In a time before time had been named, when life danced as a dazzling rainbow upon the mystical Earth, magick lived inside each earthen creature. Some, the big ones, were having a harder time seeing the magick now, than in the past. They were starting to forget that magick is all around you, if only you believed.

Alicia was a small and tiny earthen spirit with sparkling blue eyes and a pinched up nose; even in the fairy world, where all things are small, she was the smallest of them all.

Her home was deep inside the strong and twisting roots of a big Oak. It was safe and none of the winter cold snows could find their way a in.

Samhain in the Shadow of Halloween

I love this time of year. There is something magickal in the changing as the Wheel turns. The Goddess of Seasons delicately waves her wand across the land and, little by little, fall begins.

We see it in the explosions of bright and fiery colors. As the reds, oranges, pinks, purples, and golds decorate the hillsides, the leaves glisten within the heavy dews and sparkle with the frost as they darken and fall upon the ground.

You can hear it in the evening as the wind softly blows the branches of the trees to release a melody from the Goddess’ own wind chimes. There is a mystical sensation felt as the air becomes crisp and we notice that first sweet aroma of smoke flowing on the breeze. Autumn is here; that season of the year between summer and winter, lasting from the autumnal equinox to the winter solstice.

As children, we felt the magick all around us. We simply understood it was there. Then, for reasons not clear, perhaps time or circumstance, many lost their way. Yet, when Autumn begins her dance, the mystical feelings we held as children seem to once again emerge and rekindle that spark within us all.

Other cultures and countries celebrate the seasonal changing by many differing names and customs. Recent studies have shown that Samhain, aka Halloween, is becoming a favored holiday of children, and even adults, in the United States.

The celebration of Samhain as Halloween in America has grown to the point that it is now the second biggest holiday, surpassing the Fourth of July, Thanksgiving, and even Easter/Ostara. Christmas/Yule holds a slight lead as the biggest and most celebrated holiday, perhaps due to the marketing and financial profits made in commerce.

Today, Witches and Pagans proudly celebrate this holiday, many openly. But, it was only a few short years ago that open celebrations were not possible. The gatherings and celebrations had to be hidden within the shadows of Halloween. Even Halloween was frowned upon in many areas, considered a worship of some evil force.

I remember how excited I was to hear that school’s fall break would also be over Halloween. That meant I would be able to spend the holiday with my Great Grandmother. I was so excited, I could not keep my thoughts on any of the class work. I kept watching the clock, hoping to speed up time so the bell would ring and I could go home. I knew my Great Grandmother would be waiting for me and we would be leaving for her house to spend the week.

It seemed as if that bell would never ring. When it finally did, I was out the door and nearly flying down the hall. There she was, like an image standing out of time. It was the 60’s and this tiny women seemed out of place to others. She was dressed in a high-button, white shirt with a small, cameo collar-pin and a long, dark blue skirt that just brushed above the tops of her shoes. Her hair was neatly pulled back in a braided twist. The air about her was filled with the slightest fragrance of amber, lavender, and rose. I noticed the teachers and some of the parents noticing her, but I didn’t care; this was “my� Great Grandmother and I got to go home with her.

Waiting in the car was one of my aunts; she was driving. As we started off, she asked if I was excited about spending this High Holy Day with my Great Grandmother. I squealed with delight, I was so happy. I couldn’t speak to other children about the holiday. It would have been dangerous to the sisters and my Great Grandmother. She had already been told that if she talked about her beliefs, or tried to teach me her silly superstitions, I would no longer be allowed to stay with her or would be forbidden to see her at all.

I really didn’t understand it as Samhain until much later in life. I knew it was a time of great celebration and my Great Grandmother would be getting together with the sisters. Each one I considered my aunt, even though they were not of blood relation. They were her Coven; each living separate lives in different areas, each a Witch of great knowledge and understanding, but all extremely careful of those that, even then, would have had hate-filled and horrific reactions to their being Witches.

It was the day of Halloween, our day of preparation, for the night would be filled with merriment and magick. After breakfast, my Great Grandmother began melting down beeswax for the making and dipping of candles. The wonderful aroma filled the house. To this day, I favor beeswax candles above all others for magickal work.

