Imbolc Issue
When I was a small child, deep in the bonds of the Catholic Church, February 2nd, to me, represented the day we nearly were strangled in church. St. Blaize's feast day is Feb. 2, aka Candlemas. We were made to attend mass, as usual, and the priest would bless our throats. You had to kneel down and the big tall priest would stick a couple candlesticks across your neck and murmur some words in Latin (or so I was told, it could have been Satan Speak for all I knew then) and the wafting of the frankincense and myrrh was made to put you in a trance so that you didn't feel the pain of the candles squeezing your life force from you! MUHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!
See these pics? Imagine my fright. Plus, I had never heard of anyone at that time dying from a neck disease!
 |
| Catholic torture device |
 |
| Don't you think she looks as scared as I was? |
________________________________________________________________________________
 |
| Brigid's bed, Imbolc 2007 |
The Imbolc Love Necklace Spell
Ancient mystery, magic night
Cut pink rose buds by fireside bright.
Thread of white, a needle sharp
Candle red to stay the dark.
Place all upon the altar stone
Consecrate from witches bones.
Cast a circle from outstretched hand
Call the quarters, make it grand.
Elements are good, and angels too
Universal love can be their cue.
Banish winter, out, out, out
Raise your staff, turn thrice about.
Throw Yule greens in the fire
Dance to bring in Spring's desire.
Dress the dolly, corn she be
The harvest bride from last year's seed.
String the rose buds, one by one
Circle and tie when you are done.
Empower it now, hold it high
Ask the Gods to bring love nigh.
Raise your energy, bright and strong
Hum a tune of loving song.
Release your power, quickly please
Ground an center, feel at ease.
Dismiss your quarters, circle down
Open the space with a rapping sound.
In the morning when the sun doth rise
Place the dolly under new day skies.
Leave her there, without the gown
To summon prosperity all year round.
When autumn chill doth kiss your cheek
Return the doll to the ground or creek.
Save the necklace, keep it close
Give it to whom you love the most.
Kiss them once upon the lips
Tell them it's an Imbolc gift.
~by Silver Ravenwolf
________________________________________________________________________________
NEWS
Fire at Cloudcroft destroys a couple buildings. The mid-December fire happened at 4am and threatened Cloudcroft's main street. Fortunately no one was injured, although several businesses were burned down.
Congratulations to Mojo and Misi (O’Pa and Nene) on the birth of the first grandson. Anson Lee Rutherford was born on January 17. He joins proud daddy Asa and exhausted momma Alle and beaming big sister Audrey at home. Welcome to this crazy world, Anson! You are only a couple weeks old now and so very loved.
GOTMO - the next planning meeting for the Gathering On The Mountains (aka GOTMO) will be February 4. If you’d like more information on what GOTMO is please visit:
http://www.tarotbyolympias.com/mysticcrossroads2007.html This year’s event will be held on June 23-26, 2011 and costs $40 per adult and includes all meals, camp access, and all workshops/rituals. It’s a great time, beautiful area, and I say WHAT A BARGAIN!
________________________________________________________________________________
CALENDAR
Feb. 2 - Imbolc
Feb. 2 - New Moon
Feb. 4 - GOTMO Planning Meeting
Feb. 5 - EG Imbolc celebration
Feb. 6 - PPD/Psychic Fair Planning Meeting, 10am, Hastings
Feb. 11 - Magick Coffee at Schlotzky’s on 19th, topic: Astral Temples
Feb. 13 - Coffee with Oly - Recipes for Love 3-5pm at http://www.blogtalkradio.com/olympias
Feb. 18 - Full Moon
Feb. 20 - Coffee with Oly - Hades, Lucifer, and Satan 3-5pm at http://www.blogtalkradio.com/olympias
Feb. 27 - Coffee with Oly - Sound-Off Sunday 3-5pm at http://www.blogtalkradio.com/olympias
March 1 - Deadline for Ostara Newsletter submissions
March 4 - New Moon
March 11 - Magick Coffee, topic TBD
________________________________________________________________________________
Pagan Poetry Corner
for future submissions, email: angellswrath@yahoo.com
American Veterans
A wesome
M odest
E xtraordinary
R eady
I ntelligent
C ourageous
A dmirable
N oble
V ast
E ducated
T rained
E ncouraging
R eliable
A ble
N ecessary
Here's to all the veterans and soldiers
who are fighting or fought to protect us.
