Sonnet Saturday

A Wiccan Sonnet

Do I see shadows of lifetimes past?

Do I hear a whisper in the breeze?

Do I feel the goddess's breath?

Do I understand the language of the trees?

Am I worthy of the divine blessings?

Will I work for the infinite good?

Will the elements aid and guide me,

To stand where the gods once stood.

I will follow the ancient pathways,

I will learn with a willing heart,

I will embrace the echoes of the spirit,

I will help the darkness to depart.

I will celebrate in nature's goodness,

I will bathe in the lunar light,

I will do good and harm no-one,

I will aid in the Green Mans plight.

I will hear the call of the mighty wolf,

I will dance under the glorious sky,

I will be at one with nature's glory,

I will obey the eagle's cry.

Debbie Fleet

Thoughtful Thursday

Here are some really simple ways to show your appreciation for those who impact your life in a positive way. 

~ A heart felt thank-you note/card.


~ Gift certificate to their favorite coffee shop.


~ Fresh baking for their early morning meeting.


~ Fresh cut flowers to be passed around the office. Include a card that says: A little something to brighten your day. I’m yours for two hours then give me away.


~ Invite your friend or co-worker out for a cup of coffee or a drink after work.


~ Lend a hand when a friend or family member is painting or remodeling their home.


~ If you know your friend wants to get organized but is having a tough time starting, buy them a book on organizing, some containers and nice notebook.


~ Cook a meal so they don’t have to after a long day at work.


~ Frame one of their favorite pictures.

~ Share a plant or a plant clipping.


~ Pick up some groceries and drop them off  to someone homebound in your neighborhood on your way home.


~ Return a favor. If your neighbor always shovels your walk way or mows your grass get out there before him or her and do theirs for a change.


~ Watch your niece or nephew or neighbor's child(ren) for an afternoon to give their parents some time off.


~ Make reservations at their favorite restaurant.


~ Make a candle light dinner at home for your spouse.


~Give a hug. Simple as that.


~ Tell them what you think they are particularly great at.

~ Write notes to leave on a pillow, a computer keyboard, or in a lunch box.


~ Give a hand made gift. 


Make a special day just for them. Plan a day for them around what they enjoy. Go with them if it’s appropriate.


Our relationships with others are what enrich our lives. Take time to show the people who make your life better how much you appreciate them and how much they matter.

Quick And Easy Miso Soup

I found a great recipe for Miso Soup which I thought would make a great lunchtime idea and a nice hot cup of green tea goes great along with it.

Miso Soup


Ingredients


~ 2 teaspoons dashi granules
~ 4 cups water
~ 3 tablespoons miso paste
~ 1 (8 ounce) package silken tofu, diced
~ 2 green onions, sliced diagonally into 1/2 inch pieces
~ 1/4 c. Small shrimp (optional)


Directions


In a medium saucepan over medium-high heat, combine dashi granules and water; bring to a boil. Reduce heat to medium, and whisk in the miso paste. Stir in tofu. Separate the layers of the green onions, and add them to the soup. Simmer gently for 2 to 3 minutes before serving. I like to add some shrimp to mine.



(Dashi is a basic stock used in Japanese cooking which is made by boiling dried kelp (seaweed) and dried bonito (fish). Instant dashi granules are sold in conveniently-sized jars or packets and vary in strength. Add more dashi to your soup if you want a stronger stock. You can use yellow, white or red miso paste for this soup. Yellow miso is sweet and creamy, red miso is stronger and saltier.)

"What Is?" Wednesday

A Witches Bottle

Spell bottles (also known as "Witches Bottles), have been in use in England and the United States since at least the 1600's. Spell bottles were originally created to destroy the power of an evil magician or witch thought to have cast a spell against the bottle's creator. They were often ceramic vessels, filled with hair, nails, and even the victim's urine. They were also walled up into new homes as magical guardians. Spell bottles of this type continued to be used well into the 19th century.


These bottles are apparently of English origin, although one made from a glass wine bottle dated at 1740-1750 was found in Pennsylvania in 1976. Over the centuries these  protective devices have found their way from England to the United States with the colonists. Spell bottles of the type described above are rarely if ever made today. However, other forms are still in use. These consist of a container, usually glass, filled with various objects of magical potency.

Spell bottles are made for a variety of purposes, and are used in numerous ways. Some are buried or otherwise hidden, while others are placed in windows of the home or in other prominent spots. All are concentrations of energy, created and empowered for specific magical purposes.


The Witches' Bottle is a very powerful means of protecting your space. It is buried on your property (if you are an apartment dweller, you might try burying it in a potted plant at your door) in order to attract all negative things to it where it traps them. If you move, by all means, then dig it up and either destroy it or bring it to your new home.


