Highlights of Gavin's spiritual life
Oh, let me tell you, Gavin's spiritual life has greatly improved since moving into the beautiful new apartment.
For one thing, I have a spiritual life again. I can actually feel the gods again and they are, once more, actively meddling with my life.
We took the second smaller bedroom and turned it into Temple Room. First time I've had one of those. My many shrines and Renee's two, plus our book collection; just enough room in there for all that along the edges with plenty of comfortable people space in the middle, which of course means before too much longer one or both of us should hear a demand to set up another shrine to someone else. :-P
I've been able to keep my Hermes Wednesday since moving in, haven't missed a week yet. Even though its only been little more than a month, for me that is still a pretty damn long time without interruptions. I'm actually feeling confident enough with it now to wonder if I should start trying to expand upon that, establish an Odin Monday or a Loki Friday or another day to talk to whatever god I most strongly feel that I should.
Hermes has been very much around and I have really missed that during the miserable time of which we shall not speak. I finally have established some of the plans I really needed to, and I'm actively working on devotional projects for him.
I got together these slips of paper ... well, actually my girlfriend did this for me, because I just couldn't quite take that huge first step. Anyway, each piece of paper has one of Hermes' epithets on it, they're sitting in a little bowl on his shrine and on his day I mix them up and pick one at random and write something about that side of him and how I experience it. I've only done it once so far and I'm still working on the essay (I'm not completely hating it so far). It has been threatened there are Hermes devotionals on the horizon, and I got to have some shit together to put in there. Plus I really should be doing some sort of writing again, even if it ain't the greatest shit on earth, once upon a time it was something I enjoyed doing.
I also owe Hermes a book, something to add to the ever growing religious library. So many people I know have self published stuff I want for that library. If nothing definite jumps out at me, I may just choose one of those by lots.
The Odin prayer beads are done. They're not the most wonderful things in the world, but for someone who isn't particularly artistic, not real great at putting colors together (especially as she typically wears only two herself) and doesn't know jack shit about making pretty jewelry (or pretty anything), I suppose they ain't half bad. Don't have pictures right this second, but they will be coming I promise. Next up, rune project. For which I was given several suggestions, I'm still working things out in my head, pricing things, seeing what I would best be able to accomplish.
I have also, most surprisingly, encountered two new deities both of whom want a little piece of me at least. Neither of whom deities I necessarily would have thought of.
One is Thor. That happened at the grove's Lughnasadh ritual, it was storming very badly off and on before the ritual (lightning actually struck the yard) and people were hailing Thor left and right, then when ritual began he was still around and sort of decided to hijack my brain (tends to happen when I'm in rituals I have no spiritual involvement in, my own gods will take advantage of my ritual state of mind and do things to me). I met Thor once, long time ago, he was around for about a week or so and then he was gone; seems he remembers me though and he'd like to start hanging around again. Though in the background, there seemed no question this is a minor relationship, praise me in storms and pour me a drink every now and then sort of thing.
The second, far more surprising to me, is Athena. I was asked to give the omen at the grove's upcoming fall ritual, which will be fore Athena and Hephaestus as the patrons of crafters; I had done the omen last year when Hermes was the ritual patron because I had the nerve to publicly state how glad I was large group ritual wasn't a part of my calling and never wave a red flag at a trickster, apparently I was entertaining enough they wanted to call me back. So I went to ask permission from my warden and the ritual patrons that I've had no previous contact with.
The omen from Hermes was extremely positive and so obviously related to oracular practice I almost feel it must mean something and needs further exploration on its own. The negative omens cropped up when I went to ask the other two if they minded. The omen wasn't a no, it was more of a why haven't you worshipped me? ... Actually, as I sit here thinking it over, it almost sounds more like I gave you something why didn't you ever acknowledge it, but if that's the case then I am very fucking confused. Either way this was followed by a presence in the room that painted a clear and precise image of the goddess herself behind my eyes (Hephaestus was nowhere to be found, my own ideas suggest he's rather uninterested one way or the other). Athena wasn't nearly as angry as the omen had sounded, but she did make it clear she wants something from me.
What, I don't fucking know (especially now in light of my new idea). I would not have thought to put Athena anywhere near my path, we seem completely on opposite ends of things. I wouldn't have thought she'd care much for me (I had expected the same sort of reaction I got from Artemis, that eeww get away from me reaction), she told me pretty plainly not to presume what she thinks about anything (actually, for the sake of honesty that's not precisely what she said to me, but I'm not prepared to publicly discuss what she did in fact say and that sums things up well enough for me). So I guess we'll have to see where this unexpected little turn of events winds up.
Renee and I also found this great little area near by to wander around in. A block with a giant monument, cobbled sidewalks and several parks. Looks so different from the rest of Baltimore, we wanted to see how much more different it felt at night. So I gathered up the offerings I had been leaving with Hermes (fourth floor apartment means no more just taking the offerings out to the back yard) and we went. Stayed out there until two thirty in the morning too. It is a very strange and beautiful liminal space, and I'd like to say more about it and the time we had there but I find it hard to talk about, hard to find words for. I deposited my offerings around the park and poured my libated water into the fountain. I think that's where I'll be bringing my offerings from now on. I rather like the idea of having a special place to process to and leave my offerings to the gods. I'll have changed my mind about that come winter. :-)
For one thing, I have a spiritual life again. I can actually feel the gods again and they are, once more, actively meddling with my life.