~Jenna Espinoza, grade 6
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
 |
| Imbolc fire, 2009 |
If you kept a sacred fire burning for me
I would spend the rest of eternity
making love to you -
body mind soul.
Every square inch of
you covered by my lips
in a kiss.
I would feed that fire.
I would
burn baby burn for you.
Look for me in every candle flame.
I burst into desire for your heat.
~Luna
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
I breath in...
I can feel the briskness of the God
I can feel the chill of the Goddess
they dance the ancient dance,
breath-cloud forming before my face...
I sit among the fallen skeletal leaves
and I trace her fingerprints along each
line of decay, their brittle essence
turning to dust at a touch...
She is here...in the hard earth beneath me...
BELOW
She is here...in the shadowing barren trees
that sway in the wind
She is here...in the scurry of the heavy furred squirrel
the black crackles eagerly eat the weeks crusty bread.
The Geese turn the twilight a grim gray Wild Hunt
as they call out the mother's name as they pass...
Above me-I see a tiny bud of life
ABOVE
forming carefully at the tip of the deep brown branch...
soon she will turn from barren to life-giver again
and Her soft womb will swell with renewal...
~mojo~
________________________________________________________________________________
 |
| by Hestia |
Kitchen Witch's Korner
Imbolc is a great time of fire and feasting. The word "Imbolc" comes in part from the phrase "ewe's milk," so dairy products have become a big part of February celebrations. Traditional foods for the Imbolc celebration include those made with seeds, (to symbolize growth), raisins (a fruit of the Sun God), pork, poultry, or lamb, with sides of potatoes, cabbage, onions, and garlic and of course any dairy product. Imbolc is the mid-point of the dark half of the year, and though stored foods are running low, it is a celebration of renewal and preparation for Spring. Whip up some kitchen magic for your Sabbat meal with these tasty recipes of the season!
With many blessings!
~Hestia
Amish Breakfast Casserole
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
1 pound sausage or ham or bacon, cooked and diced
1 medium sweet onion
6 eggs lightly beaten
4 cups frozen shredded hash browns, thawed
2 cups (8oz) shredded cheddar cheese
1 ½ cups (12 oz) 4% cottage cheese
1 ¼ cups shredded Swiss cheese
In a large skillet cook the sausage/ham/bacon until completely done. Drain. Using 1 TBSP of the oil left over from cooking the meat, sauté the onion until done.
In a large bowl, combine all of the ingredients. Transfer to a greased 13 x 9 inch baking pan.
Baked, uncovered, at 350° for 45-50 minutes or until a knife inserted near the center comes out clean. Let stand for 10 minutes before cutting. Yield: 6 servings
Note: I really thought of not doing the cottage cheese or the Swiss cheese, but please include them. You will not be disappointed.
Colcannon
~~~~~~~~~
8 large potatoes, peeled and cubed
1/2 head of cabbage
1 bunch scallions (green onions), chopped
2 cloves chopped (or pressed) garlic
1 small chopped onion
milk
butter
dill (1/2 t. dried, or 1 t. fresh chopped)
fresh ground black pepper
Shred the cabbage. Sauté the onions and garlic with a little butter, then add the cabbage and toss to coat. Reduce heat and cover; let it steam until done.
Meanwhile, boil, drain, mash the potatoes, add milk and a little butter. Stir in the cabbage mixture, and season with salt pepper and dill.
At the end of winter, our ancestors may have been running low on veggies and meat, but they usually had plenty of bread left. This is a wonderful recipe for soda bread from our local Irish witch, Charree.
