From Little Acorns Come New Beginnings

Copyright Laurel Reufner, 2015

            This blog is a bit of a departure from my usual, which is to hide in my little corner of this great big Universe, writing the occasional article for Llewellyn’s yearly almanacs and telling myself that it’s enough, that I really am content. Except that for the past few years it’s seemed harder and harder to get those articles finished and out. Don’t get me wrong – I LOVE writing them and I love working with Llewellyn, but it seems as though that great big universe is telling me that there is more I should be doing. And there’s a longing to do more, even if I’m frightened of falling on my face in the process.

The whole thing actually started a few years ago, when my eldest daughter and some of our young friends began asking me to teach them. I resisted, worried about disappointing both them and myself.

However, much like the Borg, resistance was futile. This was obviously the direction I needed to go, but perhaps more as a mentor, answering questions and helping them find their own unique path was the correct role to fill. And in doing so, I discovered there others who also have that need. Obviously I can’t mentor everyone in person, or even personally, nor would everyone seeking such want me to, but I can try to reach out to as many as possible who seek what’s being shared here. So, Oak and Olive will offer lots of articles on what many would consider the basics of paganism and magical spirituality.

But wait, there’s more! I’ve written many an article on folklore and mythology, which I very much love. More of that will be here, without my having to pitch it to an editor first and hope it fits with the rest of their articles. I already have some that were written in the past and are ripe for sharing again, as well as some that are whispering in my ear, wanting to be out there in the world. If there’s something you’d like me to dig into, please, drop me a line in the comments below or via Facebook. I love to do requests.

There are also recipes and crafts to share, plus spells and rituals. A friend has already requested more things for the solitary practitioner, so hopefully I can deliver on that. And as for spells, well, I’ve written quite a few for Llewellyn over the years, so I feel confident in sharing a thing or two about that.

Storm Clouds – By cjohnson7 from Rochester, Minnesota (Flickr) [CC BY 2.0 (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0)], via Wikimedia Commons

What you won’t often find on The Oak and Olive are articles that are negative or political. It’s not that there aren’t political or social issues that are extremely important to me, but there are plenty of other blogs around – some on here – that deal with those topics and I want Oak and Olive to be a place where you can come without reading yet another piece on how bad things are or how screwed our country is or condemning homophobic cake decorators. I’m not saying that I’ll never make a post that might be considered political, but when I do, it won’t be often and it’ll be something I feel VERY strongly about. Otherwise, this is safe space from all of that.

You also won’t find me bashing any particular religion. Cough. Christianity. Cough. I have nothing against any particular religion out there, just disagreements with some of the practitioners. I was, by choice, a very happy and devout Christian for many years and I know many folks who still walk the walk and talk the talk as much as they can. (My path from Christian to Pagan is a story for another article, promise.)

So, expect discussion and discourse on whatever topics pop into my head. And no, it won’t all be happy and light. I’m sure I’ll get dark on some occasions, as it’s a part of life and it’s something that we’ll talk about.

That’s about it, I think. Of course, you do your best editing and get your best ideas after hitting either send or publish.  Oh, and feel free to chime in down in the comments with ideas, questions, or offers of riches. Let me know I’m not alone here in my little corner of the Patheos Pagan Hub.

Brightest Blessings,

Laurel