A dance going on for many generations, husband and wife, father and mother. Intricate and complex, with no room for misstep or error. Kali consuming the entrails of her conquered lover Shiva. The Lord of the dark, lifeless Underworld plucking the most beautiful and most vibrant flower from a field of sunshine. The perfect choreography of the sun-moon dance- She always willing to go into the darkness alone and reflect His own light back to Him.

"The opposite of war isn't peace- it's creation!" ***

I believe the days between these two full moons in Scorpio, and especially Bealtaine itself (from sunset on the 4th of May until sunset on the 5th) will be the most significant days of this year, and perhaps many years to come. I think that this period will impact our future more than any day to come in the next twenty or thirty years, including the Mayan "Doomsday" of 21 December 2012.

I believe we are witnessing a rare time, a truly mystical and suspended moment in the Dance. A pause. A second of peace between the rhythm of destruction and creation. A moment of infinite possibilities. I believe that we are being given the opportunity to have no future, no destiny, no old karma- or at the very least the opportunity for a re-write, an edit- between these full moons.

Between now and Sunday, and between Sunday and the next full moon, if you can release the things that fetter you, you can be free of them. Forever. But to have no future is tricky. The safe boundaries that you always relied upon may not be there. And the abyss may open before you. Secrets and ghosts, lies, buried things, will arise. Even the dead, who have only the past, and are accustomed to having no future, will hold power.

Use this time wisely, and confront the chains rattling in the dungeon, and all will be well. But be careful of what you think, and how you think, and what you speak. The old rules will not apply. This can be a time of great healing and power for those that are committed to self-awareness and growth, but only if respect is given to the Lords of Death and Destruction.

Even the Gods will be without a future. The Laws of Karma, of cause and effect, will be the only balance. It is a time now, in our history, when even the Gods, even the Universe, must re-write their own stories. Truly, for this brief moment in time, nothing will be written in stone.

Think clearly and stay focused on the life you want for yourself, and don't be afraid if the one you are living begins to crumble. This year we must sow the field in a graveyard, and first the tombs and bones must be cleared.

PRAISES, THANKS, & BLESSINGS!!!

**Aphrodite as an earlier Goddess of Cypress was conceived when Saturn and the other Titans castrated their father Uranus. Uranus genitals fell into the ocean and out of the foam rose the goddess Aphrodite, the Lady of Cypress. In later Greek mythology she was the daughter of Zeus (Jupiter) and Dione.

Both Aphrodite and Persephone were once powerful Goddesses in their own right, demoted to wife and daughter by the Greeks.

*** From the Musical RENT!

YOUR PSYCHIC AWAKENING: JOURNALING

2008-04-11T16:52:00.000-07:00

This is the last post in a series.

When your psychic facilities begin to increase, if you don't keep a record of it, a lot of "static" can get mixed up in the signal. That is why journaling is so important.

At first you may not know what impressions to record. Your "hits" will just seem like random thoughts, until they are confirmed. You think about a friend, and you bump into them. You get a nagging feeling to take a longer route to work, only to find that your usual route is backed up due to an accident (or you yourself get into an accident, which has happened to me).

Even if you don't recall when you had the premonition, at least begin to record when it is confirmed, and any memory you have of the initial thought. This will also help to really alert your subconscious to the importance of these thoughts. Writing cements things. It makes them important to your mind. (And others, if you write publicly. )

It is also important to record meditations with your Spirit Guides and Angels, and Guardian Spirits. The latter, honestly, can be as easy to ignore as good advice from a friend. But it is more difficult to ignore the accuracy of a Spirit Guide giving you information from the dead, or Angels telling you things about situations in your life that you cannot physically see.

Moreover, recording conversations with your Guides creates a space for them to exist here. A stronger space than the lighting of a candle, and sometimes even stronger than the space that ritual can create.

As someone who has been writing since she learned the alphabet, journaling comes naturally to me. I have about six different journals: a couple for regular, day to day, "Captain's Log" type stuff; one for my Angels; one for dreams; one for astral travel; one for my Spirit Guides; and I keep a Mirror Book to record my work as a witch, which I will hopefully one day turn into a Grimoire, or Book of Shadows. (I also keep a Gratitude Book, per Sarah Ban Breathnach's Simple Abundance suggestion.)

For all that, I don't journal as much or as often as I should. It takes a lot of discipline to faithfully record any aspect of life, much less something as slippery as psychic development. But the most important thing is to make an effort. Just do what you can. Even if it is only a few sentences a week, or when something really obvious happens, it will be worth it.

