Power Place

The other night my beloved asked me to think of some places I might like to visit before we leave Victoria for Western Australia in 15 days (yes I'm counting)
Apart from a trip to Uncle Festers Magickal supplies in a little settlement called Woodsend, I had no idea where I really would want to go... until the wee small hours of this morning... Something disturbed my sleep and I woke to the beautiful silvery glow of the moon shinning through the bedroom window..I usually enjoy these quiet times when no one is awake, it gives me time for quiet contemplation.. whether I think I need it or not..
My thoughts where drawn to the question asked previously and then without warning off my mind pinged to a few lines of a book by Phyllis Curott, one I Had read awhile ago.. The chapter was on finding your own power place. Reading this chapter I felt enthralled by such a place and also slightly envious, for while I had visited places where I felt close to the Goddess I had never found that one place, where I just knew the energy in the area and I connected.. my personal place of power - or so I thought.
It never ceases to amaze me how when I least expect it, I am prompted to recall things tucked away in my sub conscious and this was one of those time. Reminded I was about a place of power. One so strong I could barely stand under the force.. how I had ever forgotten this I do not know, and I remember thinking as I left how I wish it was a place I could go to often.
Tucked away in the Dandenong Ranges is a reserve, not just any reserve but a very special place, unfortunately or fortunately depending on how you look at it, you have to pay to enter, this reserve is now "owned" by the people and run by a trust, without it the place would be lost..

William Rickett back in the early 30's bought 4 acres of land and moved on to it.. what he did was pretty amazing.. he bought to 'life' the spirit of the land, of the indigenous people that had dwelt here long before the first settlers came here by convict ships from England.
A gifted sculpture he began to carve into the rock all around this 4 acres of land. Huge carvings of the Earth Mother, The Father, the elders whose Spirit is one with the trees..I'm getting goose bumps as I type.
We walked through this amazing place hand in hand, pointing to pieces, taking a few photos totally fascinated by the work that had been this mans life and dream. Then something stopped me, and drew me to it like a magnet.. I let go of my mans hand and walked off the track maybe 4 metres and stopped dead in my tracks.. My eyes turned skywards and still I could not see all of it, tentatively I put my hand out to touch it, and it and I was literally buzzing. The hair on my arms was standing up, my heart was so totally full of joy I thought I was going to explode, total euphoria and I had a grin from ear to ear that I could not control..I wanted to call to my Dh, come feel this, but it didn't feel right to so, this was *my place*
This huge, ancient tree had called me to it's side.. To this day I do not know how.. nor do I know why, however as I sit and reflect I am as blessed by the memory of it's impact on me as much as I was by physically being in its presence..
To have stayed curled up against this huge ancient trunk would have been no hardship to me. I wrapped my arms around this mighty Divine entirety and pressed my face against it's cool bark and felt total unconditional love.
I feel very drawn to return to this place, so we are going back there next week, I have no doubt I will find this majestic being again and I will leave an offering this time at her base and I will thank the Goddess for the privilege, of being able to share in something so amazing.
I have put in a few photos, the top photo is Earthly Mother, the caption at her base reads "Wholeness of Life - Love all embracing"
The second photo is Earth Father and the last is .. I was going to say my tree, but that would be placing a label on something very special... I think you know what the photo represents - Blessed Be

Was it Retrograde?

Last week went by so fast it was a blur, this week seems to be dragging by again. My Dh starts his 3 weeks long service leave this Friday, so perhaps some of it is the countdown to this. I have a list of things to get done and so far this I week can't get all my nuts in one pile to complete any of it.
Mercury is turning direct on the 15th, after its longest Retrograde this year. Yippee.. Time to take advantage of some very positive cosmic energy.. They say that when Mercury is Retrograde, aside from communication breakdowns and misunderstandings, it can play havoc with most electrical and mechanical things.. while I am still learning about such things, I have to tend to agree. This past Saturday the lawn mower went belly up, or should I say blade up, wow you should hear it now clunk clunk clunk and it blows more smoke than a bellow, then Monday the trailer tray broke and it has a 3.000km journey to start in 16 days! All the simplest things of late have seemed quiet tough to achieve and more often or not I have been wandering around feeling like squirrel bait.
So I am hoping that with Mercury's turn Direct, will come the freedom from trying to discover how to fit 20 square feet of space into 10 without the use of a hammer, while stuck in some sort of crater sized rut.

Dark Pagan Rede

This came through a group I belong too, I loved it and really want to share it with you all.
The original poem was written by a witch in the 1960's; this version is what is remembered by a witch by the name of Morrigan Stormraven and she simply asks that she be given credit.
The Copyrighted Dark pagan's Rede 2.0
soley belongs too Morrigan Stormraven.


