Today is the end of the world and it will hopefully be a great event.  May the violence end  May the bigotry end May the destruction of our planet end May the vicious divisions in our nation end May the need to satisfy nationalist pride before addressing human suffering end  All endings breed beginnings May compassion centered communication begin May understanding between individuals, cultures and nations begin May cooperative efforts to live sustainably begin May world peace, once only a... Read more

Pagan In Paradise: Sacred Regard – The Curative For Drama: Recently in a blog post an individual made some untrue and inflammatory statements about my actions and beliefs. Friends ralli… Read more

Recently in a blog post an individual made some untrue and inflammatory statements about my actions and beliefs. Friends rallied around and denounced these statements. While I do appreciate having friends who understand my intent and direct form of communication their defense was unnecessary. As a Pagan I am unable to view those with whom I disagree or have conflict with as “the other” outside of my community. In fact these individuals challenge me and call me to self-reflection and... Read more

Pagan In Paradise: Embracing Wal-Mart Pagans: Often, I am taken by surprise when Pagans begin to take the moral high ground in their interactions with other Pagans. … Read more

Often, I am taken by surprise when Pagans begin to take the moral high ground in their interactions with other Pagans. Political correctness assaults and victimizes ever more members of our community and as a community we sit in silence, crossing our fingers, that we will not be the next individual to “slip up” and speak plainly. The victimizing is not intentional, it is the result of the false belief that others “should” believe as we do. In a lot... Read more

Pagan In Paradise: Ten Pagans Who Made A Difference in 2012: HERE IS THIS YEARS VERY SUBJECTIVE LIST OF THOSE WHO HAVE MADE A DIFFERENCE IN THE PAGAN COMMUNITY IN 2012 # 10 Ed Hub… Read more

HERE IS THIS YEARS VERY SUBJECTIVE LIST OF THOSE WHO HAVE MADE A DIFFERENCE IN THE PAGAN COMMUNITY IN 2012 # 10 Ed Hubbard Ok, I know Ed can be a controversial individual in our community. Even I have had some consternation in my communications with Mr. Hubbard over time. What you may not know is that when called upon to help heal many of the past hurts in our community Ed stepped up, worked with individuals who were not... Read more

Home, is a malleable word for those of us from western traditions. After thousands of years moving, conquering and settling new vistas, we as a culture are somewhat disconnected with the concept of place as identity, spirit, culture and history. For me personally, this has become very clear during my yearlong journey across our nation.  Everywhere we travel we are asked, “Where are you from”, our answers vary greatly, sometimes the last residence, the state we grew up in and... Read more

Check Out Who Occupy Sandy Is Feeding As our assignment glides to a close I have been spending some time pondering the totality of the catastrophe, the mission we were assigned ,  our successes and my own internal reactions, emotions and spiritual insights. Witnessing entire communities having been wiped away is never easy. From New Jersey north along the coast dozens of communities are beyond restoration. While the human spirit is courageous, the many calls for these burgs to rise... Read more

Since my last update our team has been reassigned. We are currently assigned to organizational, logistical and planning support for the entire Community Relations FEMA organization for the whole city of New York. Community Relations is engaged in assessing damage, interviewing victims to determine needs and reporting this information through the chain of command to assist FEMA in determining priorities, start the financial relief process for victims and supporting the other FEMA functions. We currently have nearly one thousand individuals... Read more