And if you are giving readings for other people, try to record as much as you remember. Psychic visions often have a dream like, or hallucinogenic quality that can make it difficult to remember them afterwards. Like a dream journal, the more you record your readings and visions, the more you will begin to understand your mind's own private language.

PRAISES, THANKS, & BLESSINGS!!!

YOUR PSYCHIC AWAKENING: RITUAL

2008-04-05T09:00:00.000-07:00

This is the 7th part of continuing series.

Tonight is the Aries New Moon. This is a new beginning astrologically. A time of growth. A time to sow the seed of your dreams. Claudia at Moonsurfing calls this the Wish Moon. And an article in this year's Witches Almanac discusses the power of New Moon Magick. At the end of this post I include a short ritual for the New Moon tonight.

The more that you begin to see the world through your Third Eye, along with your physical eyes, the more you will need ritual to create sacred space and a place for unseen energies to manifest in your life. Rituals are energy fields, and they create a place for the Divine to reside in this world.

Many people find that going to a church service fulfills the need for ritual. I enjoy going to new churches and learning new religions. I incorporate many elements in my rituals and many of them are from Christian churches. A church service is a ritual for Jesus and the Love he brought to the world. (A prayer, in my opinion, is a spell.)

In witchcraft a ritual also creates a space for magick, much the same way a church creates a space for a service. Magick and witchcraft are more functionaries of the Divine and magickal energy than they are a religion. Witchcraft can be practiced in conjunction with any religion, even those that oppose it. (I recommend Marion Green and Scott Cunningham to newbie witches.) Feng Shui is a form of witchcraft, in my opinion.

Magick brings together the spirits of earthly things, calling up stone, tree, wind, storm, river, and sun to manifest as a power for healing, money, a new job, a lover, or any other need that you might have. It is no more evil to do this than it is to write something on the computer, and then print it out on a printer.

Some people have a natural magickal power. We might call this perfect positive thought or intention. They can think of something clearly, and have it manifest in their lives in a timely manner. Some witches have this power, some don't. Perfect positive thought might appear that is bypassing uniting with the spirits of earth, but if you attract a book to you have called something made from tree, water, metal, and air.

The difference between positive thought and witchcraft is that usually a witch will have a rapport with the entities of nature that the average person does not. Perhaps an ability to hear the voice of the wind, to communicate with trees or with animals, or to feel the movements and shifting of the earth and of the stars.

The practice of witchcraft is somewhat like being the manager of a manufacturing company: witches contract the services of earth spirits and have a working relationship with fire, earth, air, water, ether, the winds, sexual energy, the power of human Love, and the planetary rulers. Many witches worship one of more Dieties, and you may consider this Diety or Divine energy to be the owner or CEO of the manufacturing company.

The Goddess of witchcraft is often worshipped as the moon, or the moon as the female aspect of the Sacred Dance of the Lord and Lady. The Sacred Dance is something like a Divine entropy and enthropy. Our Universe if composed of complementary forces that create through a kind of organised conflict. Like sex between a man and woman, for the creation of children or pleasure.

Ritual can be seen as the "factory" where the workers are organised, the boss is consulted, and payment is made to the workers. This is visible in all rituals, including a mass or service at a Christian church.

Psychics usually get messages through spirit guides or angels or the dead. I believe some true clairvoyents maybe very farsighted and receive images of the future. But witches receive messages from the earth spirits as well. I have asked my Guides not to tell me things that cannot be changed. (It seems no good to know that someone is going die or become ill if there is nothing precognisence could do to prevent it or alleviate it.) However, this does not prevent the energies of the earth from telling me things that my Guides do not.

The more you practice witchcraft, the more your psychic abilities will develop, whether you have a pre-disposition or not. Nature is perfectly balanced, and chaos is always partnered with order in an intricate dance. By developing a relationship with the spirits of earth you will gain a greater awareness of how all things are linked. And you will begin to feel the tides of life and death, past and future, unseen forces, and the power of Love as the guiding principle of the Universe.

The moon is dark tonight. Her slender crescent won't be visible until Monday. In the darkness gather to yourself your deepest dreams. Not more than four of them. The most important ones that need to manifest in your life right now. Write them down if you need to.

Assemble a small stone; a mirror, seashell, or small dish of water; a feather, lady's fan, bell, or some incense; and a candle, preferably white, or two, one black and one white, or one black and one orange, or gold and silver, if you have them. A wee bit of wine and bread is nice too, or some pennies, or anything else you would like to use as an offering. Arrange these things nicely in front of you. (Optional: Pour some salt in a circle around you and your makeshift altar. Or cast a circle if you know how.)

