Runecasting - Celtic Cross

A Celtic Cross is used in Rune divination when you want more information about whatever you're concerned about. Some Celtic Crosses draw six runes, and some draw ten. Following are the positions and their respective meanings. Typically the 1st rune is underneath the second, with the second rune in a horizontal crossed position over the rune. I depicted it to the side for visibility sake.

1. Heart of the matter
2. Opposing factor or primary obstacle
3. Root cause
4. Known influences
5. Past influences
6. New circumstances or coming influences
7. Your self and your current state of mind or position
8. Surrounding environment
9. Guidance
10. Outcome

In the first position, Sowilo speaks of energy made manifest. In other words, goals, changes we want to see in ourselves, anything that can be achieved using small, incremental changes. 

Fehu, standing in opposition, suggests that the status quo may stand in the way of positive change. We can either approach issues allowing luck to govern the outcome, or we can take charge of the situation, manifesting action from positive energy. Fehu also suggests ownership and debt which, when applied to the self, may not indicate tangible property or possessions, but instead holding on to old beliefs that no longer serve the changes we want to see.

In the root cause position, Berkano indicates birth, rebirth, emergence, and sanctuary. Our environment can shape our beliefs and Berkano suggests that change may be about reassessing those beliefs and emerging into a more fundamental viewpoint. Perhaps sanctuary is achieved by clearing out all the nonsense.

Known influences, in the fourth position, is reflected in Raidho, the journey we take when making decisions. Our inner, moral compass is at work, influencing our decisions based upon our knowledge of right and wrong.

Wunjo is in the fifth position of past influences. Joy, harmony, unity are influences represented by Wunjo and it's telling us to focus on those as a basis for future change.

New influences, in the sixth position, is represented by Jera. Patience is stressed, which makes sense given Sowilo in the first position. If small changes are to be introduced, then clearly in our immediate gratification world, patience will be necessary. Adopting an almost indifferent attitude may be key.

Ehwaz depicts the individual's current state of mind or position on the issue at hand. Trust, partnership, love, friendship are on the mind of the individual. There may be trust issues in a current partnership that need reevaluating. This makes the influences of patience that Jera suggests even more important. Staying present in the moment and not reacting impulsively is indicated.

The current surrounding environment is reflected by Kenaz, the rune to guide the individual on his or her quest. Discovery happens with Kenaz stressing knowledge as power. It offers us the opportunity to reforge our beliefs, creating anew who we want to become.

Inguz provides us with guidance. It's the seed of ideas, knowledge..the process of thought. It's creation, consciousness. Sowilo tells us to proceed incrementally. Inguz guides us to do just that, with a small seed of an idea blossoming into new creation or being. It suggests alignment with Source as a means of integrated centeredness.

In the outcome position, we have Uruz, the rune of becoming. Survival, growth, life force are all represented by Uruz. It suggests that whatever changes we want to make will result not just in our survival, but in control over our lives as we do so. Change isn't always easy, but Uruz indicates that it's part of the natural progression of our lives. Staying present and remaining non-judgmental will keep us undeterred on the path of becoming as we gently move through our lives.

I rarely begin a casting with a specific question. Instead, I simply ask what the runes would like me to know. It's amazing how prescient they can be. And I always learn something.

~ Blessed Be!

On being an empath in the new age

The end of the world is not upon us. Armageddon, the Apocalypse, it's all a metaphor for the end of an age..not the planet. We're not going to be physically taken up in any sort of Rapture. That's not what's happening. We've forgotten why we're here in the first place. We've forgotten who we actually are. We've forgotten that we are One with Source and with each other. We've forgotten that we can experience Heaven on Earth together. But none of that matters..the time is now for Oneness and no matter what roadblocks are put up, nothing is going to prevent that. 

