Spell-Casting vs Prayer

Someone stated once, "casting spells is evil!" I said really? Let me run a few things by you.

When you want or need something you go to your spiritual place, usually a church and light a candle, you kneel, clasp your hands together and ask for something; either change in your life, for someone you love to over come an illness (and you may even place their picture at the prayer altar or podium or whatever you call it, or may just ask for guidance and then you draw the cross across your chest. She said "Yes, basically."

Ok, I go to my spiritual place, be it outside or to a place I created in my home, I light candles and some incense, I may kneel or stand, I raise my hands upward, I ask for change in my life, or for a love one to be healed, I too will place a picture on the altar in such cases, and sometimes I may just feel lost and ask for guidance, I then draw my spiritual symbol in the air.

Tell me my friend, how is my spell-work much different than your prayer? She could not give me a valid answer.

Regardless of your spiritual path, whenever you desire change and you do something be it pagan ritual, spell-casting, or Christian prayer, you are setting energies into motion to achieve the change you desire. ~Tess~

Where is my sign?

    I don't know what you would call it, mid-life crisis, pre-empty nest syndrome or just plain ol' crazy. Whatever you call it, I am not in the best of spirits lately and feeling pretty down on myself.

    It really hit a high yesterday when I heard through the grapevine that my oldest daughter was not coming to me about things that are bothering her. We used to be extremely close. She would talk to me about everything. Not so much now. I see her down in the dumps and try to talk to her and she just tells me she is tired. Uhm, excuse me, I am your mother. I know the difference between when you're tired and when you're depressed, but okay you will talk to me when you are up to it. Or so I thought.

    Last week she was late getting out the door to go to work and I had to stop what I was doing to give her a ride. Yes I was irritated and I explained to her that she needs to watch the clock better. She said she did not realize how late it was and merely stated, "Hence watching the clock  better." Apparently I upset her more that I realized. From what I was told it is partly to do with the fact that, well, I was upset with her in general. The main reason though, is that she is starting to feel the demands of adulthood and the responsibility that goes with it.  She did not come and talk to me about these concerns, she talked to someone else. I cried when I learned this.

    I realize that what is going on is the natural course of our lives as parents. Our children grow up, and need us less and less as they get older. The part I am struggling with is this. My self defining role has always been, "above all else, I am a mother." While I still have my son at home, who is sixteen I realize he really does not come to me much either. I am now seeing myself at a crossroad that I don't think I was emotionally or spiritually ready to come to yet.

    I am pretty certain that my subconscious knew what was coming and has been trying to prepare me. I have been a stay at home mother for about sixteen years. This past year I have been feeling the pull to get back into the work-force. This has been another thorn in my side. I am not  having the easiest time finding a job. Not many people want to even consider someone who has not worked in almost twenty years. I have been called for several interviews but they have not panned out. I personally feel it is my appearance. I Have visible tattoos that I can not cover and I am missing quite a few teeth due to a severe mineral deficiency during my pregnancies. In essence I look like a 50 year old ex-biker meth head.  Of course that is the furthest thing from the truth, but first impressions and all ya know.

    While at this cross-road in my life, where I am changing from being a full time mother to being something else. I came to the conclusion that now it is my husbands time to get my full attention. I am pretty much failing in this department. He gets up and goes to work everyday. He works hard and brings home a paycheck to keep a roof over our heads, food in our stomachs and the internet which allows me to be able to write and post this today. I can't even remember to do something as simple as take his work shirts out of the dryer so they won't be wrinkled and set up the coffee pot so he has coffee in the morning.
This morning I guess I heard him moving about and realized that I had forgotten to take his shirts out of the dryer and hang them up. It was that point that I asked myself, "Oh shit, did I remember to set the coffee pot up for him?" I came flying out of bed and into the kitchen to witness him heading out the door empty handed (no coffee mug ). I apologized and went to the bathroom sat on the toilet and commenced crying my out out, yet again.

    Naturally my husband was concerned and was late getting out the door. He wanted to make sure I was okay. I explained that I was fine. He asked if there was something he should or could be doing and I assured him that what I was going through had absolutely nothing to do with him. He is perfect.  I explained to him what I just shared with you all. He seems to think that maybe he.we should be doing something different. I explained again that I am otherwise happy. I love my  life, I love him. I just don't know how to deal with this cross-road.

