1. Make up your mind to be happy, Learn to find pleasure in simple things.

2. Make the best of your circumstances. No one has everything, and everyone has something of sorrow intermingled with gladness of life. The trick is to make the laughter outweigh the tears.

3. Don't take yourself too seriously. Don't think that somehow you should be protected from misfortune that befalls other people.

4. You can't please everybody. Don't let criticism worry you.

5. Don't let your neighbor set your standards. Be Yourself.

6. Do the things you enjoy doing but stay out of depth.

7. Never borrow trouble. Imaginary things are harder to bear than real ones.

8. Since hate poisons the soul, do not cherish jealousy , Avoid people who make you unhappy.

9. Have many interests. If you can't travel, read about new places.

10. Don't hold postmordems. Don't spend your time brooding over sorrows or mistakes. Don't be one who never gets over things.

11. Do what you can for those less fortunate than yourself.

12. Keep busy at something. A busy person never has time to be unhappy.

A Yule Story for Children ~ The Tiniest Fairy ~



In a time before time had been named, when life danced as a dazzling rainbow upon the mystical Earth, magick lived inside each earthen creature. Some, the big ones, were having a harder time seeing the magick now, than in the past. They were starting to forget that magick is all around you, if only you believed.

Alicia was a small and tiny earthen spirit with sparkling blue eyes and a pinched up nose; even in the fairy world, where all things are small, she was the smallest of them all.

Her home was deep inside the strong and twisting roots of a big Oak. It was safe and none of the winter cold snows could find their way a in.

She loved playing around her cozy and warm home with her mom and dad. They would play hide and seek and she could easily hide in the corners or under the furniture. They would read books by the fire light and sing songs that only the fairies knew.

Alicia was frightened of the other earthen creatures, as well as of what might be outside her cozy home under the big Oak. She had never been out before and saw no reason to go into the "outside."

When company came over Alicia would not come out of her tiny seed pod bed. When the Bunny family who lived next door came to visit, she was frightened that being so small, one of the many bunny babies might accidentally hop on her. She would only peek over the beds edge with her tiny pinched nose when the Gloends, a family of glowworms; came to visit, because she wanted to see where the warm yellow glow was coming from.

At dinner one evening, Alicia's mom and dad told her that soon winter's hold would be ending. That frightened Alicia since she only knew the winter and could not imagine what might happen if it was to end.

They explained to her that in all the magickal world, it was her magick that would call in the changing of seasons and the turning of the great wheel. On the eve of the next night Alicia, her mom and her dad would go on a journey into the forest. Here, there would be a great gathering and all the mystical creatures of Earth would see her gift of magick.

But Alicia shivered with fear -- what was this wheel and how can she stop this magick and changing? She liked things just as they were and didn't want anything to change at all. She didn't want to go to a gathering where so many would be. She didn't know what this gift was that she was to give. What if she got lost and no one could find her? Or maybe the others would see her. Maybe they would not like her or make fun of her or laugh at her being so small.

Her greatest fear was that maybe she had no magick. She had not seen it. She couldn't fly like her mom and dad, she kept falling on her elbows. She couldn't make things like flowers or snowflakes like her mom and dad; all she ended up with some ice that melted. She couldn't even make light with her wand. How would her parents feel when they found out, what would she do?

Even as frightened as Alicia was of going into the "outside, " she was more frightened of what others might think of her. She didn't want to disappoint her mom and dad, so she decided it would be best if she hid. She would go into the "outside;" no one would look for her there. She would not go very far. Just far enough away where she could hide until the gathering was over, and then the change would not happen.

Alicia's mom was roasting acorns for the great gathering's feast and her dad was busy polishing up his ice wand. Alicia knew no one would see her leave, or think she would go into the "outside" alone, since she never had before.

With her wand in a small bag tied to her waist, Alicia carefully opened the door of her house and stepped into the "outside." She closed the door quickly and quietly so her mom and dad would not hear it creak. Then, she turned to see what was here in this "outdoors." It was white everywhere. She walked along for a little while when all of a sudden "crunch" she sunk into the snow up to her wing tips. It took a bit of work but she wriggled her way up and out of the snow. Now she was really cold and she could see it was getting darker. The bright bluish color of the sky was now turning a purple hue with streaks of red and yellow.