I was allowed to put some paper decorations my Great Grandmother had gotten around the house. Soon, the aunts began to arrive; everyone helping in the work for the Great Sabbath. There was the dipping of candles and mixing of herbs, teas, and brews. Then there was cooking and readying for the feast. The feast would be held as in day passed; at the dawning of the eve, when the sun began to lower from sight (sunset).

One of the hens had to be dressed and cooked, corn and nuts were to be roasted, bread baked, and then there was the making of pies. This was something I not only looked forward to, but saw as my special part of the holiday because I was the one who got to go out and pick the best pumpkin in the garden. It would be used for carving and pie.

I walked in the garden, up and down the rows, seeking out just the right one. It had to be big, really big. It had to be very orange. It had to be perfect. This was a great honor to pick the pumpkin that would be not only for pie, but the guardian of the feast. The Jack-o-Lantern.

It took some help to get the pumpkin onto the back porch so it could be carved. But, once there, I got to draw out the face and helped with cutting and cleaning out the stringy seeds and pulp. From this slimy mess of seeds and pulp, we would roast pumpkin seeds and bake wonderful pies and cookies.

But, I think the best things I received from helping carve the pumpkin were the stories told by everyone. Not ghost stories about haunted houses, but true stories of their lives so many years ago, when they were young and learning their craft within herbs, candle making, and arts of magick.

The evening drew to a close; the cool, night air was still and you could hear the night sounds from all around. The table was readied with a banquet of foods and my pumpkin placed in the center of it all. I helped my Great Grandmother set the place of honor for the Goddess and God to join us in the feast. The candles were lit around the room, all but one; the candle for honoring the Goddess and God.

Blessings were given and the remaining candle was lit. At that moment, a soft, south breeze blew across the room and all the other candles went out at the same time. A tingle ran across me, but no fear. I knew this was a good sign and that the Lady and Lord had joined us in our celebration. Everyone began to laugh and the candles were relit. There were no more winds blowing in the room, just talk of what the night would bring.

When all was cleaned from the dinner and we were well into the darkness of the night, everyone readied to go to the sacred place. I had been there many times before with my Great Grandmother, sometimes with the sisters, sometimes not.

The path was worn, so it was easy to follow it through the field, past the woods, and into a clearing where the night sky could be seen without the invasion of the town lights. It was also a place where outworlders (those not of a magickal heart) were unlikely to wander and see, especially at that time of night when most people would be sleeping.

Everyone helped make the fire; the wood had been gathered earlier in preparation for the night. I picked up some dry leaves that had fallen from the big, oak to help start the fire. The big, black pot with the three, long legs was placed on the fire to boil.

My Great Grandmother and I would make a big pile of dry leaves to put the blankets on. Everyone would sit to rest for awhile as we enjoyed roasted nuts, tea, and cookies. I would lay my head in my Great Grandmother’s lap, watching the stars and listening to the stories told, long into the night. They were wonderful stories about times past and magick of old.

Soon, I would feel my Great Grandmother’s hand on my cheek as she said, “Wake up, my little one. It’s time to go home.� The ground was damp from the night’s dew and the ashes of the fire were nearly gone. I could see the glow of the sun on the horizon and hear the birds singing their morning songs. All was packed up and ready to go when I was awakened. My only disappointment was that I could never stay awake for the entire night. But, that would come, in time.

There was not one tradition within this family of Witches; they were all simply Witches with a mixing of their personal histories and spiritual wisdoms bringing them together. They proudly shared their knowledge, guidance, and passages, as well as magick and rites. They were a sisterhood, what we, today, call a coven.

I learned that this sacred night was a time to give honor to those who had passed before, give invocation, pray, and seek wisdom and spiritual guidance. It was, and is, a time to renew traditions lost and reclaim sacred things. It continues to be a time of offerings and thankfulness for all we have and for the portals yet to be opened. For as we stand between the worlds, let us not forget those who gave so much that we can now be out of the shadows.

Samhain (pronounced sow-en) is, for Witches and Pagans, a High Holy Day, a great Sabbath. It is an honored day shown in the turning of the Great Wheel. Samhain is celebrated on October 31st -Nov 1st. It marks the end of Summer and the beginning of Winter. The name may be changed, but whether you call it Samhain, Halloween, Day of the Dead, Shadow Feast, All Hallows Eve, Old Hallowmas, All Souls Day, Last Harvest, etc., Samhain is a day of celebration. The Goddess offers a sad farewell to the God. We know that He will once again be reborn of the Goddess and the cycle will continue. In this time of reflection, may we remember and honor the Ancients who have gone on before us.

