Thursday 24 May 2012

Procrastination, lists and sunshine

Now I am not really a procrastinator, when I get it in my mind to do something I do it, full on, full pelt, no holds barred.   I am a doer.  I am an organiser...actually I am a bit of an organised control freak LOL.

But today the sun is out, it is very warm and the garden is very inviting.

However I have lots to do, a huge list in fact of things I should be doing and need to be doing.  Phone calls to make, LOTS of writing to do,  ironing,  housework etc etc.   But that little voice in the back of my head is saying "ack it will all wait, take a book and go sit in the garden"  and the little voice is also very good at justifying it too "you do need to water the garden...and feed the birds...and put some wires up for the sweet peas.."

The question is do I listen to the little voice?

At the moment I am ignoring it, but I know it will keep on...and on...and on...

So I will make a list:  I list out all the things I need to do, in order of priority - things that really, really need to be done today, things that do need to be done by the weekend and things that will wait until next week.   And I set myself the morning to get at least the urgent ones done, then I can go sit in the garden with my lunch.

I always make my lists on paper, writing them down by hand.  Yep I have a computer (obviously!) and I have an iPhone, I could make all sorts of wonderfully technical lists on either of them and even have them beep me when said items need doing. (Now I am reminded of Captain Vimes imp organiser "bingly bong" - Terry Pratchett reference!)  But there is something much more satisfying about physically crossing off a job from a hand written list.

So...I am off to write my list...

Tansy
x

Monday 21 May 2012

Sun, bees and buns

I hadn't realised until today just how much I miss sitting in my garden.

I am not a sun worshipper as such, I don't lay out in my bikini topping up my tan as soon as the yellow stuff peeps around the clouds (as my lily white legs will prove).  But, I do like to sit in my garden.

A few weeks back when we had some warm days I took to having my lunch break out in the garden, sitting on the bench listening to the birds singing, the wind chimes chiming and the seagulls squwarking (a bonus of living near the sea).    I kept an eye on all the newly budding plants, pottered about poking stray clematis back into place and generally soaking up the peace, calm and energy of nature.

Then the rain came, and it came and it came and it didn't seem to stop.

Until today...

So I sat in the garden with a cup of herbal tea and an iced bun (thank you hubby!) and relaxed, just sat and breathed and soaked up the calm.

Then I walked around the estate...OK the garden isn't that big, I wandered around poking at herb plants and persuading the errant stems of the Rambling Rector rose back into the arch framework.  Then I spied a huge bumble bee, he was crawling across the pathway, buzzing and bumbling and not seeming altogether happy at all.  So I popped indoors and came back out with some honey, I squidged a blob of honey down on the ground in front of him and he got stuck right into it (not literally).  I've kept an eye on him and he has eaten the whole lot and now appears to be resting, I shall keep watch and make sure he is OK.

So I for one would like to say enough of all the torrential rain thank you, it has been very nice to welcome Father Sun back and I really would like to see some more of him please!

Tansy
x


Thursday 17 May 2012

Carrying the flame

I worked with my new Lady of Avalon altar today, specifically with the candle I made to honour her.


I used a large pillar candle and infused it with oils and herbs that I felt were suitable.  I have it as the main feature on her altar.  


Today I wanted to meditate with the Lady so I choose a small beeswax candle, I had no idea what colour I wanted to use I just opened the draw that holds them all and asked what colour, my hand moved towards the pink candle so that is the one I used.


I then lit the main pillar candle and stood for a few moments to ground and centre, then I lit the small pink candle from the main candle flame.  Blowing out the main candle flame I took my smaller pink candle to where I meditate and set it (carefully!!) on a candle holder in front of me.  


I had already set out my cushions to sit on and lit some incense so I was good to go.


I will use the main pillar candle to light smaller candles from for several reasons:  My altar isn't in a suitable place or at a suitable height to sit in front of and meditate.  And I like to sit in the conservatory to meditate, I can lay out cushions and throws and sit and listen to the birds singing and the wind chimes chiming.   It also means I can use the pillar candle as the main focus for my altar but take the energy from it onto smaller candles that I can use for specific purpose, intent or meditation, using colour magic I can tailor the smaller candles but still use the energy of the Lady of Avalon.


Tansy
x


Tuesday 15 May 2012

Benches, bedding plants and cinnamon buns

This afternoon was spent in our garden, in between the rain showers!


We now have several hanging baskets and lots of pots of bedding plants, with huge thanks to my dad for growing them all from seed, completely organically in his greenhouse.


I am now the proud owner of a tomato and a cucumber plant!