    Mid-life crisis? Pre empty nest syndrome? Plain ol' crazy? Perhaps just a little bit of each. All I want to know is why does my cross-road not have a friggin sign?!

You can't have your Equality and Racism too.

We can never expect to have total equality in this nation when actions are always blamed on racial, religious, or sexual motivation.

I am am upset with the GZ verdict just as much as other people are BUT, what I am even more upset with is the race card being thrown out like it is. I don't think this was about race and am pretty fed up with it being turned into a racial issue. We are are fighting for equality in this country for every single person and every time something like this gets turned into a racial issue it sets us back a decade or more. How can we as a nation get past the race debate, if every time a person of color dies or a person of color kills a person not of color "it was racially motivated." The fact that another human used deadly force against an unarmed youth and allowed to walk away is the travesty here, not the fact the youth was black and the shooter was not.

Trayvon Martin could not speak for himself. Everyone involved and everyone following the story could only listen to his shooters words and speculate what went through young Mr. Martin's mind at the time of the attack.

Here is my view and my take on it.

If I am walking down the road and I notice a truck following me for several blocks, I am going to be very nervous, and go into defense mode. If the driver of that truck pulls over, gets out and approaches me I am going to be very on edge and very defensive. If I see the person approaching me is carrying a gun I am not going to wait very long to defend myself. Zimmerman was told by 911 NOT to approach the suspect, he did so anyway, which in my opinion shows a desire for confrontation. That leaves the question, who was defending themselves first.. Trayvon or Zimmerman. I can only go on assumption here since one of the parties is dead. My assumption is that Trayvon feared for his safety and acted in the only way he could with only a bag of skittles in his pocket and no other other weapon. He used his fists when someone he saw as a threat tried to apprehend him and got the upper hand in the situation. Zimmerman then shot him.

I think Zimmerman was a bully with a gun not a racist. The courts made him out to be the victim. The only victim in this situation is a young man who lost his life too soon and the family who will never see him reach adulthood.

That's all I have to say on it. I hope all this racism crap comes to an end soon. Until then I will be playing video games and watching non-news television.


Peace and Love to you all,
~MommaTess~

Myths and Misconceptions - The Truth About Wicca and Paganism

I felt this was a very well done article on the common myths and misconceptions about Wicca and Paganism in general. I shared this article several other places as well. The most important thing to remember folks, is this If you do not understand something then ask questions, don't run away with your tail between your legs!

                                                               

Myths and Misconceptions - The Truth About Wicca and Paganism
By Patti Wigington


Do witches worship the Devil?
No. Satan is a Christian construct, and Wiccans don't worship him. Even the Satanists don't actually worship Satan, but that's a whole 'nother conversation.

You guys have sex orgies, right?
Nope. However, most Pagans and Wiccans are pretty liberal when it comes to sexuality. We don't care who you sleep with, as long as everyone involved is a consenting adult. We don't care if you're straight, gay, transgendered, polyamorous, or anything else. Who you have sex with, and how often, and in what manner is your business. We just hope that whatever you're doing, you do responsibly. There are some Wiccan groups who practice skyclad, or nude, but it is not sexual in nature.

How come you use that Satanic symbol with the star on it?
You mean the pentacle? That's a symbol, for many Wiccans and Pagans, of the four classical elements: earth, air, fire and water, as well as a fifth element of Spirit or Self.

Do Wiccans cast spells?
Yes. In Wicca, and many other Pagan paths, the use of magic is considered perfectly natural. It's not the same as the magic seen in Harry Potter, but for Wiccans, magic is part of the natural world. Some spells take the form of prayers to the gods, and others are based on direction of will and intent. Most Wiccans will tell you they use spellwork for a variety of things -- healing, personal empowerment, prosperity, etc. Magic is a tool that is typically used in tandem with the mundane, or non-magical, world.