Sit quietly, cleansing your chakras, meditating, and putting yourself in a reverant frame of mind. When you are centred, light the candle. Take a moment to Praise, Thank, and Bless each element (earth, air, fire, water), and the "unseen" element, ether. Praise, Thank, and Bless the winds, the stars, the creatures and green growing things of earth, the benevolent spirits of Love, your angels and guides and protectors, and the Lady herself, symbolized as the hidden moon.

According to the Witches Almanac, the dark moon- the day before the new moon, the day of the new moon, and the day after-- can be likened to the tremendous energy of the seed below ground creating the energy necessary to send the shoot above ground, into the sunlight.

Think about your dreams as seeds, and know that just as the moon will reveal herself in just a few days time, slender and waxing, so will your dreams begin to grow. Feel for a moment the wonder of your life and how unique and precious you are to the Universe. Feel how much Love the elements and Gods have for you-- to give you a body of earth, air, water, fire and ether (physical, mental, emotional, creative/psychic/spiritual, and soul). To give you a life beyond this one. To give you the power to dream and create.

Offer the seeds of your dreams to the Universe with Love and Thanks in your heart. Make your offering. If it is wine and bread, give a bit to the earth first before partaking of it yourself. Acknowledge that the gift you give came from the recipient, and that you are simply sharing in it, and making an offering of it with Love.

Sing a song or dance around or recite a bit of poetry. The offerings are the representation of a Feast and party. You don't have to go all out-- although you should at least once or twice a year-- but you need to make a representation of it.

Thank all of the spirits and entities that attended and assisted you in your rite. Close your Circle, if you cast one, or sweep away the salt. If the candle is still burning extinguish it by snuffing it or pinching it out with your fingers.

Look for the waning crescent in a few days time, and know that your dreams are growing. Have faith and patience. Some seeds sprout more quickly than others, and you cannot know what elements it will take your dream to grow. Morning glories grow very quickly. An acorn takes a long time to become an oak.

PRAISES, THANKS, & BLESSINGS!!!

ALL DREAMS DAY

2008-04-01T16:22:00.000-07:00

As I said in my last post, I think what we need is a day of collective dreaming. Below is my first "All Dreams Day" post from my old blog, on 1 April 2006. It's all still what I dream for the world.

If I were the President
If I were queen for a day
I'd give the ugly people
All the money
I'd re-write the Book of Love
I'd make it funny.
--Laurie Anderson, MY EYES

There would be one day a week when no one watched television.

All tampons and pads and feminine products-- including ibuprofen and evening primrose oil, red clover, etc-- would be free and available to all women.

All birth control would be free and available to every person that was capable of reproducing.

Medical care would be free.

Prescription drugs would be free.

Pharmacuetical companies would be non-profit research organizations.

Marijuana would be legal, but regulated.

Our main priority globally would be health. All wars would cease in order for proper food and nutrition to be distributed. This would be most painful for countries like the U.S., since we would all be going through intense sugar and meat withdrawals. However, the relief in solving world hunger would be so great, and we would all be benefitting from a more healthy culture, this would magically work out. Alice Waters and Vandana Shiva would be in charge of the details.

Most people would have a little backyard vegetable garden or community plot.

Today would be a day of parades like Mardi Gras, except not so Dionysion. More family friendly. Like Rio Carnival at Disneyland or something. Or more like those crazy artist parades in 1920's Paris. A day where adults could dress up in costumes and behave in a silly manner, without society completely falling apart or so decadent that kids couldn't participate.

There would be more celebration and Feast days like Mardi Gras, more like All Dreams Day. With community parades and big celebrations. On these days the elephant would dress like the donkey, the walrus like the carpenter, etc. Walking in someone else's shoes for a few minutes.

Dialogue would be very important in my dream world. There would be a culture of self-examination, with self-responsibility being primary. A recognition that we all think our beliefs are "right". Once a year we would confront that part of ourselves culturally.

Our global motto would be Acceptance whenever possible, and at the least, tolerance and understanding.

Ecological health would be very important to us as well, even if it meant downscaling in some areas of our lives. Knowing that we were ensuring the planet's future accomodation of our species.

High School's would teach Sexual Education with a serious eye towards really being informative and dealing with some seriously ignored issues: masturbation, self-control, relationship issues, self-worth issues (especially for girls).