The energy frequency of the Earth is increasing. We can no longer turn our backs on how we choose to live here. We must learn that living in harmony with and protecting our wonderful Gaia is critical. That means that collectively we have to deal with climate change, war, our ecosystem, and everything else that takes instead of gives. We don't have time for denial any longer. As the Earth's frequency increases, more and more Empaths, Indigo and Crystal children have been born to help usher in the new age where intuition and love will guide our relationships as well as our very existence. Angelic presence is felt by many who have also learned to ask for angelic guidance in their daily lives. The purpose of all of this is to help with that increase in frequency and to live in Oneness with others. 

The old paradigm is ending. It has no choice. It's nasty and hurtful and we watch as some of our lawmakers try to preserve the status quo by endless repeal attempts of our new healthcare law, voter suppression, the war on women and the middle class, and the disrespect and vitriol shown to our President. Try as they might to preserve the unworkable, we know that separation serves no one and will only lead to our destruction. But that's not going to happen. It's going to be difficult as the new age begins. It won't be comfortable. Those people who insist on separation will have an awful time because unity will ultimately prevail.Those who join in Oneness will have a better experience. So, if you've chosen separation, you might want to rethink that and be part of something amazing! Because it really is okay to care about people.

So, what on earth is an empath and how do we help bring about this inevitable change?

Empathy. We all have it to some degree. It's the ability to feel what others feel..to put ourselves in the shoes of someone else. Some of us, however, function as empaths. We feel everything. The fact is, all we are is energy...everything is, and our energetic bodies are actually more prominent than our physical bodies. We only have them as a temporary manifestation or projection so that we can experience life here in duality. Empath energy is faster than our physical energy so empaths must find a way to balance the two to stay present and to avoid illness. That increased energy flow is great when nothing interferes with it, but not everyone is comfortable being around us. We can do or say absolutely nothing, and still affect them. Somehow, they feel judged I guess, although that's not actually happening. Knowing isn't the same as judgment, but evidently it feels that way to others. It's like when you feel that someone can see right through you. Don't worry, it was just me and I'm not a threat at all. I see how you became the way you are..and all the childhood pain that brought you here. And I feel only compassion..

Although there are many similarities in empath expression, not everyone shares the same gifts or intensity. It's more of a continuum, I think. For me, it feels like my energetic or empathic body is more active and present than my physical body. And I see everything at once - the whole picture of something or someone. It may come as a simple awareness, or in great detail. Most say that they experience a general knowing about things that they have no personal knowledge of. Also, most share the gift of knowing when someone is lying. We're all clairsentient in some fashion, some more than others. Some are able to see non-corporeal entities and some aren't. Some are pre-cognitive, and some are telepathic. Or, if you're like me, a universal or implicate empath, you experience all of it in one form or another. It's weird, exhilarating, annoying, and amazing all at the same time. We're not insane, or crazy, although we might feel that way sometimes. I think we're just not completely "here". I think we're mostly "there". And that's why there are so many of us now helping to bring about a better life for all of us to experience. 

Empaths feel such a responsibility to get things right. We want to make sure people are safe and happy. We want to make sure the truth is both revealed and preserved. We're viewed as over-sensitive, over-reactive, over-you name it. Then we run around in an attempt to fix everyone's attitude toward us. It's as if we hand our feelings to others on a silver platter to do with as they will in an effort to preserve our place in their lives.

So why do we do this? We learn early on to respond in ways that mitigate whatever situation we're in. Unfortunately, truth isn't served this way, and eventually, it comes out anyhow. It also doesn't develop our empath abilities when we suppress our knowing to make our parents, teachers and friends more comfortable. But that's what we do to survive. In my case, it had the opposite effect. I seemed to become more aware which helped in negotiating my way through that family. 

I understand why some empaths choose a solitary life. It's easier than dealing with all the disparate energies around us. I'm about there, myself. Even traveling around the town where I live can be challenging. Volatility abounds out in the world and I pick up on it as I drive down the road. It's really freaky when we walk, which we do daily. Stores of any size can also be difficult, big box stores in particular. I don't always know where I begin and others leave off. And it's not always easy to center to figure it out when around volatile emotions. I was in a Costco recently and I had to cut the shopping trip short due to the frenetic energy inside. Energy was hitting me like gangbusters and I couldn't think clearly. I kept looking around to see if someone was about to attack me, but no one was even paying any attention to me. It was probably the worst experience I've ever had as an empath. The energy was so strong that I couldn't get control until after I left.

