In a bid to actually focus and finish the Dedicant Path, I’m keeping this online journal to consolidate all my thoughts and writings on my path and to document my growth as a Druid and a Pagan.
First week of meditation has begun
As I have in the previous post to this category, I am, for this week, doing a grounding and centering at my computer before work daily. Yesterday marked the first day of the practice, and it's working, so far... it's helping me focus and set a boundary between work...
Sirim Soillse
Cuir urram air a' Là Leth an t-samhraidh... (Honoring Midsummer's Day) Their a bannag, ho ro bannag Their a bannag, air a beo (Hey the gift, ho the gift, Hey the gift upon the living or, hey the gift of life) This fonn, from the Céile Dé, is a spontaneous celebration...
Grounding & Centering Technique for week #1
Here is exactly what I practice in grounding and centering; it's pretty common, and involves breathing a taproot into the ground and using this energy cord to both draw in energy, and dissipate negative, or stale, energy. My centering is rather weird and...
Meditation & Mental Discipline start date: Monday, June 27
My official qualification for the requirement I've decided to begin a week from this coming Monday. I also have decided on the type of meditation I will do for the first week - grounding and centering. My plan is to do this every day, each morning before I start work,...
A quick note on how my Nature Awareness is going…
I'm really enjoying my time out there. As the time goes on, I'm taking note of what's going on. I'm loving the sunlight on the leaves, how everything dances in the wind, the smell of the air... and taking the time to do nothing, or what feels like 'nothing'. Over the...
Sin e! – I know what I’m going to do!!
I just had a big newsflash - I do get these brilliant little ideas now and again, and the last post I made solidified it. That note about getting restless and bored when doing the same thing over and over with no variety works terribly against my natural personality....
Initial thoughts on Meditation / Requirement
As I stated in another post, I've not started the 23 weeks of meditation requirement. Its true purpose - mental discipline and personal growth - leaves me feeling unprepared to sustain it. I know I can; but I have some resistance to it. Perhaps I need to -meditate- to...
Chap 4 – Druids through Celtic Eyes
I had a lot of problems with this chapter. Mainly, I couldn't remember a word of it. My mind was like a sieve when it came to this chapter. The chapter starts off with the Song of Amairgen, and speaks of poetical incantations and the Irish sagas. I'm a horrible Druid....
What to do for Summer Solstice?
The next High Day, my second, is rapidly approaching here, and I have a couple of choices. I am, at this point, either going to write my own private ritual for use here at the house, and focus on my own 'normal' type of ritual, or, I'm going to just attend my Wiccan...
Sketch of little wolf babies, for the Oracle
I'm still working on building skill sets in pastel and working towards my ability to illustrate my Wolf Oracle. I wanted to post these, as this sketch did turn out well, and I'm rather happy with it. I feel both honored and burdened to be doing these - I feel the...
Unbearable heat is on its way
Well, this week for my nature awareness, I spent some time roasting in the shade underneath the mustang grape, watching the grapes swell and the leaves shrivel. It's triple-digit hot; we broke 100 degrees 3 months earlier than normal, and our rainfall is down. It's...
Working on my home shrine (altar)
For some reason, I don't like the word, 'shrine'. I don't know why; I guess I need to think about my subconscious associations with the word. I think it gives me the wrong mental picture. For me, I see a gilt Christian Cross with an effigy of Mary dressed as a nun in...
Heard from SMO today!
I'm now on their mailing list for the upcoming Fall. Yay! They haven't built the roster yet, nor solidified the dates, but, it should be late July-ish (how opportune!) when registration is open.
Time in nature / my sketchbook
As part of my nature awareness, I've chosen to keep a sketchbook again and keep my eye out for things to be drawing... Right now, it's late May and Texas is known for its wildflowers. Flowers like Mexican Hat are blooming all over the place right now, including some...
General Questions to Keep in Mind for My Suggested Readings
Rev. Dangler, in his WotY Document, suggests the following questions be kept in mind as I'm reading through my requirements, and I'm putting this in outline form in my DP Journal to help me stay focused on what is important (I'm big into punch lists): Include...
The ADF Nine – what are mine?
According to Our Own Druidry, the Nine Virtues that are a wonderful guideline for a Druid's way of life are: Wisdom, Piety, Vision, Courage, Integrity, Perseverance, Hospitality, Moderation, Fertility. Since virtues tend to be an internal force for ethical behavior,...
Glad to be a part of the Gael-kin
First of all, I was thrilled to become a member of the Gael-Kin; I officially became one April 4th of this year. I haven't posted much, but I was pleased to see the activity and scholarship, and interest in all of the Gaelic, not just Irish, or Welsh - or my own...
The Basics – Questions from the DP manual on Attunement to Nature
Here's my research to answer these questions, found on Pg 42 of the Dedicant Manual, Our Own Druidry.... What is the source of your drinking water? What rivers make up your watershed? I live in the Lampasas River watershed region; more specifically, the Lampasas River...
My hour a week begins today
I've officially started my nature awareness work, kind of with a whimper instead of a bang, I guess. I have decided on a special little nook in my backyard for this purpose, and I'm going out there each week, to observe the changes over time to this little area, and...
Là Leth an t-Samhraidh, no Grian-Stad, no Seas-Ghrian…
Online at SMO's dictionary, (also my dear Green Dictionary) I thought I'd document the Gaelic and feel through what I should use for this. For Midsummer, there is a choice of terms, naturally; there usually is in the Gaelic. Fèill Eòin Leth an t-samhraidh (Sàmhradh...
Checking on Date and Time of Next High Day
The next High Day, Number 2 for me, is the Summer Solstice, which, according to the Farmer's Almanac this year, falls on June 21, at 1:16 P.M. EDT. That happens to be a Tuesday, and I still need to adjust for my time zone. I know I'm jumping the gun here about...
Still debating on what to do for my Nature time
For help with this issue, I actually took a look at other peoples' DP journals and when I stumbled on some extra reading resources, an idea I'd been knocking around with started to coalesce; part of my path is my art, and I'm thinking to do two things: keep a...
Questions I need to ponder about my Nature journey
What is my own definition of Earth Mother? I tend to see Earth Mother this way: Earth, My Mother. In my Bealltainn ritual, I even address Her in this manner. I connect with Earth as 'Nature, the biosphere that supports my physical body, and the living ecosystem of...
Virtues… and what they mean
This category is my reference material, work, comments and thoughts on the Virtues; so what did I do first? Why, I buggered off to check the Wiki, of course! Put simply, 'virtue', according to the Wikipedia, is 'moral excellence'. It goes on to say, "A virtue is a...
First High Day Recap Homework
This wide lane was the processional route for the pilgrimage to the ritual site from the car park. Brief Information: High Day Celebrated: Bealltainn (Beltane) Location: Chalk Ridge Falls Park, Belton, TX Date Celebrated: 2 May, 2011 Time Celebrated: 2PM, CST Who led...