Have a blessed and magickal Samhain.



By; Lady Abigail
High Priestess Ravensgrove Coven
Copyright © 10202005

...On my journey of "forgotten things" I set out to find that horned beast with wings. A mystical creature that you well know, only appears with the first winter snow.I searched the north, south and west, but in the east I took a rest.

Drifted lazily from this body of mine and almost as though I fell through time, I awoke to a sound, like wind in trees. I looked and a lady was standing before me. A fair sweet lady, she reached for my hand....

Was the the Qween of the land. "You have reached Avalon" with such saddness she said reaching and taking the crown off her head. She handed to me the silver-jeweld crown, as the crown touched my hand she fell to the ground. "I have faild" said the queen, "I must now go away, all have forgotten the ancient old ways,I am but a dream a myth in lore and all have forgotten the key to my door.

Minds have all chainged since the christ has been here, that those dont remember the Goddess for fear. They've told us we're sinners for loving the lands, they've burnt us to ash or tied both our hands. Now that the Goddess has given way for the Son, the fear of their hell is in everyone....So now I hand my crown to you, hoping you'll find a mind or two. Hoping that one day you will find hearts where Goddesses and dragons hide...........


written by Lylywings

Once upon a time, in a land far away, A beautiful, independent, self assured princess, happened upon a frog as she sat contemplating ecological issues on the shores of an unpolluted pond in a verdant meadow near her castle.

The frog hopped into the Princess' lap and said: Elegant Lady, I was once a handsome Prince, until an evil witch cast a spell upon me.

One kiss from you, however, and I will turn back into the dapper, young Prince that I am and then, my sweet, we can marry and setup housekeeping in yon castle with my Mother, where you can prepare my meals, clean my clothes, bear my children, and forever feel grateful and happy doing so.

That night, on a repast of lightly sautéed frogs legs seasoned in a white wine and onion cream sauce, she chuckled to herself and thought:

I don't freaking think so.