Living in the world, particularly now, requires engagement. It's critical that empaths understand how to engage in a way that not only helps others with their energy issues, but also prevents more vampiric energy from setting up house in your energy field. Most energy vampires don't realize what they're doing anyway, but some do and we really have to be vigilant with those people. They invade with intention and it's, well, icky. The others are usually just upset about something and choose empaths when needing to get something off their chest. And it doesn't seem to matter if they're complete strangers. Typically it happens to me in the check out line at the grocery store. I try to be supportive and respectful while keeping my frozen stuff frozen all at the same time. 

Many empaths grow up in abusive situations and feel as if we're born into the wrong family. Like we were switched at birth at the hospital or something. Except that we weren't. At some point, however, if we're going to be of help in this transition, we need to get a handle on what we're experiencing so that we can foster positive outcomes instead of wondering what the hell just happened.

So we have three options..we can engage, disengage, or observe. Observe, not absorb..that's the motto. That's the safest option, but it's not always realistic. It can make us seem aloof or indifferent to others, when nothing could be further from the truth. It's not uncommon for empaths to find work as healers of some type, so engagement for those folks is necessary. But are these three options mutually exclusive? I don't think so. Instead of observer, perhaps we can think of it is simply remaining non-judgmental. And maybe that's the key to the entire transition as we go forward.

Judgment involves the past and vain imaginings of the future. If we eliminate that and understand our essential Oneness, it becomes easier to maintain the higher frequency that's needed for the transition. Everyone will benefit from this. Even the people who resist. It just may take them a little longer to realize that. Eventually, even the most resistant will ultimately rest in the loving embrace of Family. And then they'll wonder what all the fuss was about. Staying in the Holy Instant, as A Course in Miracles suggests, is key, because there, we exist only in Love and extend that outward to everyone. And as we are all energy, all benefit from that loving extension.

But here's the cool part. As empaths, we don't have to fix any of the problems affecting the world unless we want to be a part of that. We only have to stay in the Holy Instant and be loving. That's it. Not everyone can be an activist for change. We simply need to keep our energy in balance and send out loving intention. Instead of reducing our energy frequency to match others, remain present, non-judgmental, and let others rise to ours. Trust me, it feels so much better to do that. I spent years engaging in other people's drama and all it got me was seriously ill, so it's far better the other way. Engagement doesn't always fix the drama, so deal with whatever you must, but stay as non-judgmental as possible in the process. Drama has only the meaning we give it. It has little power on its own. Staying firmly in the Holy Instant keeps us in the positive flow of creation. Anything less is fuel for more drama. It's better to remain part of the solution.

So, as we go forward into the new age, empaths should learn as much as possible about how they experience their time here. Less reaction, more observation, and knowing when to disengage will not only make our experience in this life less upsetting, but also make us more helpful to others. As the frequency rises, we'll have a much easier time of things and the oneness that we crave will prevail. And there's so much more support out there now for empaths. Lightworkers abound and are ready to help in any way possible. Empath forums exist to provide connection with other empaths to help as you discover more about your reality. We are living in exciting times. Let's embrace this transition together.

~ Blessed Be

Grow Journal - Out with the Old, In with the New

It's a new garden! The last one was terrific! I'll make oil from Pennywise to see how that comes out. Actually, I'll make oil out of most of it, maybe a little tincture as well. Patients are typically highly pro-active when figuring out what works for us. Really though, what choice do we have? I envy those patients who can have the conversation with their doctors. We're a credible source because we never give up until we find what works. We'll tell you honestly what works and what doesn't. We essentially have to become our own pharmaceutical company, researching strains and medication methodologies, to find our path to healing. Because, at the end of the day, that's what this is all about..healing.