We are Witches, We Are Ancients
Those that stand out amoung shadows
We are weavers, healers and shamans, and warriors
Judge and Jury
And This is our Creed.
Do not Offend, But Defend
Give your kin a house if they have no home
Remember in all forms are we the goddesses children in one way or another
She is the weaver, the threader and the cutter of Life
No matter what name she is called, she is the great mother, The All, The Source
Know the Great dance and the Spiral is never ending and your day's walk long, and most often someone will try and break your paths
But when the wolves tear at your heels, remember only the hardest paths are the paths worth Walking.
Life will not be without troubles, fights, hardships
And we are not witches too get nor gain
For that is but an empty path that leads too greed and the ruin of your soul.
We are the witches, singers, shamans, dreamers, weavers, healers and warriors of the wild winds, in the storms and in the fury of the storm and of Life. Our knowledge is all knowing, yet we continue too learn things everyday, as is our right.
treat your kin with as much respect as you wish too be treated and you can not be lead astray.
treasure everyday as it were your last, cherishing the beauty of all life and all things.
Protect this rugged earth mother as best you can. Honor her. Even if it is but a Rock, know that it too has its own spirit. Life is everywhere, and magick can be breathed in as its purest essance.
Know as the Goddesses child, no matter what you call her she is always there beside you, inside you and with you. Believe this always and you will never be forsaken, even when there is a lesson too be learnt that she must teach you, even if that lesson whips you across the face, it has purpose and reason.
Keep your eyes and your ears open, and listen not only with the physical eye, but the astral ones, for their are signs in all things. In the wind, the rain, the sky and the deep earth.
Never look back on your past until you feel you are ready, and remember we have a long way too go.
There is Strength in the Darkness, In Shadows and also in The Light,
And shadows can not exist without Perfect balance of Light and Dark.
We are the Children of Grey Magick, and its Power is Thine too Wield!
May the Goddess keep you
And bless you in all things, Always.
Go In Strength, Love, Peace And Honor
Be Blessed In Unity.

High as an Elephants eye

I have been feeling very melancholy of late, and if I was to be honest with myself, letting go of Willow was a little harder than I thought, even though he has gone to a lovely home..I would also have to say this move we are about to undertake to Western Australia is affecting me a little harder than I care to admit.
This morning I woke feeling quiet down. It is usually with a glad heart I go outdoors in the morning to welcome the day, but this morning I was hard pressed to make it out the door.. Daylight savings started here on Sunday, so my normal time is an hour earlier, I can well do without this man made idea! Although the morning was over cast and dreary due to the hour, I stood with a sad heart, my arms heavy but I gave thanks.
As I turned to the East and breathed in the energy of Air, a breeze stirred and gently touched my face and hair, like little fingers. It was if the Goddess and the Spirits where reminding me, We are here, do not fear. As I stood welcoming each Element into my day, I felt some peace, I felt their collective energy. The moisture on my lips, the breeze upon my face, the cool earth beneath my feet and the suns warmth really struggling to touch me through the clouds.. I felt that I had made the effort to show my heart to them and they in turn cocooned me in their love.
After an email to the E-group I belong to, I felt inspired enough to paint the trailer and to go mow the lawn, minus the hay baler that would have better served the purpose... Gosh it was hard work, it had not been cut for the longest time and with the new spring growth it was almost as high as an Elephants eye!
Heading toward the last few strips, I was rewarded with finding a beautiful wee flower amongst the grass. It was hardly visible, it was one of the last of the spring freesia's, how it got out of the garden and into the middle of the lawn is a mystery to me, but there it stood in all it's glory. It was perfect. It did leave me with a dilemma.. what do I do with it? Do I pick it and put it in a vase, where it would die within days or mow it? After a minute of quiet contemplation I thought both outcomes to be the same.. so I did what any good Witch would do.. I mowed around it.. and left it happily swaying in the breeze under the Apricot Tree.
Blessed be the Goddess, for she is everywhere.. and I thank her for that small miracle, that left me feeling all the more Blessed for finding it.

