Harnessing Your Anger

“The world needs anger.  The world often continues to allow evil because it isn't angry enough.” ~ Bede Jarrett

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As with fear, most people think that anger is a terrible and destructive emotion.  They may have been on the receiving end of someone else’s rage and didn’t like how it felt or were programmed that way.  The truth is that it can be negative, but if wielded properly, anger can be an amazing force for good and a catalyst for positive change.

When we are children, we are conditioned to believe that anger is wrong.  A young child who is expressing his displeasure by acting out is having a “temper tantrum.”  The teenager trying to communicate her anger is “acting out” or “talking back.”  The parent is always right and the child is left to suffer in silence, pushing their resentment deeper and creating a generation that doesn’t know how to deal with its emotions, especially anger.

“At the core of all anger is a need that is not being fulfilled.” ~ Marshall B. Rosenberg

Anger should be an indication that something is not right.  It is also the GPS that will lead you to figure out what is wrong and also gives you an idea of what your personal boundaries are.  Others don’t like when we have boundaries, so expect some resistance.  People that have been walking all over us for years are not going to be too pleased at us asserting ourselves or telling them “no.”

Once you have figured out what the problem is that is causing your anger, brainstorm on how to change it.  If it is a person, talk to them about what is causing the anger.  If it is a social injustice or cause, find out how you can get involved and lend your energy to make a positive change on the issue.  The worst thing that you can do is to ignore it and let it continue to boil and fester in your subconscious.

Anger is energy and it is up to you to choose what to do with it.

Do not teach your children never to be angry; teach them how to be angry.  ~Lyman Abbott

Learning from Fear

In my honest opinion, fear gets a bad rap.  We have it for a reason, but we are too petrified to look past the surface at what lies below.  There is much we can learn about ourselves from it if we take the time to look.

Fear is an emotional response to something that might cause us harm.  It is a way of protecting ourselves and triggers the fight or flight response in our physical being.  That being said, fear is there to keep you safe.

When we grow up, we start out with a set collection of fears that have been instilled in us by our parents and other authority figures.  We learn not to talk to strangers or to cross the road without looking both ways.  Some of these early fears are also the result of experience, such as the fear of things that are hot after putting your hand on a car’s exhaust (which hurts, btw). 

Add in a healthy dose of television and our fears increase.  Now we have an irrational fear of sharks (thanks Jaws) and are worried that vampires are going to attack us when we go walking in the woods.

With the invention of the Wide World Web, the globe is shrinking and news travels faster.  Instead of just being afraid of what is our own back yard, we have to worry about all the other evils in the world that are out to get us.

This is enough to leave us completely paralyzed in fear and make sure we never step outside of the house!  Stop and remember – fear is a tool to keep you safe from things that would cause harm to you.  You have to control the fear instead of letting it control you.

So what things can you learn from looking at your fears? 

Examining your fears can help you break some of your bad habits or patterns of behavior.  For instance, if you are afraid of being along, you may be clingy or invade other peoples’ space.  Acknowledging this fear and owning it will help you see this pattern in your behavior.  This is the first step to making a change.

Looking at your fears also helps you to decide which ones are genuine and the others that are superfluous.  I fell down the stairs as a child so I have an aversion to walking up stairs, standing on chairs, and other “heights.”  It wasn’t until I sat down and thought about it that I finally realized where it came from.  On the other hand, my fear of spiders was the result of a coach showing us the movie “Arachnophobia” in high school health class.  This makes for an interesting experience when you have a spider for an animal messenger, which has happened twice I might add.

Another use of your fears is to fuel your creativity.  In author Holly Lisle’s How To Think Sideways: Career Survival School For Writers we learned to use our fears as part of our works of fiction to give it added emotion and intensity.  If you are scared of aliens, have your hero face off against them or your heroine come to terms with being one.  The possibilities are endless.

Here is a little exercise that Holly taught us to come up with a list of our fears called clustering.  Put the word "fear," "Things I fear...," or something similar in the middle of the page and begin to build a network of concepts and ideas from the center point.

This is a cluster that I created last week in about ten minutes.  After I scanned and looked at it again, I saw some stuff was missing so make sure to give yourself enough time.  I recommend working for about ten minutes, taking a break, and then working for another ten or until you feel like you are done.

