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    Celebrating The Old Ways in New Times

    June 2019 for Celebrating The Old Ways in New Times Bright Blessings! I write this on the 18 of May, and it is above 80 degrees, and feels and smells like Summertime already! I can hardly believe how fast the Wheel of the Year is turning! I could write a lot about which plants are doing what, but I thought it would be better to show you. I decided I would focus on planting as much on the patio as possible this year, and you can see that is going very well. Raised beds are a great favorite of mine! I proudly share my photos. In the front, you can…

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    Book Review – Yoga: 7 Minutes a Day, 7 Days a Week by Gertrud Hirschi

    Book Review Yoga 7 Minutes a Day, 7 Days a Week A Gentle Daily Practice for Strength, Clarityand Calm by Gertrud Hirschi As a long-time kundalini yoga instructor, I really enjoyed this book. It describes a gentle, wonderful path to a daily yoga practice, something everyone can benefit from. One of the things I found most enjoyable is the fact that Ms. Hirschi used certain exercises/postures for each day of the week, using the qualities and the energies of each specific day. Keeping in mind that different practices/traditions have alternate names for each day, the author uses the following: Sunday is the Day of the Sun Monday is the Day…

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    A Prayer to the Celtic God Lugh for Justice

    Lugh, see through my eyes Hear with my ears Feel the pulse in my neck Judge for thine own self If I have been wronged. Let these criminals Trip upon their own swords Fall upon their own cleverness Fail in their endeavours And know no peace until Shame forces them to cease Their unjust actions. Lamhfada, weapons reaching far Cast your spear through time Cause those who wronged me to fall To wrong no more Lest strange sunrise in the west Blind them to all that is good. Copyright Mabh Savage 2019 All Rights Reserved *** About the Author: Mabh Savage is a Pagan author, poet and musician, as well as…

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    Wreathing the Wheel

    Wreathing the Wheel: June – Summer Solstice and Project Planning The month of June contains my favorite of all the quarter days: the summer solstice. This day is high noon for the year, a time when transformative, fiery powers are at their peak, warming the earth and helping plants grow to their fullest. Litha is about action, so this month I’ve decided to get serious about planning some of my personal projects. While there are many different types of projects, I’ll be using the example of this column as our template. Here’s a basic, five-step road-map that can be used for both cyclical and linear projects, from the start of…

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    She Who is All – The Goddess of Ten Thousand Names

    SOPHIA (Image Credit: crystallinks.com) Wisdom is calling us, Sophia is calling Raising her voice, she stands by the city gates, at the crossroads, on the mountaintop. At every entrance, she is standing, shouting to us: “O people”, she calls, “learn from me!” Listen to me, for I speak nothing but the truth. Know my ways, for they are richer than silver. Know my secrets, and you do not need gold. Listen to me, my words are more precious than rubies. My words are riper than figs, sweeter than dates, more nourishing than applies and olives. Kings and princes and careful judges know me, and so do those who simply love…

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    Review of Woodland Wand Creation Shop on Etsy

    Bright Blessings! My beautiful editor Jennifer sent me a gorgeous wand from Woodland Wand Creation to review. First let me say, I am a rare witch. I do not use wands to cast! I occasionally use my athame, but other than that, I use my hands. I have often admired pretty wands in shops and online, but I have never bought one. I am a minimalist sort of witch! I use few tools for magical working, and I save a lot of money on candles, as I just buy white tealights and consecrate them as needed. But in reviewing this item, and taking it for a “test run”, I can…

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    Litha/Midsummer Correspondences

    (The Litha Altar Decoration Set made by Julia can be found among many gorgeous witchy treasures at HedgecraftHouse on Etsy.) Also known As: Summer Solstice, Litha, Alban Hefin, Sun Blessing, Gathering Day, Feill-Sheathain, Whit Sunday, Whitsuntide, Vestalia, Thing-tide, St. John’s Day In addition to the four great festivals of the Pagan Celtic year, there are four lesser holidays as well: the two solstices, and the two equinoxes. In folklore, these are referred to as the four ‘quarter-days’ of the year, and modern Witches call them the four ‘Lesser Sabbats’, or the four ‘Low Holidays’. The Summer Solstice is one of them. Litha is usually celebrated on June 21st, but varies…

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    Children’s Book Review – Water at the Top of the World by J. Siegal & Illustrated by Shannon Belock

    Children’s Book Review Water at the Top of the World by J. Siegal & Illustrated by Shannon Belock So, who wants to read a children’s book? It will be an easy read. This was the call out on the boards where the posting for the book reviews for our website. It’s called Water at the Top of the World: A Story of Legends and Learning. Written by J.Siegal, and illustrated by Shannon Belock. Wait. Problem here I don’t have kids. This might be an issue; however, I am an auntie who has experience around small kids… Not much of a problem there. What kind of criteria does one use for…

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    Book Review – Becoming Dangerous: Witchy Femmes, Queer Conjurers, and Magical Rebels Edited by Kate West and Jasmine Elliott

    Book Review Becoming Dangerous: Witchy Femmes, Queer Conjurers, and Magical Rebels Edited by Kate West and Jasmine Elliott I was lucky to be sent this amazing anthology of personal power narratives to review. Twenty-one personal essays by the same amount of contributors are united by one theme- sometimes, things happen that do NOT want to see us become our best selves, and they go out of their way to try to keep us from thriving. These writers share their personal way they claimed what was theirs, through personal ritual, and tenacity, and how they shine brightly despite everything. These inspirational stories of hope, strength, and triumph deal with topics ranging…

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    Book Review – Celestial Watercolor: Learn to Paint the Zodiac Constellations and Seasonal Night Skies by Elise Mahan with D.R. McElroy

    Book ReviewCelestial WatercolorLearn to Paint the Zodiac Constellations and Seasonal Night SkiesWritten by Elise Mahan with D.R. McElroy128 ppThe Quarto Group “Celestial Watercolor: Learn to Paint the Zodiac Constellations and Seasonal Night Skies” is a book that does dual duty. On one hand, it’s as a beautifully illustrated and produced full-color coffee table-style book which is immensely enjoyable to flip through whether you read it or not. On the other, it’s a genuinely useful guide through the world of classic watercolor technique, with watercolor illustrations of the phases of the moon, astrological signs, and the seasonal night skies as examples. These examples come paired with corresponding texts that delve into…