A blog I’m subscribed to posted these twenty-five questions to show the diversity of opinions within Paganism. I am posting my answers here not just so my readers can get to know me better, but also in hopes that other bloggers will answer these questions on their own blogs.
1. What Do You Call Yourself?
– A pagan, because it’s the simplest answer from someone asking a simple question
2. Using Common Terms, Describe Your Path:
– I’m a pagan animist who practices Wicca.
3. Do You Draw from a Particular Path, Not Your Own, Frequently?:
– I try out other paths to experience the differences. For example, my friends and I performed a reconstructionist ritual to the Greek gods. I’ve lit a candle using a Unitarian Universalist blessing. I’ve performed rituals from various pagan/Wiccan paths (Asatru, Feri, Seax Wica, etc.).
4. Any Path Intimidate You?:
– I wouldn’t say intimidate, but ceremonial magic just turns me off with all of its rules (and angel work).
5. Favorite Herb:
– Lavender
6. Favorite Gemstone:
– I love opal for its look, but amethyst is the one I work with magically.
7.Favorite Divination Tool:
– I use my Fey Tarot deck the most, but I also enjoy color divination and using dice. I have (and kind of collect) several small, unique divination tools just for kicks.
8. Favorite Tools:
-I can pick up any athame (with permission, of course) and use it. I have a small collection of blades that appealed to my spirit.
9. Favorite Sabbat:
– I love both of the equinoxes; there’s something about the balance of night and day that soothes me.
10. Favorite Season:
– I’m a winter baby, so I love the season. I’d usually say autumn, but fall in Texas doesn’t mean cooler weather.
11. Favorite Pagan Book:
– Earth, Air, Fire, Water by Scott Cunningham – my first exposure to Wicca
12. Favorite Book with Pagan Themes:
– the Sweep series by Cate Tiernan (called “Wicca” in Britain)
13. Favorite Myth:
– It’s not necessarily a myth, but Stranger in a Strange Land by Robert Heinlein holds the idea that all religions and all heavens exist and are correct at the same time; I loved the concept so much that it became a part of my spirituality!
14. Patron God/dess:
– I don’t have one, per se. I’m an animist first, and I don’t worship gods in the traditional sense. I do, however, work with the Greek pantheon regularly. Nyx is the goddess I’ve interacted with the most, but Aphrodite and Artemis have also made connections. As for gods, I haven’t had a particular connection to anyone yet; I’ve worked with the Olympians, but Hades is the only one I got any kind of personal reaction from.
15. Other Aligned Deities:
– See 14.
16. Favorite ‘Pagan’ Saying:
– Live you must, and let to live / fairly take and fairly give. (It’s a set of lines from the poetic long version of the Wiccan Rede.)
17. Most Commonly Used Offering:
– I always light incense, both to alter our states of consciousness and as an offering.
18. Believe in the Rede?:
– I believe in personal responsibility and personal ethics (i.e. if I know that harming someone is negative and I choose to accept the consequences of such behavior, it is my business). Ethics should never be black or white, and no situation is exactly the same as any other.
19. Meditate?:
– Not often. I do occasionally zone out to music, mostly as a relaxation meditation.
20. Magic?:
– All of the time. Magic, to me, is the manipulation of energies. As an animist, I believe that everything has and uses energy; every moment we interact with energies around us, so every moment is magic.
21. If Yes to 20, Dark Witchcraft, Light Witchcraft, or In-between?:
– There is no such thing as dark or light, black or white magic; we are too human to be completely one thing or another. There are only shades of grey. See 18.
22. In or Out of the Broomcloset?:
– I’ve been out since 2001, all thanks to a careless/harmless question from a history teacher after he used a biblical analogy and saw a few confused faces.
23. Solitary or Coven Member:
– Why not both? I have a clan I practice with, and I often do smaller prayerwork and spellwork alone.
24. What Forms of Social Media Do You Use as a Pagan?:
– I actively use WordPress, Facebook, and Pinterest (though not just “as a pagan” technically). I have a Witchvox account, as well as memberships on several therian forums; I don’t actively use those, though.
25. If I Wasn’t Pagan/Wiccan, I Would Be…:
– Good question. I’d make an ideal Christian, because (ask around) I have a very forgiving heart and find Pope Francis to be a wonderful inspiration as a spiritual leader. However, I don’t think I would’ve connected to a male deity, even if I hadn’t been exposed to Wicca.
You can visit her original blog post at http://cauldronandbrew.wordpress.com/2013/11/27/twenty-five-questions/
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Larissa Lee 