Face of Steel

I was definitely in the mood for mind-maps on our marathon journey through France to the UK. This one was done after the Face of Steel gig in Rotherham. Hawkwind were on fantastic form and we had a brilliant afternoon / evening.

The venue, Steel Magna, was awe-inspiring. It struck me as poignant that the only way the local community make a living from their former steel industry is to make the old workplace a tourist attraction.

The building was freezing cold. This turned my thoughts back again to the solstice and to the way winter freezes everything in ice so it can prepare for the the next coming of spring. The strong, vertical lines of the building reminded me of the rune "IS", which is a single vertical line, like the letter "I" and represents things at a standstill - frozen.

How I overcame the "First Page" anxiety

This is the first entry in my new journal, dated 17th December. I completed the mind-map in the car during our drive from Alsace, through Eurotunnel, en route to Rotherham, UK, for the Hawkwind "Face of Steel" gig.

It shows my thoughts turning to the winter solstice and the realm of the Stone Hallow and Stone family (my Arthurian tarot cards). The Goddess in her many forms was making a clear presence and I was particularly struck with the statue of Europa at the Eurotunnel, Calais end. The little figure, half woman, half scorpion, was inspired by a beautiful picture of Selkhet shown to me by our friend Chantel. She said it was the only positive image she'd ever seen for those of us born under the sign of Scorpio. It was in a book by Jose Olivier called Hybrides Dieux Oubles.

Cassandra Eason - I salute you

Two quotes from "Every Woman A Witch", that have resonance for me at this moment:

"The old spells of the countryside talk of love, health, money and happiness, and were practised by ordinary people, especially women, everywhere. These have been lost from the everyday world, and the Wiccan movement, with its formal practice of witchcraft, has ironically taken the magic away from the lives of the majority, by its emphasis on obscure gods and strange rituals."

"The repealing of the Witchcraft Act in 1951 led to the establishment of Wicca, the formal practice of witchcraft. However, this is a mixed blessing, for although Wicca is a form of nature worship with many ecological strengths, it divorces natural magic from everydaylife. Most women do not wish to practise formal rites in secret, again handing superior power to high priestesses and priests, and learning rituals created by others that are not the magic of the hearth, the home and the bed."

http://www.cassandraeason.co.uk/

"First Page" anxiety

Time to start a new journal and I always feel anxious that the first page should be "right". I have chosen the faery picture above to go on the front cover. Something to set the right tone.

Hail! King

This is a mind-map I made last night during a visualisation of the Grail King of my Arthurian Tarot (King of Cups in more traditional packs).

It's strange the way I am working with my tarot at the moment. I get a feeling for which card(s) I should be working with and am not selecting them randomly from the pack. Last night I felt a very strong presence of the Grail King and also took from the pack Stone King and the Wounded King. The comment "Are we not the same?", came to mind. The writing in green pencil felt like a male voice: "It's not the same trip" being an observation of a French friend of ours.

Some of the links I was making:

• Jesus
• Herne the Hunter / Pan (linked via Thoth to Egypt, Tunisia and my bad back - weird, but there's a story there!). Anyway, I sensed the horned one abroad outside, and so did the dog, who started growling the second my thoughts turned in that direction.
• For the Wounded King, I thought of gays and men generally, struggling to find out they fit in the world today.
• N. America and native indian culture, somehow linked to Scotland and Ireland i.e. Celtic culture. I could hear the tribes dancing and celebrating, but the man's voice was clear that he did not want to get married.
• Then I heard jazz music and wandered off to New Orleans and a little vodoo culture.
• A thought for those guys getting ready to volunteer for CRISIS at Christmas (a little plug here for everyone who works so hard for such a great cause www.crisis.org.uk). Especially for the "Green Badges" - you know who you are!!
• I then went off to "Faery Glen" - actually, the visualisation was of the beautiful, candle-lit and crystal adorned grotto, created by the Lost Horizons tribe at Eartheart, Bridport, England, September 2003 - what a week that was!
• Then there were reminders about using my Bach Remedies - Walnut is a very useful one, but I have not tried Aspen before.
• "Pour the Waters" is a reference to the "The Healing Book of Waters" and the Goddess Nut standing by the Tree of Life and pouring water into the mouth and hands of another figure.

I want to Paint

These are some sketches I did for a painting I would like to create; trouble is, I don't know anything about painting and have no idea where to start.

The theme is a stylised me (plenty of artistic licence here!), surrounded by my 9 totem animals. They are in the 4 cardinal directions plus within, above, below, left and right. I had this idea of Wolf howling at the moon; night sky becoming day, merging into water with Dolphin and Beaver, the stream running down below the roots of the tree and opening to another world below, wherein Elk resides. I've seen many paintings that successfully combine day and night, this world and the Otherworld etc. that inspire me, but I need some help to get this to work.

I also can't work out how to get Turtle and Lynx to hold my hand. It just looks weird.

Kernow Bys Vykken - Cornwall Forever

Maids of Cornwall unite (and spread the light) !

Sometimes I feel very far from my beloved homeland, Cornwall. Never more than 15 miles from the sea anywhere in the county; now I am quite land-locked in central Portugal. Luckily, Cornwall is taken care off by some very special, loving people, including my best friends.

I want to talk about one of them; the most special person and a beacon of light and love. Julie: CONGRATULATIONS!
Julie has just been awarded "Highly Commended" for her business enterprise, Business English in Cornwall, in a Green Tourism competition. Her business was described as 'Eco-linguistics meets bio-diversity ... '. She's worked hard for this and at last she has recognition. She offers a lovely place to stay while visiting Cornwall, and what better place to study English. Check her out at http://www.businessenglishincornwall.com/.

Cornwall runs deep in the veins of old L.G.S. (Liskeard Grammar School) girls, and for Julie, so deep she finds it hard to leave at all. My contact with her keeps me connected to my roots and her emails give me such a warm, cosy feeling that I know everything really is alright.

Kernow Bys Vykken