BetterYYC, Starhawk, and.... Stuff

To create a #betteryyc we need to engage the next generation, the children. Not just with special one off events - although those are good too - but also on a daily basis, both singly and in groups. Always remembering that they learn by example, by copying what they see us doing and not by what we say if our actions don't match our words. In order to encourage them to help create a #betteryyc we need to let them see us working towards the same goal, no matter on how large or small a scale.

Alone I cannot change the world but I can cast out a stone that will create ripples. (Or something like that!)

@BetterYYC - Do one thing today towards creating a #betteryyc

Reading an anthology recently - Storming Heaven's Gate - I ran into a piece called "Street Trees" by Melody Ermachild Chavis, taken from her book Altars of the Streets. In it, she too talks about involving the children in hopes that they will grow up with a sense of community, of belonging, of being a part of something worth being proud of and taking care of instead growing up apart from their home and community.

Btw insanely jealous of @JacqMulyk not only for attending the City Repair workshop in Portland, but also for meeting Starhawk there! Jealous, much lol. Pretty sure that I've mentioned before the influence that Starhawk's work has had on me, both in life and in my path. And I believe the site in Portland is also the one Starhawk talks about visiting in The Earth Path. Not that I would know what to say if I ever met the lady anyway, except possibly "I'm not worthy!" ;) Side note, no surprise either that Z Budapest ( @zbudapest ) has also been a considerable influence, as has Christopher Penczak ( @Penczak ) to mention a couple.

In the Earth Path it is pointed out that to create community requires a place to congregate. That, at least, we have in my immediate neighbourhood - in my pocket neighbourhood. Yeah I know I'm taken with that phrase, but it sums up our apartment complex perfectly-ish - a cluster of houses or apartments surrounding a central shared space. Not that we can do much with it, don't think the landlords would like it, but at least unlike the complex a block over we ARE allowed to play and congregate here. Not kidding, next complex over has large signs saying No playing, running, balls or games of any kind, please use the public parks provided elsewhere. (Paraphrased sine I forget the exact words - should take a photo lol) Let's see, public park? That would be the park that is now two fenced baseball pitches ;)(yeah I know, bee in my bonnet!)

Seems like every year's crop of children, some the same as previous years, some new faces, are drawn to0 me - probably because if my son is out there I have to be out there too. They know my name, they know we have sidewalk chalk, and bubbles, and whatever else we might have outside that day and we share. they come to me to fix their bikes, their scraped knees and their feuds. And it's good, even if there are some days I'm just not in the mood, in which case Spawn and I go off somewhere else - not because I quit believing in being there for them or in fostering community, just because I'm only human and sometimes I need a day off!

So speaking of a #betteryyc it seems that someone seeded the beds by our rental office with sunflowers - that's sure what they look like to me! And no, this time it wasn't me ;) Here's hoping they're allowed to grow and don't get weeded away - not likely given the incomplete job the guys round here do whether it's clearing snow, picking up litter, weeding or cutting grass. If they did a proper job, I wouldn't be picking up broken glass from the playground as many times as I have done over the years we have been living here. And yes, the playground in the middle of our green space IS part of their area. How do I know it wasn't glass that got broken their after their morning rounds? Because 9 times out of 10 it's alcoholic glass, and even here5,6 and 7 yr olds aren't drinking in the playground and leaving empty beer/cooler/vodka bottles behind. Pet peeve. But since I don't want my kid cutting himself on it, or anyone else's, I pick it up. Found a knife once too - in our playground - not a small one, a large kitchen knife! And people wonder why I say I live in the 'Hood?!

Trailer for Camping!

So apparently while he was in BC over the weekend, Demon bought a trailer - 19ft, great condition, dirt cheap, from his parent's neighbour. Nice. So, this summer we're going camping in his parent's backyard - which is 5 acres - so he can check it out, figure out if and how everything works, and check out the mechanical side of the trailer. Luckily he's a kick ass mechanic by trade so that's not a problem. Then over the winter he'll finally get the tuck fixed up and running - another acquisition from another friend of his parents a couple of years ago, and next year we'll be able to go wherever and whenever we want. Roll on next year lol I'm not exactly their favourite daughter in law.

At least it's out of the city I guess, and those 5 acres include a back pasture that would be the awesome, most kick ass place to hold an outdoor ritual, not least because of the power flowing through there. And I don't mean electrical power lol Every time I go there I just imagine turning that back pasture into a ritual site and having a retreat there for a few days, seriously, has to be seen and felt to be believed. And they have some wonderful neighbours. Not to mention deer to chase away, passing bears and howling coyotes ;)

Ok not going to go there, family is what it is, I didn't choose them, they were just part of the package when I chose my Demon! Instead let's bury this post and get the other, better, one up then finish the dishes, sweep the floor and head to the mall - not for anything exciting - foil and garbage bags - but it's still a trip to the mall hehe

Books and a couple more random-ish thoughts

Hmm... should have been easier to remember my top ten, guess I'm getting old and will have to go check my list lmao Danggit I'm getting senile in my old age!

