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Feb. 3rd, 2010 @ 03:23 pm Fae – A Completely Stolen Post

Originally published at The Soccer Moms' Guide to Wicca. Please leave any comments there.

While reading “New York Magazine” (I am addicted to the puzzles, and the articles are good too – we don’t live far from Manhattan, so the info is useful as well), I came across a comment about how when you type “I don’t” into the Google search engine, the autofill suggests “Why can’t I own a Canadian”. This piqued my interest enough to try it…sometimes my curiosity gets the better of me:)

The first page that came up was this one from 2002, and I’m totally cutting and pasting to share this, because I’ve never seen it and it made me fall over laughing. Many of you share my sense of humor, and I hope you’ll be as entertained as I was. Enjoy!

Why Can’t I Own a Canadian?
October 2002

Dr. Laura Schlessinger is a radio personality who dispenses advice to people who call in to her radio show. Recently, she said that, as an observant Orthodox Jew, homosexuality is an abomination according to Leviticus 18:22 and cannot be condoned under any circumstance. The following is an open letter to Dr. Laura penned by a east coast resident, which was posted on the Internet. It’s funny, as well as informative:

Dear Dr. Laura:

Thank you for doing so much to educate people regarding God’s Law. I have learned a great deal from your show, and try to share that knowledge with as many people as I can. When someone tries to defend the homosexual lifestyle, for example, I simply remind them that Leviticus 18:22 clearly states it to be an abomination. End of debate. I do need some advice from you, however, regarding some of the other specific laws and how to follow them:

When I burn a bull on the altar as a sacrifice, I know it creates a pleasing odor for the Lord – Lev.1:9. The problem is my neighbors. They claim the odor is not pleasing to them. Should I smite them?

I would like to sell my daughter into slavery, as sanctioned in Exodus 21:7. In this day and age, what do you think would be a fair price for her?

I know that I am allowed no contact with a woman while she is in her period of menstrual uncleanliness – Lev.15:19- 24. The problem is, how do I tell? I have tried asking, but most women take offense.

Lev. 25:44 states that I may indeed possess slaves, both male and female, provided they are purchased from neighboring nations. A friend of mine claims that this applies to Mexicans, but not Canadians. Can you clarify? Why can’t I own Canadians?

I have a neighbor who insists on working on the Sabbath. Exodus 35:2 clearly states he should be put to death. Am I morally obligated to kill him myself?

A friend of mine feels that even though eating shellfish is an abomination – Lev. 11:10, it is a lesser abomination than homosexuality. I don’t agree. Can you settle this?

Lev. 21:20 states that I may not approach the altar of God if I have a defect in my sight. I have to admit that I wear reading glasses. Does my vision have to be 20/20, or is there some wiggle room here?

Most of my male friends get their hair trimmed, including the hair around their temples, even though this is expressly forbidden by Lev. 19:27. How should they die?

I know from Lev. 11:6-8 that touching the skin of a dead pig makes me unclean, but may I still play football if I wear gloves?

My uncle has a farm. He violates Lev. 19:19 by planting two different crops in the same field, as does his wife by wearing garments made of two different kinds of thread (cotton/polyester blend). He also tends to curse and blaspheme a lot. Is it really necessary that we go to all the trouble of getting the whole town together to stone them? – Lev.24:10-16. Couldn’t we just burn them to death at a private family affair like we do with people who sleep with their in-laws? (Lev. 20:14)

I know you have studied these things extensively, so I am confident you can help. Thank you again for reminding us that God’s word is eternal and unchanging.

Your devoted fan,
Jim

Note to Stumblers:

Some comments criticizing this piece indicate that it was “hijacked” from a West Wing episode. This is a chicken and egg argument in my opinion. I don’t really know which came first, and frankly don’t care. Below, for your enjoyment, is the clip in question.

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Feb. 1st, 2010 @ 09:46 pm TurnAround Tuesdays – The Goddess Within

Originally published at The Soccer Moms' Guide to Wicca. Please leave any comments there.