Some Modern Spell Bottle Examples:

Witches Bottle For Protection 


Gather rosemary, needles, pins and red wine. Fill a small jar with the first three, saying while you work:


Pins, needles, rosemary and wine;
In this witches bottle mine.
Guard against harm and enmity;
This is my will, so mote it be!


Visualize these doing just that. When the jar is full, pour in the red wine. Then cap or cork the jar and drip wax from a red or black candle to seal. Bury it at the farthest corner of your property or put it in an inconspicuous spot in your house. Draw the banishing pentagram in the dirt above it. The witches bottle destroys negativity and evil; the pins and needles impale evil, the wine drowns it, and the rosemary sends it away from your property.


(Optional ingredients
Glass jar with metal lid, Sea Salt, 3 bent rusty nails ,pins, needles, razor blades, cactus spines, rose thorns, broken glass, 1 egg, herbs such as: Frankincense, Sage, Basil, Mint, Mistletoe, Yarrow, Rowan berries,Rue, Sandalwood, Myrrh, Garlic, Rosemary, Sealing Wax,3 drops of your blood,Urine instead of wine.)



Pet Protection Spell Bottle


What you need:                        

~ 1 bay leaf                              ~1 tablespoon of dill seeds

~1 tablespoon of fennel seeds     ~1 carnelian stone       

~1 cup of soil                            ~1 cup of salt
~1 white taper candle                 ~ 1 bottle
~ 1 stick pin




Put half a cup of dirt into the bottom of the bottle. Add half a cup of salt on top of that (to make layers). Next add the bay leaf and the dill and fennel seeds. Put half a cup of salt on top of this and half a cup of dirt on top of the salt. Drop the carnelian stone on top of everything.


Use a stick pin to carve the word "Protect __pets name here__" in the taper candle stick. Fit candle into the top of the bottle. If the taper is too big wedge it in (by circling it) until it stays securely by itself.
Burn the candle when convenient. You don't have to burn it all down at once, but eventually the candle will burn itself out (you could maybe burn it once a week or so). When the candle will not stay lit any longer, put the spell bottle near the place your pet spends most of his or her time.




Discovery News: Witches bottle found from the 17th century.

Tarot Tuesday

Today I drew two cards that gave me a little ray of sunshine...the Four of Pentacles and the Two of Wands. The Pentacles are a suit of material possessions, industry, business, commerce, trade, finances, and security. They represent the Earth signs of Taurus, Virgo, and Capricorn. Earth covers the mundane material things of life, property, money, home and nature. They also represent manifestation, realization, proof and prosperity. 


Typically, the Four of Pentacles indicates security but is also the card of the miser, material possessions very important to him, showing that his thoughts are all about his "things". As we see in the card, it that he can't go anywhere because his feet are busy holding the coins down. He is so tied up with his possessions, that he can't do anything else. His possessions are so important it has affected his life view. 

The Wands, however, has to do with primal energy, growth, the will, inspiration, determination, strength, intelligence, intuition, and creativity.The Two of Wands represents a mature person who may provide you with assistance to obtain your desires. something good is about to happen and you may very well see it materialize. An offer is about to be presented.Always remember not sell yourself short or settle for less, though. There IS some thing better on the horizon.

I have struggled lately with (other's) personalities and viewpoints as well as digging up all the "icky rotten crud" from my past and these cards were absolutely a ray of sunshine for me today but that does not mean I can just sit back and wait for good news, it does mean that in order to have a happier outcome and brighter future, I must work for it. I must put in the effort and creativity to see the rewards ahead.

There are so many levels to these cards that build upon one another and they are oh so appropriate for my situation but it would take many more pages to describe and I really don't want you all overloaded. I'd like to say thank you to everyone for their kind words yesterday, I'm doing much better today.

I'm sorry I haven't got a post for today...it was not a very good day for me. I will be doing Tarot Tuesday tomorrow, I'm sorry for this inconvenience. 

Serenity Sunday

Healing

The stars are aligned

The moment is right

The timing is perfect
I'm ready for this fight


To send out this plague
Will take some energy
I'll need a few things
Thyme, clove, and rosemary


My hope is very simple
To heal and to cleanse
I need this now
I need to mend


So, those helping spirits
Shall hear my call
I'll force out this sickness
Once and for all

This is my goal
My real true wish
I need to heal
To feel unhindered bliss


This illness is a parasite
A dark blotch on my soul
I need to be healed
I need to become whole

Azariel Lavan

My List:

1.) My kids

2.) Therapy

3.) Great friends

4.) Herbal tea

5.) Foggy mornings

6.) Relaxing music

7.) Hot cinnamon rolls

8.) Deep thoughts

9.) Smiles

10.) Coloring books

Hungry Like A Wolf

January's full moon is also called the "Wolf Moon," according to Native American tradition associating this month's full moon with wolves howling in the cold midwinter. This full "Wolf Moon" will appear 30 percent brighter and 14 percent larger than any other full moon this year, because our cosmic neighbor will actually be closer to Earth than usual.