My High School curriculum would also include financial instructions like how to balance a checkbook and learning to track reciepts and do your own taxes, and invest for retirement-- even if you only have a job at McDonalds.

Harville Hendrix would design a curriculum for people who were planning to marry (gay or straight) and that would be a course you completed before you got married.

There would be no advertising on the television or the radio.

Blogging and reading books and comics would be alot more popular. People would be more interested in You Tube and blogfrogging and more interaction with other people "in reality". More creative interaction and more arts.

There would be no "-isms." (Racism, sexism, etc.)

Everyone would dress more colorfully and everyday life would be more festive. Whimsy would run rampant in the streets.

Streetlights would be shut off during spectacular celestial activity.

There would be more public transportation.

People would walk more.

Everyone would WANT to vote.

There would be more religions and people would practice more than one religion. Learning other religions would be the same as learning another language. Religion would no longer be a reason to go to war.

We would begin to find solutions to crime. But I couldn't think of any ideas on how. Perhaps there is a dreamer out there who could.

Astrology, meditation, yoga, and magick would be taught in schools from kindergarten.

Everyone would live well, and be taken care of, and contribute meaningfully to society.

And oo my eyes
They're looking all around;
And oo my feet
I'm upside down.

PRAISES, THANKS, & BLESSINGS!!!

THE POWER OF DREAMING

2008-03-30T06:42:00.000-07:00

I will continue my posts on Your Psychic Awakening next time.

When I say the power of dreaming, I am not talking about sleep dreaming. I mean fantasies, or daydreams, or positive thinking of the kind in The Secret.

As a witch and psychic, I see things differently than other people. I don't see the dead or energy the way that psychics see them on television, where you cannot distinguish between what is the outside world, and what is the non-visible world. But there is a kind of "shadow" that surrounds most people. In that shadow I see people's spirits, their auras and energy, sometimes I will see "marks" or spots in their auras that indicate certain problems or thoughts. And I see things in people that often they do not see in themselves. For instance, if they have certain talents or powers that are not manifesting.

Dreams and aspirations often release a kind of mist. Similar perhaps to the energy of prayer, but not as "solid". Depending on how much desire is present, and how much of that desire is attractive, that mist can draw the dream closer to the dreamer. (A lot of desire is based on a feeling of lack, and creates the feeling of wanting. Lack and wanting actually push the desired object away. That is a complex subject and a post for another time.)

For the last few years I have been on a campaign to transform All Fools' Day into All Dreams Day. Wikipedia does not cover the history of the holiday as I learned it. My understanding was that on All Fool's, the jester was crowned king, and the king was the jester for a day. A joke, perhaps, but what a strong king to be so unafraid, even for a day.

A few years ago, meditating on the tarot's Fool, number 0, I came up with All Dreams Day. The Fool embodies the energy of all the major arcana cards. He is all possibilities. To have the "fool rule" for a day would in essence mean that all possibilities are present. If the jester can be king, and the king made to play the fool, then certainly the energy of the day can create real and lasting change.

And since our dreams do emit a kind of energy, a day of collective dreaming would serve to democratically guide the Universe toward the kind of future we all want. So on April Fools, I am going to post my dreams. Not dreams for myself, necessarily, but dreams for the world. I want to encourage everyone to do the same.

On April First, after you pin that dead fish sticker on your co-worker's back, take ten minutes and pretend that you have been given the crown of the Universe. You can make any changes you want to the world. The more detailed the better. If we have world peace what does it look like? Have we ended starvation? Solved the oil crises? How have we done those things?

Even if you do not share your dreams with anyone, it will still make a difference. The power of many people dreaming at once is a powerful magick. And I think we need a day where we are encouraged to dream on a large scale even more than we need a day of practical jokes.

As a true dreamer and visionary said, "Imagine all the people..." I am imagining all the people dreaming a new world and a better future.

"You may say I'm a dreamer/ but I'm not the only one/ I hope someday you'll join us/ and the world will be as one."

PRAISES, THANKS, & BLESSINGS!!!

YOUR PSYCHIC AWAKENING: ASTROLOGY

2008-03-25T16:34:00.000-07:00

This post is part of a series.

Initially I had planned posts on Journaling and Ritual before this one. I was trying to list the various components of psychic/spiritual growth in terms of importance and difficulty level, and astrology requires a serious investment of time and study. However, journaling and ritual also require an investment of time and study. But of a more solitary nature, and requiring more inner direction. The study of astrology is much more accessible and convenient, in some ways.

