Of bees and honey

Many moons ago I read a book by Barbara Cartland. Not one of her Mills and Boon style fiction ones but a book on the properties and recipes for honey. It was called The magic of honey.
I don't remember it in detail now but I do remember the feeling it gave me. A recognition of the powers of honey and the magic of the bees.
I have always loved bees and the honey from them.
As a very young girl I can remember my nan taking me down the garden to the hives and her talking to the bees. Telling them about her day. Nothing earth shattering that first time, just general goings on.
Later she told them of her cancer, granddad's illness and his subsequent death.
But the first time I remember questioning her about the chats she told me why she did it.
The bees share their lives and life energy with us through the honey and beeswax. They also give us joy with the sounds they make and their flights to collect pollen. To share our lives by daily chats is not a big thing but it gives a little something back and is an acknowledgment of them and the role they have within our lives.
We pass on news but we also pass on a little of the anxieties and worry as well as the joy.
Bees were very important to my nan, she used their gifts of honey in her cooking and her salves. She also made beeswax candles and polish. When I discovered Barbara Cartland's book in the early 1970s it brought back so many happy memories of childhood. Moments of bliss, tasting as we picked fruits and veg or bottled preserves. Getting sticky from the spoon full of honey.
When we use honey in cooking, beeswax candles and the like I also thank the bees for their gifts. I speak to any I see, tell then snippets of my news.
Bees are very important to us all. We need them in our lives. They pollinate the plants, not just the flowers but the food we eat.
Without them we would have nothing.
The dreadful events in Japan bring home to me how much we are dependent on the earth and the Goddess. How we are so reliant on her.
All our technology and modern way of life mean nothing should the earth decide differently.
We do not have the wherewithal to prevent earthquakes or tsunamis. We are still at her mercy yet we treat this earth with such contempt and disdain.
Who are we to think we have power over her?
Yesterday's events show differently.
Is the Goddess trying to tell us something and will we listen to her?

Being pagan

This past few days I've been in a reflective frame of mind. Several things brought it about,sad anniversaries  being one.

My faith is a way of life, it isn't a 9 to 5 thing or a weekend thing. I live it every day every minute.
 
Everything I do I try to do in a mindful way and believe me sometimes that is hard. I believe that there is no straight path to follow, our journey through life is a spiral path and we are always moving on and (hopefully) outward.


Sometimes we are stuck in a rut and go round and round in circles. That doesn't matter. As long as we are aware of what we are doing and why then we can learn from it.
I believe that people are part of our lives for varying lengths of time and then they ,or we, move on. That also isn't a bad thing even though it feels like it sometimes and we hurt. If we have gained from knowing them then it can never be a negative thing. If they go away feeling the same then all to the good.

I used to get very upset when people drifted away but it didn't help me thinking that way. I found it a hard lesson and it isn't one that will ever be fully learnt I'm sure because apart from being pagan I'm also human:)

Today was a sad day in many ways. The birthday of my late uncle, the one who was more of a father to me than my biological father. It has been a few years since his death but each year on his birthday and on the day of his death I feel the loss. I think of him throughout the year not just on those days but those are the days for keeping in touch with my aunt and my youngest cousin, the one who is more sister than cousin. A time of remembering the silly things as well as the serious.

As Ostara looms on the horizon I think of the new growth on trees and bushes, the many colours of flowers everywhere I look. The deaths balanced by new beginnings.

Life is never easy but  there is lots of joy and laughter, lots of positive energy.
It is a seesaw and we balance the best we can twixt negative and positive, good and bad.

I try to be in the now and enjoy the simple signs of spring, the new moon and her journey around the sky.

I am a pagan but I'm also human. I have good points and bad; faults but also I hope positives.

The spiral dance

As the days get ever lighter we edge closer to Ostara or Spring Equinox. My heart lifts with the brighter days and sunshine. It has not been a good winter, there has been much to cope with from illness to death and much in between. I keep reminding myself of my Nan's favourite saying "the Goddess never gives us more than we can cope with" However  there is quite a difference between what the Goddess and I believe is enough:)
 
The inward facing days have been very interesting to say the least with much soul searching and letting go. Some years this dark half has more effect than others. The wheel turns slowly when you are working through things. I dare say it will speed up now with the return of the light.
 
The spinning and knitting continue apace, they keep me sane and balanced when I most need it. A brilliant meditation tool both of them. My hands weave patterns while my mind journeys where it wishes or needs to go.
 
People come and go touching our lives briefly or for longer periods. I'm convinced that we come together for a purpose then when that has been fulfilled they move onwards to new things and others come into our orbit. It isn't just about helping others on their path I think it helps us also as we see things through new people's eyes .