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The primary source of heat in our home is our wood stove, and is an important part of my spiritual practice during the cold months of the year. This winter about half of the wood that we are using comes from our land and the rest has been purchased from someone in our county. The fuel we use is local and from the soil of our bioregion. I have a good sense of how long it took for the trees to grow, and the weather and water that fed their growth.  Relying upon the wood stove focuses my awareness, gratitude, and mindfulness in many ways. We do have a modern heating system as a backup plan, but its biggest purpose is to keep the house warm when we are all away on a trip.

Earth Element:
With its bounty, the land sustains life. The plants and trees that grow on the earth nourish us and replenish our air. The earth provides the structure by giving us a firm foundation for our lives. The rocks are the bones that we build our homes on.

Brown Bear:
Brown bears are one of the oldest recorded totemic beings. Ancient legends tell of people sharing caves with bears. (People were contemporaries of cave bears (Ursus speleus) in Eurasia.) Early people often sought permission from the elders and from the bears themselves, before hunting a bear. Brown bears are powerful shamanic beings that connect people with Mother Earth through their caves.

Fire is a very powerful element well they all are really in their own special ways.  Fire has the ability to cleanse and clear away through the force of destruction.  Sometimes we do need to burn away negative influences and energy to be able to restart.  Not literally of course, I am not encouraging anyone to burn down houses! 

Fire can be used in spell work to burn petitions, to scry, for burning herbs and of course to provide heat for night time rituals.   PLEASE… (I know I don’t really have to say this but…) if you are in the woods or forest area check that you are allowed to start a fire (a lot of places don’t give permission for obvious reasons).  If you are given the go ahead make sure you take the proper precautions and don’t let it get out of hand, a fire in the woods or grassy fields can cause a huge amount of damage not only to the land and plants but also to the animals that live there.

I've recently finished co-teaching a six week class titled "Elements of Magic". It is one of the core pieces of magic I teach in the Reclaiming Tradition.I revisit this work every so often as a teacher and as a student. In my last post, I talked about my explorations with Air. Now I'm moving into Fire (cue music -The Ohio Players "Fire" )

Re-igniting The Spark -

February is probably my favorite month.  It has little to do with the season and a lot to do with it being the month I was born.  For such a short month, I always feel like there is so much going on in it. 

Imbolc, Candlemas, Brigid

In today's Fiery Tuesday post, we are taking a break from activism and politics (we figure it being Voting Day in the U.S. is pretty much enough of *that* kind of news) and are concentrating on Elemental Fire. Fiery videos, erupting volcanoes, Ragnarok and climate change, and #Gamergate. A pretty fiery mix!

First up is a mysterious and enthralling video entitled "Bridge Brothers Fire" sent to us by a reader. Now you know everything that we do -- is this a ritual? An art project? A shamanic dream? Whatever it is, we sure enjoyed watching it!