More than one person has told me that they think I rely too heavily on astrology. However, no one who has seriously studied astrology ever says this. I believe this is because once you study astrology you come to understand it is a map and guidebook. Astrology is really a question, not an answer. The question is "How does my life and who I am fit in the Universe?"

A natal chart (where the planets were located at the time of your birth) is like the blueprints of a house. You don't have to live with that badly placed bay window or saggy porch, but you do need to know it is there and how it is made. (If you know the time and place of your birth, I recommend going to http://www.astro.com/ and reading the free sample they provide. If you have never had your chart done before you will be astounded.)

I believe that we are something created out of many different elements. We are the liver and skin and blood of animals, and of earthly appetites and needs. We must breathe, we must drink water, we must eat food, we must defecate. We must be born, and we must die. We must encompass the spirits of all of these things.

But we are given things not of the physical world, too. We have emotions, and we must learn to Love unconditionally, regardless (or because) of those feelings. We have thoughts, and we must learn to orchestrate the cacophony of our minds into a symphony. We have the Divine, and a thumbprint of Karma housed in our souls.

And I believe that we have the God/dess in us. We are each born with different ways that God/dess comes into the world. That is why mythic stories are so important, and especially in understanding astrology. I don't think it was chance or coincidence that the planets are named for the planetary rulers that govern them.

In your natal chart, your rising sign, or ascendant, is how you go through life. Where the moon is governs your day to day activities and how you conduct your mundane life. The placement of Venus will tell you a lot about how you are as a lover, and what you expect out of a relationship.

And I think that these planetary arrangements go both ways. Not just the gift/curse of the planets to you, but the way that those God/desses, or aspects of God/dess, want to interact on this planet. Which does not mean you have to be sentenced to a life of poverty because your Jupiter is retrograde in detriment in Gemini in the 12th house.

Huh? I know, that was complicated. That is my chart placement for Jupiter. This is usually interpreted as "money is hard to get and disappears the moment you get it." That does not mean that I cannot change that. But knowing that makes it easier to change. And makes me alert to the opportunities when the Universe offers them. (For instance, Jupiter is in my sun sign of Capricorn for the next two years.)

I don't know why Jupiter would want to manifest on this planet in such a tight, dark, narrow little space. Jupiter is big and bright and expansive. But the Divine is everything, even what is not beneficial to It's self. God/dess, as Alpha and Omega, beginning and end, dark and light, is even NOT God/dess. Easier to just accept that this was my karma, and learn to use this weakness as a strength, somehow.

Astrology is also the question "What is the Universe dealing with right now?" I think it was the Buddha who said "there is no higher spiritual reality than right here and now." (Or something close to that, but probably more eloquent sounding.) Everything that is happening in "heaven" or any other dimension, is also happening here.

Watching the aspects the planets make to each other can tell you what is happening on the spiritual planes. Everything we do on earth effects heaven, and everything in heaven effects what happens here. A healing among us here heals heaven. A war here creates a war on other planes, or dimensions. The more in tune you are with the Universal "weather" and "seasons" the more you can find balance and your authentic life.

And by authentic I mean a way through life that is close to effortless, that uses to the fullest your unique talents and gifts, and that guides you to greater and greater understanding, blessings, wholeness, and the giving and recieving of unconditional Love.

I began learning astrology back in the early 1990's by reading Rockie Horrorscope every week after the week was over. It was easier to see how the aspects worked by looking back. (I was also very skeptical at the time, and was testing astrology to see if it was "true.")

The next step was studying the moon. The moon rules day to day human activities. It was very obvious very fast that when the moon was in Gemini people talked a lot more. When the moon was in Cancer my co-workers frequented the candy dish on my desk a lot more.

If you've never studied astrology before, I encourage you to take some small steps, like getting your natal chart done. Or check Rockie every day for the aspects, and learn to see how they "feel" to you.

The energy that brought the last upgrade is waning. Unfortunately it looks to me that the people who were not able to absorb it or deal with it are kind of freaking out. Actually, the energy itself was a little freaky. But these are the times we are in. The end of the world as we know it, said the Mayans, and me. The Great Awakening.

One thing that helps with an upgrade of any kind is selenium. Especially if you find yourself craving garlic and onions. If you take a multi-vitamin, check if selenium is included. If not, get a seperate supplement. I think a 200mcg tablet cut in half is fine, but take it with Vitamin E. I suggest you read Weill on selenium before buying a supplement. (I don't think you will find anyone else talking about the selnium-psychic link. This is my own theory.)

PRAISES, THANKS, & BLESSINGS!!!