Saturday, June 25, 2011

Midwest-Southwest Tour 2011

Announcing Laurelei Black's super-fantastico tour of America's mid-section!

Okay, so truthfully, I'm going to visit my Nanny (that's "Okie" for granny) starting tomorrow. She lives in Tulsa, Oklahoma and I haven't seen her in three or four years. Shameful. Just shameful.

Then, I'll be back in Indiana for a minute and a half before heading to Louisville, Kentucky to celebrate Independence Day with Glaux and Iron Dragon. Iron Dragon's mother's birthday was on the 4th of July. She used to collect Americana decor and teased that everyone celebrated her birthday. This is the third year since she crossed the veil, and it has become the family's most important holiday together.

Either that night or the following morning, I'll be heading to Wisteria, Ohio for the 31st Starwood festival. I'm presenting 2 workshops (Creating Aphrodisia Rituals and Aphrodite's Bath: Cleansing and Creation Through Sensuality) and an Aphrodisia Ritual. Iron Dragon will be fire tending, which he's done at Starwood and Brushwood in the past. He tends fire at Our Haven all the time, but the Starwood fires are gigantic. He may be a busy boy! (I hope we'll actually get to see each other.)

I'll have one week back in Indiana before I make a return trip to Oklahoma. My second trip takes me to the border of Oklahoma and Arkansas -- the area where both my parents grew up and where I attended high school. It is very near Ft. Smith, AR., and I may even make a trip up to Fayetteville to visit some OTO Brethren there. Of course, I have a Nanny on this trip who has called dibs on visiting, so my time is going to be pretty squeezed.

July is a crazy-busy month.

Ready. Set. Go!!

Saturday, June 18, 2011

A Blog, Re-Purposed

Another Babalon Rising has come and gone, and I'm finding myself in that weird, languid, reflective place that happens after a truly magical event. This is especially true for me of Babalon Rising since my closest friends, my dearest OTO Brethren, and my spice (pl. for spouse) are all heavily involved in the organization of this festival. It is an intense, challenging, playful, and ultimately very magical experience for me that always requires some processing time when I return to "consensus reality."

Two months have passed since I announced my change in magical/spiritual focus. So much has come into clearer perspective for me since that time. Aphrodite's role in my life -- my constant seeking out of Her as the Starry Queen of Heaven (Asteria) and my adoption of that moniker as my magical name -- paired with Tubal Qayn's omnipresence in my practice is so much clearer. Star Goddess and Forge God. Makes perfect sense!

I have returned very forcibly to my Witchcraft beginnings -- to the writings of Robert Cochrane and those who followed in his footsteps (especially here in America, many of whom have been my direct or indirect teachers). Glaux and I are hard at work on the American Folkloric Witchcraft blog, which shares with the world the foundations of the Tradition that we have been shaping over the course of the last several years. We have also been working on the Asteria Books OWLS (Occult & Witchcraft Learning Series), a comprehensive reference library for students of the Craft and Occult.

I'll be presenting at Starwood XXI in Wisteria, OH, USA  during July 5-11. Lovingly, I'll be presenting two workshops about my beloved Aphrodite! One is entitled "Creating Aphrodisia Rituals" and the other is "Aphrodite's Bath: Cleansing and Creation Through Sensuality."  I hope if you're in the area, you'll come and see me.

In August, I'll be presenting at Midwest Herb Fest, and I'll be with Glaux and our daughter at the Women's Goddess Retreat in September -- both at Our Haven in Indiana.

So? My work, now? Writing and magic. I guess that hasn't changed. Only my perception of it has shifted. I now see that I am the star-forged steel ... and the anvil ... and the star itself.