Every Tuesday, Juniper and/or Fae will pick a great blog post from our  friends and write a paragraph about it. We’ll  include a link to their post in our paragraph. We’re going to invite you to do the same – find a post that you’ve found that moves you (and it doesn’t have to be from today, it can be an older post) and share it here. We’ll have a centralized list of of recommended posts here, and a button that can link us together. The group can grow and grow, we don’t have to limit the amount of recommended posts…but it would be a way for us to find incredible things to read, and remarkable people to meet, recommended by our peers, without having to surf for hours. The goal is all about sharing interesting posts, and interesting people. I doesn’t have to be limited to ANY topic, religion or ideology. We can’t wait to read what you find!

Here’s Fae’s pick this week:

Silvermoone at The Goddess Within has written a blog post called The Truth About F-E-A-R, which really hit the nail on the head for me. Recently, I won a personalized gift basket from Magickal Enchantments, and in building something just for me, I was asked what I’d like to have help with. I responded, “I’m extremely analytical, and have been through enough cognitive therapy to tell you what is at the root of any problem I’m having and every emotional/psychological/mental battle I’ve fought: Fear. I run. I escape. It’s what’s built into my core, it’s the coping mechanism I’ve used to survive, and it’s what I need to stop. Although I work every day to evolve, it’s a bit of a two steps forward-one step back situation. I just find another way to run.” When I read Silvermoone’s post, I almost had to smile…when a subject like this repeatedly emerges for me, it’s usually a note from my psyche telling me it’s time to delve deeper. Her analytical nature touches upon aspects and insights I can not only relate to, but utilize in my own evolution.

I love the clarity and thoughtfulness and depth with which she writes, and wanted to share this with you. I hope you find it as insightful as I did!

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So here’s what you do…if you’d like to read the post,  click through to The Goddess Within and read the article. If you’d like to leave comments for her, feel free!

If you have a friend whose post you want to share, here’s how you do it…(look at my post as an example if you have any questions…it’s easier than it looks:)

If you have any suggestions on streamlining my directions below, please let me know! Although it’s not difficult to do, it looks complex, even to me!

1. Write a paragraph or two about your friend’s post  in your blog. Include link to the post (not the main blog) you’re writing about so your friends can click through to it and read it themselves.

2. Name your post “TurnAround Tuesday – [and then the name of your friend's blog]“.  Look at the name of my post today for an example.

3. Copy and paste the code below at the bottom of the post you’ve just written. This code will put a button on the bottom of your post so the readers can join Turnaround Tuesday if they wish. Then publish your post!


4. After posting, come back here and fill out the Widget below the button with the following information:

Link Title: Name of your friends’ post (the post title, not the blog name).

Email Address: YOUR email address (it won’t show on the page, don’t worry).

Link URL:  Copy and paste the link to your Turn-Around Tuesday post, not your main website.

5. Hit the ‘Submit Link’ button.

That’s it!

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Feb. 1st, 2010 @ 06:40 pm Fae – Hoping That Being Wiccan Just Isn’t That Shocking Anymore…

Originally published at The Soccer Moms' Guide to Wicca. Please leave any comments there.

I’ve had so many wonderful responses and incredible support through sharing the ongoing saga of getting a 504 passed in our school system to legally protect Gillian by setting up rules and parameters to be followed while in school. I’m very grateful for all the support! I’ve also reached parents who’s kids also have Celiac, who didn’t know that their children had rights…being able to actually help people in one way or the other has always been the driving force for me putting it all out here on the web, the good, bad and ugly.

I was prompted to write a response that turned itself into a post, and as I was writing it I realized that an update was needed, because I really left things hanging in the last post about being “outed” in my community through the school system finding links to my site in the process of doing their own homework in helping to prepare our daughter’s 504. I haven’t written for a while, I got a little spooked at the prospect of having my neighbors on the blog, and I suddenly found myself holding back…which is a little silly, especially considering the plethora of past posts in which to peruse (a little alliteration to lighten things up:))  After all, sharing the intimacies of my life with virtual friends puts no risk to my children or my husband. I can handle judgment, if it comes my way, from cyberspace. The possibility of my writings having a direct effect on my kids is a whole different story. I think I was ducking and covering my head to wait and see if the shrapnel was going to hit….but of course things like this don’t explode in upper-middle class suburbs. They spread and mutate, like in a game of ‘Telephone”.  Actually, the diffusion usually happens *during* the adult version of “Telephone”, doesn’t it?

