Medusa Coils: February 2018

Here are some notes about recent posts from blogs on our blogroll:

Association for the Study of Women &Mythology: February posts concerning the ASWM 2018 Conference March 16-17 in Las Vegas (as announced in our Jan.-Feb. Buzz Coil) include: on Feb. 15:“Animal Myth and Mysteries at Conference,” and “Schedule for Conference”; on Feb. 12: “Presentation Grant Award Winner: Rachel Kippen,” “Conference Panels,” “Fierce and Beneficient Female Figures,” and “Women and Earth-Centered Mythologies”; February 10 and 9 posts are about presenters and grant award winners Vicki Noble, Nancy Vedder-Shults, Cristina Biaggi, Max Dashu, Malgorzata Oleszkiewicz-Peralba, Tahnahga Yako Meyers, Apela Colorado, Frances Santiago, and Yuria Celidwen. A Jan. 30 posts gives details on presenter Kathy Jones. (A link to information about other events and speakers is included in the Feb. 12 post.)

Annelinde’s World: Annelinde Metzner’s January poetry posts include (Jan. 20) “Tell A Woman,” which begins:
“Tell a woman that, deep inside,
deep in her heart, where no one can see,
she holds the flame that lights the world.”
and (Jan. 7) “Among the Galax.” Both with pics.

BroomstickChronicles: Aline O’Brien (aka Macha NightMare) gives us 2 posts about her experience at the American Academy of Religion’s annual meeting in Salem, MA. Her Jan. 5 post is an overview of the meeting’s panels from various parts of the world other than the Americas. Her Feb. 20 post focuses on “Native Traditions in the Americas.”

Fellowship of Isis Central: FOI’s Feb. 6 post, “Oracle of the Goddess Tara,” includes an invocation and message from Tara on the importance of darkness, peace, and faith. Here is excerpt from one of its passages:
“The greatest evil you fear is death. There is no death. While you are identified with a body of clay you find it difficult to enjoy the bliss of the heavens. You are beset by grief, hatred, violence and cruelty. But you also acquire merit through overcoming these obstacles to Illumination….”
The blog’s Jan. 31 post, “Isian News Brigantia 2018,” gives the contents of this journal and a link it its pdf.

Veleda: Max Dashu begins her Jan. 17 post, “Resources and publications,” by telling us that this is her first post in quite a while due to her working to finish the first book (now published) in a series she is writing. In the post, she discusses the history of the Suppressed History Archives, which she founded and maintains, her slideshows and videos, online courses, the SHA website and Facebook page, her page on Academia.edu, and the second book in the series, which she is working on now.

HecateDemeter: Blogger Hecate’s Feb. 6 post, “Being and Doing – What the Goddesses are Telling Me,” relays messages from the deities in general and specifically from Brigid. When I visited the blog, the most recent post in Blogger Hecate’s “The Magical Battle for America” series was dated Feb. 18. It introduced the subject with autobiographical material and then offered “a protection” related to the recent mass murder at a Florida high school that includes biographical material about Marjorie Stoneman Douglas, after whom the high school is named. Other recent meditations in the “Magical Battle” series are posted on Feb. 11 (Black History Month/Underground Railroad), Feb. 8 (marking one year of the Battle and asking for readers’ feedback), Feb. 4 (the Resistance), Jan. 28 (fires), Jan. 21 (Ellis Island), Jan. 14 (railroad history), Jan. 7 (Salmon), Dec. 31 (of which Hecate writes, “a bit different from our normal workings,” and involves “warding.”)

Starhawk’s Blog: In her Jan. 24 post, “Building a Welcoming Movement,” Starhawk sets out details about ways to continue to survive the current political situation in the US. In the introductory section “The Movement We Need,” she writes:

“Only a massive, broad movement can succeed.

“That movement exists in incipient form, like a great whale swimming just below the waves that surfaces now and again to blow. But we—and by ‘we’ I mean committed social justice activists of all races, genders, and backgrounds—can do a much better job of expanding it and activating its power.”

She then offers details on what she calls “10 Guiding Principles for Building a Welcoming Movement” (here I paraphrase and excerpt): The movement should feel good, not demanding—it should not require absolute perfection; it should be diverse in a way that finds a role for everyone (includes suggestions of what “a white cis-gendered, heterosexual male can do”); it should be actively welcoming, especially to people taking their “first step into activism,” by limiting criticism and listening to their opinions, creating structures and rituals of welcome, giving public praise, and using easily understood words (which are often poetic); it should educate; and it should be kind, especially to “supporters, friends, co-conspirators and allies.”

PaGaian Cosmology: In her Feb. 13 post, “Beginning Again,” Glenys D. Livingstone of Australia, writes about Lammas and its relationship, in her practice, to black, especially black ribbons. It also includes a poem that she says could also be used for Imbolc (aka Brigid). Her two posts, “Lammas/Imbolc Season Feb. 2018” on Jan. 24 and “Lammas/Imbolc Earth Moment” on Jan. 6 discuss the relationship of the 2 cross-quarter holidays celebrated in the Northern and Southern hemispheres in early February. With pics.

My Village Witch: On November Feb. 1, Byron Ballard of the Mother Grove Goddess Temple in Asheville NC, posted “Brigid is Written in the Water,” about a Brigid ritual that occurred a few years ago.

Because of the large number and variety of bloggers and posts on these blogs, we are now suggesting that you visit them and select the posts that interest you most.

Feminism and Religion: Many bloggers from many different religions and paths.

Pagan Square: This blog of many mostly-Pagan paths is sponsored by BBI Media and includes SageWoman blog posts.

The Wild Hunt: Pagan, news-oriented blog that has grown from single blogger to many bloggers.