She wasn't sure, but if night was coming she had to hide quickly. If she could fly just to the edge of the forest she would find a place to stay until the gathering was over and then she could go home again. Then it would be safe because nothing would change. That is what she wanted.

Alicia was frighten and getting colder, but she had made up her mind. She had to do this, or everything she knew was going to change forever. She shook herself off and looked toward the forest edge. With all her will and might she jumped up and began flying forward. Then back a little, then up, then down, then around in some circles and then slower and then faster and then it happened. Bang! She flew right into a tree branch hanging low weighted heavy by the snow.

Alicia did not know what exactly had happened as she rubbed her head, but when she rose up again out of the snow it had gotten very dark. She could see tiny lights twinkling above her now. She looked around trying to figure out what direction to go. By now the gathering must be over and she could go home. Everything would stay the same. But which way was home?

Alicia couldn't see where to go, so she didn't want to try to fly. What if she hit another tree, it was dark now and she couldn't make anything out, plus her head still hurt from before. She had to be very careful deciding what way to go now.

All of a sudden, she heard someone calling her. "Alicia, Alicia." She felt her body begin to shake so hard that the tiny ice cycles that had formed on the tips of her wings, tinkled like little bells. As she turned around to look behind her, she saw a woman lying on a big pile of fur blankets. She was not a fairy, but she was beautiful, dressed in a green, red and white gown. Hundreds of earthen creatures stood all around her, many Alicia had never seen before, but none were scared or frightened at all. Although Alicia didn't understand it, she wasn't frightened either.

There seemed to peace about this woman, it was something calming. "Alicia, I have been waiting for you. I need your help." the Lady said.
"Waiting for me?" Alicia asked.
"Yes, Alicia, " she said. "Its dark now and we need your light to light the way, so that we can see what lies before us."
"My light?" Alicia asked, remembering she had not been able to make her wand light before.
"It's your magick Alicia, your magick that will call the light from within me." the Lady said.
Alicia slowly began to walk toward the woman. That's when she saw that this quiet lady was going to have a baby, and she was going to have it any moment.

All the fears and worries Alicia carried with her were beginning to melt away, just like the ice on her wing tips. As she looked into the meadow green eyes of this lady she wanted more than anything else in her small life to make a light for her.

Alicia, still trembling, took her wand from its little bag, and raised it up. With every magickal hope she had ever had, she put her energy into lighting her wand.

The lady smiled gently at her and in that instance there was a great flash of light which came from the tip of that tiny wand. It was a brilliant luminous light which filled every corner of the night.

As Alicia held her wand high she looked over to see that now the lady was holding in her arms a baby; a wonderful little baby boy. Suddenly, she understood it all, everything her mom and dad had been telling her.

This was the magick, this was her special gift. Alicia, the tiniest of all fairies, she was the one who carried the spark, the spark which released the light of the world and the turning of the wheel of life.

In her tiny being she had carried that magick, the magick to unlock the power of love and understanding for the world to share. Standing in that brilliant light, Alicia understood who the Lady was and the importance of this baby. She was a part of the rebirth of the Light. This baby was the Light again reborn of the Goddess. The beautiful Lady was the Goddess of life, and Alicia was that spark of magick which survives all time and through which we find boundless possibilities.

Soon the edge of the forest was filled with earthen creatures and spirits from all over the mystical world. Alicia's mom and dad watched their fairy child as she beamed with joy. The Lady holding her baby boy, blessed all those who shared in this time of magick as the feast was served and great happiness was shared by all.

Alicia didn't even notice that she was floating on the air. She was no longer weighted down by all her silly worries or fears. She knew that even though she was tiny she had the power to light the world. Now she understood, magick is all around you if you only believe, and trust in yourself.

So each year as you light a candle to call the light, remember the tiniest fairy, for it only takes one tiny spark to give light unto the whole world.

Blessed be our Lady the Mother of Light.

