Buzz Coil: April

Here’s what’s been buzzin’ on other blogs recently. If we missed an blog post you think is important. Please leave the info as a "comment."

Deaf Pagan Crossroads: Blogger Ocean offers "A Healing Ritual for Virginia Tech" in her April 18 post, and related poetry in two April 18 posts, "A Poem for These Times " and "More Poetry from the Soul" by guest blogger Yvonne Aburrow.

Hecate: In an April 18 post, "Poetry Will Save Your Soul, " Blogger Hecate comments on the phenomenon of Pagan bloggers quoting poet Mary Oliver in response to Va. Tech events; with some of Oliver’s poems, including "When Death Comes." "Happy B/day, Margot," is Hecate’s tribute to Margot Adler on her birthday, April 16.

Roots Down: Deborah Oak writes about the spirituality manifest in Mary Oliver’s poetry and a recent reading by Oliver that she attended in "One of Us".

Pagan Godspell: Sara Sutterfield Winn posts a pagan reaction to the Va. Tech horror in her April 17 post, "Praying Out Horror." And she prepares us for Beltane in her April 19 post, "Silence and the Green Fuse." In an April 2 post, "Review - Magdalen Rising," she reviews Elizabeth Cunningham’s novel, in which Mary Magdalene is portrayed as the Celtic Maeve (with link to an excerpt).

Street Prophets In this spiritual child of the widely read progressive blog, Dailykos, Alexandra Lynch discusses "skyclad," and looks forward to Beltane in her April 16 post, "Preparing for my date with the gods..."

Property of a Lady: In an April 17 post, "Feminism and Goddess Worship," Deborah Lipp writes about her personal relationship to these.

Peacock Dreams: In a March 29 post titled, "Rant," T. Thorn Coyle writes:

Receptivity does not equal passivity. This is a sexist concept that has damaged us all, regardless of gender, sex, or orientation. It is the sort of thinking that causes stereotypically "masculine" traits to be valued in the culture, while stereotypically "feminine" traits are devalued. It limits the availability of "human" traits that cross borders and spill over from one place in order to water another.

She goes on to discuss gender, sex, cups, women, men, tops, bottoms....

Raihn Drop’s: Blogger Lisa x tells how it feels to receive and respond to the call of the Goddess in her April 16 post, "The Call".

Mother of Willows: Peter Scholgol’s April 6 post, "Mother, my atmosphere," is about reciting "Kuan Yin Pu Sa" with a 27-bead rosary (also see his March 29 post, "Reciting Kuan Yin"). For spiritual humor, see his April 16 post, "The power of pink," about finding his Kuan Yin icon and then trying to select appropriately-colored candles. For instance, Peter writes:

You must have candles; this much gay I know. But even with a gift card from Yankee so old the amount was wearing off, I couldn't figure out what went with bronze.

Panthea: Blogger Grian tells us about "Pagan Prayer Beads"on April 16, and gives us prayers to use with them in the April 17 post, "Triple Goddess Malas." (See earlier related post on this blog.) And on April 18, she posts about "Healing, Dolls and Magick(k)," saying she’s "not a spellcrafter" yet she makes and uses "Goddess dolls."

Driving Audhumla: In her April 23 post, "Some of my travels with Sheela-na-gig," Victoria Slind-Flor tells about the fabric images she created of Sheela and why this Goddess, whose genitally-assertive image can be seen on some (mostly European/British) churches, appeals to her. Victoria’s April 13 post, "Dancing with the Goddess," reflects on art shows, bonding with friends, dancing, being a crone with a cane. Victoria writes:

How fortunate I am to be in the here and now, and enjoying the freedom to live and create and step beyond the bounds of what once might have been expected of a woman of my age and background.