Category: Rituals
Posts on ritual as the structure that holds intention in place — solo and group, scripted and improvised, the high-ceremony kind and the quiet daily kind.
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Florence + the Machine: When a Concert Becomes a Ritual
At a Florence + the Machine concert, I recognized the same charged collective energy I’d felt in Southern Baptist tent revivals and large Wiccan gatherings. Different traditions, same underlying current—songs functioning as spells and prayers.
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Why I Set My Intentions at the First Degree of Capricorn (Not January 1st)
I mark the new year at the first degree of Capricorn, not January 1st—and the Winter Solstice Burning Bowl ritual is why my intentions actually hold.
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No Coincidence: Everything in Its Right Time
It’s said that people come into your life for a reason, a season, or a lifetime. But really, regardless of the length of time, it’s always for a reason. Sometimes a person comes into your life only for a brief period–five minutes, two weeks–not enough to qualify as a season but for a very specific…
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Dating the Mentally Ill
Mama always told me, when I was a teenager, “They’re best to you while they’re courting you.” It was a warning against all men, but she didn’t mean it as a misandrist attack. She’d had experience with really only one man, and he was the basis for her conclusions. She married a young man who…
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Paula Deen, World War Z Zombies, and Real-Time Communications with Digital Pitchforks
What do Paula Deen and the zombies of the movie WORLD WAR Z have in common? The evolution of the “virus” of communication in real-time. Last weekend, I saw the new Brad Pitt movie WORLD WAR Z. Even before the zombie apocalypse became routine, I was a fan of zombie books and movies, particularly THE…
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Sacred Space: An Outdoor Altar
A simple and discreet outdoor altar To you, it’s a very simple, very discreet outdoor altar and stone circle. To your neighbors, your in-laws, your kids’ friends, and the meter reader, this arrangement looks like a stone bench or possibly a table in your garden, and a circular path. All you need to shift between…
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Health: Renew Life’s Total Body Rapid Cleanse Review and Tips, Day 4 of 7
Previous day. This is Day 4 of this product review series on Renew Life’s Total Body Rapid Cleanse. For those of you who were concerned that I didn’t post Day 4 right away, no worries–it didn’t kill me! Simply, I’m under multiple deadlines.
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G Is for Get Over It
Though the term get over it has been used as early as 1839, it’s been a useful and oft-used buzzword since the early 90’s. As part of my spiritual practice, I will be using it more. I can be the politest and most compassionate person in the world, but at times when I am truly…
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Health: Renew Life’s Total Body Rapid Cleanse Review and Tips, Day 3 of 7
Continued from Day 2: This is Day 3 of this product review series on Renew Life’s Total Body Rapid Cleanse. For those of you who were concerned that I didn’t post Day 3 right away, I was under deadline with The Secret Lives of Librarians…only a couple more chapters to go! The cleanse had nothing…
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Eclectic Spirituality: What It Isn’t, What It Is, and Why It’s Important
Over the course of two weeks back in 2009, three strangers on separate blogs and articles referred to me as “the Mother of the Spiritual Eclectic Movement” or “the Mother of Eclectic Spirituality.” I was stunned. I had never thought of myself that way before, mainly because I don’t believe I
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Health: Renew Life’s Total Body Rapid Cleanse Review and Tips, Day 2 of 7
This is Day 2 of this product review series on Renew Life’s Total Body Rapid Cleanse. Day 2 Tips: The morning and evening fiber drink can be pretty nasty if you toss one scoop of fiber-powder into a glass of cold water. Here’s a better way: Put 1 scoop of fiber into a glass. Take…
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Health: Renew Life’s Total Body Rapid Cleanse Review and Tips, Day 1 of 7
Okay, I promise this review isn’t about poop! Hmmm, maybe a little, but that’s just one of the results some people look for when they “do a cleanse.” Since I write quite a bit about health products as part of my mind-body-spirit news and this is the first time I’ve tried one of these quickie…