Trust me, it's not cheap to grow cannabis. I suppose it could be, but given the fact that it's medicine, we have to be extraordinarily careful how we do it. I don't use pesticides and thank the Divine Mother that we don't have mites or any other critters wreaking havoc with the plants. When you have a compromised immune system, which many of us have, you cannot afford to ingest any crap that can make you more ill. So, no molds, bug bodies, fecal matter or pesticides (poison). I love the instructions on some of those pesticides..they never tell you that some of these things become systemic in the plant and is there really an acceptable level of poison to ingest? Or is this just another version of acceptable loss that seems to drive corporations these days?

In any event, I'm growing all new strains this time. They're all from TGA Genetics Subcool Seeds. Dr. Who, Cuvee', 9 lb Hammer, Mickey Kush, Galactic Jack, and Honeymoon Mix. Honeymoon Mix isn't in Sub's lineup anymore I don't believe, and I only had one seed and it ended up being a female! Plus, I've had it a while, but you wouldn't know it to look at the plant. It'll be clone-only, though, now that I don't have any more seeds and probably can't get them now. I love getting new seeds because then we have the chance to collect pollen and then create our own strains. That's so much fun. Last time I pollinated a branch of Jack the Ripper with Pennywise, creating a strain I called RipperWise. Soon, I'll start a couple and see what I get.

And now for the ladies!

9lb Hammer

Cuvee'

Dr. Who

Galactic Jack

Honeymoon Mix

Mickey Kush

And then a shot of the room

And also, here are a couple of pictures taken when gender appeared on 9lb Hammer and Mickey Kush:

9lb Hammer

Mickey Kush

Another garden, another adventure in growing! Livin' life under the purple lush!

~ Blessed Be this amazing plant!

Women as human shields??

So a cattle rancher named Bundy in Nevada decided in 1993 to stop paying the federal government for the privilege of grazing his cattle on BLM land. Listening to him on TV, it sure sounds like he doesn't believe in the federal government or any laws associated with it. The feds decided after all this time (not to mention the million dollar grazing bill) to round up the cattle (they rounded up 400 of the poor animals). Now we hear that during the stand-off, so-called allies of this rancher thought that using women as human shields seemed like a good idea. Really?

Were the women on board with this? Would the rancher's allies have resorted to using children and pets if the women were taken out by those pesky Feds? Were their parents next? Grandparents? Shoppers at the local Walmart? What price does everyone pay so that the rancher doesn't?

No one likes to pay the government for anything. We don't like taxes, but we like roads without potholes. If you use the federal government's land to graze your cattle, horses, sheep, or whatever critters you have, you pay for the privilege of doing so. It cost far less than owning your own property and theoretically is a win/win for ranchers and the Bureau of Land Management. The agency exists to, you know, "manage the land". Guys like Bundy have decided that they can call the shots and do as they please in the name of freedom. But this isn't freedom..it's anarchy. We may not always like what our federal or state governments do in our name or otherwise, but we can't simply devolve into this sort of nonsense.

Men who use women as shields are cowards. Nothing more, nothing less. This is the kind of crap that jihadists do. Isn't it interesting that these "allies" went there. And now this Bundy character is asking county sheriffs to "disarm the federal bureaucrats". It's become the wild west once again out here.

Harry Reid says this isn't over, and that we can't simply let this guy graze his cattle on land for free. That's not fair to all the other ranchers who pay what they owe. This man may view it as civil disobedience, but it's doubtful a judge will. He'd be wise to get on a payment plan to pay off the 1.1 million he owes. And in my humble opinion, he'd better cross his fingers that he's not prosecuted for this debacle.

And to the women..please don't let these idiots put you in harm's way in furtherance of their arrogance. You're all worth so much more than this. They're throwing you under the bus and risking your lives to behave like entitled babies. They've gotten off course. Their egos have run amok. Don't follow them off the proverbial cliff. You matter..to everyone, even if not to your men. They want to go to war with the Feds, then they can go to war with the Feds. But evidently standing up for what you believe in is easier when your wife stands in front of you. Because having a gun just isn't enough.