Irish Soda Bread
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
2 ½ cups all-purpose flour
½ cup sugar
1 ½ teaspoons baking powder
¾ teaspoon salt
½ teaspoon n baking soda
½ cup (1 stick) unsalted butter
1 cup raisins, dried cranberries or dried pomegranate
1 tablespoon caraway seeds (optional)
1 large egg
1 ¼ cup buttermilk
¼ cup sour cream
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Butter a 9 inch round cake pan or a loaf pan. Sift together the dry ingredients. Using a food processor or a pastry cutter cut the butter into the flour mixture until it resembles small peas. Blend in the dried fruit and the caraway seeds. Beat the egg, buttermilk and sour cream together until blended. Stir the egg mixture into the dry mixture just until blended. Transfer the batter to the pan and bake for 50 to 55 minutes, until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Imbolc, also known as Candlemas, Imbolg, Bride's Day, Oimelc, Brid's Day, Lady Day, St. Brighid's Day, Candelaria, Lupercus, is usually celebrated on the 1st of February. Imbolc, loosely translated, mean’s “ewe’s milk” It marks the center point of the dark half of the year. It is the festival of the maiden, a time to prepare for growth and renewal. Correspondences include:
Rituals: Purity, growth and renewal, new beginnings, purification, household cleansing rituals, rejuvenation, spells for good luck, fertility spells, re-consecration, weather divination
Incense: Basil, bay, benzoin, cinnamon, myrrh, vanilla, violet
Herbs/Plants: Angelica, basil, bay, benzoin, heather, myrrh, rowan, dill
Stones/Gems: Amethyst, bloodstone, garnet, onyx, ruby, turquoise
Colors: white, silver
Symbols/Decorations: white or silver Candles, brides, grain dollies, burrowing animals, ewes, Brigid’s cross, Brigid’s bed, priapic wands, brooms, white flowers or the first flowers of the season, silver bowls, melted snow in a bottle, representations of animals of the season
Foods: Cheese, recipes using sour cream or mascarpone, yogurt, curries, fish, white meat, dishes containing onions, peppers and/or garlic, spiced wine, pumpkin seeds, sunflower seeds, muffins, scones, rice pudding, poppy seeds, poultry, foods or breads containing raisins, herbal teas
Goddesses: Virgin or maiden goddesses, the Goddess as a child, Brigid(celtic), Aradia, Athena(greek), Gaia(greek), Inanna(sumerian), Februa(roman), Hestia(greek)
Gods: Gods of fire, the God as a young man or child, love or fertility gods, Pan(greek), Aengus Og(celtic), Eros(greek), Februus(roman), Faunus(roman)
Animals/Mythological creatures: Bears, eagle, groundhogs, owls, ravens, sheep, snakes, stags, dragons, firebirds, phoenix
Essence: renewal, new beginnings, purification
_____________________________________________________________________
 |
| by MommaWitche |
Before we get to the movie reviews I have some exciting news on “The Hobbit” front, or at least Lil’ Witche and I find it exciting. It has been confirmed on onering.net that Sir Ian McKellen will reprise his role as Gandalf, along with Elijah Wood as Frodo and Andy Serkis as Gollum. Peter Jackson has stepped back in to direct the two movies. The latest rumor is that Sir Christopher Lee is in talks to reprise his role as Saruman. We are so looking forward to these two movies, which are currently due in theaters in December, 2112, and December, 2113. Now back to the regularly scheduled movie reviews.
Movie review—“The Chronicles o Narnia: The Voyage of the Dawn Treader” rated PG (2010)
“The Voyage of the Dawn Treader” is the third movie in “The Chronicles of Narnia” series. This one almost didn’t get made because “Prince Caspian” did so poorly at the box office. The movie begins with Edmund and Lucy Pevensie living in London with their aunt, uncle and pesky cousin Eustace during the last few years of World War II. Peter and Susan have gone to America with their parents for reasons that are never explained. The Pevensies, along with cousin Eustace, find themselves transported back to Narnia when a “very Narnian looking painting” begins oozing sea water. They are rescued by King Caspian who is sailing to the East in search of the seven Lords of Narnia in order to defeat an evil that has moved upon the land. Typical quest, and we know that Edmund and Lucy are prepared for the journey. But cousin Eustace complains that he has been kidnapped, etc, etc. Like the previous two movies, lessons are learned and Eustace is the one who learns the most.
This one goes much further in the overt Christian themes than the other two. Aslan’s world is beyond the surf and once you’ve gone there, there is no return. Lucy asks Aslan if he has ever been to her world and he says that in her world he is known by another name, one that she must learn. Lil’ Witche wanted to know what he meant and that gave me the opportunity to explain C.S. Lewis’ intent with these books and the differences between him and his good friend J.R.R. Tolkien.
We give this one 4.5 owls. The story is good, and the CGI characters are awesome, especially the dragon and the sea serpent.
