Pagan Bloggers with Naturalistic Worldviews
What if we lived in a world that respected knowledge and expertise? That embraced kindness and compassion as the most important human qualities? The culture of which ensured that every mouthful of food, every day of living was acknowledged as a gift of the Sacred Earth? That saw poetry, art, music, rituals, happiness as every … Continue reading What if..?
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Since the beginning of the shelter-in-place order in response to the coronavirus pandemic, it has been utterly gorgeous here. The skies are clear and the green mountains stand out crisply. The mustard is golden in the vineyards, and the forests are growing bright new leaves. The silence broken only by birds’ calls, the scant traffic … Continue reading Earth Day, and Happy Silence
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So it’s been a month now since the shelter-in-place orders and the dawning realization of just how serious this pandemic really is. I feel grateful that this disease hasn’t touched my life yet. But I recognize that it is only a matter of time. I’m starting to see signs of real cabin fever in friends’ … Continue reading Beyond the Walls: Reflections
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What I am made of lifted as fog from redwood trees to drip across bay leaves down to Lake Sonoma. It seeped through oaks’ roots and fossil limestone and chanterelle mycelia and vernal wetlands to creeks where egrets and ospreys hunt, where steelhead and coho salmon struggle their way to spawn, and bears yet roam. … Continue reading Mostly Russian River
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I’ve been thinking more about the idea behind this post. Had a good comment exchange with Yvonne Aburrow about the concept of a day when we can share our deepest and most shameful secrets. She agrees that it could be really beneficial for many; an opportunity for the kind of “absolution” that Catholics, for example, … Continue reading The Secrets, Pt. II: Ritual and Observance
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What if we could speak the unspeakable, shameful secrets, just for one day? What if we could say, I have come to hate my child, or I make my money illegally, or I like rough sex, or I am impotent or I am using heroin or I am a compulsive shoplifter or once, I hit … Continue reading The Secrets
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So here it is again: evacuation in the face of wind-driven wildfires. Second time in two years. Climate change is real, y’all. More severe winds, higher temperatures leading to lower humidity: boom. Fire. It disturbs me how little the subject comes up as the whole community freaks out over the fires. This is not a … Continue reading At the Mercy of the Elements
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I’m in an odd space right now. On the one hand, excitement about The Book and the newness of all the Author Stuff like promoting it, doing interviews, etc. is really thrilling. But on the other, beloved things are coming to an end, and I’m sad about that. Pantheacon, which has been the largest gathering … Continue reading Things End
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As of tonight, I am out. I acknowledged the publication of my book and publicized a radio interview coming up on Sunday to my entire friends list on Facebook, which includes professional and political associates. For my entire career, I have kept my religious life out of my professional life. It doesn’t belong there, and … Continue reading Out
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A lot of what being a Pagan is about is paying attention. Being connected to the world and to yourself means being aware of subtle feelings and changes in conditions that many around us simply may not notice. Some of this is knowing the Earth lore for your region: what is the first tree to … Continue reading Opening to Subtle Changes
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