Cowardice. That's what it is. And it's alive and well in the wild wild west.

Grow Journal - week 8

I harvested Pennywise..nice bud structure and the top colas were large and very nicely shaped. Now it's drying and when it's done, I'll make oil. It's the first time I've used a high CBD plant for oil so it will be interesting to see what effect it has on rheumatoid arthritis. Research is suggesting that it does well for inflammation and pain, so I'm eager to see how it works.

My greatest concern over the CBD strains is that state legislators are confused about the need for THC as well for medicine. CBD is not psychoactive in the same way that THC is, so they're all excited...which is great...but they need to understand that THC is necessary as well for healing. As usual, they throw the proverbial baby out with the bath water in an effort to do what feels acceptable to them. But what they all miss here is the fact that they are operating under false assumptions. They need to deal in facts when crafting legislation, not the scare tactics of the anti-legalization crowd. Those people don't care about the truth, only profits, and that's at the heart of the lie. Rescheduling cannabis at least would allow for research, which would ultimately lead to everyone calming down and then legalization will happen. They can't stop it now. It's here to stay.

So, rant over..here's Pennywise outside the room..in front of my awesome new refrigerator. Which I love. My other one made a clunking sound when the compressor shut off.  Poor thing. I waved goodbye as the nice people from Lowes took it away.

day 53

done!

Filly Bean

day 53

day 57

Timewreck

day 53

day 57

The Flav

day 53

day 57

Vortex

day 53

day 57

Orange Vision

day 53

day 57

Last shot of the last 5 plants in the grow

As you can see, the plants are in their final autumning off. We'll harvest the rest of them over the next week. Then we'll clean the area completely before bringing the six young un's in to finish vegging and then flowering. In Oregon, we're allowed only six that we can let grow to finish. We're allowed additional, but they must be no larger than a foot by a foot. So, everything has to be kept small until they can go into the other area. Sometimes that involves re-cloning off of existing clones to stay in compliance. Some of the small plants are used raw in smoothies, so something is always happening medicinally in the grow room. Raw cannabis has wonderful acids in it that are so healing. Everyone should be ingesting raw cannabis. Some use raw bud in smoothies; however, I don't care for the taste, so I just use leaf. And, it has the added benefit of being non-psychoactive, so healing without the high. I like that. Altered states are nice, but sometimes it's not appropriate, so I especially like the versatility of this plant.

Eventually, the worms will give us enough castings to make tea and to use when making our super soil and I won't have to buy them anymore at the grow store. I love that place, but I like to be as self-sufficient as possible, so currently the worms are living in my kitchen. Soon, however, they'll move to the flower room where they'll provide my ladies with natural CO2. 

It's a Lush life in the garden!

~Blessed Be!

Disrespect over governing..

Once again, Senate Republicans have blocked the Paycheck Fairness Act..evidently this makes the third time. Why can't these idiots understand that women deserve to be paid the same as a man for doing the same work? Oh, they'd have a hissy fit if it happened to any of them. But women aren't apparently worth the same in the workplace. Or any other place it seems.

It's sad that we need a law enacted to protect us from business owners who can't seem to do right by us. Equal pay should be a given. I remember when I was in high school and my mother was dealing with this crap. She did everything a male supervisor did and got half as much in her paycheck as the guy did. The company's attitude was that men were the breadwinners and women worked to bring in fun money to the family. Fun money..can you imagine that? My mother, at that time, was still married to my father and we needed both paychecks to make it each month. This inequality continued after they were divorced and she was a single mother. Women were second class citizens then, and if the Republicans have their way, we will be again.

Women work hard. We work hard at our respective jobs (many times minimum wage jobs) and then we have to come home and work hard there as well, taking care of our families. We put up with sexual harassment and if we speak up, we're denigrated even further. After all, it's just a compliment, right? We're too emotional, right? Wrong. We also want affordable health insurance for ourselves and our families. The Republicans have voted over fifty times to repeal the Affordable Care Act. What's wrong with them??? Why do they not want us to have health insurance that actually covers what we need it for? What are they afraid of?