Red Hill and beyond

Home for us is Hastings, a historic fishing town nestled between the Port Phillip and Western Port Bays on the beautiful Mornington Peninsula. It is about 80km(50 miles) S.E of Melbourne City.
Most people are surprised to find H.M.A.S Cerberus, Australia's biggest Navy recruit school here, about 3km down the road and home to about 3.000 people.. Many folks who don't know better, think the peninsula is a rich list playground or just a holiday mecca, a place where those who can afford have elite beach homes with 4x4's that never get mucky. The home of well known racing stables and where some of the regions best wines come from. Most of it is true..lol but to us, it is a quiet country place by the ocean. One where you can always find a Pelican to feed, wonder for miles amongst the gum trees, listen to the Kookaburras, kneel down beside a wild Echinda while it hunts for ants, you may even see a Koala up in Gums or a Kangaroo resting in the shade of the bush.
I have been spoilt and Blessed to have spent three years here and will miss it immensely. Living down here, I found myself also becoming happily addicted to Craft Markets. There are several about and apart from the Mornington Market one of my favourites is the Red Hill Market.
If your a gardener there isn't much you won't find in the way of vegetable seedlings, herbs and a variety of other plants. There is usually an abundance of organic veg's and fruit, beautiful homemade spelt and rye bread, not to mention honey and some wonderful cheeses. It is little wonder that I have gained a few kilos since living here!
Aside from food I found a wonderful stall that I go beck to time after time.. for virgin olive oil soaps. All the herbs, spices, flowers and grains that go into Est soaps are organic, I love the look of them too, as they are all hand rolled. When I got news that we had been posted to Western Australia, one of the things I had on my to do list was stock up on this stuff however I have recently found out I can buy online..ah the Internet is a wonderful invention however I digress..
First Saturday of every month, we make the excursion down the peninsula to Red Hill. If my daughter Sarah isn't already here for the weekend, she will often make a special trip down from the city, so we can go to the market as a family.
This past Saturday was no different, while I was still missing Willow at the end of it, I felt the need for some retail therapy and I also wanted a friend for Myvanwy. So I visited Eryl Barnett, who have a stall at Red Hill. Eryl's and her husband sculpture, and between them they have made some amazing pieces from the world of Faerie lore.
I have bought several of their pieces one of the 'Welsh Knockers' as well as Bram and Nudd the tree protecting elves. This time it was a toss up between their new creation or Genesha. Genesha came home with me, she a very classy Witch that sits on the hearth with Myvanwy.. affectionately known as "The Girls"
You know.. I can feel it in my bones, a trip to the Fae workshop before we head West in a few weeks.. I can hear a wee Dragon that goes by the name of Malanrda calling me.

New home for Willow

I can hardly believe it is Tuesday already, and my first blog entry in days.. this month is flying by, I can hardly keep up. As some of you who read my blog already know, my Dh is in the Navy, so we are a Defence Force family.. with this at times comes separation's and postings to new places - the latter of which we are about to undertake on the 31st of this month, so life for us is a tad stressful at the moment, with sorting out whats going with us and whats staying behind..One of the staying behinds is Willow, apart from Sarah, my daughter who lives here in Melbourne, the hardest thing to leave is my Willow.
Willow is or should I say was my beautiful grey Indian Ringneck parrot. I love him to bits and he is the bright little guy who learnt that if you fed Jalpenos to the dog he will stay out from under the cage and who loved to tip his bath upside down on the floor and run away and hide... I agonised over how to take him with us, I checked bird boarding places, flights for birds, but end of the day Willow had to stay here. There was not much more for me to do but advertise for a new home for him, and being the fussy bird Mummy, not just anyone would do. The night the advertisement went in I had a phone call, within moments I felt, that this person was not the one for Willow. I told her "I am very sorry but I am not sure that Willow would be the right bird for you" I coped an attitude that confirmed it.. 3 days later I was worried no one else would phone, so I lit a candle and asked that the Goddess would send someone honest and kind.. well within the hour the phone rung, when I answered the call, the voice on the other end made all my Witchy bits tingle.. This wonderful woman arrived on my door shortly after, we were just a few streets apart.. It was truly amazing to watch.. Mr *I don't know you so I don't like you* cocked his head to her voice, jabbered away at his new Mum like he had known her for years.. We packed him up and moved him to his new home on Friday afternoon... He won't be lonely that's for sure, he will have 3 other *rescued* parrots for company, nor will he miss his morning toast as Carolyn always has fruit bread on the Parrot bird menu.. I am blessed to have found someone who will love Willow like I did, and you know not one other call came asking about him after that.. The Goddess is good.

Totally Toxic

Many years ago, I knew a woman who quoted "Beauty knows no pain" and in my youth and not so youthful days, I tended to agree with this statement.. Then I learnt that with all the alternatives on the market today, we can do all those frilly bits without killing ourselves slowly in the process. My biggest vice was for beautiful nails. For the longest time I wore acrylic nails, long and painted, but then one day it was like, I wonder what I am in fact absorbing and ingesting in the process of having these plastic fantastics.. I had no idea, so I removed them and waited for my nails to grow on there own. It has taken a long time for them to even out all the dents, to stop peeling and breaking. Today they are healthier than they have been for years.. while they never got infected and that is more good luck than good management, they are still fighting the effects of years of chemical abuse. Where am I going with this?
Well the other night on TV there was a current affairs programme advertised about these artificial nails and of course it perked my interest, but through one thing and another I missed it, today my daughter, bless her, found it and I have posted it here.. it is worth watching, especially if you are a nail fanatic like I was, after seeing this, I have no doubt in my mind I made a good call in my choice to go back to my natural nails.