So spend some time shining a light into the dark recesses of your psyche and examine your fears.  Like with everything else on this path, get rid of the things that are not serving you or causing unwarranted drama.  Get to know yourself better and stop allowing fear to rule you because you are in control.

Lavender blue, Lavender green...

How many times have you heard the song "Lavender Blue, Dilly, Dilly?" Originally, it wasn't a children's nursery rhyme, it was a song of love and lust. In my opinion, Burl Ives who had won rewards and acclimation for his version, got it all wrong! This was the original version from England in the 16th c.

Lavenders green, Diddle, diddle,

Lavenders blue

You must love me, diddle, diddle,

cause I love you,

I heard one say, diddle, diddle,

since I came hither,

That your and I, diddle, diddle,

must lie together.

 On top of that along with the aroma's of pumpkin and vanilla, the smell of Lavender is a powerful aphrodisiac for men. So, all of you women who are seeking to be Aphrodite, get thee some lavender. "Lave" means to "wash" or "lave" in French which is where the flower originated from.

Why am I writing about Lavender? Well, because 1) It's one of my favorite flowers and  2) Over on the wonderful "Domestic Witch" blog, she's having a "Lavender Give a way" which is a basket full of delicious Lavender goodies. Check out what you can win;

The winner of the Lavender Dreams giveaway will enjoy a homemade lavender smudge, amethyst, lavender & sea salt bath blend and lavender & chamomile bath blend, lavender incense, lavender drawer sachet, and a charming purple and white organizational datebook. The smudge and bath blends are homemade just for you, made with herbs from my herb garden.

How nice is that? So, if you're a Lavender lover like I am, go check out the give away. Here's a recipe for "Lavender Lemonade" I found on the web, which I plan to make today!

Ingredients

• 1 tray ice cubes
• 1/4 cup dried lavender
• 2 cups boiling water
• 3/4 cup white sugar
• 8 lemons
• 5 cups cold water, or as needed

Directions

1. Place ice cubes into a 2 quart pitcher. Place the lavender into a bowl, and pour boiling water over it. Allow to steep for about 10 minutes, then strain out the lavender and discard. Mix the sugar into the hot lavender water, then pour into the pitcher with the ice.
2. Squeeze the juice from the lemons into the pitcher, getting as much juice as you can. Top off the pitcher with cold water, and stir. Taste, and adjust lemon juice or sugar if desired. Pour into tall glasses, pull up a lawn chair and a good book, and relax!

So, if you're a fellow Lavender Goddess or God; hurry on over to Domestic Witch's blog to enter the giveaway.

Percy Jackson and the Olympians: a fresh take on old Greek mythology

About six months ago I read a blog post from my mentoree Bex about a series that she and her husband were reading – "Percy Jackson and the Olympians" by author Rick Riordan.  She was very excited because they were going to turn it into a movie.  My curiosity got the best of me and I looked it up online.

Percy Jackson is having a rough year at school.  His dyslexia is getting worse, making it near impossible for him to read.  Other kids are getting him in trouble with a teacher that seems to have it out for him.  He doesn’t want to get kicked out of another school so he tries to stay out of trouble.  Little does he know that trouble is already there to get him!

There are five books in the Percy Jackson and the Olympians series.  They document the transformation of Percy from awkward teen to Greek hero in a modern setting.  Originally written for children, the books are a wonderful read for all ages.

The Lightning Thief

What if the gods of Olympus were alive in the 21st Century? What if they still fell in love with mortals and had children who might become great heroes — like Theseus, Jason and Hercules?

What if you were one of those children?

Such is the discovery that launches twelve-year-old Percy Jackson on the most dangerous quest of his life. With the help of a satyr and a daughter of Athena, Percy must journey across the United States to catch a thief who has stolen the original weapon of mass destruction – Zeus’ master bolt. Along the way, he must face a host of mythological enemies determined to stop him. Most of all, he must come to terms with a father he has never known, and an Oracle that has warned him of betrayal by a friend.

The Sea of Monsters

When Thalia’s tree is mysteriously poisoned, the magical borders of Camp Half-Blood begin to fail. Now Percy and his friends have just days to find the only magic item powerful to save the camp before it is overrun by monsters. The catch: they must sail into the Sea of Monsters to find it. Along the way, Percy must stage a daring rescue operation to save his old friend Grover, and he learns a terrible secret about his own family, which makes him question whether being the son of Poseidon is an honor or a curse.




