The begining...

After high school, I feel like life completely changed. I mean, things suddenly were going to be different from now on. For one thing, I was out of school, if I wanted to I could have just stayed at home and slept in for a few years. Obviously I didn't. I realized early that I need to learn to basically fend for my self. Other than my parents there really isn't anyone else to be bugging me to do something with my life. So I made a promise to myself that I would try and rely on my parents as little as possible. First, I knew I wanted to go to culinary school, but I didn't have the money just yet so getting a job was first priority. Also, this meant I could pay for things and make purchases. After about six months of hard work, I had put away a good lump of money in the bank. Since culinary school was a bit out of my reach at the moment, I enrolled at GCC just to get the ball rolling. I paid for it myself. I know it doesn't sound like a lot of money, but I had been doing a good deal of purchasing stuff and spending time with my sister who I had kind of ignored for awhile.
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Part 2
They say with age comes wisdom. I thinkthat all depends on what you do within that time period. I mean to say that knowledge and wisdom don't just come to you. You have to get out there and learn and experience. I spent a good portion of my life closed and not really experiencing much of life. After a few years, it got to the point where I became depressed. There would be days where I would literally feel sad and just want to cry. After that period in my life, I came across some things in my life that sort of reopened my eyes. I got to reading a few books some were cultural anthropologies and some were about religion. They really spoke to me and showed me a new path that I could follow and be happy. There were two big influences in my life; one was His Holiness the Dalai Lama(and no I'm not Buddhist) and the other was Wicca. Both of those two things taught me a lot about life and about being happy and making the world a better place.

Blesed be

Back again

Today is Sunday. My parents made it back Friday afternoon. I was the lucky individual to pick them up. The drive to LAX wasn't too bad. I made it there in like 40 minutes. The waiting killed me. I was sitting there from 12 'til 2:30 ish when they finally made it out of the plane.
I honestly couldn't wait for them to get back. One more day with my sister and grandma and I would have exploded. Granted I love them, but too much of one thing never good. The only thing that gave me peace was my practice. I finally had 3 weeks to not have to worry about leaving my altar out, lighting incense and depressing my mom, or candles being knocked over. It gave me a chance to be at one with the universe and really connect spiritually.
Now that they are back, I have to resort to having my mini altar set up. I recently purchased a medium sized book shaped box that I decided I would use to keep my mini altar. It's very simple and fairly inconspicuous. I have two glass bottles one filled with sea salt the other with Rosemary altar oil, a citrine stone to represent the god, a aquamarine stone to represent the goddess, 4 colored marbles to represent the elements, some tea light candles, a small red altar cloth with a pentacle on it, a small notebook and pen and a small box of matches. I definitely feel content with it. I mean all I really would need is a candle and some oil and leave the rest to my visualization, but this mini altar is perfect. It would certainly make it easier when I wish to go out and into nature. I carry carry my box instead of my backpack with my altar supplies in it. D

[Hovik]

Current Events

I love rain. I love listening to the sound of the rain drops hitting my window. I love the cool air that fills me up. The occasional burst of thunder excites my soul. Sitting at my desk with my altar set up and lit. Just taking it all in. My parents are due back on Thursday. My internship is waiting on an interview to get the ball rolling. That's all for current events. On to more...
I got some Samhain cards from the exchange I did with a few people. Looking forward to doing that again. Had a fairly simple dinner; just some elbow macaroni with garlic-parmesan alfredo sauce(unfortunately from a jar) and a panzanella salad on the side all topped with a glass of "wine"(alcohol-free). I don't feel like doing much the next couple days. I'm just waiting on the folks to come home and have life come back to normalcy. This time of year is meant for quiet contemplation. Just looking at the new year coming up and sorting out all that has happened so far. I'm ending this short because my altar is literally calling to me. I need to sit and take in the season.

The spirits

I hear the call. They provide me with comfort; a sense of peace and oneness with the universe. I see the light of the moon goddess as she fills the night sky with her glow. I can hear her comforting whispers in the air as it passes through the leaves.
"Eternal mother and moon goddess of the sky, I hear your call and feel your presence. Your glow fills me up and protects me from the dark." I honor you and thank you for your blessings.
The morning rays awaken my soul. The darkness has past and now there is light. The sun is joy and warmth shining in the clear blue sky. "Eternal father and lord of sun, I hear your call and feel your presence. You solar rays fills my soul and light my path into the world. I honor you and thank you for your blessings.
Seek the wisdom that which is hidden in nature. Speak the the god and goddess and they will answer your call.