We took the second smaller bedroom and turned it into Temple Room. First time I've had one of those. My many shrines and Renee's two, plus our book collection; just enough room in there for all that along the edges with plenty of comfortable people space in the middle, which of course means before too much longer one or both of us should hear a demand to set up another shrine to someone else. :-P
I've been able to keep my Hermes Wednesday since moving in, haven't missed a week yet. Even though its only been little more than a month, for me that is still a pretty damn long time without interruptions. I'm actually feeling confident enough with it now to wonder if I should start trying to expand upon that, establish an Odin Monday or a Loki Friday or another day to talk to whatever god I most strongly feel that I should.
Hermes has been very much around and I have really missed that during the miserable time of which we shall not speak. I finally have established some of the plans I really needed to, and I'm actively working on devotional projects for him.
I got together these slips of paper ... well, actually my girlfriend did this for me, because I just couldn't quite take that huge first step. Anyway, each piece of paper has one of Hermes' epithets on it, they're sitting in a little bowl on his shrine and on his day I mix them up and pick one at random and write something about that side of him and how I experience it. I've only done it once so far and I'm still working on the essay (I'm not completely hating it so far). It has been threatened there are Hermes devotionals on the horizon, and I got to have some shit together to put in there. Plus I really should be doing some sort of writing again, even if it ain't the greatest shit on earth, once upon a time it was something I enjoyed doing.
I also owe Hermes a book, something to add to the ever growing religious library. So many people I know have self published stuff I want for that library. If nothing definite jumps out at me, I may just choose one of those by lots.
The Odin prayer beads are done. They're not the most wonderful things in the world, but for someone who isn't particularly artistic, not real great at putting colors together (especially as she typically wears only two herself) and doesn't know jack shit about making pretty jewelry (or pretty anything), I suppose they ain't half bad. Don't have pictures right this second, but they will be coming I promise. Next up, rune project. For which I was given several suggestions, I'm still working things out in my head, pricing things, seeing what I would best be able to accomplish.
I have also, most surprisingly, encountered two new deities both of whom want a little piece of me at least. Neither of whom deities I necessarily would have thought of.
One is Thor. That happened at the grove's Lughnasadh ritual, it was storming very badly off and on before the ritual (lightning actually struck the yard) and people were hailing Thor left and right, then when ritual began he was still around and sort of decided to hijack my brain (tends to happen when I'm in rituals I have no spiritual involvement in, my own gods will take advantage of my ritual state of mind and do things to me). I met Thor once, long time ago, he was around for about a week or so and then he was gone; seems he remembers me though and he'd like to start hanging around again. Though in the background, there seemed no question this is a minor relationship, praise me in storms and pour me a drink every now and then sort of thing.
The second, far more surprising to me, is Athena. I was asked to give the omen at the grove's upcoming fall ritual, which will be fore Athena and Hephaestus as the patrons of crafters; I had done the omen last year when Hermes was the ritual patron because I had the nerve to publicly state how glad I was large group ritual wasn't a part of my calling and never wave a red flag at a trickster, apparently I was entertaining enough they wanted to call me back. So I went to ask permission from my warden and the ritual patrons that I've had no previous contact with.
The omen from Hermes was extremely positive and so obviously related to oracular practice I almost feel it must mean something and needs further exploration on its own. The negative omens cropped up when I went to ask the other two if they minded. The omen wasn't a no, it was more of a why haven't you worshipped me? ... Actually, as I sit here thinking it over, it almost sounds more like I gave you something why didn't you ever acknowledge it, but if that's the case then I am very fucking confused. Either way this was followed by a presence in the room that painted a clear and precise image of the goddess herself behind my eyes (Hephaestus was nowhere to be found, my own ideas suggest he's rather uninterested one way or the other). Athena wasn't nearly as angry as the omen had sounded, but she did make it clear she wants something from me.
What, I don't fucking know (especially now in light of my new idea). I would not have thought to put Athena anywhere near my path, we seem completely on opposite ends of things. I wouldn't have thought she'd care much for me (I had expected the same sort of reaction I got from Artemis, that eeww get away from me reaction), she told me pretty plainly not to presume what she thinks about anything (actually, for the sake of honesty that's not precisely what she said to me, but I'm not prepared to publicly discuss what she did in fact say and that sums things up well enough for me). So I guess we'll have to see where this unexpected little turn of events winds up.
Renee and I also found this great little area near by to wander around in. A block with a giant monument, cobbled sidewalks and several parks. Looks so different from the rest of Baltimore, we wanted to see how much more different it felt at night. So I gathered up the offerings I had been leaving with Hermes (fourth floor apartment means no more just taking the offerings out to the back yard) and we went. Stayed out there until two thirty in the morning too. It is a very strange and beautiful liminal space, and I'd like to say more about it and the time we had there but I find it hard to talk about, hard to find words for. I deposited my offerings around the park and poured my libated water into the fountain. I think that's where I'll be bringing my offerings from now on. I rather like the idea of having a special place to process to and leave my offerings to the gods. I'll have changed my mind about that come winter. :-)