We also potted them all up using compost that we made ourselves over the past couple of years.


There is something very special about planting seeds or seedlings, watering them, feeding them and watching them grow.


Now we have a lovely bench in the Goddess garden too, with thanks to my lovely parents for the donation!


Totally worn out now so resting with a cinnamon bun and a mug of hot apple, cinnamon & ginger.


Tansy
x

Monday 14 May 2012

Lady of Avalon altar

If you know me or have read my blog before you will know that my patron Goddess is The Cailleach.  However during the summer months when she is resting she likes to 'hand me over' to another Goddess of her choosing for me to work with and learn from.

In my daily meditation with the Cailleach yesterday she put me into the very capable hands of the Lady of Avalon - yup now a lot of things have fallen into place LOL!

When I know I will be working with a specific deity for a while I like to set up an altar in their honour, one that I can work at and meditate at.

I did initially think about adding another altar (I can hear my hubby cringing) but as I already have a few I had to get creative.

Option one was right in front of me, literally...I have a large dresser that has quite a deep cupboard part to it that I keep all my tarot and oracle cards in, after a bit of a shuffle round I made the space I needed.  Added a bit of coloured material, some flowers (from our engagement cake actually) and a candle that I have made specifically for my meditations with the Lady and voila!  One cupboard altar.

And I liked it, but it wasn't quite right.  

More shuffling round of ornaments, books, candles - you name it, I moved it!   And I ended up with the tarot and oracle cards back in their cupboard and my usual everyday working altar now decorated ready to work with the Lady of Avalon.

And I am quite pleased with this one too, maybe not quite so dramatic but way more practical (can't really light a candle in a cupboard now can I?).

Looking forward now to my journey with the Lady.

Tansy
x

Sunday 13 May 2012

Perfect Sunday

So far today has been the perfect Sunday :-)

Apart from our youngest getting up at 5.40am this morning ...

The sun was shining this weekend for the first time in what seems like months, we have had sooooo much rain lately.

So this morning first thing was spent in the garden, sweeping up leaves and sorting out after the torrential and persistent rain.  Thankfully not too much damage, just one casualty - an extremely waterlogged lemon balm.

Then off down to the sea front with hubby and the children, not the end with the loud noisy fair, hovercraft and arcades but the quiet end that boosts only fresh air, shingle, ocean ... oh and a very nice coffee van!

So caramel latte and cinnamon bun in hand I sat on the beach right by the ocean waves whilst the children (and hubby) threw stones into the sea and poked about on the shoreline - absolute bliss.  I think the sound of the ocean has got to be one of my all time favourite sounds.

Then back home for lunch via the old fashioned, proper sweet shop - one that has been in residence since we were children and sports all kinds of wonderful things all displayed in large glass jars.

So sweets in hand what could we do?  Had to be an afternoon of watching Willy Wonka - not the newer Depp version but the original with the gorgeous Gene Wilder, and yes we sang along to all the songs.

Now just about to dish up a beef casserole that has been slow cooking all afternoon.

Happy days :-)

Tansy
x

Friday 11 May 2012

Insinuation & Insecurities

Insinuation - one of my personal dislikes and one that I think goes hand in hand with insecurities.  It is also something that facebook in particular seems to encourage.


The dictionary meaning of insinuation is:


1. an indirect or covert suggestion or hint, especially of a derogatory nature.
2. covert or artful suggestion or hinting, as of something glimpsed.


And I think it is a real shame that people feel the need to do such things.  The sad thing as well is that generally in my experience, the person doing the insinuating is doing so without all of the facts, following gossip or totally has the wrong end of the stick!


And as for insecurity I do believe that is what lies behind insinuations.   You see or hear something, usually not the whole story, and your insecurities take over - don't forget the mind is a powerful thing.


It saddens me more I think, when it happens within the pagan community, us supposedly being enlightened beings you would think we were above all this sort of thing.


An insinuating post on facebook can cause so much grief and upset, not just for the person it is aimed at - or even people that it wasn't aimed at because of the scant information given with insinuations several people will usually become paranoid that the status was about them! But also because it causes upset for the person posting the insinuation.  Is it really worth getting upset about something that you probably don't have all the correct details about anyway?  Is it really worth opening up your insecurities for others to fuel it?  Because they will, especially if it is on something like facebook or twitter where others will jump on the band wagon and post replies usually adding to your insecurity and turning it into paranoia.


We all have insecurities of one sort or another, but let's do what we can not to fuel them - it's got to be better for us, our friends and life in general surely?