Lady Abigail
High Priestess Ravensgrove Coven



Copyright: Copyright © 11012005
Lady Abigail
High Priestess Ravensgrove Coven

What Witches Believe
Of basic beliefs and ethics . . .

This is a tough one to answer simply, because among all the other
things witches are, we are individualists. We each make our own
relationship with Deity, and each grow and love in our own way. It is
said that if you ask a room full of thirteen witches a question,
you'll get twenty-five different answers. And it's true.

That said, there are some fundamental beliefs that pull us together
strongly enough to create the sort of loving community you see here.
Wicca is a spiritual path, a way of seeing the world and Divinity, and
our relationship to it. It is a very simple ethical principle. It is a
way of life. And it is a way of tuning into the shifting energies of
life around us and tapping into those energies to make the world a
better place; this is what we mean by magic.

We believe that Deity/Source/ God/dess is imminent in the world around
us. Divinity permeates every living thing. . .and most of us define
rocks, soil, water, air, fire, and the planet Herself as living
things. Just look with an open heart at a dew-filled spider web or a
lacework of bare winter branches covered with ice crystals, and you'll
see what we mean. God/dess is IN there. S/He's in each one of us, too.

This idea has many ramifications.

First, it means every living thing is sacred. We don't believe in a
hierarchy of God above man above animals above plants. We believe
Divinity permeates everything, and so everything has an equal right to
our love, reverence, respect, and protection. Witches tend to be
dedicated environmentalists. But more than that, we let ourselves be
guided by a very simple and powerful ethical principle:

"An it harm none, do as ye will."

Instead of listing a number of "Thou shalt nots," we say that as long
as one's actions don't harm any living thing, including ourselves, in
ANY way, we can do whatever brings joy and love into our lives. So,
fun between consenting adults --with suitable precautions- - is okay.
Using any sort of physical, mental, emotional, or magical coercion if
someone is reluctant, is NOT.

Second, because we believe that Divinity is in everything we see, we
don't create a hierarchy of values based on things of the spirit being
of more worth than things of the body. Our bodies are rather
miraculous gifts God/dess provides to allow us to live in and learn
from on the physical plane. We see it as a spiritual imperative to
take care of them. Every act that helps us maintain our physical
existence thus takes on a spiritual dimension. When doing dishes or
cleaning out the basement become sacred acts, life is a whole lot richer.

We also believe that our thoughts, actions, emotions, and prayers
create energy. This energy goes out into the world and, in the process
of being reflected by the other beings there, is multiplied before it
returns to us. Some say threefold, others say tenfold; it may vary.
But what we put out returns to us multiplied, whether that be love or
fear, anger or compassion. So most of us work actively to try to
diffuse our fears, express our anger cleanly and let it go, and to
develop a greater understanding of the world around us.

Our lives are gifts, and if we need to protect ourselves, we do;
generally through the most peaceful means possible. Often this takes
the form of surrounding ourselves with light to reflect or deflect
anything that means us harm. We do kill to eat; most creatures do.
Some of us are vegetarian. Personally, because I see plants as people,
too, and know that something must die so I can survive, I eat a
variety of foods, expressing my gratitude for this food to the
creatures who supply it.

Another belief that many of us share is that our souls cycle through
many lifetimes. We will be back to enjoy the progression of the
seasons again. Among witches, there are many different visions of the
time and space between lives; most are joyful places where we meld
more closely with our Gods. But because we know we'll be back again,
we know that any mess we leave behind will be here when we return
(possibly even multiplied in the interim). Another strong motivator to
live in harmony and respect with all others in our world.

One of the things we learn, in deeper and deeper ways as we progress
on this path, is that on the levels of spirit and energy, we are not
only connected to, but literally ONE with all living things. Any harm
we do another is, in the long run, harm to ourselves. We don't need a
disciplinary God to judge us; we see the results of our actions. Harm
harms us; love strengthens us. This is extremely empowering, because
we know that if we make our own messes, we can also, with the support
and loving guidance of the Goddess and God, clean them up.

Of the Goddesses and Gods . . .