Top ten book wish list

Pagan Book of Living and Dying
Shamanic Book of Death and Dying
Pocket Neighbourhood
The Great Neighbourhood Book
On Guerilla Gardening
Urban Homestead
Dreaming The Dark (yeah, yeah, I still don't have a copy....)
I was a punk before you were a punk
Dumbing Us Down
The Grandmother of Time:

An eclectic mix, maybe, no more so than me...

Part of me wants to blog about everything that has been going on in the last ten days and part of me says no, not yet, it's not over yet and it's going to be a long and complicated post when I do blog it :/ Family always makes for complicated events and explanations! So more on that later.

I have, however, realized how much I miss blogging and realize that somehow I have to find time for it... somehow. Hard part isn't so much time as, on an average week, time at the computer to type without someone else wanting a turn, helping me, or asking what I'm doing every 2 seconds lol There are a number of things the I keep wanting to share and blog about, just going to have to try harder I guess - back to the old days of writing it by hand and then typing it up since typing it up can be done pretty fast as long as my spell check is on lol

So many things going on, life certainly isn't boring. Oddest thing just now, was thinking about something that happened last night that made me wonder if there's another visitor in our house - we get a few - when something moved by itself one night and Demon said to me "Was that the ghost?" I just asked "which one?" Mostly it's quiet but every now and then it starts to feel like "Which one?" Anyhow, something odd happened last night that makes me think there's another visitor here, and just as I was thinking that the broom fell out of the closet all by itself. Double omen that yeah, company's here. Guessing that doesn't make too much sense to most people if I haven't blogged about Olivia and the visitors she seems to attract - adding to my to do list!

Finally finished reading Ariadne's Thread, may well need a second read, it has a LOT of stuff in it. And provides seemingly random quotes.....
"Our religion is powerful but it must never get too organized, or the magic will be lost."
Guess it's a good thing that corralling witches is often likened to herding cats ;)

"Every voice must be heard before the whole story can be told and ... the truth resides not in one person but in the centre, in the agreed upon truth of all present."

Ok apparently I need to go to bed REAL soon, and, on the plus?? side I have a list of things to blog. Dammit I need more waking hours in the day!!!!!

Random Weekend Thoughts

Been a lot going through my mind this weekend - or not, depending on how you look at it. Demon has been in BC attending a funeral and I've been alone with my thoughts - well as alone as it gets with a 5 yr old, two dogs and a room mate - especially since I woke to pouring rain this morning which killed our original plans for today. Of course, the sun was shining brightly by 4pm but that was too late for any of our plans. Oh well, tomorrow is another day.

Anyway, firstly I was reading a lot of web pages last night and discovered that there is a name for places such as where I live - 'a cluster of houses/apartments clustered around some sort of shared open space'. Apparently I live in a "pocket neighbourhood". Nice - can ya tell I kinda like that name? lol And I found two new books to add to my MAJOR wish list - Pocket Neighbourhood, and The Great Neighbourhood Book. I think they make my top ten wants, might have to add them as a separate post.

Secondly, found this from @EarthActivists on Twitter - As #EarthGuardian you can help document your city... where are the dangerous places for children?... your mayor should intervene.
The sentiment is certainly one the provides food for thought and only adds to the ongoing thoughts stirring in my brain about talking to neighbours about our neighbourhood, about what they like, don't like and would want to see changed, removed, improved or included.

Also found this, or at least we re-reminded of it.
"The commons is everything that we inherit or create together and must pass on, undiminished, to future generations." the Commons

Thirdly, was reading about the decline in organized religion - and that therefore Canada is becoming a nation of atheists. "Canadians are increasingly identifying as religiously non-affiliated, suggesting that organized religion may be on the decline."

Guess I'm missing something - including the original question as it was phrased - because I don't see that just because increasing numbers of people are no longer affiliated to (I presume) mainstream organized religions, necessarily means that they are all atheists. Or am I missing something? Usually an question of religion considers the mainstream faiths, and the obligatory "other" category. Or I guess in this case "none". Yet I'd have to check "none "if given the choice between mainstream religions and none and yet I most certainly don't consider myself an atheist. Colour me a little confused by the logic applied and the extrapolation that a decline in adherence to mainstream religion equals Canada becoming a nation of atheists. Just seems to me that it's a little too much of a stretch of the data :/

I don't doubt that mainstream and even organized religions may very well be on the decline, we all know minority religions, non mainstream religions and personal spirituality - not sure you can call it "religion" per se when it's a person's personal path - are on the increase. Even here, "census data suggests that organized religion is heading for extinction in nine western democracies." But is that just mainstream religion, organized religion, or religious beliefs of any kind? Damn I hate sweeping statements that bother my warped sense of logic!