The Titan’s Curse

When Percy Jackson gets an urgent distress call from his friend Grover, he immediately prepares for battle. He knows he will need his powerful demigod allies at his side, his trusty bronze sword Riptide, and . . . a ride from his mom.

The demigods rush to the rescue to find that Grover has made an important discovery: two powerful half-bloods whose parentage is unknown. But that’s not all that awaits them. The titan lord Kronos has devised his most treacherous plot yet, and the young heroes have just fallen prey.

They’re not the only ones in danger. An ancient monster has arisen — one rumored to be so powerful it could destroy Olympus — and Artemis, the only goddess who might know how to track it, is missing. Now Percy and his friends, along with the Hunters of Artemis, have only a week to find the kidnapped goddess and solve the mystery of the monster she was hunting.

Along the way, they must face their most dangerous challenge yet: the chilling prophecy of the titan’s curse.

The Battle of the Labyrinth

Percy Jackson isn’t expecting freshman orientation to be any fun, but when a mysterious mortal acquaintance appears, pursued by demon cheerleaders, things quickly go from bad to worse.

Time is running out for Percy. War between the gods and the Titans is drawing near. Even Camp Half-Blood isn’t safe, as Kronos’s army prepares to invade its once impenetrable borders. To stop them, Percy and his friends must set out on a quest through the Labyrinth — a sprawling underground world with surprises and danger at every turn.

Along the way Percy will confront powerful enemies, find out the truth about the lost god Pan, and face the Titan lord Kronos’s most terrible secret. The final war begins . . . with the Battle of the Labyrinth.

The Last Olympian

All year the half-bloods have been preparing for battle against the Titans, knowing the odds of victory are grim. Kronos’s army is stronger than ever, and with every god and half-blood he recruits, the evil Titan’s power only grows.

While the Olympians struggle to contain the rampaging monster Typhon, Kronos begins his advance on New York City, where Mount Olympus stands virtually unguarded. Now it’s up to Percy Jackson and an army of young demigods to stop the Lord of Time. In this momentous final book in the New York Times best-selling Percy Jackson and the Olympians series, the long-awaited prophecy surrounding Percy’s sixteenth birthday unfolds. And as the battle for Western civilization rages on the streets of Manhattan, Percy faces a terrifying suspicion that he may be fighting against his own fate.

Once you are done reading these it will be about time for the release of Riordan’s latest book The Kane Chronicles, Book 1: The Red Pyramid.  The Egyptian pantheon will never be the same!

The Red Pyramid

Since their mother’s death, Carter and Sadie have become near strangers. While Sadie has lived with her grandparents in London, her brother has traveled the world with their father, the brilliant Egyptologist, Dr. Julius Kane.

One night, Dr. Kane brings the siblings together for a "research experiment" at the British Museum, where he hopes to set things right for his family. Instead, he unleashes the Egyptian god Set, who banishes him to oblivion and forces the children to flee for their lives.

Soon, Sadie and Carter discover that the gods of Egypt are waking, and the worst of them--Set--has his sights on the Kanes. To stop him, the siblings embark on a dangerous journey across the globe--a quest that brings them ever closer to the truth about their family, and their links to a secret order that has existed since the time of the pharaohs.

And for those of you who really enjoyed the Percy books, the adventures of the Greek pantheon are not over just yet.  According to Riordan’s blog, Myth & Mystery, Disney-Hyperion books has announced a new series called "The Heroes of Olympus" that will introduce some new heroes and welcome back some of our favorites.

Books for Pagan Children

There are thousands of books written by and for Pagans about the various Earth-based paths that are available to them.  The great majority of these books are geared towards adults with a few scattered here and there for teens.  What about our Pagan children?

Here are just a few books that I have had the pleasure of promoting at the Pagan Writers Community that are geared towards the newest generation of Pagans.

The Witchlets of Witch’s Brew #1: “Holly the Hasty Witch” by Edain Duguay

Holly is the kind of child that is always in a rush, never stopping to complete a task and often forgetting to fulfil her promises. She is not a selfish child, just one that needs more hours in the day for her daydreaming and her many plans.

That is until Yule, when the biggest promise in the history of mankind is not fulfilled and Holly begins to see why, when she gives her word, it must mean something.

‘Holly the Hasty Witch’, is the short Pagan tale based on the virtue of integrity and is set at Yule in a small, modern day Pagan village.

This eBook is the first in a series of eight and is suitable for ages 8 years and upwards.