So, what Gods and Goddesses do we believe in? Here is where
individuality really comes in. Most witches see Divinity as complex
and reflecting all the different traits and aspects of human nature.
It is common to speak of Divinity as Goddess and God, Lord and Lady,
Mother and Father, where the Goddess represents feminine, life-giving,
nourishing, receptive forces, and the God represents masculine,
dynamic, projective forces. The Goddess is often identified with the
Moon: mysterious, and ever changing. The God is similarly identified
with the Sun: vitalising and life giving.

Many witches see the Goddess as three-fold: Maiden, Mother and Crone.
The Crone is the figure most often identified with witches in popular
culture, as the warty old hag who flies on her broomstick and harasses
Dorothy, Snow White, and trick-or-treaters. Witches see Her as a
grandmotherly figure of great wisdom and compassion, who sometimes
challenges us to grow by tweaking our fears, and who helps us face
death when the time comes. The Mother is the nourishing aspect who
births, feeds, supports, and loves us. The Maiden is the playful
curious aspect who encourages us to explore our world with joy.

The God is often seen and the Lord of the forest and of the animals.
Sometimes He is depicted as a laughing man with a luxurious beard of
Oak leaves. He can be depicted as the warrior prince who inspires us
with hope when we must defend something precious to us. . . our land,
our loved ones, or our truths. Very often he is associated with virile
male animals such as stags, stallions and rams. More on this later, as
it is these images that Christianity has incorporated into their Lord
of Evil.

Many of the ancient pagan dieties were gods and goddesses of
fertility. This makes sense when you remember that survival depended
on the fertility of crops and herds, and that a large family meant
more hands to work the farms. In our overcrowded modern world, witches
tend to focus on the fertility of our minds and creative work. It is a
precious part of our faith to emulate Her creativity in our work,
play, and households.

There are whole pantheons of Gods and Goddesses from different
countries and eras of history. The Welsh Gods might appeal to people
of that ancestry. Egyptian Gods and Goddesses might appeal to people
with past lives in that time. It is neither right nor wrong to limit
oneself to working with Divinities from one culture or another. Some
witches might choose to work with Mother Goddesses from many cultures,
for example.

My own way of seeing this is that Divinity is like a huge jewel with
many, many facets that all direct and reflect light in their own ways.
We all see different facets depending on the angle we look from. None
is better or more correct than any other, although with the polishing
power of many prayers, some of the facets get bigger than some of the
others. The Christian God has a huge facet, and does put out a lot of
light, but He is not the whole picture. We work with the Gods and
Goddesses that call to us, and we develop relationships with them that
help and support us in our evolution.

Of the Flows of Nature . . .

Many of us tune into the energies of Nature around us and make a
conscious effort to live, work, and play in harmony with them. Most
witches follow the phases of the Moon and time their work according to
how its purpose harmonises with Her phases. Most witches follow the
cycles of the Sun and His effects on the flora and fauna of our world,
and we try to harmonise our work with the energies of the seasons.
Many of us follow the courses of the stars and planets, and work with
their influences according to the wisdom of astrology.

This principle is characteristic of many earth-based religions and
also Buddhism, which calls it "going with the flow." We learn that
there are times when action is appropriate, and times when we would
better spend our time in reflection. There are times when we can build
and accomplish much, and times when we can let go of habits we no
longer need. Everything we do is a little more powerful when we
harness the natural flows around us rather than fighting them.

Of Magic . . .

And this leads into a discussion of magic. Life itself is magic: the
cycles of birth and death, the processes of healing, the processes of
homeostasis in living bodies. Witches learn to nudge these natural
processes by applying focus and will. Our plants grow better if we
focus the life-giving energies of Goddess and God in them, according
to their natures and natural cycles. Our careers progress better if we
focus our minds and learn to set goals for the highest good of all.
Our physical and emotional health flourish if we are aware of the
constant need to give and take, to assimilate and cleanse, to push
ourselves to our limits and to experience new boundaries, and if we
are aware of the gifts of the foods we eat and the plants we use for
healing.

