"Man has no property in man; neither has any generation a property in the generations which are to follow" - Thomas Paine, Rights of Man, Part First Every person on this planet has a set of values that they live by, even if they have not been defined. We are ruled by one or two, maybe a combination of a few, but they will determine how our lives are expressed.  When asked what their values are, most people will list "love" as number one and then rattle off the standard, trite responses without real examination of whether those values are apparent in the woven fabric of their life's spectrum. For me, I knew freedom was high on the list yet I hadn't realized how much until the last few years when put through the wringer by God. My spiritual wayfaring has centered specifically around the finding of that freedom. For most of my life, I felt confined, without air, smothered, watched, and owned. Yes, owned. It didn't become apparent until I gave myself to God...

" It was the Constitution that welded them together politically, legally, and economically,  but it was nature that provided a transcendent feeling of nationhood ." When I read the profound introduction to Andrea Wulf's Founding Gardeners , I couldn't help but find comparisons between the time in which Benjamin Franklin was constantly sending seeds back to America for the cultivation of a future independent nation and Washington uprooting all native British trees and shrubbery from his land to the homesteading and off-grid living explosion that's happened in the last 20 years. Yes, there's been talk originally of another civil war but, lately, more of a united movement of a quiet revolution that's happening on both sides of the aisle.  Pre-American Revolution was an ever-increasing, tension-building intensity between the British Empire and the colonists. Most of us were taught that the revolution was fueled by the amplified raising of taxes but, in reality...

  For most of our lives, we rarely wonder how language was formed. It's not until someone comes along and starts playing with word choices, phrases, or phonemic sounds that we begin to understand the strategic game that is language. For example, the word "syntax." As I was writing my page on Transmutation Mythology , I incorporated a phrase I'd never heard of before: Sin Tax. I'm sure you can easily see what led me to "syntax." But, do the two correlate? When I wrote of the "sin tax" I referred to the  sin offering  of the Old Testament. As a redemptive confession, the sacrifice here was meant to purify us of any transgressions. A payment for our sin. A tax, by definition, lays a burden upon and accuses all at once. It asks, "How much do you want to be worth?" For the one who asks the question (even if it may be the egoic 'I') has already determined your devaluation as if it was there from the beginning. A sin means to be with...

  In the beginning stages of learning the art of channeling Spirit, one may have an extended period of time in which they feel like they're going crazy and have no control over their own mind. This happened to me and I felt as if I was becoming schizophrenic. In my case, channeling does not come with imagery or voices, at least not overtly distinguishable from the internal dialogue of thought. For me, the "voice" is more of an automatic download; if an image accompanies it, it'll be a product of my mind's eye or imagination. In the period of time that felt schizophrenic, I couldn't gain control and so my fear kept growing. It wasn't until I realized that when I chose to place authority within, or with God, that the "voices" receded. I have learned to place my fear with God and trust in Him. This allows me the freedom of my mind and heart.  Since having experienced this perceived mental break, I've become somewhat fixated on the individual...

  Have you ever noticed the differences in people's notions of an apology? Over the course of my lifetime, I have had the unfortunate experience of an "apology" that not only demands my forgiveness but places blame on me. Do you know what I mean? My mother's concept of an apology consisted of saying "I'm sorry you feel that way." I received an "apology recently that stated, "You took it the wrong way." No, honey, I did not - not when you add in the details or the past things that you've said... The Art of the Apology requires the person apologizing to ask for forgiveness in order to atone for sins, hurts, and pain caused. Not the other way around. Biblically speaking, God required three specific offerings before inviting Him into sacred space. These are the burnt, sin, and guilt offerings. The burnt offering is one that's to be performed prior to every communion, no matter who was addressing God. Why was this? In between the spec...

  There’s something magical about these corvids which has placed them into a category all of their own. Poets have written about them, troubadours sang of their riddling natures, and even in today’s society, they place prominence by being namesakes of sports teams, bands, and TV series. In movies, they provide awareness of ominous foretelling. Sometimes, they’re even used as pets of the awkwardly strange character. In social media, they’ve become a sensation for being intelligent and trainable. In general, corvids are first and foremost messengers. There's always a reason why they make their presence known in our lives. But, before getting into their symbolism, we’ll start with the basics: appearance. Magpies happen to be the most distinguishable, yet, unlike crows and ravens are not found throughout the entirety of the United States. Typically, they have both black and white coloration but may also have blue or green, instead of, or including, white depending on their location in...

"It's called wayfinding, princess. It's not just sails and knots. It's seeing where you're going in your mind, and knowing where you are by knowing where you've been." - Māui, Moana   "...knowing where you are by knowing where you've been." A beautiful line that caught my attention while watching Moana (Yes! Finally I have seen it!) For years, I have kept detailed journals that analyzed every incident or person that frustrated me. I wanted to know the answer to the ultimate question, "who am I?"   "Who in the world am I? Ah, that's the great puzzle." - Lewis Carroll   It wasn't until I reread them last year, however, that the understanding of where I've been versus where I was currently and was headed came with any enlightenment. Sometimes, we need to have the visual set before us to understand the enormity of our life choices or indecisiveness to see the change, stagnation, or cyclical repetitiveness....

 [caption id="attachment_1018" align="alignnone" width="640"   I bet there have been times in your life you just wanted to yell out to the universe "re-do!" And technically, we do get our "re-do" moments throughout life. We all have those scenarios and characters that appear to be on repeat in our life: that guy that we give our love to but treats us like shit, the job where you have that one coworker who merely talks and talks and you end up getting more and more work because s/he doesn't do anything, or perhaps your constant running from good relationships when they get too close for comfort. Sometimes, it's the good scenarios that play out too. It depends on what you've come to expect. What expectations have you been programmed to accept in your life? Perhaps, like me, you've had those moments of epiphany when you realize this and try to change the oft-repeated negator in your life. And, what inevitably happens aga...

 "   ...a form of cooperative argumentative dialogue between individuals, based on asking and answering questions to stimulate critical thinking and to draw out ideas and underlying presumptions." ( https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Socratic_method ) Though I've heard of Socrates, it wasn't until about 15 years ago that I began hearing about the Socratic Method. Socrates was an Athenian philosopher from around 400 BC. It is through his most famous student, Plato, that we know anything of Socrates or his philosophical methods. Socrates had a way of annoying people, and that's putting it lightly. He was ultimately put to death because he pissed off the wrong people. In some ways, Socrates could be considered one of the wisest men due to his method of garnering wisdom. On the other hand, it did bring about his death. The basis for his method was simply this: trust that you know nothing. Most of us, believe we know much more than nothing. We know our experiences. We k...

  I got skills. And, I bet you have them too. Have you ever sat down and just figured out your skill set, perhaps for that potential job? I've done it at least a hundred times, or so it seems. A year ago, I came across an article about the skill set of an Artist, and it blew my mind. I hadn't thought about being an Artist in such a way. And, I bet, with whatever title you give yourself job-wise, you've never really thought about what you fully do either. Not to mention, what about the things you do in your personal time? Here's what I want you to do: Make a list of all the different tasks you do during the day and feel confident about. When I compiled my list, I was working as an Activity Coordinator alongside my WaterlilyandVine jewelry business. This is the list I compiled: Recognize the unique ways that different groups of people absorb information and ideas   Creative problem solving from idea generation to implementation     Conceptual and informational...