The Witchlets of Witch’s Brew #2: “Ash the Solitary Witch” by Edain Duguay

Ash only had one friend, Rufus, her dog. He was loyal, reliable and loved her unconditionally. She had no one her age to celebrate the seasons and festivals with and she began to feel lonely for the first time in her life but hid it from everyone, even herself. Having previously liked being alone, Ash had no idea if other children her age would like her or if she could even make friends.

One day, her world changed forever as her family moved away from the only home she had ever known, to the small Pagan village of Brew.

Would Ash be brave enough to make new friends? Would she find some at Brew’s celebration of the Spring Equinox?

This eBook is the second in a series of eight and is suitable for ages 8 years and upwards.

“Pagan Degrees for Children” by Shanddaramon

Many modern Pagans seek growth and spiritual practice through the pursuit and attainment of spiritual degrees. Whether in a group or as a solitary practitioner learning through a degree system can provide a needed structure, clear and distinct goals, and rewards for hard work. Children, too, often enjoy learning by following a clear structure and by getting positive reinforcements but may not be able to effectively and successfully pursue adult degrees.

This book provides a system of learning Pagan and good living concepts just for children and young adults through three main degrees. Children from the ages of 5 – 18 can work on obtaining the Neophyte, Apprentice, and Mage Degrees by meeting specific goals designed for children and by completing the requirements for earning Achievement Awards. The Neophyte Degree is subdivided into several Levels to help give young children small and easily obtainable goals.

Provided with each Degree and Award is a great deal of information and sources for learning and for exploring. All of the Degree, Level, and Award images and certificates are provided in black and white. However, a companion book is available that contains all the designs in full sixes and colors.

“Growing Up Pagan: A Workbook for Wiccan Families” by Raine Hill

Finally, a children’s workbook designed for Pagan families! Rich, exciting stories to read together and discuss, as well as activities to reinforce lessons in a fun way. Chock-full of puzzles, games, mythology, beautiful illustrations, and Pagan symbols, this workbook teaches about the basic Wiccan belief system. Let this be a family affair, with parents, older siblings, and young children taking part in a “something-for-everyone” Pagan experience. A teaching tool for Pagan families or others who want to teach their children diversity.

What others are saying about “Growing Up Pagan: A Workbook for Wiccan Families”

“A fun workbook filled with facts and myths to inspire budding young Pagans.” – Christopher Penczak, Author of “Sons of the Goddess” and “The Inner Temple of Witchcraft”

“Raine Hill has written a charming, lucid and magickal work that will be enjoyed by children of all ages; as someone who has taught in schools for many years I can heartily recommend it. Young people will love being read Wicca’s central myths and stories, they will enjoy exploring the basic philosophies and celebratory cycles and will relish the interactive activities. The wonderful art work is similarly engaging and the whole book will be a treasured item on any Pagan family’s bookshelf. I also intend to use it in my school.” – Pino Longchild, Assistant Head teacher Olga Primary School, London, webmaster of www.magickaschool.com, publisher of The Magickal Light Ezine and author of “Wicca Revealed” and “Wicca Advanced”

“Grimoire for the Apprentice Wizard” by Oberon Zell-Ravenheart

Here is the book Merlin would have given a young Arthur…if only it had existed. This essential “Boy Scout Handbook” of Wizardry contains everything an aspiring Wizard needs to know. It is illustrated with original art by Oberon and friends, as well as hundreds of woodcuts from medieval manuscripts and alchemical texts- – plus, charts, tables, and diagrams.

The book also contains:

• Biographies of famous Wizards in history and legend
• Detailed descriptions of magickal tools and regalia (with full instructions for making them)
• Spells and workings for a better life
• Rites and rituals for special occasions
• A bestiary of mythical creatures; Systems of divination
• The Laws of Magick; Myths and stories of gods and heroes
• Lore and legends of the stars and constellations
• Instructions for performing amazing illusions, special effects, and many other wonders of the magickal multiverse.

By Oberon Zell-Ravenheart, with contributions and additional material from Raymond Buckland, Patricia Telesco, Raven Grimassi, Ellen Evert Hopman, Jesse Wolf Hardin, Amber K, Fred Lamond, Abbty Willowroot, Jeff McBride, Morning Glory Zell-Ravenheart, and other illustrious members of The Grey Council.

What are some of your favorite books for children?