Samhain got a bit caught up in the hectic pace of life this year and didn’t affect me as much as it did last year. I had lost only our oldest cat this year, and while a meaningful loss, I think the loss of my cat Timmie a year and a half ago somewhat prepared it for me. A former college room mate lost his son after only a few days, and this was ( Read more... )

My grove, Grove of the Other Gods, ADF (GOG), celebrates an eclectic mix of patrons in rites, having held rituals in honor of John Barleycorn, Mnemosyne, and the Earth Mother, just to name a few. However, I would say the core of the Grove’s practice is heavily influenced by the Celtic traditions. For example Manannan and Brigid have annual rituals ( Read more... )

My view of the Nature Spirits is rather complex. I see this grouping as ADF conceives it to be somewhat of a hodge-podge and it could use some further division. There are the spirits of place that can manifest as the elves, pixies, gnomes, that are so familiar in mythology. I believe that Their manifestation in the form of humanoid beings is not ( Read more... )

The Autumn Equinox with Grove of the Other Gods (GOG) was a bit different from other GOG rituals. It was also my first ritual with GOG since the Spring Equinox and it was good to be back with my Grove. The ritual honored the Earth Mother. As the ritual approached I found myself very focused on environmental issues; my personal reading seemed to ( Read more... )

The Autumn Equinox, commonly known as Mabon among Neo Pagans, is another of Wheel of the Year with no attested celebrations among the ancient pagans. . The name Mabon appears to be a modern invention for the holiday. This time of year was a sweep of harvests with the chosen holiday most probably dictated by the relevant local climate its time of ( Read more... )

I see Life itself as the ultimate sacred with Life seen as the whole cycle of birth, growth, death, and re-birth. The world is sacred to me as a manifestation of the impetus of Life. I therefore honor the Sacred Kindred for their roles in creating and sustaining this sacred thing that is the world. This is also why we must respect those we call ( Read more... )

Lughnassadh is the festival of the first harvest, particularly the harvest of fruits and vegetables in addition to the cutting of the first grain. Folk practices include gatherings, festivals, and games. The name refers to an assembly or games held in honor of the Irish god Lugh. One version of the origin of the holiday is that Lugh convened a ( Read more... )

For Lughnassad, I celebrated with Spiral Spirit Protogrove. It was a rather spontaneous occurrence on my part as I was unaware of their ritual until some three hours prior to it happenting when I spotted a post on the adf page of livejournal. I have come to know a member of the Protogrove recently and had been intending to join them for a ritual at ( Read more... )

I try to incorporate an awareness of Nature into my everyday existence; both the blessings of Nature and my impact upon it. My household is a conscientious recycler. We attempt to buy organic produce to cut down on the toxic impact of modern agriculture and look to buy in-season and locally produced foods as well which reduces transportation and ( Read more... )

Note: edited for coyotegrrrl's early comments ( Read more... )