I actually found out that the school board had found our blog through checking my stats, and seeing the search strings from search engines that had been clicked through to our site on in the week before our meeting. There are certainly a lot of blogs (and topic specific) sites out there, 99% of which are much more informative than my own, limited to my experiences with Gillian. This is why I found the whole thing remarkable. I believe they clicked through to this site because my name – and Gillian’s – were visible in the blurb below the titles that were displayed. Through the search strings, they were clicking directly onto our posts about Celiac and 504 plans.

I doubt they were searching blogs specifically, I’m assuming they were looking for information on how to handle a 504 for a medical issue that is totally new to the school system, and applaud them for educating themselves on how to help Gillian. There were a lot of questions about whether the Americans with Disabilities Act applied to Celiac. I’d also handed them the 504 that is supplied on many of the Celiac-specific sites (I posted the one we’d personalized to her), and told them that this is the standard 504 that is being passed all over the country, and perhaps they were checking on that as well. These, of course, are speculations, but I’m quite certain that they weren’t looking for us specifically. They’d have no reason to do so. Someone happened upon our blog, and then there were a lot of someones happening upon it in the following days:)

No one from the district has said a word to us about our religion. I didn’t think they would. Things don’t happen that way in the suburbs…I’ve been waiting for the bomb to drop slowly, as it trickles down through the PTO. I’ve got friends in the community to ask about this, and I dropped an email to a well-connected friend today to ask if she’s heard anything. Our religion has not been mentioned to us directly – I’d assumed it wouldn’t be – and has not had an effect on the way Gillian’s case is being handled. I would certainly not expect it to, one has nothing to do with another. Even if the entire school board were religious zealots of some sort – which of course is not the case – it shouldn’t have anything to do with the proceedure of setting up Gillian’s in-school plan.

In the ‘fishbowl’ of a sports club in town several years ago, it became common knowledge that we were Wiccan because of a slip of my tongue in casual conversation. Luckily, many of the members were not from our community, and the ones that were had known me through the club for several years. Since the slip had occurred, I attempted to make myself available and approachable about the subject so that there would be less of the common misconceptions passed around. It worked both in my favor, and against it. A few people (who are the ones involved in our school system politics) knew us well enough to not judge, and were open and interested, curious, but not put off. These are the people I need to reach out to, they will let me know if and when our religion becomes an item of interest in the community. There were others who were actually approaching other members in the gym with concern that our family would put curses on them, and cast spells to control them. Luckily, word got back to me quickly through my acquaintances, and I was able to help minimize the damage at the time, with the help of the allies we’d made. This knowledge never got passed to the ’school set’ at large, and the incident passed. If it were to reemerge in the school system at large, the potential damage to the children is much greater…this isn’t a sports club with a hundred members.

We’re still waiting for a document to be put forth that can be agreed upon by both us and the school district, and that may actually happen soon – we’re waiting on the letter from the doctor they sent us to for a second opinion before offering their revisions. The school system seems to be finally working with us to institute the 504.

Although I know some on the school board now know we’re Wiccan, I’m hoping that at this point there’s more religious tolerance than there would have been several years ago. I’m hoping that our privacy in the community will be respected (although that may be too much to ask for, considering I bare it all on the web), and if not, that people will come to me and ask questions, or take the time to educate themselves on the details of our nature-based religion.