1. The apartment of 2 psychiatrists.
NUTCRACKER SUITE
2. The lad is a diminutive percussionist.
THE LITTLE DRUMMER BOY
3. Decorate the entry-ways .
DECK THE HALLS
4. Sir Lancelot with laryngitis.
SILENT NIGHT
5. ABCDEFGHIJKMNOPQRSTUVWXYZ
NOEL
6. Present me naughty but dual incisors for this festive Yuletide.
ALL I WANT FOR CHRISTMAS IS MY TWO FRONT TEETH
7. The smog-less bewitching hour arrived.
IT CAME UPON A MIDNIGHT CLEAR
8. Exuberation to this orb.
JOY TO THE WORLD
9. 288 Yuletide hours.
TWELVE DAYS OF CHRISTMAS
10. Do you perceive the same longitudinal pressure which stimulates my auditory sense organs.
DO YOU HEAR WHAT I HEAR
11. The red-suited pa is due in this burg.
SANTA CLAUS IS COMING TO TOWN
12. Stepping on the pad cover.
UP ON THE HOUSETOP
13. Uncouth dolt has his beezer in the booze and thinks he is a Dark Cloud's boyfriend.
RUDOLPH THE RED NOSED REINDEER
14. Far back in a hay bin.
AWAY IN A MANGER
15. Leave and do an elevated broadcast.
GO TELL IT ON THE MOUNTAIN
16. That exiguous hamlet south of the holy city.
OH LITTLE TOWN OF BETHLEHEM
17. Behold! I envisioned a trio of nautical vessels.
LO! I SEE THREE SAILING SHIPS
18. Listen, the winged heavenly messengers are proclaiming tunefully.
HARK THE HERALD ANGELS SING
19. A joyful song relative to hollow metallic vessels which vibrate and bring forth a ringing sound when struck.
CAROL OF THE BELLS
20. As the guardians of little woolly animal's protected their charges in the shadows of the earth.
WHILE SHEPHERDS WATCHED THEIR FLOCKS BY NIGHT
21. Frozen precipitation commence
LET IT SNOW
22. Monarchial triad
WE THREE KINGS
23. Oh, member of the round table with missing areas
OH HOLY NIGHT
24. Boulder of the tinkling metal spheres
JINGLE BELL ROCK
25. Vehicular homicide was committed on Dad's Mom by a precipitous darling
GRANDMA WAS RUN OVER BY A REINDEER
26. Wanted in December: top forward incisors
ALL I WANT FOR CHRISTMAS IS MY TWO FRONT TEETH
27. We are Kong, Lear, and Nat Cole
WE THREE KINGS
28. Cup-shaped instruments fashioned of a whitish metallic element
SILVER BELLS
29. Oh small Israel urban center
OH LITTLE TOWN OF BETHLEHEM
30. Our fervent hope is that you thoroughly enjoy your yuletide season
WE WISH YOU A MERRY CHRISTMAS
31. Parent was observed osculating a red-coated unshaven teamster
I SAW MOMMY KISSING SANTA CLAUS
32. May the Deity bestow an absence of fatigue to mild male humans
GOD REST YE MERRY GENTLEMEN
33. Natal celebration devoid of color, rather albino, as a hallucinatory phenomenon for me.
I'M DREAMING OF A WHITE CHRISTMAS
34. Obese personification fabricated of compressed mounds of minute crystals.
FROSTY THE SNOWMAN
35. Tranquiltiy upon the terrestrial sphere.
PEACE ON EARTH
36. Move hitherward the entire assembly of those who are loyal in their belief.
OH COME ALL YE FAITHFUL
37. The Christmas predeeding all others.
THE FIRST NÖEL
38. Nocturnal time span of unbroken quietness.
SILENT NIGHT
39. Rose coloured dolf is aware of the nature of precipitation, darling.
RUDOLPH THE RED NOSED REINDEER
40. Whose offspring?
WHAT CHILD IS THIS?
41. Castaneous-colored seed vesicated in a conflagration
CHESTNUTS ROASTING ON AN OPEN FIRE
42. Expectation of arrival to populated area by mythical masculine perennial gift-giver
SANTA CLAUS IS COMING TO TOWN

The Gift of Phoenix....This is the True Story of Phoenix... she came to me by way of friend, a distance of 45 miles. She was just a baby with long floppy ears, color of pure white and blonde, nothing more. What a sweet puppy she was! My friends were hiking in the woods and a pack of dogs ran up to them and left her behind. My friends waited for them to return, but hours later, they never did. My friend called and I accepted her living gift of friendship...

for those of you who saw Troy
this is my uptake on some of the other mytholgy involved

The House of Atreus

part one- Clyteminestra

Once upon a time, Agamemnon, the great king of Macedonia, really needed to hedge his bets so that he could win a war. He had three children, two of which were girls. In those days, girls were pretty expendable, so he offered up one of his daughters to the goddess Artemis in sacrifice.
His wife, Clyteminestra was outraged. She could not believe that men would go to war because her dumb sister had run away with a Trojan. Now her brother in law was collecting troops to avenge his honor. Not only did she feel the war was a waste of time, as a mother she never could agree that a child of hers was expendable for such a thing.
The war lasted ten long years, and ten long years, Clyteminestra nursed her hatred for her husband. Ten long years, she mourned her daughter and ten long years she plotted her revenge.

WASHINGTON, DC—Calling the theological giant's stranglehold on the religion industry "blatantly anti-competitive," a U.S. district judge ruled Monday that God is in violation of anti-monopoly laws and ordered Him to be broken up into several less powerful deities.

"The evidence introduced in this trial has convinced me that the deity known as God has willfully and actively thwarted competition from other deities and demigods, promoting His worship with such unfair scare tactics as threatening non-believers with eternal damnation," wrote District Judge Charles Elliot Schofield in his decision. "In the process, He has carved out for Himself an illegal monotheopoly."

