Week 13: Nine Virtues: Wisdom

Related to Requirement: #1 – Nine Virtues
Required Reading:

• Our Own Druidry, p. 15 (Virtue, Piety and Study); 
• Our Own Druidry, 85-90 (Lore and Essays) 

Suggested Reading:

• A Virtuous Life Nine Virtues study guide

But first, recap of last week since I didn't get anything up.

Some how I got ahead of the group, so I had a bye week last week. I used the time to create a set of rune staves and to spend lots of time outside (to the dismay of my sunburnt ears and nose). I also finally got the Beltane ritual written.

I'm really happy with how the rune staves turned out, even if this is just meant to be a temporary set until I can get better wood working skills. Also, I probably shouldn't have started them just before lunch as I was starving by the end since it took a good 2 hours. I'm not sure how true they read, but since I'm really bad at interpretation anyway, I think it'll probably be ok. I have switched from iPod divination to drawing a rune instead during my devotional. Its practice and that is needed.

Mom requested a new retaining wall and a trip to the zoo for her birthday. So I spent most of Friday and Saturday outside, working and walking. Walnuts hurt to have jammed into your knees and penguins and polar bears are pretty cool (pun not intended). Sunday was spent inside helping Grandma around the house, which was not really how I wanted to spend it... but it needed to be done and I was the one available. And it wasn't too bad this time: just moving heavy stuff she can't manage and some computer stuff.

Writing the ritual was more of a thing than I was expecting it to be. I'm not sure if I was just blocked or if I'm a horrible litergist. Or both. At any rate, after combing through... several... books, every non-shitty website I could find, and a couple shitty websites that at least weren't racist, I finally got enough information to write this. I really need to find reliable sources of information. I have more research and information on exactly how the pleating was done on viking apron dresses than I have on what the appropriate deities are for different holidays. I'm going to publish at least the parts of it that I wrote after Beltane so other folks have a bit of an easier time. At any rate, ritual is written and sent off for editing.

Week 12: Ancestors, The Mighty Dead

Related to Requirement: #9 – Relationships to Kindred

Required Reading:
 Our Own Druidry, p. 120-121 (Kindred Attunement Work)
 Our Own Druidry, p. 42 (The Ancestors)

Optional Reading:
 "Ancestors Invocation" by Jennifer Ellison
 "A Beginner's Guide to Genealogical Research: or How I Connected to My Ancestors" by Meghan E. M.
 "Ancestors For Those Without Ancestors" by Renee Rhodes
 The Solitary Druid by Rev. Skip Ellison, p. 85-86

I'll come back to the ancestors later. This entry is mostly going to be catch up.

Nature:
It's spring. the trees are having sex and I can't breathe. I've not gotten as much yard work done yet as I really wanted to do, but there's time. Well, for most of it.  Looks like I should have gotten the strawberries in 2 weeks ago, as opposed to in 2 weeks when I have time and money to make it happen. But I should be able to get the mint in this spring. Or at least start getting the soil amended to what both strawberries and mint want.

This is my outside. Lawn and garden. I'm trying to not tear up too much stuff and to keep things still decently wild (or wild for suburbia) so that the Nature Spirits don't deal with too much change at once. Once the fence is re-built, I'll plant a bunch of butterfly bushes and other critter friendly plants.

I really dont know if this is what they want for nature awareness.

Meditation/ Mental Training:
This, contrary to all my expectations, is going ok. I'm not going to say it's going great, but the forcing myself to take time in the mornings is at least making me feel less anxious (most mornings). I'm still continuing with the Anywhere Devotional that I started out with. I do still need to create a proper rune set. In all the copious spare time I have for crafting.

Luna is being problematic in the mornings now that it's nice out. She makes it her goal to be as obnoxious as possible so I'll let her out in the mornings. Which means yowling at the top of her lungs, drinking from the well, trying to set herself on fire...  It's a bit distracting when I'm trying to be reach out to the kindreds.

I need to continue working on the two powers meditation. Will probably do that tonight after dinner while working on the stuff for ancestors.

I-E Studies:
I haven't touched this in weeks.

Week 6: first book started: I-E Studies

Week 6: first book started: I-E Studies
Related to Requirement: #3 – Book Reviews
Required Reading:

• Our Own Druidry, p. 19 - 20 13-14(Concerning the Reading of Books) 
• Our Own Druidry, Appendix B, p. xiii (writing a book review) 
• Start on one book from the list of IE titles at the ADF Website, A Recommended Reading List

All the books I'm reading were chosen by my ability to order them through work and thus, payroll deduct the cost.  Also, no shipping.  There are a few other books that I want to read, but they'll need to wait a bit.

For the I-E studies requirement, I'm reading The Myth of Matriarchal Prehistory.  Since I was unaware that this is a thing, this should be interesting.  I totally get the urge to assume a pre-Christian utopia... but that's just not borne out by the sagas and archaeological evidence.  There is some evidence that suggests that relationships were more egalitarian in some areas than they were after conversion, however, that is far from universal and not the same as equal (or even not a patriarchy.)

I need to locate my notes from a couple of classes.  For additional background and so I feel like I can properly talk about all this.  Because what's the point of having a history degree if you can't use it for stuff? And this and proving that I don't /really/ need to take the history class to be on cast at the local RenFaire are about all its good for!

At any rate, I guess I'm watching curling matches on tv tonight, as that lets me read and removes my laptop from being a distraction. 

UPDATE FROM WEEK 5:

I finally finished the readings from last week over my lunch break today.  I have not, however, spent any thing approaching enough time outside.

I accomplished next to nothing DP or Grove related over the weekend.  So I need to look up the appropriate Shining and Noble ones in Norse Mythology for the Maitag ritual this week.  And get my notebook organized again.

Starting a rune set will have to wait until after the olympics.  I have less than a week to knit 18 rows.  So... runes... week after next.  Which, conveniently enough, will be after I have my home altar set up to ADF standards and the same week that I officially start meditation.

Week 5: Nature Awareness 1

Related to Requirement #7: Nature Awareness 1
Required Reading:

• Week 5 in WotY
• Our Own Druidry p. 39-43 (Attunement to Nature and the Kindred) 

Optional Reading:

• Urban Druid 
• Honoring the Environment Through Religion 
• Loving Our Mother 
• Learning from the Trees

We got a massive snow storm here last week, dropping about 8.5 inches of snow.  Then 2 days later, we got another inch or so.  And it's been cold enough that what melt was happening... just refroze overnight.  It's just now getting consistantly over freezing during the day (barely... 33 today for the high), and is supposed to be in the 40s over the weekend, so I have hope I'll actually be able to be outside without wishing I was dead next week.

The upshot of this is that due to snow being most of the way up to my knees and over the tops of my boots... I've not hugged a tree for an hour this week.  I've done the readings, but... no outside. I am going home to my parent's this weekend, and should be able to spend some quality time in the park by their house.  Or go to the zoo with my nephew (I'm totally voting this! But not sure his mother will agree.)

If it's warm enough, I should at least be able to sit on Mom and Dad's porch swing and swing and knit and be.  My meditation work isn't going very well, so maybe being outside will help.