Oh and of course now Adobe wants to update my flash player, I swear it did that once already this weekend lol

Now where was I? Thirdly, was just checking some of the blogs on Circle of Moms faith based poll and the centre of their own controversy as to whether or not Pagan blogs count as 'faith' blogs - duh!

According to Dictionary.com
faith
–noun
1. confidence or trust in a person or thing: faith in another's ability.
2. belief that is not based on proof: He had faith that the hypothesis would be substantiated by fact.
3. belief in god or in the doctrines or teachings of religion: the firm faith of the Pilgrims.

And before you ask, Dictionary.com defines god thus
God
–noun
1. the one Supreme Being, the creator and ruler of the universe.
2. the Supreme Being considered with reference to a particular attribute: the God of Islam.
3. ( lowercase ) one of several deities, especially a male deity, presiding over some portion of worldly affairs.

Notably, in the definition of Faith it is "god" lowercase. Anyway, semantics aside, Faith Blog does not mean Christian Blog people, no matter what you might think of those of us other faiths, be they Judaism, Islam, paganism, Hinduism, worship of the great flying spaghetti monster or whatever. Too late on a saturday night to go off on THAT particular tangent.

Ok I got sidetracked - while reading a pagan blog I ran into this

"he stopped my hand and said "Mom, I want to learn to spell my favourite word... Namaste!"

For those who are unfamiliar, 'Namaste' translates to mean that there is a light in you, there is a light in me and we bow in honour of one another's light.

I asked my child why 'Namaste' is his favourite word and he replied "because if everyone has a special light inside, then we are all shiny together." Yes friends, a humble reminder from a preschooler!"

Out of the mouths of babes.....

Ok there's more but let's end that on a happy note :)

Community Spirit

Yet again I find myself thinking about the spirit of community in my neighbourhood, or rather the lack thereof. And about trying to create a #betteryyc, a better stronger, more vibrant and connected community.

Even the president of our local community association, in their most recent newsletter, called for volunteers to "build up the spirit in the community". So I'm not alone in feeling that there is something missing.

There are obstacles, this is a highly diverse neighbourhood, with almost half the population belonging to 'visible minorities' ( not sure pointing such things out helps create unity - aren't we all supposed to be Calgarians?) and almost as many have English as a Second Language, which can make communication less simple than it might be in some instances. At least one third of the properties here are rental properties, leading to a high immigrant population and one which is by nature transient and ever changing. Further, over one third of households here live at or below the officially designated poverty line. None of this makes it easy to instill a spirit of community in a population that changes as often as this one does or has as many difficulties with basic day to day life.

We also, as a neighbourhood, have our own issues. Like everywhere else we have our share of crime, both reported and recorded, and unreported. Yes it's highly likely that anything that isn't nailed down will be stolen, most often by people passing through the neighbourhood and being opportunistic as opposed to by people who actually live here. More importantly, there is a fear of crime that is out of proportion to the actual incidence of crime and that fear is an instant killer to community spirit.

Crime map

People look at their neighbours and expect the worst, focusing too much on the differences between us and not seeing all the ways in which we are the same. We all live here, this is our neighbourhood, and only we can make it our home. They fear the panhandlers and homeless - though I've yet to have a problem with any of our "regular" ones. They fear the teenagers and wannabe gangsters who hang around the strip mall and try to intimidate people passing by. They avoid those of different cultures, or races or religions, seeking comfort with their own and not realizing that this is actually lessening the sense of community spirit, community safety and cohesion, not increasing it.

I don't believe that any of our issues are untackleable, or any of our obstacles insurmountable. No one of us alone can change things by themselves, but I believe that together we can accomplish great things simply by each doing our own small part. As @Zarquil said on Twitter, it's not about creating a #perfectyyc, it's about creating a #betteryyc.

Community, and a #betteryyc, begins with each of us making that first small move. With getting out there, using our local stores and local spaces, meeting and greeting people and getting to know our neighbours. It starts with finding out what there is and what's happening in our neighbourhood, using it, taking care of it and enjoying it. It's about seeing what is missing, what might enhance it and boost community spirit, and then looking into ways of making those things happen.

I'm lucky that our apartment complex (yes, I rent) has a green space where the children (and there are many) can and do play, and some of the mothers gather there too. The children have little trouble getting along regardless of racial, language or cultural barriers, the adults have a slightly harder time of it. I'm actually a minority amongst those mothers, not because I'm a witch, pretty sure that's a given, rather because I'm white and English is my first, and best, language. (My french is a little rusty.) It's an interesting experience to feel like an outsider in your own neighbourhood. I'm seriously thinking it's well past time we had some sort of community event in our complex, be it a yard sale, a fund raiser, a pot luck/BBQ or even a scavenger hunt for the kids. I know they'd enjoy it.