[Hovik]

Connections

I am currently out of camera. My parents have borrowed it for their vacation. You'd think that in light of that, I'd update this bloody blog more often. Unfortunately, I've been really busy with work and keeping stuff at home organized. Anyways.... Samhain is coming up in about 2 weeks. As most of you guys know, I've planned an open ritual/celebration for it. I'm super excited about it. I really want to be able to share my spirituality with those who are close to me. Also, I'm using it as an excuse to get everyone together seeing as how we haven't seen much of each other lately. I need face time! lol
Another reason for this open ritual, is because I really want to educate those who lack the knowledge about the Wiccan path. Because of Hollywood and some right-wing religious extremists, Wicca and witches have a negative connotation. Now, I could totally go off on that tangent, but I think I'll save that for another time. I wish to spread the love and light.

Blessings to all!
I hope to see you on Halloween! =-)

Young teens misconceptions on magic/Wicca

I was sitting at my computer today when my sister walked in and told me about something a friend of her's saw. Some girl had taken a Harry potter book and scratched out the title and wrote spell book on it instead. As my sister told me this she looked at me and laughed. She knows I'm a witch so she told me this and was expecting me to laugh with her. I did at first find it a little funny, but then I realized that it's actions like that that give people the wrong idea about something and then they become disappointed later when they discover the truth. Granted, my first exposure to magic and witchcraft wasn't exactly the best. I mean I picked it up from movies like Harry potter. I guess though it was a little different for me. I knew that real magic wasn't like in the movies. I knew there had to be something more. It was then that I began to do research and learn what witchcraft and Wicca were all about. I can only hope that teens and those thinking about witchcraft chose their resources wisely and question everything they read, hear or see. That is what I believe will be the only way that one can truly find knowledge.

Bullets

We all have secrets. Some are more serious than others. Growing up, it was always an unspoken rule that sharing a secret with someone meant it wasn't gonna leak. I am definitely a secret keeper. I know things about people that their own families don't know about. The same goes for me. There are people out in the world that I have shared information that no one outside knows about. To me, a secret is more than just a secret, its a symbol of the trust between two people. For example, people who pray to a higher power. Sharing information that they would otherwise keep hidden is a line of trust formed between the person and their higher power. I know I have that line of trust with my higher powers.
A lot of the time, secrets can have dramatic effects on people. They can surely make or break a situation. Before I explain this, I want to make clear that this is not to be confused with a lie. Although sometimes a lie is something one says to cover up a secret. Now back to my explanation. I recently had an experience where my secret was gonna come out. The secret I'm referring to is that I haven't told my family I'm a Wiccan. I've mentioned this before in other posts, but this time is slightly different. Now, let me set this up for y'all. As most of you guys know from my twitter, yesterday night I was celebrating Mabon and the full moon. I had driven up to a park high up in the mountains and setup and small ritual. After I ended the evening, I drove back home and tucked away my ritual supplies in the trunk of my car. Now, I didn't get a chance to clear everything out today because I couldn't find a time where no one was home. So I ended up falling asleep after work. That's when the problem started. Apparently my dad needed to make a trip to my aunts house and decided he would take my car. When I woke up I flipped out because I found out he was taking a few items to drop off. I was sure he had opened the trunk. I spent the next few hours thinking about the situation and how it was gonna hit the fan as soon as he got home. A few hours passed and my dad finally made it home. I braced myself for the onslaught of questions, but nothing. A huge weight was lifted when I realized he hadn't found my stuff. I had definitely dodged a bullet there. I wasn't really for this sort of thing just yet. I know at some point it needs to be said, but now is not the time.
So I managed to further elude my parents on my secret once again. Don't get me wrong though, I sure as hell am not ashamed of who I am, but I just haven't figured out the logistics of breaking the news to them all yet. I'll close this with a final thought:
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I am Wiccan and Proud of it!
Pagan Pride All the Way!
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