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Is there any land more pagan than Brittany? Armorica, Land by the Sea, where Druids dance, Little Britain, home to Carnac and ten thousand Standing Stones?

Come walk with me among the serried ranks of Marching Stones, my friend, and let us speak of What Might Have Been...

The Armorican Revolution

The United States of Armorica

Gods Bless Armorica

“Gods bless Armorica, my home sweet home.....”

“As Armorican as apple pie.”

Britanny is widely known for its apple orchards.

Armoricana

“A collection of things relating to the history, geography, or folklore of Brittany.”

Armoricanize

Armoricanization

Armorica the Beautiful

“Armorica, Armorica, gods shed their grace on thee....”

AFL (Armorican Federation of Labor)

Why do Druids love acronyms so much?

The Armorican Legion

Armorica (song from West Side Story)

I like to be in Armorica,

OK by me in Armorica,

Everything's free in Armorica,

For a small fee in Armorica.

Armorica's Cup

And, of course....

The normal association with mistletoe at this time of the year is the cut stuff we bring indoors to decorate with. However, there’s more mistletoe celebrating to be done than this!

Once the leaves are down from the trees, you have your best chance at finding mistletoe in the wild. It doesn’t grow everywhere – I used to struggle to see any at all when I lived in the Midlands, but Gloucestershire (south west UK) has loads. As you can see from the photo, mistletoe in trees isn't always that self announcing and you have to pay attention to spot it - which makes finding it all the more rewarding.

"The Clearest way into the Universe is through a forest wilderness."

John Muir 1890. 

I’m a rather busy Druid, however well intended I am and regardless of my attempts at time management, I find that I am oft surprised by the speeding passage of time. As I write these words of black on a screen of white, I glance over the top of my PC screen onto the late winter landscape of the little island that I live upon, and I consider – where on earth did all the time go? It feels like Midwinter was only a couple of weeks ago, Hen Galan – old Welsh new year – merely days ago, and yet a month has shot by. At times I feel like I hit an oil patch at 23 and I am now skidding uncontrollably towards the grave, and the brakes are off!

But you see, I’m not just a Druid, I have other tags that sit casually upon my shoulder, like so many of you reading this post I have a plethora of identities struggling to find moderation in a busy life. For those of you who are not familiar with me, permit me an indulgent moment as way of introduction. Indeed, I am a Druid, and head a small but busy Druid Order in Wales. I also write books on Celtic mythology, Paganism, death, dying and bereavement. That concoction may well have you scratching at your head, a scratch that hopefully will desist when you realise that I also work for Her Majesty’s Coroner in morgue, autopsy and bereavement services. I am also a part time actor on Welsh language television. All of this combined with teaching death midwifery, understanding bereavement, and experiential Druidry courses is sometimes rather bewildering, and leaves me often feeling as my grandmother would say – not knowing my ass from my elbow!

But suffice for now, that is enough about me, lest one must smear narcissistic butter round the doorframe to get my head through it!

Hello! My name is Jean Pagano and I am a Druid. I also go by the name “Drum”, so you may see me called by either one. I am a neo-pagan. I am honoured to have been asked to blog for this fine collection of writings.

I am a very long-time member of ADF and RDNA. RDNA is the oldest Druidic organisation born in America (circa 1963) and it has two tenets: a) Nature is Good; and b) Nature is very Good. As a neo-pagan, I think that everyone can agree on these two important and fundamental notions. In RDNA, we venerate the Earth Mother, Be’al, and a number of other deities. I am a Druid of the Third Order in RDNA and a priest.

It’s the first day of December, and most of the leaves are now down from the trees where I live. There’s one little ash tree that is, somehow, still mostly green but the yellows are creeping in there, too. It’s been a matter of weeks since enough leaves fell from the horsechestnut to reveal the bird feeder I put there last year.

During the summer, bird watching is a difficult activity because there’s so much cover. Seeing a whole bird isn’t easy unless you can put up a bird table and lure them out into the open. In years when I’ve been able to do that, it’s still not been easy to see birds in summer because most of them prefer to be in the trees or out in the fields. I’ve noticed that birds tend to return to urban gardens in the winter, they’ve got wise to bird feeders.

What role should magic play in our lives? Were there ever female druids? And just what does the future hold for polytheism? These are among the questions we try to address in today's Watery Wednesday, our weekly take on news about the Pagan community. All this and more for the Pagan News Beagle!