So, the long and short of it is that we’re still not aware of the long-term ramifications of members of the school board finding out about us, or if this information will be disseminated through the community. Believe me, if a witch-hunt starts around here, I’ll be blogging about it, but I’d like to think that diversity has infiltrated life in the suburbs enough to make a difference. In the meantime, I’m going to channel Anne Frank, and believe with all my being that people are really good at heart:)

When I know, you’ll know:)

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Jan. 20th, 2010 @ 10:35 pm Fae – Outed!! It Had To Happen Sooner or Later…

Originally published at The Soccer Moms' Guide to Wicca. Please leave any comments there.

I do believe we’ve unintentionally bumped ourselves “out of the closet” due to my blog posts about Gillian’s Celiac Disease, and putting the first 504 for it in place in our district. My intention in writing these posts has been to share our experiences and to disseminate information regarding the rights of students with CD, as 97% of people who are suffering from it are still undiagnosed. Many, many parents are going to be fumbling through the dark trying to protect their children in their public school system, much akin to the troubles and confusion that arose when 504s were put into place for children with peanut allergies. There are some great sites that are dedicated solely to assisting those in need of direction with CD, but searching for information online yields too few results at this point. Case in point, my blog posts show up on the front page on Google and Yahoo with simple search strings about Celiac and 504. Considering I’ve written about this less than a handful of times in the history of this blog, that’s pretty remarkable. We should be ranked way, way below sites dedicated to Celiac, such as the American Celiac Disease Alliance.  I’m grateful to have valuable information to share, and I know this blog is highly-trafficked.

It didn’t occur to me that while the school was doing the research necessary to prepare for our meetings (and I’m glad they’ll be prepared, the information they’ll gather will make passing this 504 for Gillian much easier) they would come across our website, announcing us to our community as Wiccan. Needless to say, this was not my intention, but was perhaps an inevitable end.

I’ve always said that we don’t wear signs announcing our religion, but I’m open to discussing it should someone ask. Because there’s still so much misinformation about Wicca, I fear that my children will be punished by misguided people who believe we’re anything other than a tree-hugging nature religion, should local interest be piqued and the suburban phone-chain activated.  We live in a decent sized suburb on the East Coast, in between New York City and Philadelphia. I’d like to think that our town is liberal and open-minded, but I know better from past experiences with parents in our community who shunned my children for fear of our religion, and so I’m a bit gun-shy. Our belief system is no one’s business, and yet I make it so by having a presence on the Web, and taking a stand for religious tolerance, amongst others. I’ve always thought that the bigger picture of the good my voice could bring would outweigh the possible ramifications to my family. Have I been naive?  Time will tell.

This blog was created, and exists in part to illustrate the normalcy of a neopagan suburban household, and the commonality that is shared by families in communities like mine.  We embrace the same morals, values and ethics of the highly principled people who live among us.  My biggest fear is that the gossip mongers (we’ve all been guilty of it at some time) will grab hold of this tidbit and run with it, and that suddenly our kids become unwelcome at the homes of their friends, and face the possibility of being socially outcast at school. My biggest hope is that Wicca has become mainstreamed enough to the point where it’s generally understood and accepted that we’re not ‘witches’, we don’t cast spells to control people, and we’re not worshipers of Satan. Maybe people will see that we’re just not that interesting…and if they are interested, I hope they ask. I’m always happy to dispel myths!

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Jan. 16th, 2010 @ 03:13 pm Fae – Paperfetish – I Have One!

Originally published at The Soccer Moms' Guide to Wicca. Please leave any comments there.

I found myself meeting some incredible craftspeople during the course of the “31 Days of Yule” giveaway that finally ended last week. One of those people was lovely Cheri Ucci from Paper Fetish Designs , who offered to make me a personalized journal. She asked me what I’d like – I told her I’d love somewhere to put ‘my writings’, and that I loved her hand-ripped pages and the triple-moon design she’d used for one of the pocket-journal sets she’d offered us to be used in the giveaway. Beyond that, I wanted her to do what she did, and take artistic control. Although I tend to micromanage, I wished for something that was her artistic vision, not mine.

