Into the Shadows

This year as a whole just seems to be flying by. It feels like only yesterday it was February and we were submitting our packet for Canadian permanent residence, and here it is, the end of October! I am embarrassed to say that today, on October 31st, I am only just now carving my Halloween pumpkin, when it should have been done several days ago. Normally I do like to do it as close to the day as possible, but this is late even for my highly practiced procrastination skills. I have always loved Halloween, both the physical day itself as well as the mere idea of what it represents. As a child I love the trick-or-treating and the candy; as an adult I love the preparation, the actual carving of the pumpkin, and the roasted pumpkin seeds as the end result.

Since moving out to the country, we tend to not do very much on this day anyway--no parties to go to and no one trick-or-treating out this far, so I don't really feel any time constraints--and perhaps this is why I felt no rush to prepare for it this year. However, I have a special reason to carve our pumpkin this year, which has more to do with Shadowfest on November1st, than it does Halloween. As a remembrance tradition to my ancestors, grandparents, best friend, and beloved four-legged companion Eminence, as well as all others who have passed on, I will be making a very special autumn potpourri to burn inside of our jack-o-lantern tomorrow. I plan to burn it all day as reverance to them, and as a reminder to myself that although they're physically gone, they will never be forgotten. I am highly sensitive in regard to the spirit world and my senses, so I am hoping that using smell might "call" them. Who knows--we might have some visitors tomorrow! One can hope.. ;)

The Edge of the Hedge

Physically speaking, I have read that we go through an entire cell regeneration cycle every seven years; meaning, at this point, we no longer have any of our original cells and it can possibly be argued that we 'become' a new person cellularly. I'm not sure if this concept is entirely accurate, but it is very intriguing to me because it makes me wonder if the spirit (or soul) also goes through a similar transformation.

I was born and raised in the Christian faith but cannot ever remember a time that I was really a believer in what I was being taught. Thinking back on my spiritual life as a child, the argument for the seven year spiritual transformation would make sense to me because this is approximately when I began having experiences with other spiritual beings, 'dreams' that seemed more real than I can ever describe, and feelings that didn't fit into the spirituality and religion I was born into.

Over the last 40-odd years, I have been searching for myself. By this I don't mean physically but spiritually. I have known for several decades that I am very spiritual, but not religious at all. This has led me down many paths in an effort to discover "me". As a re-cap of my spiritual life, I have gone from Catholicism to basic Christianity (meaning I believed in God because I was afraid of the repercussions if I didn't) to Atheism, and finally landing on Paganism. Lately I have wondered whether I really fit into Paganism either, being a non-believer in Gods; so I have taken to calling myself Animistic instead, as I do believe in Spirit.

My discoveries have taken me on quite the journey over the last few years. I have studied aspects of Druidry, Shamanism, Wicca, Italian Witchcraft, and Hedgecraft with a few little offshoots thrown into the mix. What I have discovered about myself is that I prefer to be eclectic--choosing one specific path feels very constricting to me, as if acceptance of one specific path means I must accept everything about it whether I believe in it or not. This has led me to my own personal spiritual path as an Animistic Hedgewitch with Italian influences, as I am Italian and want to incorporate my heritage into my own eclectic system.

This blog is a journal of my studies and my discoveries as I begin my journey as a Hedgewitch. The title "The Edge of the Hedge" refers to my discovery of "the hedge" as a metaphor. As a beginner in the tradition of Hedgecraft I have essentially just discovered the hedge, am intrigued by it, and I want to follow the spirits into the hedge and see what there is to see on the other side. I already know I have the spiritual intuition to travel to the other world, and I also know in my heart as well as my spirit that this is who and what I am--I am now simply seeking the courage to step over the hedge to begin the journey. So, with no further ado, this is my spiritual life..