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Daddy, why do people put lighted deer in their front yards?

We're headed towards the tail-end of November, and the front yards in my neighborhood are suddenly sprouting deer.

These are not the wild animals, although here within sight of downtown Minneapolis we've got a sizable urban herd. (They mostly live in the wooded Mississippi Valley that runs through the heart of town.) No, these are Yule Deer.

(Up here in Snow Country, if you want to decorate outdoors, you've got to do it early.)

As a pagan, and myself a worshiper of the Deer Man, I find it deeply amusing that one of the foremost symbols of American Christmas: the Secular Holiday should be the Deer.

The connection is pretty tenuous. Presumably these are the reindeer that pull Santa's sleigh. Of course, the Deer of Light that you see in people's yards are clearly not reindeer. You can tell because reindeer have a very distinctive antler configuration. No, the Yule Deer are based—insofar as there's a natural prototype at all—on the American Whitetail, as (after all) they should be.

I call to the wild
The soft
The brutal
The power within.

I move with grace
And strength
My blade readied
To pierce the veils
Of the unjust.

I speak my words
I create and I destroy
Each an expression
Of my true nature.

I run in the woods
I fly in the stormy skies
I dive into inescapable waters
I stalk my prey in the stone
Constructs of the civilized.

I am relentless
I am beauty
I am the reflection
Of all that is of the light
And all that coalesces in the darkness.

I am the Divine Feminine
You cannot turn away
You cannot hide from my Truth
Because I am all that you
Aspire to be.

I am always feel renewed and empowered at this time of the year. I am a daughter of the cold and wintry world and this is when I come alive and awaken all of my senses to the world around me. This is also the time when I renew my commitment to the Divine Feminine and exploration of HER wild nature. This year, in particular has been difficult for many women given the political agendas and the fear of losing precious legal ground that has seen the sacrifice of many women’s privacy and power in gaining.

 Air:
Without air, there would be no life. Air is the essence of life. On Venus, the gasses are too inhospitable for life as we know it. The gas giants of Jupiter, Saturn, and Uranus have liquid nitrogen for an atmosphere, and are considered to be lifeless. Only Earth and Mars which have atmospheres seem to be capable of sustaining life. As an atmosphere, air keeps the heat in, and converts water gasses into liquid. This enables life to flourish. As the wind blows the seeds to the ready earth, so it also brings rain clouds to dry areas.

 Grey Squirrel
Agile and alert, the grey squirrel remains active throughout the year. Chattering on tree branches, she amuses people who watch her antics. What people do not know is that the grey squirrel was a creature of the virgin forests of North America. She is one of the few mammals who adapted to cities. In winter, the grey squirrel eats tree bark and nuts that she stored in the fall. She locates these stored nuts by smell. Any acorns that the grey squirrel does not find will grow into trees for future squirrel homes. She is at home in the trees.

Frequently Asked Question: Why do some people say Asatru is a religion and some say it's a folkway? What's the difference and who is right?

My answer: There are heathens who practice only the religion, heathens who practice only the folkway, and heathens who practice both. There are also xians and secular communities who practice various of the folkways we heathens claim as heathen, and some pagans who practice them too, for example maypole customs. Whichever way you want to do your heathenry is fine.

Don't get me wrong: I love apples.

But when's the last time that you bit into an apple and had juice run down your forearm and drip from your elbow?

A good pear is truly a full-body experience.

Pears. I just ate my first one of the season. OMGs.

The Witch Goddess's sacred flower is, of course, the Rose, but the Rose family is a large one. Apples are roses. So are pears. Cut one with the stem. Like an apple, it will show forth the Flower of Life. And cut across the stem, behold: the Fivefold Star of Rebirth.

We've been eating pears for a long time: since, apparently, the Neolithic, if not before. They ate them in the Lake Villages of Stone Age Switzerland. They're mentioned in Linear B inscriptions from Mycenaean Greece. The name pear comes ultimately from Latin, which got it from Greek, which got it from the Phoenicians (p'ri = “fruit”).

And every pear's a little goddess. Hold one in your hand. It's like one of those big-hipped Mamas that the ancestors made to make the garden grow. It irks me when people say that a situation has gone “pear-shaped” to mean that it's gone wrong. Is the implication really that perfection = round? Round things roll away and break. Low centers of gravity mean stability.

I had developed a serious unrelenting hatred for a particular young salesgirl.  You have to understand, my experience with her ilk that would visit our office was with her rival company.  Those young women were well dressed like fancy stewardesses, clicking into the office with treats, dressed in conservative corporate gear, perfect lipstick.  They were like deadly viper assassins of the sales world – they would come in, ask for someone, remind me that they can give cpe, hand over their classy treats, smile and leave promptly.  I love them unapologetically.

But this new breed from the other company was . . .just the worst.  Crummy cheap treats (bad), lingering (worse) and overly familiar (death knell).  I couldn’t stand the way she would dress, all hipster casual cute like this would endear her to other tired older admins like myself.  I had a plastic mug from her rivals that was a pretty blue on my desk and I used it for candy related trash so I would not find mystery wrappers strewn all over my desk because some of our clients are goddamn savages.  She immediately assumed this swore my allegiance to her rivals instead of it being a nice colored mug in the cabinet I found, making me dislike her even more intently.  I moved from dislike to outright hatred when she came with some of her brethren at ten to five and proceeded to linger.  Bitch ain’t nobody want to talk to you!  Also, why you got a posse?  Is this suddenly a dangerous neighborhood and no one else but you got the memo?

What do you want to change in your life? Make a list and jumpstart your to-change list with these crystals. For example, I am embracing the wisdom that less truly is more, I am ready to let go and release some of my belongings that no longer serve me and have become clutter, if you want to get more organized, l get some lazulite. Crystals and sacred stones can be a great source of clarity and help process emotions. Please note that I do NOT even consider crystals to be clutter. They are gorgeous and also helping the entire household with good vibes and good energy.   Also, I have never really had any jade, but recently, I feel like I need the grounding and stabilizing effects of this stone. Additionally, I need to get more prosperity-minded. I need to be better about saving money and thinking in terms of my future security so I’m not reading tarot out on the sidewalk when I’m 90! So, I have been walking through San Francisco’s Chinatown and feeling very attracted to different jades. I’m sure you feel such urges and attractions, too. Often, this might be your subconscious giving you a gentle nudge about some growing you need to do. Listen to those inner voices, and you will reap the benefits again and again.

Change Your Life With Sacred Stones: