‘Europe’s Last Pagans’ Worship in Marii-El Republic Grove | Culture and Art |Axisoflogic.com

‘Europe’s Last Pagans’ Worship in Marii-El Republic Grove | Culture and Art |Axisoflogic.com

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Let's try this again, shall we?

It's been FOREVER since I updated my blog. I mean, my goodness, with all the drains on our time - how does one do it all? You don't, if you have a life.

Since starting this blog - we sold our house in NW Atlanta, and moved to S. GA. We're now in the midst of our next move, to the next stage. Which is either building a home, or buying a home. We'll see where that journey takes us.

I plan on keeping this blog updated... or at least attempting that! Let's see what happens.

Oh, and sadly, Kestrel's Nest - which was housed on Geocities.com for ten years - is no more. Geocities.com closed down all their free websites. A lot of great info was lost out there in cyberland.

My Heart,

Kestrel

Hope Flickers

I'm not alone in this feeling as I've been chatting with friends about this. So many spiritual people, real-folks that I trust and whom have always had "insights", have truly felt spiritually cut-off, out of sorts, out of whack..... alone even. This has been building for at least a year that I'm aware of. I'm really not sure what to think of it all, how to process it, what to do other than to keep hope and faith alive.

That is what I'm doing.

And as the Ancestors have smiled on me again I look forward to a Huichol Fire Circle this Friday night for women only, followed by the Aztec healing ritual called a temezcalli. This is similar, yet different in some ways, from the Native American "sweat-lodge" or the European "sauna."

Here's some interesting info on the temezcalli:
Origins of Temezcalli
More information

What I find most intriguing right from the start is that the Goddess most associated with the temezcalli is Temazcalteci, said to be "the grandmother of the baths".

From the last mentioned website above:

"She was, really, one of the manifestations of the goddess Teteoinan, "the mother of the gods", or, as she is also called, "our grandmother", the principal goddess among the higher Nahuatl divinities. Sahagun says of her that "...this goddess was the goddess of medicine and of the medicinal herbs; she was adored by doctors and surgeons, and bleeders, and also by midwives... She was also adored by those who had baths, or temazcals in their houses. All placed the image of this goddess in their baths". The cult of this goddess of the Temazcal extended throughout Mesoamerica and it is found in the other great cultures of the region --the Mixteca, the Zapoteca and the Maya. It was in great part because of this close relationship between the worship of a goddess and the Temazcal that the Spaniards found it so important to ban the use of the bath."

And here I am a soap-maker. :) Yes, hope still flickers. I'll remain open, not attached to expectations, and allow my Heart to experience it all.

Centering upon the Ancestors

No matter what you call it - Halloween, All Hallows, Samhain, Ancou - this is a very special time of the year. It is our goodbye to the old year, and our hello to the new. And what better focus to begin our new year than upon our Ancestors? Our beloved dead, those who came before us, those who touched our lives in some deep manner..... and then, further and deeper back still, to the ultimate Ancestors --- the Gods themselves. Who but the Gods gave us the spark of Life? Who but the Gods gave us logic, reason, love and compassion? Who but the Gods put forth Dallethys, the balance and order in the Universe? Who but the Gods challenged us all, and laid it upon the Pellors Heart, to work toward bringing all focus back to Dallethys?

I am refreshed, renewed, and refocused. I am a Child of my Ancestors, I am a Child of the Gods --- their Blood, their Bones, their Heart and Spirit live within me... and within you my fellow traveler! And within you!

May you be blessed and upheld, this day, and all days.

Grassaf,

Kestrel

Gnarles Barkley Rocks My Socks

Ok, maybe I'm a dweeb, I mean I'm a SAHM and sometimes we just fall out of the "coolness" factor that our younger versions once were in. You know, when we knew what was in style, what was the cool music and all that?

Well, I've discoverd that the duo Gnarles Barkley rocks my socks. I really like them. They are refreshing, different, new... I mean, for me. ;)

Check out their website:
http://www.gnarlsbarkley.com/

CRIKEY! Steve Erwin dead

You know, he seemed invincible. Yet, like the rest of us Steve Erwin, the "Crocodile Hunter", was a mere mortal.

At least he died doing what he loved the best -- working with wild animals, taking all of us blokes along on his journeys, getting up close and personal with creatures that we'd never otherwise get a chance to see and experience. And in the end a barb from a stingray pierced his chest, and either caused cardiac arrest or literally put a hole straight through his heart. Wow, what a way to go.

My thoughts and prayers go out to his wife and two children. I know so many people will miss him. In recent years he because really the icon of Australia.

Safe Journey Steve -- you're on another adventure now. Send film if you can.

Listening: Hope Springs Forth

My Heart is happy right now.

I had an "itch" in my brain/Heart this morning.... and I Listened.

And because that I did, I got to connect to a dear friend. How blessed I feel at the moment.

As simple as this sounds, it means more than I can express. I needed this connection. I am thankful that I Listened.

Praise the Gods! Praise the Ancestors! They are alive... they are alive!

And so am I.