What's the difference between a Wiccan and a Pagan?
Nearly all Wiccans are Pagans, but not all Pagans are Wiccans. As if that wasn't puzzling enough, there are some people who are witches, but not Wiccan or Pagan. Confused yet? You're not alone. Bascially, "Pagan" is an umbrella term for a group of different spiritual paths.

Why do people become Wiccans?
The reasons are as varied as the people. Some find themselves drawn to Wicca because of a dissatisfaction with other religions. Others study a variety of religions and then realize that Wicca is the most compatible with what they already believe. A few people who are practicing Wiccans and Pagans today were raised in Pagan families. Regardless, nearly every Wiccan will tell you that they came to Wicca because they knew it was the right path for them.

How do you recruit new Wiccans into your religion?
We don't. Although we'll happily share information with you and answer your questions, we're not interested in 'collecting' new recruits.

Aren't you worried that you're going to go to hell?
Well, no. Much like Satan, the concept of Hell is a Christian one. It's not really even on our radar. However, there are a few people -- typically those who have come to Wicca from a Christian background -- who do worry about this very issue. For the rest of us, we know that the future of our soul does not depend on salvation or acceptance of deity as a savior. Instead, we focus on doing good things, because we know that what we do in this lifetime will echo upon us in the next.

Do you believe in God?
Wiccans and Pagans are typically polytheistic, which means we believe in more than one deity. If you look at "god" as a job title rather than a proper name, we believe in a variety of gods and goddesses, rather than One Single God. Most Pagans and Wiccans acknowledge the existence of thousands of deities, but generally worship or honor only the gods of their own tradition.

Update on our Struggle with the School District.

The story got printed in out local paper. I am glad the word is getting out. The article was neutral and that is good. However they did point out that the majority of teachers at the school do not find tattoos or non-traditional piercing to be distracting. I think that line showed a slight lean in our favor. 

You can read the online article here: Mother Questions High School Dress Code

Our Struggle with a Conservative/discriminating School Board

My daughter was sent home her first day for refusing to remove her lip piercings because they were not healed yet. The district seems to discriminate who can and can’t have piercings. As I stood in the hallway this morning waiting to talk to a school official I counted 27 students with facial piercings. 7 of those students spoke face to face with a school official and nothing was said about their piercings, yet my daughter sits at home missing out on her education due to a loosely enforced dress-code rule.
I went to the High School with the NC students article in hand and it seemed to do *some* good at the high school itself. However they want a statement of faith and a mission statement from our church. LOL- hmmm I guess I can type one up myself. “My church” is all around us, it is in our spirit, it is part of who we are. It is not an organized place of worship that has guidelines and by-laws.
The Superintendent’s office however was a whole other ball game. Dr. Couch the Superintendent was eager to point out that similar cases have been over-turned in the State of New Mexico and schools were allowed to adhere to their no piercing policies. I did ask was this on a state level or did anyone take it to federal court. Naturally she was citing district courts and judgement made by district court judges. I was happy to point out that the story I referred her to went to the Federal level and asked if the district really wanted to take it that, far. I also told her I really hoped it did not come to that but that I am just tenacious enough to take it that far. Suddenly she had another meeting she had to get to and rushed me out of the office.
I created a petition to get the code changed on change.org. Please feel free to visit my FB page Tess and read about it. I have made all posts concerning this matter public. I am sure only local signatures count, but please feel free to find the petition link and sign. Every signature generates an e-mail to the superintendent and the school board president. The more e-mails the districts officials get inundated with, the more it will show just how many people believe the banning of body modification is archaic and a violation of personal civil rights as well as religious and spiritual rights.
_____________________________
UPDATE #1:

Yesterday evening we went to a professional piercer to get Skylar’s retainers put in. Her lips were not healed enough and even the piercing artist could not get them in and sadly her holes started to close and she could not even get her old jewelry back in. Skylar was extremely upset by this. But not to worry folks, this battle is NOT over by a long shot. She may not have her piercings in right now but American Woman Tattoo and Body Piercing has vowed to fix this and will re-pierce her in two weeks after allowing her time to heal fully and when they pierce them they are going to insert the clear jewelry immediately.
Am I pissed? You bet your sweet fanny I am pissed. If the school would not be so closed minded and controlling all the emotional and physical trauma my daughter has gone through in the past 4 days would have never happened. In two weeks she is going to go through the pain of getting pierced again. Yes this is HER choice but the school has forced her decision by causing the need to get re-pierced in the first place.

