Tips for Living Wicca: Beware Mercury in Retrograde

Mercury is currently in retrograde, and will be until the middle of next month. Not surprisingly, the problems are already coming. One of my main clients is experiencing technical difficulties, my computer keyboard is all jacked up, I'm having trouble finding a doctor for my mother's sciatica, for follow ups on my son's broken leg, my plants are dying (well, that's partially my husband's fault for not watering them when I was away, but i'm sure Mercury in retrograde is making it that much harder to revive them). To top it off, I've got a bit of writer's block to boot.-- things just aren't flowing. 

 Even if you're not that into astrology, Mercury retrograde is something you should pay attention to. It can make your life a whole lot easier if you are on top of things. 

My Tip for You Today (and until June 11, when Mercury finally goes out of retrograde): just be careful.

This is not a good time to start new projects, or rush any major projects to finish. This is not the best time to start your senior thesis or your great American novel, it's not the best time to dive into kitchen renovations or building an addition onto the home. If you started before Mercury went into retrograde, proceed with caution and try not to finish them up just now.  Double, triple, quadruple check things you're wrapping up.

Avoid buying major electronics like computers or cars-- you have a much better chance of ending up with a real lemon that's constantly breaking down.

Avoid signing any contracts or making any deals- and if you must, be extra extra careful to ensure everything is clear, that every i is dotted and every t is crossed. This is a time when communications tend to go awry. 

Speaking of communications, try to be careful with conversations, be wary of mixed messages or miscommunications that can lead to arguments. If you feel like a conversation with someone isn't going right, just stop, back up, go slowly and carefully, perhaps postpone it till next month.  

Travel is also challenging during Mercury retrograde. If you can't put it off, be really on top of plans and safety-- it's not a good time to take chances or to assume things will go smoothly. In fact, it's better to assume they won't.

As for magic-- yes, Mercury retrograde even affects that. It's a bad time to perform magic to instigate new major changes in your life. Any kind of curses or hexes are more likely to backfire and affect you in some way. Things have a way of not working out as planned, so being vague when casting spells during this period can be a big mistake.

For example, you might cast a spell to eliminate all your debts; next week you go to the mailbox and find a letter from the IRS stating there was a mistake on your taxes and you owe them $1995, and that if you don't pay it they're going to garnish your wages. Well, you wanted to eliminate your debts, right? 

Beware Mercury-- remember, he's the trickster God.

But it's not all bad-- really it's not. There are some good things about Mercury retrograde, too. If you know how to utilize it, it can be a powerful tool. But that's for tomorrow's entry.

How is Mercury treating you during this retrograde period?

Tips for Living Wicca: Try Not to Get 'BOS Envy'

You know penis envy? Supposedly women are jealous of men for having a penis, according to Sigmund Freud. Sometimes men get accused of 'penis envy' too, because when they compare themselves to other men or their girlfriend's ex-boyfriends, they might feel they're falling short... or not measuring up... or whatever metaphor you can think of for 'shortcomings' that doesn't sound like a bad pun.

Well, in Wicca, there seems to be a new epidemic, particularly among the new and eager starters. I call it 'Book of Shadows Envy.' This is when a Wiccan thinks that other Wiccans must have these massive, cool-looking BOS's that look like something out of Charmed or Practical Magic or something. 

The truth is, some people keep very simple BOS's that contain all the pertinent information in the most clear and concise form. Totally no-frills. Some people are more artistic and like to get decorative (raising my hand sheepishly-- "Hi I'm Sage, and I'm a Scrapaholic; my scrapbooking habit has seeped into all areas of my life: my wallet, my wall art, my computer, and even my BOS).

Inevitably, the longer you're Wiccan, the longer your BOS is going to get, but size is not necessarily an indication of a book being better or more important. For example, there are people who are so obsessed with making their BOS look big and witchy, they print and stuff the most irrelevant, useless stuff into it, just to point to it and say it's there. 

My Tip for You Today: Remember, it's not about the size of it, it's what you can do with it.

As long as the info in there is relevant to you and your specific spiritual path, then that's all you need. Don't worry about it being too small, too plain, or too empty. Empty is good... empty pages are potential. 

Whatever you do, don't buy some 300 page book from the internet plagiarizing every Pagan publication and witch fiction in history, and don't spring for individual BOS pages or sections that someone else made. The whole point of the book is to fill it with personal information that's pertinent to what you've learned on your spiritual journey. Don't pay someone else for their creation-- a BOS should not be a commercialized copy. 

Make it your own, start small, put a lot of love into it, and it will flourish.

Do you worry that your BOS isn't what you think it should be? 

Tips for Living Wicca: Put Away the Besom

There isn't a besom big enough for all the sweeping generalizations that get made about other religions. You hop around on different religious forums, read books by religious people, eavesdrop in on different religious groups/organizations, you might be shocked what you hear. 

• Wiccans are all either fat, socially awkward teen girls or middle-aged dumped divorcees who live with a herd of cats.
• Christians are ignorant, obnoxious, discriminating and oppressive.
• Jews are cheap and only look out for themselves.
• Pagans are all degenerates who just don't want to be accountable for their actions. 
• Muslims are women haters (even the women) and they all secretly applaud terrorism.
• Christians all want us to convert and submit to their God, to make all countries theocracies, and to abolish things like science and homosexuality
• Satanists would kill people if they thought they could get away with it.

It's enough to make you want to pull your hair out of your head. The funny thing is, even people who recognize those kinds of unfair judgments against their own religion will turn around and be judgemental about people of other religions. 

My Tip for You Today: Put away the besom... at least the one that makes sweeping generalizations. 

Remember that those broad-brush strokes are never intellectually honest; they are the root of prejudice, fear and hate. 

If you have a problem with this kind of thinking, it doesn't make you a bad person. It's understandable; no one is perfect. We all have those mental filters that shade our thinking and judgements. The trick is, accepting that it's a mistake, and trying to change it.

Don't allow yourself to justify those thoughts by telling yourself, Well, (group X) people have always been mean to me and treated me badly, so all people of (group X) must be mean. 

Imagine if someone said that about your religious group? About Wiccans? What would you tell them? You might say something like, "I'm sorry that Wiccans treated you badly, and that was wrong... but we're not all like that." 

Yes, that's some sound advice... now learn to use it on yourself. Not for the group you dislike, but for yourself, your own peace of mind, to bring yourself some clarity and find peace within your own heart. 

Only then can you find balance.

Are you aware of any mental filters that color your thinking about people of other religions?