Which brings up reproductive rights..you remember those..we dealt with this a long time ago. Abortion and birth control are legal. But you'd think the Republicans were absent that day because they are still sticking their noses in our constitutionally protected business. Leave us alone. Mind your own business. No one is going to tell me what I can do with my body..not now..not ever. And guess what..I don't know any women out there who feel any different about this than I do. Except those empty headed idiots on FOX. Where on earth did they find these women? They're beyond clueless and only serve to further on the ridiculous Republican male obsession with our vaginas. 

Michael Hayden, former Director of the NSA, thinks that Senator Dianne Feinstein is too emotional when talking about the report on torture. I love it when men go there. She put him in his place..fussy baby that he is. Emotional? Just listen to my husband talk about torture. Emotional doesn't even begin to describe how he feels about it. He's a disabled Vietnam Veteran. He wants the entire Bush Administration put in prison for, well, everything. It doesn't matter if it's torture or the financial crisis, he wants all of them in jail. Here's the thing about torture. It's illegal. Any service member who was given the order to torture has the responsibility to refuse that order. To participate in such atrocities is a war crime in his belief. He goes completely ballistic (emotional) when he hears Cheney or Rummy defend what they did. And for President Bush to say now that he's concerned about the soldiers that served is too appalling for words. He should have thought about that before instituting stop-loss. He can save his concern for someone who buys into his crap, because no one is listening anymore.

I would like to see all of them lose in the next election because that's what they deserve. We have to get our country back on track. We need lawmakers who understand the constitution and have a genuine desire to make life better for the American people. We need Congress to behave like adults and remember why they were elected. We need compassion and respect that clearly doesn't exist now. Unfortunately, that doesn't exist in the Republican Party or their Tea Party subset. When conservatism devolves into the radical destruction of our country, we cannot afford to have them in government any longer.

Besides..the sisterhood is weary of it all. So, either learn to play nice or go away. Or we'll make your lives a living hell..you know, by voting.

Grow Journal - week 7

The ladies are almost done..another week probably..all in all, Lush Lighting makes some really great lights. LED is the way to go for sure for indoor gardens. Fuller light spectrum makes for better growth as well as increased resin production which is great when making tinctures and oil. Also, the worms are doing well, they're still working through the first section, or should I say eating through the first section. At some point, and I don't know when that is, we'll add another tray on top and begin feeding them there. We have four trays total I believe. 

And now for the ladies:

Filly Bean

day 47

day 50

Vortex

day 47

day 50

Timewreck

day 47

day 50

The Flav

day 47

day 50

Pennywise

day 47

day 50

Orange Vision

day 47

day 50

The Garden

I love growing things! We are all connected energetically..the earth, plants, the universe..all of us. Growing anything puts your energy into that life. Growing medicine that heals is the most satisfying thing I've ever done, whether it's herbs or cannabis. Cannabis has saved my life and brought my health under control. Anyone who still believes that cannabis isn't safe to use either recreationally or medicinally is buying into a lie that has destroyed lives through incarceration and ultimately death in the case of people suffering from cancer and other life threatening conditions. All those years ago, profits were preferred over people, and we haven't learned that lesson yet because prohibition is alive and well, even in states where it's either legal completely, or medically so. Laws enacted to protect patients are circumvented by local cities who continue to buy into the lie by delaying the opening of legal dispensaries and other roadblocks they put in place. Cynicism has triumphed over truth and patients suffer in the process.

Growing my own medicine has been such a blessing. I have always preferred truth over propaganda and to be able to heal myself this way when doctors were unable to do so has been so gratifying. We all possess an endocannabinoid system that has been depleted over time because we no longer consume hemp. Without replenishing the cannabinoids in our bodies, an imbalance occurs and we become ill. Not only can hemp (and cannabis) heal our bodies, but it can also save the earth. 

The insanity must stop. We must end prohibition. 

~ Blessed Be ~