As I mentioned earlier today, I’m out with a spine injury right now. This means I’m not even at home, where all my things are, and am stuck convalescing (I have no idea if I spelled that right) in an apartment building that constantly smells of soup. (Ah, mature living. I cannot wait for that fate to be mine. Also, hello, Snarky Morag today.)
Now. Not that I had a consistent practice, or anything, but it also was just the start of the new year when my back went out and I was in the process of maybe, well, you know, fucking doing something.
I’d even managed to get one of my altars re-done and all pretty and didn’t even get a chance to take a picture of it before ow, bulging discs. (Which, bee tea dubs, hurts like crazy. Like “I want to die right now” crazy.) It’s my altar to Aphrodite and it’s gorgeous, I mean really special. I gave Her the entire top of my antique dresser, because She didn’t have much room in my previous arrangement and that was bugging me.
IRONY BEING I CANNOT HAVE SEX WITH MY INJURED BACK.
Ok, no, that’s not the WHOLE deal with Aphrodite, I know that. It’s just a big part of my deal with Her because She and I became acquainted at Her temple at the pagan gathering where I met my boyfriend — I prayed to Her and gave Her an offering and asked for Her blessing, because I was in need of love and solace. Voila: love of my life, best sex ever for four hours, no sleep, it was awesome. He gave me his bacon at breakfast. I should have realized then it was love.
Anyway, She delivers, all I’m saying, and I’ve been trying to set aside Fridays to give Her offerings. Hence the nice fancy altar.
FUCK I’M GETTING OFF TRACK.
So, the point I’m trying to make here in my convoluted rambling of no import is that I have set aside days that I see as sort of connected to my various deities. Wednesday is Manannan mac Lir’s day; Thursday is Morrigan’s; Friday is Aphrodite’s; and Sunday is Brighid’s. This gives me Monday/Tuesday/Saturday off and thank Them for that, because it’s honestly almost impossible for me to even remember Fridays for Aphrodite and my Cill shift schedule for Brighid.
And I’m trying to change that. I’m trying to be better about worshiping — even in a small way — every week.
So I had this epiphany (finally she gets to the fucking point, you loudly think): blogging. I don’t mean a simple blog post; I mean an entire blog, dedicated to each deity, where every week or every other week I write something as a dedication. It’s something I can do — within my vocation, my job, is writing. It has the option for multimedia. I will be not only offering to Them in a semi-permanent place, but I will be sharing those offerings with other devotees of Them — which is in itself an offering (in my not-so-humble opinion). And, best of all, it’s portable. I can do a blog post whenever I can get to a computer, and I never leave my laptop for any length of time. (Going to school, only, and only because I have a back injury.)
I’m going to try it, at least. I’m going to see how well it works. I have no idea what to call each blog, but expect links to them to show up in the next week or so. I’ll be doing them via blogspot, where I already have my Dedicant Path Notebook for my work on the ADF Dedicant’s Path. (And boy, can you see how much my cunctatitis affects me there! Holy fuck. It doesn’t help that I’m now having another crisis over hearth culture. Arg. But that’s another blog post. And one for over there.)
Ok, lovelies. See you tomorrow.
Or a month from now. WHO EVEN KNOWS.
I think that writing blog entries is a good idea to help with your worship schedule. It may not be the exact way you want to worship right now,but at least it’s something. 🙂
I hope you heal quickly. Sending some positive, healing thoughts your way.
Thank you. 🙂
How did you decide on what days to dedicate to whom? It’s something I’ve been trying to work on, without much success. (Also, 12 gods into 7 days. Um.) I love your idea, though, in blogging as offering. I may snag it, in a modified form. (I’ve tried the multiple blog thing before without much luck.)
At any rate, good luck! And I hope you’re starting to feel better.
Oooh, well. Easy question; complicated answer.
Thank you! Feel free to snag away.
For Manannan/Wednesday, I was reading in Ellen Dugan’s Book of Witchery that Wednesday is associated with Mercury and Hermes. As I associate Manannan with those two gods, it seemed a logical next step. Reason for associating Manannan and the Roman and Greek gods of travel and commerce: if you live on Vancouver Island, which I do, your whole life depends upon BC Ferries. Because Manannan is the sea and the ferries I see as representative of Hermes and Mercury, I see the gods having a partnership.
Hope that makes sense.
Friday for Aphrodite is based off Friday being associated with Venus. They’re different goddess, but I felt They were similar enough to share a day. Also, I personally associate Friday with date night and other relationshipy things for various reasons not least of which my relationship is long-distance and our visits usually are on weekends.
Sunday — day for the sun, and I see Brighid as the sun.
Thursday — well, this one is the weird thing. Because Tuesday is usually the day associated with warlike deities. However, Morrigan is not all about war — not to me — and I feel She’s more a sovereignty goddess than anything else. Thursday is Jupiter’s day — both planet and deity — and I have always felt a strong connection to the planet Jupiter. I feel a connection between Jupiter and the concept of sovereignty. That’s really the best way I can put it.
Hope that helps?
12 into 7 would be difficult. Maybe some of Them would like to share? Or you could create a new week that’s 12 days long, each day named after each deity. That would be a massive amount of work, but it’s an idea at least.
That definitely helps, thank you. I spent the morning working and arranging, and I now have a schedule (2 deities per day with Saturday off.) I think I’m going to ease into it one deity at a time, though, or else I’m going to burn myself out entirely!
Yay! And good plan, on 2 deities/day with one day off. Probably the most sensible way to split up the week. 🙂
I definitely understand trying to remain consistent.
Daily, I give offerings to Sekhmet and give Legba coffee. On Saturdays, I try to do something for Ghede. But aside from that, I haven’t managed to come up with something as dedicated as I’d prefer. It’s aggravating since it is mostly due to laziness combined with forgetfulness.
I know exactly what you mean. I’ve got a terrible memory at the best of times, and it seems intent on forgetting things where I actually have to do something. (It’s fantastic for remembering useless piles of information, however. Ask me my mom’s license plate number.) (I won’t say because this is public, but I do know it.)
Add concussion and pain pills, and, well, I am the worst priestess ever.
My brain is full of useless knowledge, too. At least, I no longer remember the phone num– Nope. Never mind. I still remember my childhood phone number, which has been out of use for ten plus years now. Erg.
I’m the same way: lazy and forgetful. Were it not for Google Calendar I would not be able to function at the level that I do!
If it wasn’t for Google Calendar, I’d forget to pay my bills.
I love calendar applications. I’m terrible at remembering to use them, though. And I have two paper dayplanners that stay blank most of the year.
…I have serious issues, apparently. >.<
Oh well, than you are not alone. Because it sounds really familiar… empty calendars and everything in the google calendar but forgetting to check it? Sooo me.
It was very difficult for me to get to a constant practice. So I hear you there.
Consistency is one of my big problems. Something I am trying to work on. And I completely understand being thrown off your quasi-schedule and being separated from you mystical woo-woo stuff. I have finally eked out enough room in the camper for a small altar. No room to actually do anything in the camper, and the weather is so crappy outside it’s difficult to convince myself to go do something.
As the weather improves, I hope to start getting back to the rituals and practices that are important to myself, and my gods.
I look forward to reading your dedication entries.