No man is an Ireland.
--Chicago Mayor Richard Daley

In dreams begins responsibility.
--William Butler Yeats (1865-1939) Irish Nobel Prize-winning poet

If the whole human race lay in one grave, the epitaph on its headstone might well be: `It seemed a good idea at the time.'
--Dame Rebecca West (1892-1983) Irish-born author and journalist

You've got to do your own growing, no matter how tall your grandfather was.
--Irish Proverb

Why should you never iron a 4-leaf clover? You don't want to press your luck.
--Daryl Stout

May your blessings outnumber the shamrocks that grow, and may trouble avoid you wherever you go.
--Irish Blessing

Thought you might enjoy this.............Dianne

Valentine's Day
February 14, 2004

History

The origins of Valentine's Day trace back to the ancient Roman celebration of Lupercalia. Held on February 15, Lupercalia honored the gods Lupercus and Faunus, as well as the legendary founders of Rome, Romulus and Remus.

In addition to a bountiful feast, Lupercalia festivities are purported to have included the pairing of young women and men. Men would draw women's names from a box, and each couple would be paired until next year's celebration.

Attributed to Mary brown, copyright 1996

Our best-loved Christian festival has origins which are deeply rooted in Pagan practice. The invading Romans introduced the idea of a twelve-day Midwinter feast, decorating their homes with evergreen branches and giving themselves over to riotous enjoyment. The focus of these festivities was the birthday of the great Sun god, Sol Invictus, or the "Unconquerable Sun" at the Winter Solstice. This winter "Saturnalia" was not dedicated to the birth of Christ until the fourth century.

Later, when the Norsemen crossed the North Sea, first to pillage and then to settle, they brought the legends about the mistletoe and the Yule log, and the tales of Woden who rode across the sky in his chariot, bearing gifts. For country folk, until comparatively recent times, the bringing in of the Yule log was an important part of the celebration. It was often so large that it took six men to carry it in on Christmas Eve. In the West Country it was sometimes called a "back-brand," and in some areas it took the form of a bundle of ash sticks bound together into a log. This would be the subject of some harmless divination rites, with young girls trying to guess which band would burst first in the fire, thus showing which of them would marry first. For maximum good fortune the Yule log had to be kept burning for the whole twelve-day period. Afterward a small piece of the ember was kept to light next year's fire; this was believed to serve as fire protection for the household throughout the coming year.

The oldest written sources on the Yule Cat are from the Nineteenth Century. These refer to the fact that those who do not get a new item of clothing for Yule are destined to become offerings for the Yule Cat. It may sound strange that the deprived ones will also become the sacrifices, but this tradition is based on the fact that every effort was made to finish all work with the Autumn wool before Yule. The reward for those who took part in the work was a new piece of clothing. Those who were lazy received nothing. Thus the Yule Cat was used as an incentive to get people to work harder.

A woman describes a scene from her youth in the last century thus: "We were lazy doing this chore. Then we were reminded of the Yule Cat. We thought that was some terrible beast and the last thing we wanted was to be one of his offers".

Pagan children have few stories for this time of year to counteract the flood of Christian material aired on television, radio, and in movies. This is a Pagan tale for children to help them enjoy the Winter Solstice and its beauty.

A group of little faeries huddled in their home deep under the roots of a giant oak tree. They were safe and snug in their tiny underground cave lined with dandelion fluff, bird feathers, and dried moss. Outside, the wind blew cold and the snow fell softly down to cover the ground.

"I saw the Sun King today," the faerie named Rose said as she pulled her mossy cloak tighter about her. "He looked so old and tired as he walked off through the forest. What is wrong with him?"

"The great oak said he's dying," answered Daffodil.

"Dying? Oh, what will we do now?" Little Meadow-Grass started to cry. "If the Sun King dies, our little plant-friends will not grow. The birds will not come and sing again. Everything will be winter forever."

Lilac, Dandelion, and Elder Blossom tried to comfort their friend, but they were all very sad. As they huddled together, there was a knock on the tiny door.

The Irish peasants left to fend for themselves in a world dominated by a corrupted church, oppressive landlords and an absence of local government and medicine turned to their own imaginations to understand and order the world around them-to make their peasant culture work. Stories like Nera and the Dead Man helped children to remember rules for staying healthy and safe and to maintain sanitation. Images from the ancient tales combined with observations -the wind in the winter forest-the Banshee- helped them to explain natural occurrences. You too should know them when you meet them!!