Beyond these processes of living well, yes, we practice the
application of will to accomplish our wishes. We know from the outset
that if we will something that will harm another, the chance of our
work being successful are reduced. If what we wish is in harmony with
Divine Will, our magic is simply a demonstration of our willingness to
work within that Plan. We apply our focused will to the purpose we
have in mind, at a time and in a way conducive to harnessing the
energies of Nature that support our purpose, and then we let Divine
Will determine the outcome for the highest good of all.

When we work in this way, spells, incantations, incense, candles,
music, and ritual tools are used only as ways of focussing our intent
and energy. The words of a spell are less important than the intent
behind them, and the focus we have learned through discipline. This is
why many witches do not like to teach spells to those who might use
them to force an issue without being aware of the principles behind magic.

Of Our Past . . .

Witchcraft is based on what we know or try to reconstruct of the
beliefs of pagan peoples in the world before Christianity. Some study
scholarly works and archeology for clues to these beliefs. Some claim
that they are initiated into wisdom that has been passed down to them
in an unbroken lineage from those times. Some open to remembering how
they have related to Divinity in previous incarnations. Some find
their memories in poems and songs. Some simply hear of our beliefs and
practices, know this is the right path for them, and learn by doing.

In the time since our religions were dominant on Earth, other
religions have held sway over centuries of civilisation. These
religions have misconstrued what we are about based on their own world
views. It is tempting at times to protest what we are NOT in response
to what others say about us. But the truth is that this merely drags
us into trying to define ourselves by their frames of reference.

For example, we are not Satanists. Satan is a figure created many
centuries after Christ's death. It was constructed of a Persian demon
figure and those of our Gods endowed with horns and hooves. It was
used by the Christians as a repository for the qualities of humanity
that they considered sinful. It is almost as if, having taken all the
good and loving qualities of humanity and deposited them in their God,
the Christian Church needed to similarly externalise all the dark and
fearsome qualities. Satan is actually irrelevant to the witch's
world-view because we make a virtue of owning all our qualities, light
and dark. Deity is within us, and so are our shadows. This gives us
the power to explore, know, shed light upon, and heal our shadows
rather than try to deny them and let them rule us in ways we are
unaware of.

Since the early Christians thought we served their anti-God, Satan,
they feared us. And in their fear, they sought us out and killed many
of us; over nine million people are believed to have been killed in
witch hunts in the Middle Ages. Many of these were not witches, but
were women living alone, or healers and midwives. We honour these
souls, and we pray for an end to the fear that led to their deaths.

Of our Present . . .

We see our time on this Earth as an opportunity to grow, heal, learn,
make amends for past mistakes, and allow our souls to evolve. In the
process, we meditate, pray, sing, and create art, music, poetry and
prose. We love our families and friends. We take great joy in the
beauty of the world around us and in making the parts of it we live in
beautiful and healthy. We serve Divine Will by functioning as
gardeners and doctors, mothers and administrators, counsellors and
craftspeople, computer operators and entertainers. We make it a goal
to interact with our world in a loving respectful way, and we forgive
ourselves when we fall short. We help each other, and we grow.

If you think you might be one of us, read on. If not, we respect your
path and wish you well on your journey nonetheless. Regardless, be our
guest for as long as you wish. We hope our information about healing
and self-discovery will be of interest to you, and of course our
hearts will be just as open.

Blessed Be.

I hope everyone here has a very very blessed day. I hope you have an awesome year in the coming months. We as Witch's celebrate Samhain as our New Year.. some do and some don't - to the ones that do. Happy New Year!!

BLACK ROSES

A beauty so rare,

Only the pure of heart can see them.

They only come out at the close of day

when the surroundings are just right.

If you are too anxious, they won't be revealed to you.

You have to be so patient of a flower that blooms in lovers hearts.

A beautiful rose like no other on this planet.

A rose so rare that it only blooms to those who believe.

Black roses are the true essence of beauty.

Dark and Mysterious, Pretty and New.

They speak to the dark ones and to the rare ones

that understand true ellegance.

They speak volumes upon volumes of poetry and they are so lyrical.

Black roses are the most pure amongst the ones than see true love bloom.

To see one - is to know pure radiance in the dance of life!

©MJG