#pagnaism

http://www.patheos.com/blogs/sermonsfromthemound/2015/06/a-queer-pagan-reading-list/?ref_widget=related&ref_blog=sermonsfromthemound&ref_post=must-pagans-be-polytheists

While we are still waiting to hear back from some people, here are some of our new mods: 

grumpylokeanelder

paradisesymphony

bibliophilicwitch

and mountain-hound! 

Please welcome these lovely people to the fold!

Earth working is the label that i have given my path of spirituality. i have had a few people ask me about it now so i guess its time for me to try and define it. bear with me im not very good and explaining things, especially something that is so personal for me as this.  

Earth Working is what its name entails, it means to Worker of the Earth, or Working From the Earth. Earth working somewhat shamanic in nature, and includes practices of nature-based and earth oriented witchcraft. Earth Working is a heavily Earth-based form of spirituality

The goal of Earth Working is to work with and understand the cyclic flow of the energizes of the earth to move towards an understanding of the natural world that surrounds us both spiritually and scientifically. to do so requires a lot of research, time, knowledge, field work, practice and patience. 

and when i say the natural world, i mean the whole natural world. Mother nature may seem beautiful, tranquil and loving but she is a fickle mistress if you let your guard down at the wrong time she will kill you, and thats just the way things work. it is about life, death, decay and survival of the fittest in many aspects.  

Now that i am past that i can talk more about Earth Working as it is for me.

Earth Working incorporates forming a connection and collaborating with the world around you in order to understand it. whether it be mountains, plains, valleys, the ocean, rivers the woods ect, you can always learn something from the world around you.

Right now i have been heavily focussing on working with the woods and fields that surround me. i have been studying the earth, trees, plants, rocks, herbs, and flowers and consulting and harvesting them for both their medicinal and magical value. I mostly grow my own herbs or Wildcraft them. i have been spending much of this summer harvesting, drying them and studying herbal medicine. (post on singing to plants while harvesting)  

I go out into the woods and just explore and connect with it. every now and then i will find a place amongst the safety of the trees and mediate. i take time to try to link with the spirits of what surrounds me. i acknowledge the spirit of the earth, elements and a series of spirits. Usually, the spirits of nature, and the dead such as animals. i incorporate these spirits along with, herbs, stones, bones, feathers, crystals, flowers and found objects from nature into my craft. I personally try to find the potential for life and growth in everything. for example i have met very few people who can look at a rotting carcass and appreciate and be as fascinated with it as much as i am.    

as of now this is the best description i can come up with for Earth Working, its actually a lot more tame of a description than i was expecting. however i will elaborate on it more in the future. thoughts and feedback are welcome :3