One of the tales of Hathor was how she was originally a goddess of destruction (Hathor-Sekhmet), and how she came to be the goddess of happier things:

Then Ra took on the shape of a man and became the first Pharaoh, ruling over the whole country for thousands and thousands of years, and giving such harvests that for ever afterwards the Egyptians spoke of the good things "which happened in the time of Ra".

But, being in the form of a man, Ra grew old. In time men no longer feared him or obeyed his laws. They laughed at him, saying: "Look at Ra! His bones are like silver, his flesh like gold, his hair is the colour of lapis lazuli!"

Ra was angry when he heard this, and he was more angry still at the evil deeds which men were doing in disobedience to his laws. So he called together the gods whom he had made - Shu and Tefnut and Geb and Nut - and he also summoned Nun. Soon the gods gathered about Ra in his Secret Place, and the goddesses also. But mankind knew nothing of what was happening, and continued to jeer at Ra and to break his commandments. Then Ra spoke to Nun before the assembled gods: "Eldest of the gods, you who made me; and you gods whom I have made: look upon mankind who came into being at a glance of my Eye. See how men plot against me; hear what they say of me; tell me what I should do to them. For I will not destroy mankind until I have heard what you advise."

The Phoenix is a Greek name, for a mythical bird which originated in Ancient Egypt mythology.

The best description of the Phoenix is in Myth and Symbol in Ancient Egypt by Rundle Clark:
"The Phoenix, known to the Egyptians as the Benu Bird, was one of the primeval forms of the High God. One has to imagine a perch extending out of the waters of the Abyss. On it rests a grey heron, the herald of all things to come. It opens its beak and breaks the silence of the primeval night with the call of life and destiny, which 'determines what is and what is not to be'. The Phoenix embodies the original Logos, the Word or declaration of destiny which mediates between the divine mind and created things. It is an aspect of God, self-created. But the heron form is not to be taken too literally; it is a way of expressing one of the basic activities of God rather than a naturalistic figure. It is the first and deepest manifestation of the soul of the High God.

The Egyptians had two ideas about the origin of life. The first was that it emerged in God out of the Primeval Waters; the other was, that the vital essence - Hike - was brought hither from a distant, magical source. The latter was the 'the Isle of Fire' - the place of everlasting light beyond the limits of the world, where the gods were revived and whence they were sent into the world. The Phoenix is the chief messenger from this inaccessible land of divinity".


This is from the entry for Benu Bird from the British Museum Dictionary of Ancient Egypt:
"The sacred bird of Heliopolis, closely associated with the benben stone, the obelisk, and the cult of the sun-gods Atum and Ra. Its name probably derived from the Egyptian verb weben, to rise, and it was the protype for the Greek phoenix. There well may be an etymological connection between the two birds’ names, and certainly there are distinct similarities in their respective links with the sun and rebirth, although a number of the other aspects of the phoenix legend are quite distinct.

The benu-bird appears in the Pyramid Texts as a yellow wagtail, serving as a manifestation of Atum. Later in the Book of the Dead, the bird was depicted as a grey heron, with a long straight beak, and a two-feathered crest, the physical manifestation of both Ra and Osiris".


Writing some 2,000 years later, the story was imaginatively retold by the Greek writer Herodotus:
"They have also another sacred bird called the phoenix which I myself have never seen, except in pictures. Indeed it is a great rarity, even in Egypt, only coming there (according to the accounts of the people of Heliopolis) once in five hundred years, when the old phoenix dies. Its size and appearance, if it is like the pictures, are as follow:- The plumage is partly red, partly golden, while the general make and size are almost exactly that of the eagle. They tell a story of what this bird does, which does not seem to me to be credible: that he comes all the way from Arabia, and brings the parent bird, all plastered over with myrrh, to the temple of the Sun, and there buries the body. In order to bring him, they say, he first forms a ball of myrrh as big as he finds that he can carry; then he hollows out the ball, and puts his parent inside, after which he covers over the opening with fresh myrrh, and the ball is then of exactly the same weight as at first; so he brings it to Egypt, plastered over as I have said, and deposits it in the temple of the Sun. Such is the story they tell of the doings of this bird".

Many pagans have never been in the woods and done some camping, so we offer this article to prepare you for the festival experience:
Yes, they moan and they groan a lot. They have big gnarly trunks, long arms, and are huge, but don't be afraid!!!! They are called "Trees" and they won't hurt you.