Movie review—“Season of the Witch” rated PG-13 (2010)
“Season of the Witch” was supposed to come out early last year, but was pulled and new scenes were shot. This is never a good sign, but I went in knowing that it would not be an Oscar contender. It’s Nicholas Cage versus the supernatural after all. He has even admitted that while he enjoys the period and playing a knight, he did this one for the money.
That said, I was blown away. This is the story of two knights who have deserted the Crusades and are forced, under penalty of death, to take a witch accused of causing the Black Plague to a distant abbey where the monks can “cure” her. Along the way they encounter wicked CG wolves and battle zombie ninja monks. I was on the edge of my seat for most of the movie, and at other times I was jumping in my seat. There are twists and turns that I didn’t see coming. I do recommend this one and give it 4 owls.
For all of the reviewers I read that complained about the plague scenes as being too gross, the plague was gross. And the Church did blame witches for causing the plague. They didn’t know about germ theory after all.
Since it’s January, Lil’ Witche and I want to give you a list of the upcoming movies we are looking forward to this year. I’ve included the release date and if it is a cartoon or documentary.
“The Way Back” January 21
“The Eagle” February 11
“Gnomeo & Juliet” February 11 cartoon
“Rango” March 4 cartoon
“Red Riding Hood” March 11
“Mars Needs Moms” March 11 cartoon
“Born to be Wild” April 8 documentary
“Rio” April 15 cartoon
“Thor” May 6
“Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides” May 20
“The Hangover 2” May 27
“Cars 2” June 24 cartoon
“Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part 2” July 15
“Winnie the Pooh” July 15 cartoon
“Cowboys and Aliens” July 29
“The Three Musketeers” October 14
“Breaking Dawn Part 1” November 18
“The Muppets” November 23
And there is an as yet untitled “Sherlock Holmes” sequel that is due out by Christmas. It looks like it will be a good year.
_____________________________________________________________________
 |
| Good Witch |
My dear sir,
You have truly been blessed by the Goddess to have attracted such a large clan of cats. It is entirely possible that they see you as a cat also. However, if you are sincere in your desire to cut back the population and are unable to have them all neutered, I would suggest finding them good homes. Cats make wonderful familiars and kitty pets and I’m sure you know people who could give each of them a wonderful loving home. You should also look at your garden and see what is out there that is attracting the cats. Perhaps you should take out part of the catnip and plant rosemary. Either dry the catnip or pot it up to give away with the cats.
Good Luck,
Good Witch
 |
| Bad Witch |
Dear Delbert,
You really have your head up your… if you can’t figure out the difference between in the plumbing.
Ho Hum.
Option 1: As far as ‘natural’ remedies, try wild carrot seed, or wild carrot oil. You need to ingest, you don’t rub it on the regions: that is to say, you need to feed it to your female cars, once you figure out the plumbing issues you have. I have no idea of the dosage. BTW, put a crowbar in my money spell and take the little buggers to the vet.
Option 2: The Q-Tip Method. Do I really need to go into details?
Option 3: The Diaper Method. Again, do we need to go into detail. Still doesn’t solve the problem of the incessant squalling----enough to send the zombies, vampires and what not, heading for the hills.
Option 4: You could try a bit of Bend Over and Commanding Oil creating a spell that bends your cats to your will. That is, will them NOT to breed. Yeah, and we know how well that one works. There also is a great Arab-curse, that would be said to any male cat in the area. It’s a penis-shriveling curse. But again, efficacy is in question.
Really for as much as us witches like our furry familiars, they are almost akin to rabbits, pigeons or squirrels with their voracity of breeding, And Since here in the hinterlands, it never really gets cold enough (like in Yankeeland) for a good old fashioned die off, we are, so to speak, a bit overrun at times.
The other options of course are to start a coyote sanctuary on your land. That will take care of the excess kitties, although you may have a few beefee rednecks with their guns taking exception to that.
The bottom line. Treat ALL cats like little breeding machines, shooting out kitties like a water canon. TAKE APPROPRIATE ACTION!
BW
Ps. Oh and one last option.
The Boot
Grab male cat
Place head-first boot
Take sharp razor
Whack those gonads off
________________________________________________________________________________
And that concludes the Imbolc 2011 Issue. Hope you enjoyed it. We enjoy getting feedback, so please leave a comment or drop us a line at wtpagantimes@gmail.com
We also accept essays, book/music reviews, poetry and anything that you consider news worthy, please email it to us for the next issue.
In Love & Light,
The Elder Grove