Here is a pic of Skylar a couple of days before her jewelry came out.

Update #2:
We seem to already be making an impact. The district superintendent had informed the High School that they will start allowing students to wear clear facial jewelry. However at this point they are still making students remove their current jewelry and not allowing them the opportunity to purchase clear jewelry first. Many of you know that facial and other body mods close within a matter of hours even when fully healed. When not healed a new piercing or mod can close within minutes. Lets keep this petition going. I am going to update the letter that goes out to the superintendent to reflect that the schools need to allow time, a grace period so to speak in order to allow students the opportunity to get clear jewelry without the risk of losing their piercing . Again thank you and keep passing this petition on.
_______________________
UPDATE #3:

Contacted Mountain View Telegraph this morning and spoke with the editor about the schools policy on piercings. He agrees this is an issue that needs to be addressed and is going to have one of his reporters contact me. Yes it is a small paper but it is our local paper and will get to many locals residents. The local residents are the people that can make the largest impact on this issue. I also found out recently that the Moriarty-Edgewood School Districts dress code policy has not been updated for approximately 10 years
________________________

As I said before, Skylar’s piercings closed when we tried to get the clear jewelry in, so for us, this is not a victory, but it is progress. We will be getting her re-pierced in two weeks with clear jewelry when she has healed. She should not have to go through this and we are hoping to help many other students and parents avoid the same fate that has befallen us.

I will keep you all updated.
In peace and unity,
Tess

Spirituality, Labels, and What-not

Due to a friends recent status post on Facebook and the conversation that went along with it, I decided to look up the definition of atheist and agnostic.

--Atheism is, in a broad sense, the rejection of belief in the existence of deities. In a narrower sense, atheism is specifically the position that there are no deities. Most inclusively, atheism is simply the absence of belief that any deities exist.--

--Agnosticism is the view that the truth values of certain claims—especially claims about the existence or non-existence of any deity, but also other religious and metaphysical claims—are unknown or unknowable.--

Within the Agnosticism summary there was also talk about Agnostic Atheism- This seems like a major contradiction of terms. I feel that if anyone calls themselves and agnostic atheist then they are not atheist at all.

The subject has interested me as of late due to my own questioning of weather there is actually an omnipotent being generalized as Deity-God or Goddess. I have been asking myself what label would be attached to me at this juncture in my life and I have yet to find an answer. I will I share the thoughts again that i shared the other day in case your interested and missed it.

I have been doing a lot of thinking about spirituality and deity/higher power lately. I do believe that their are energies in this world that can be manipulated, some call this science, some call it divine intervention, some call it magic and many others call it coincidence when it has the affect that was hoped for. Perhaps we manifest our own destinies, by the power of our own mind. Many times we say, I sure wish I was rich but our own negative thoughts of, 'it will never happen' causes our own self fulfilling prophecy. Regardless of how positive we try to be, those negative thoughts sneak in and destroy the manifestation of positive outcome. I have enough personal proof to know they things can be made to happen by the power of intent. I won't go into this because as I said it is my own personal proof and many analytic thinkers can and would break it down to coincidence. That is fine. I do not mind. I can even understand the rationale, but when coincidence is habitual, perhaps then, it is no longer coincidence.

Is there a God or Goddess figure somewhere watching over us and determining what is right and wrong and what we are allowed to do or not do without repercussion? A huge part of me wants to believe that there is an all loving, compassionate sentient spiritual being that cares what I do and acknowledges that I believe, but I am starting to think 'No'. The only higher power that holds any merit over our action is called personal moral conscience. I believe even most Christians are guided by this even more than their love of God and the idea of obeying His rule.

Does this categorize me as an atheist, an agnostic or one of the many other labels that society attaches to a belief system or lack thereof. Does it really matter? I suppose not, but my own curiosity demands an answer that I may never get.

Please remember comments are always welcomed and encouraged. I also encourage you to share any of my blogs on any other media source if you feel the desire.