The moon will be at its closest perigee (the nearest it gets to our planet during its egg-shaped orbit) for this year at 4:04 a.m. ET Saturday, reaching a distance of 221,577 miles (356,593 kilometers) from Earth. At its farthest from Earth, the moon is said to be at apogee (the point in the orbit of a heavenly body, especially the moon or of a man-made satellite at which it is farthest from the earth.) Perigee and apogee each happen generally once a month but the moon's wobbly orbit means that the satellite's exact distance at each of those events varies over the year. The moon's phase can also be different during each apogee and perigee.

This month has the largest full moon of this year, because it coincides with the special moment when the full moon happens to occur on the same day as it is at perigee. I in a remarkable coincidence, Mars is at opposition tonight...(directly opposite to the sun in the sky)...so that as the sun sets in the southwest, Mars rises in the northeast.


Around opposition, the red planet gets closest to Earth. This year Mars swung by at just 61 million miles (98 million kilometers) on January 27, and it will still appear remarkably bright during tonight's sky show.  To the naked eye it will appear as a bright, orange-colored star right next to the full moon...the pair will jump out at you for sure.

Tea Blessing Meditation

The purpose of this blessing and meditation is to pay homage to Deity and to reflect on the blessings in your life.

~ Tea, looseleaf or bags
~ Cup and Tea Pot
~ Incense
~ Green and White Candle


Place and arrange the pot of brewed tea and cup on the table. Light candles and incense, fill the cup with the brewed tea.



BLESSING OF THE TEA:







Gracious Goddess,
You who are the Queen of the Gods,
The Lamp of Night,
The Creator of all that is wild and free
Mother of woman and man;
Lover of the Horned God, and Protectress of all the Craft;
Descend, I Pray,
With Your Lunar ray of power,
Upon my rite here!

Blazing God,
You who are the King of the Gods,
Lord of the Sun,
Master of all that is wild and free;
Father of woman and man;
Lover of the Cresent Goddess, and protector of all the Craft;
Descend, I pray,
With Your Solar ray of power,
Upon my rite here!

Pour out a cup for all present, including one for Deity and enjoy. Sit before the table and meditate on the blessings that Deity has bestowed upon your life.

Imbolc

Imbolc is the festival of the lactating sheep. It is derived from the Gaelic word "oimelc" which means "ewes milk". Herd animals have either given birth to the first offspring of the year or their wombs are swollen and the milk of life is flowing into their teats and udders. It is the time of Blessing of the seeds and consecration of agricultural tools. It marks the center point of the dark half of the year. It is the festival of the Maiden, for from this day to March 21, it is her season to prepare for growth and renewal. Brighid's snake emerges from the womb of the Earth Mother to test the weather, (the origin of Groundhog Day), and in many places the first Crocus flowers began to spring forth from the frozen earth.

The Maiden is honored as the Bride on this Sabbat. Straw corn dollies are created from oat or wheat straw and placed in baskets with white flower bedding. Young girls then carry them door to door, and gifts are bestowed upon the image from each household. Afterwards at the traditional feast, the older women make special acorn wands for the dollies to hold, and in the morning, the ashes in the hearth are examined to see if the magic wands left marks as a good omen. Brighid's Crosses are fashioned from wheat stalks and exchanged as symbols of protection and prosperity in the coming year. Home hearth fires are put out and re-lit, and a besom is place by the front door to symbolize sweeping out the old and welcoming the new. Candles are lit and placed in each room of the house to honor the re-birth of the Sun.


Another traditional symbol of Imbolc is the plough. In some areas, this is the first day of ploughing in preparation of the first planting of crops. A decorated plough is dragged from door to door, with costumed children following asking for food, drinks, or money. Should they be refused, the household is paid back by having its front garden ploughed up. In other areas, the plough is decorated and then Whiskey, the "water of life" is poured over it. Pieces of cheese and bread are left by the plough and in the newly turned furrows as offerings to the nature spirits. It is considered taboo to cut or pick plants during this time.


Imbolc is also known as Candlemas, Imbolg, Brigit's Day, Feast of Brighid, Lupercus, The Festival of Lights, and the Feast of the Virgin.