Reflection

It’s been a long week.  Tough negotiations all around, but several things are settled.  Survived the final mediation with the ex on Thursday.  He is on to new adventures in the beautiful mountains of western North Carolina.  I refinanced my house on Friday.  Have been rehabbing my pop up camper over the weekend.  Had some time to reflect on the state of my world.

Imbolc is upon us, the season of new beginnings.  The first stirrings of spring.  The weather is gorgeous here, today the sky was bright and blue with no clouds.  Just clear, crisp sunshine as I scrubbed what seems to be acres of canvas.  I find physical activity to be healing and meditative.  The perfect antidote to too much time behind the screen.  Sun medicine.

This winter has been eventful.  Seems like everything shattered with the election, and people have been on edge.  Many things have been revealed, and it seems that there is this communal angst that occurs when everyone wakes up at the same time.  Our challenge is to recognize that not everyone reacts the same when roused from a deep sleep.  Some folks are grouchy, or are barely coherent, others bounce up angry, or in good cheer. It’s a mixed bag until everyone gets their bearings.

My student came over last night in tears.  His boyfriend broke up with him after months of emotional games, and was refusing to let him pick up his bike without further drama.  My Maiden was also here, and the three of us chatted about the various challenges life doles out in the midst of transition.  She is planning a move to Scotland, and will hive a new group off of mine to carry some New World Craft back across the Atlantic.  Logistics are proving to be difficult, but the wheels are finally moving forward.  I shared my recent adventures among internet fans and trolls alike, and described how a sentence from my last post is being spun into some kind of attack against the world?  Apparently I am now heterosexist and do not encourage others to follow their bliss.  As I have not apologized for things I never said, I have offended everyone and clearly need to be rebuked.  My companions cracked up at this, then blamed the general insanity that hovers like a cloud over all of us these days.

The conversation turned to the concept of #resist.  None of us is happy with the current administration, but we are also tired of the in-fighting and constant bickering that occurs whenever anyone voices an opinion that is not in consensus with the loudest folks in the room. It is inspiring to see folks exercise their right to assemble, but many of us do not have the privilege to participate in the struggle this way.  We prefer to #persist, rather than #resist.  Not everyone is self-employed, or living off the grid.  Time is a sparse commodity when one is a care-giver, and this is something that gets forgotten amidst the shouting.  Pagans and witches are hidden in plain sight, connected through webs of family and tradition that encompass more than just our chosen tribe.  Everyone is not an anarchist.  (This is not a pejorative statement against anarchists or related groups, merely a statement of fact.  Due to recent misunderstandings, I may have to start including disclaimers or trigger warnings within my posts.)

We are nurses, tech support, bankers, and engineers.  We are the folks who sort mail, file paperwork, and make sure those marketing orders get filled.  We are software designers, active military, teachers, and bake pizzas.  Many of us are looking for ways to move forward, to #exist, amidst the demands of being conscious while working through our current paradigm of debt slavery as we raise kids and care for elders.  We do not begrudge folks rights to express themselves as they see fit, but we are also on the front line of this conflict as well.  We are merely choosing different strategies. Some folks attack the system from the outside, some folks subvert it from within.  Every hand is welcome, and everyone’s talents are needed.

The Coven discussed these things, and wondered what the next steps should be.  One person stated the obvious, that this was so much easier when we were all in the closet.  I pointed out that our Gods have determined that is not an option for us at this time.  We have an obligation to maintain visibility, or at least I do.  Next thought was that we should practice #persist as an antidote to #resist, or at least encourage folks to lighten up and realize that doomsday is not here, quite yet.  Best thought of the night was let’s just be #done, and do the things that we can with the firepower that we’ve got, and see what happens.  As always, the answer leads to more Circles.  More magic, more connection, less drama, less noise.  Witchcraft is sexy and cool, and gets things done.  With that attitude in mind, we jumped in the van, took a Coven field trip, and liberated our student’s bike around midnight.