If you hear something or see something that makes you feel insecure, jealous or upset and you can't just brush it off or  move past it perhaps you can talk to someone about it, someone that is directly involved with the information or accusation, might save a lot of grief in the long run.


Tansy
x


Friday 4 May 2012

Love, hate, love Glastonbury

I spent today in Glastonbury, it is roughly a four and a half hour round trip drive for me so it's not something I do often.


However I went today to meet up with a lovely friend so it was worth it :-)


To be honest I have had a love, hate, love relationship with Glastonbury.    Over the past two or three years I have visited regularly, originally to meet up with a small group of people I met on line.  


The first few visits were fabulous, and I did meet some very lovely people, but then as sometimes happens one or two of the people turned out to not be so good for me and so a couple of the visits were marred with bad experiences, thus leading me to dislike Glastonbury (I know, I know it shouldn't have done, but hey I am human!).


However, earlier this year I decided I needed to make my peace with Glastonbury, so I visited on my own a couple of times, I spent a long time in the beautiful Chalice Well Gardens, I spent some special time in the Glastonbury Abbey which is such a peaceful space.  And I made a new connection to the spirit of the landscape.


It is a mad sort of place, once I went out to the car park in my pyjamas...no one batted an eye lid.  I have seen people dancing in the streets for no apparent reason, I have seen men walking down the high street in top hats, ladies in cloaks, ladies with pointed pixie ears and one a man in purple pyjamas with matching purple painted toe nails.  I have even carried a broomstick, wrapped in brown paper ala Harry Potter style down the highstreet with not so much as a head turn. But, it's all good :-)


If you are after lots of shops jam packed with witchy gear, every kind of incense you could wish for or book shops filled with pagan books and oracle cards,  then it is the place to go.  If you are after visiting some very special sacred landscapes then it is the place to go - The Tor, Chalice Well Gardens and Glastonbury Abbey to name but a few.


But my favourite place (apart from the 100 Monkeys Cafe ;-0) is the Goddess Temple, it sits just above the lovely Starchild shop (sells beautiful incense & Goddess statues).  The Goddess Temple is open every afternoon and is a beautiful, sacred space.  It has the most amazing picture of the Lady of Avalon as part of the centre altar - painted by Caroline GullyLir, her website is www.spinningthewheel.com You can light a candle to put on the altar and just sit and meditate, they have wonderful incense burning, candles lit and relaxing music playing, they even have a Melissa (a guardian of the temple) on hand if you need to talk to someone.  It is free (although I like to give a donation when I go) and is so worth a visit.


I purchased a copy of the Lady of Avalon print today (shown in the top left hand corner of this blog) today from the Goddess Temple but you can also purchase a copy of that or other prints from Caroline GullyLir's website.


Tansy
x

Thursday 3 May 2012

Beware a witch bearing vanilla lattes...

Well I haven't been on here in a while because life has been a bit hectic to say the least.

Over the past year or so several people have asked me about setting up an on line school of green/natural witchcraft, to expand on the original Kitchen Witch forum.    I always liked the idea but knew I could not do it on my own and would need a lot of help, so the idea bubbled under the surface for a long while.  Then a few months ago one of my lovely friends asked me, over a cup of vanilla latte (I don't think it was bribery...) about it again.  I said "I will but not on my own you need to be in on this too".  And she accepted :-)  The following day I asked the others in our little 'coven' to join the team,  to be met by more support and enthusiasm than I could have ever hoped for.


So...we started, we plotted, we schemed, we planned and then we got researching and writing.  We knew what we wanted to put in place, we knew it had to be right, we knew we wanted it to be a personal, supportive and friendly community, we knew the lessons had to be interesting and engaging - hopefully we have achieved that.


Some time later...we had everything ready to go.    OK that is quite a shortened and simplified version, there was a lot of work, lots of discussions, lots of nerves and a few wobbles but no tears!


So we launched the Kitchen Witch School of Natural Witchery on 1st May - we were VERY nervous!


But we didn't need to be, as we have had a steady flow of students through the doors and for that we thank the Goddess and all the lovely new students very much.  


It is going to be an interesting and wonderful next step on our spiritual paths.


And to Raven Willow Rune, Sunchylde, Skylark Spiritsinger and Tintagel Moon, I can't thank you guys enough for your hard work, love and support - I could not have asked for a better team of lovely witches and very dear friends to be working alongside.   Also a huge thank you to my lovely hubby who has done all the artwork, designed and made all the graphics for the school, forum and facebook.  I also could not have done it without your love and support - you are a star!


Tansy
x

The Kitchen Witch School of Natural Witchery
www.kitchenwitchhearth.com