Magickal Correspondences
July 2, 2008
by Jeffrey Pierce
There are numerous "side effects" of working magick. The ritual that seemed to take an hour took five minutes or the one you swore was five minutes long took an hour. Candles tend to either burn much faster or much slower during rites. Little things like that.
My home office (where I write Old Ways and conduct shamanic healing and counseling sessions) overlooks our back yard. There's obviously been a bit of magick done here since we've moved in and we had a family smudge on the lawn out back. Suddenly, every cat in the neighborhood has decided that our back yard and back porch is home. There were four out there yesterday morning and a total of seven hanging out (including our cat, Carmel) the night before that. The felines lay there, stretched out comfortably in the grass, or poke around, sniffing everything in sight, as if they're looking for something. In fact, one cat after another is starting to come up to the back screen door attached to my office and peek in while I'm working. While cat fights take place in front of our home and across the street, the backyard seems to be a sanctuary for the felines in our world. Three of them even cooperated in a hunt last night.
I'm taking it as a good omen that our home and our path is creating the right energy and that we're exactly where we're supposed to be.
Bri and I have our
holistic healing practice in full swing and we've had a
very positive reception from our clients. We're dedicated to offering more and keeping our prices lower than others providing similar services. After all, it's a "service," which to us implies that we're serving you when we do it - and both Bri and I are committed to doing exactly that.
What in the world is holistic healing? You'll find an
FAQ (Frequently Asked Questions) in our holistic healing section, but it's one of the key components of being a shaman. A shaman does more than simply work with the spirit world or guide others on their spiritual paths. He studies history and learns from what he sees there. He develops intuitive and psychic abilities to find the appropriate path to follow. And he heals, through energetic, spiritual, and physical means.
Bri and I have much more to offer you, large portions of which we'll be revealing over the course of the next week or two. Of course, Old Ways will continue to be at the very heart of everything we do. I put our vows and photos from
our handfasting online, detailed our experiences
at a sacred site in Nevada, shared the concept of using
transition points in ritual, a trip to
gather raw materials to craft ritual tools, and wrote numerous
blogs (most of them containing photos of the events the blog describes). And that was just over the course of the last week. To keep up with the new material here at Old Ways, I've changed the
publishing schedule page to reflect what's been added to the site, rather than what's coming up. You'll also find our ever-growing
offline calendar, detailing what we're doing in the community and where you may have a chance to meet us face-to-face or sit in on a workshop that I'm teaching (something that many of you have asked for the opportunity to do.)
And now, on to your mail.
Malakus wrote in to say, "I have been a follower of your website since 1980 and found it quite enjoyable. Today while attempting to get caught up on my reading I found that I was unable to access in you First Cycle material anything after Dec. 17, 2007. Is this a computer problem on my end or a glitch on yours. Looking forward to reading this material." Neither, actually. It simply hasn't been written yet. The content here at Old Ways is written "on the fly" and I post whatever is finished and ready for publication. One of the items at the top of my priority list is finishing
The First Cycle. We'll have it caught up soon.
After reading the blog,
Tool Gathering,
Wren wrote, "I appreciate your care in choosing your ingredients and components and, as a single mother, with only disability income, I appreciate that you wish to keep your handcrafted items and your classes within financial reach as well. I look forward to seeing all the lovely things you two have to offer!" Thanks, Wren. We're about a week to ten days away from having our companion site online. The domain names have been registered and I'm devoting a portion of my time to designing logos, writing product descriptions, and photographing items, while Bri is hard at work on the business plan. We'll share it all with you very soon.
In the
previous issue of Magickal Correspondences, I wrote about having left my office job to devote myself full-time to the spiritual community.
Anni, a cherished and long-time pagan friend of mine, wrote about one of her own teachers and the approach that the teacher takes with her own path. "She spoke of the times when the village or the wider community would support the work of the mystics and the healers. Like you, she came devoted to teaching and guiding. It has not been without its challenges, but when she opened her heart and her mind ... and she believes offered herself up to the whatever-is-greater in true humility ... her students began coming to her. The act of placing the "fee" for the retreat on the altar that was the center of the experience provided the opportunity for her to accept the fee with grace and humility and it permitted us to "offer it up" to her and to the forces which brought us there." Thank you so much for the advice and your blessings, Anni. I take a similar approach myself. And it's always a joy to hear from you.
Keith was one of many who wrote about Bri and myself fully embracing our path. "Glad that you are taking that step and walking into what is your path, fully. The word will be a better place for it. Thank you." He was also one of a handful of people who invited Bri and I to stop by while on our honeymoon, something she and I talked about and would have absolutely loved to have had the opportunity to do. (We don't just refer to you as our magickal family, we really do think of you that way.) Unfortunately, all of the invitations were farther south than we traveled. We
traveled without an itinerary and made it as far as the north rim of the Grand Canyon (a pretty amazing experience) before both Bri and I felt led to head toward home.
Thank you to everyone who has offered us your blessings, your support, and your encouragement as Briana and I embark on the latest chapter of our lives.
Psi was one of the many readers who wrote in and shared, "Last night I went to bed, wondering what to do when my current job ends. simply making money to provide for my family seems totally inadequate. While my path is not yet known, it was a pleasure to read of your path - and the ability of another to step into the unknown." It's a big step, but one that Bri and I have both dreamt about for years. The timing was right - and we're stepping out in faith, love and trust. May you have equal certainty finding your own path and may your own endeavors be extremely fruitful. Thanks for the email.
And with that, it's time to get back to work. As always, may these words find you and yours well and truly blessed. Blessed be.
In peace and light,
Jeffrey Pierce
www.oldways.com
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