I do firmly believe that any attempt to create community and make a #betteryyc must include and engage the children - they are the future, our future, the city's future, and it's well known that they learn best by example. Telling them to be community minded does no good at all if we fail to walk the walk ourselves.

I would love to see people using our local park but other than the playground it's fenced off in two ball pitches now, that are almost never, if ever, used. (I'd also like not to be picking up broken glass every time I visit the playground but that's a whole other gripe.) Personally I would love to see a community garden here if there were a space for one anywhere. That would be a win on so many levels it'd be a huge boot for the neighbourhood. (At least, as a side note, I just found out we have a Good Food Box centre here now, which I shall have to check out in the next day or two.)

This is our neighbourhood, let's each take one step each day towards taking it back and making it ours again, a place we want to live, work and play, and a place we can be happy to raise our children. One step at a time towards a #betteryyc.

As the saying goes - "Be the change you want to see in the world."

P. S. Makes me want to go out and ask people What do you like about our neighbourhood? What don't you like? What would you like to see brought in or taken away?Might just do that.....

5 Books (short version)

So Mari got me onto it yesterday, in an emergency what 5 books would you grab from your bookshelf? So here's my 5 based ONLY on those currently ON my bookshelf, not on my perfect 5.

Z Budapest, Holy Book of Women's Mysteries.
Christopher Penczak, Temple of Shamanic Witchcraft.
Starhawk, the Fifth Sacred Thing.
Starhawk, The Earth Path.
Anne McCaffrey, the Tower and Hive series.

How sad am I? lol

My Old Lady is a Witch

Does it really need pointing out before I start that I'm out of the broom closet? Maybe. So, I am, in every way, people know I'm a witch. That said, something came up in conversation last night that started me thinking about paganism/Wicca/witchcraft etc and how much more part of the 'common' vocabulary it is these days.

The Demon's standard line to those people he likes enough to invite to our house is "You know my old lady is a witch, right?" Which as you can imagine has been met with a number of different responses, none of them THAT bad - Demon is big guy, and as I said it only comes up to people he LIKES lol.
Yesterday he was telling me that he had that conversation with one of his apprenti, C, and was surprised when C turned around and not only said the fairly common "What Wiccan?", but also knew all about it. So I started thinking back on some of the conversations that I've had on the subject as well as those Demon has related and realized that while "What Wiccan?" is probably the commonest response, there seems to be a variance in the tone? setting? of the conversation depending on whether the person is older or younger. Younger people seem much more at ease and familiar with the idea and with talking about it as matter of factly as they might discuss the price of gas, whereas older people seem to feel the need to have the conversation in a corner in hushed tones even when the content of the conversation is the same.

Curious. A generational thing? While I can't quote Demon's conversations since I only ever get the secondhand summary, mine tend to run along a couple of similar lines.

Older: In hushed tones in a quiet corner - "So I hear you're a, um, ah, um....."
"Yes, I'm a witch"
"Oh." Pause. "A white witch? Like a Wiccan?"
"Yeah, something like that."
"Ok."
Depart older person to ponder that until next time.

Younger: Some lull in conversation, any time, any place, any company
"So you're a witch?"
"Yes."
"Cool," Pause almost always followed by specific questions - frequently involving reading tarot.

I really hadn't put it together until last night but that is generally how it runs, which suggests to me that paganism, Wicca and witchcraft really are becoming part of mainstream life these days. Apparently even among bible carrying Christians like those my roomie works with.

Roomie wears a pentacle, mine actually that I gave to him (a story in itself), and the first time his workmates saw it he got the usual reactions. Yes, including "You know that's a sign of the devil?" from Trent. Bless him.

Kev on the other hand asked Roomie if he knew what it was, Roomie said yes and said he got it from me. Kev was ok with that, then Roomie added that I'm a practising witch, again Kev was cool with that too. Poor Trent is probably still lifting his jaw off the floor though! Guessing Trent isn't going to be my biggest fan ;)

Anyway, that was what I was thinking about last night, figured I can't be the only one noticing something similar. Not sure if Paganism/Wicca etc is becoming part of the general vocabulary, or pop culture, or mainstream life or what, but it is nice to find people having half a clue when they have that conversation, even if they are often unclear, and sometimes plain wrong, on specifics. Ignorance can be fixed - stupid and prejudice can't ;) Besides, like everything else, we have so much specific terminology that only an 'insider' knows, I'll settle for roughly accurate generalities among those around me.