Matt got home very late from work last night, and sure enough, there was a box from Cheri. I was floored by its contents. I’ve never seen anything quite like it. Not only do I have an original by Paper Fetish, I seem to have obtained a bit of a paper fetish myself…

Front Cover

Front Cover

This quilted fabric journal has been hand pieced from quality cotton fabric in shades of teal, purple and green. Cheri has sewn the pieces together with a variety of stitches in purple, with edging to match. A triple-moon design in silver is hand-sewn against a frame of purple and black.

Back Cover

Back Cover

The back cover holds a purple button which serves as a closure. A black cord which extends from the edge of the front cover wraps around the button, securing it. A silver flowered bead is used as a ornate weight to keep the cord straight and neat when the book is closed, and adds to the aesthetics of the appearance as a whole.

Pages Hand-sewn Into Spine

The hand-ripped pages have been sewn into the reinforced spine with a heavy waxed silver thread.

Hand-ripped pages

Hand-Torn Pages

Cheri hand ripped pages of high-quality paper, which are sectioned and sewn into the spine. Lining the inside cover on front and back are pockets, thoughtfully included to hold notes or anything I’d like that won’t be written onto or attached to the pages.

Attached bookmark

Attached bookmark

An attached bookmark will hold my place in between entries, and is finished with beads colored to complement the cover design. A large pewter bead adorned with a serene face weighs the thin cord down, ensuring I won’t lose my place.

Inside front cover

Inside front cover

The book opens to a front page complementing the cover, with a triple-moon on a background of purple with cursive writing. You can also see a better view of the pockets that are sewn into the inside cover of the journal.

Bookplate

Bookplate

Cheri created a peel-n-stick bookplate, personalized for me which sits on the second page. From there are pages upon pages of thick, creamy-white paper, all ready to fill with my musings.

What an incredible piece of artwork. It’s obvious that hours upon hours of work when into this journal, and the craftsmanship and eye for detail is remarkable. It is obvious that Cheri not only takes pride in her work, but also puts thought and copious amounts of care into everything she creates.

Those of you fortunate enough to have won the pocket journals she made for our giveaway are fortunate indeed. Those of you interested in obtaining a piece of your own should visit Paper Fetish Designs. Along with her fabric and leather journals, Cheri also designs Annotated Note-n-Quote Bookmark Journals, business card wallets, coptic bound journals, matchbook notepads and destash supplies. If you can’t make up your mind, Cheri offers gift certificates to aid gift-giving, so the recipient might be as fortunate as I to obtain a personalized piece.

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Jan. 13th, 2010 @ 08:14 am Turnaround Tuesdays – Pagan Pregnancy: Please Read
Tags:

Originally published at The Soccer Moms' Guide to Wicca. Please leave any comments there.

Every Tuesday, Juniper and/or Fae will pick a great blog post from our friends and write a paragraph about it. We’ll include a link to their post in our paragraph. We’re going to invite you to do the same – find a post that you’ve found that moves you (and it doesn’t have to be from today, it can be an older post) and share it here. We’ll have a centralized list of of recommended posts here, and a button that can link us together. The group can grow and grow, we don’t have to limit the amount of recommended posts…but it would be a way for us to find incredible things to read, and remarkable people to meet, recommended by our peers, without having to surf for hours. The goal is all about sharing interesting posts, and interesting people. I doesn’t have to be limited to ANY topic, religion or ideology. We can’t wait to read what you find!

Here’s Fae’s pick this week:

I was lucky enough to prepare for childbirth utilizing natural childbirth and the *wonderful* ideology behind Attachment Parenting. While the women around me puffed their Lamaze breathing, scheduling Cesarian Sections and sharing their excitement about how quickly they could get their “Happy-Dural” before the pain set in (and this worked for them, it was what they wanted, so the power to them), I was reading up on home birth, and being totally present as I brought a child into the world. I was told, and took on as my mantra “It ‘aint called ‘labor’ for nothing!” Now, in retrospect, after 52 hours of labor including 8 hours of vomiting in back-labor, a broken coccxy two blown eyes, grossly swollen private parts and a partridge in a pear tree (I had scar tissue on my cervix that no one could find, so I couldn’t dilate: wrong doctor, no question), a “happy-dural” might have been welcomed (the second one was 7 hours, after which my mom looked up and blinked and said “That’s it? I feel kind of cheated”). Jupiter Greenmoone at The Carnelian Chronicles (an incredibly well-written blog) wrote a post about a new book called Pagan Pregnancy is trying desperately to be born: Pagan Pregnancy: Please Read! She includes a description of the book and topics covered, which seems an awful lot like a resource new parents pagan religions would deeply welcome. Unfortunately, it’s been dropped from publication by the publishing house. Jupiter is kind enough to have done her homework, and supplies a plethora of contacts to who could get the wheels moving on getting it picked back up. If this intrigues you as much as it did me after reading the post, send an email or six to help! Enjoy the post…
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So here’s what you do…if you’d like to read the post, click through to The Carnelian Chronicles and read the article. If you’d like to leave comments for her, feel free!

If you have a friend whose post you want to share, here’s how you do it…(look at my post as an example if you have any questions…it’s easier than it looks:)

1. Write a paragraph or two about your friend’s post in your blog, and make sure to include a link to the post you’re writing about so your friends can click through to it.

2. Name your post “Turn Around Tuesday – [and then the name of your friends' blog]“. Look at the name of my post today for an example.

3. Copy and paste the code below at the bottom of your POST (in the HTML tab). This code will put a button on the bottom of your post so the readers can join Turnaround Tuesday if they wish.


4. After posting, come back here and fill out the Widget below the button with the following information:

Link Title: Name of your friends’ post (the post title, not the blog name).

Email Address: YOUR email address (it won’t show on the page, don’t worry).

Link URL: Copy and paste YOUR Turn-Around Tuesday POST, not your main website.

5. Hit the ‘Submit Link’ button.

That’s it!

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Jan. 12th, 2010 @ 03:07 pm Fae – Could This Really Be The Last Night???

Originally published at The Soccer Moms' Guide to Wicca. Please leave any comments there.

The “31 Days of Yule” giveaway, AKA “The Giveaway That Keeps On giving”, AKA “The Contest That Wouldn’t End” is almost over. Tonight is the last night, and we’re giving away $42.00 Dichroic Glass Runes…

Dichroic Glass Elder Futhark Runes

This was our first stab at this, and despite a clueless start and a few hiccups along the way, I think it was a success! We accomplished our goals, to bring more traffic to online small business owners, and make people happy with the chance to win something beautiful. Thank you to everyone who donated their wonderful products!

Now that we’ve got it down to a smooth changeover from day to day, we’ve agreed that it’s something we should do every few months…we’ve had people during the course of the month wanting to be involved, and we’d hate to let them down! We’re going to take some time to breathe in between giveaways, though, and we’ll be drawing the winner closer to 10PM EST than 9 – we need both kids in bed before Matt and I do “dueling computers” for the drawing and posting each night:)

By the way, thank you, Matt, for all your help! I had promised Juniper that she didn’t have to be a part of the contest because it’s more than she can handle right now, but I found out pretty quickly that I couldn’t do it myself. I give many kudos to all the bloggers who do – they obviously handle stress better than I do:)

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Jan. 12th, 2010 @ 02:07 pm Fae – I Missed Turnaround Tuesday!!

Originally published at The Soccer Moms' Guide to Wicca. Please leave any comments there.

I can’t believe I missed it… It’s 2pm, I just looked at the clock and said “OH NO!!”

I’ll post it tonight at midnight when Matt’s home to put in the widget (anyone want to explain why we can both be signed in as admins and he can see the widget in the draft and I can’t??). We’ll have Turnaround Tuesday on Wednesday this week – and you may all call me A.B. Normal:)

If you have no idea what I’m talking about and you’d like to, click the button on the top of the right column, that will take you to the Turnaround Tuesday page…

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Jan. 9th, 2010 @ 04:39 pm Fae – From the Department of Redundancy Department…

Originally published at The Soccer Moms' Guide to Wicca. Please leave any comments there.

…A Barnes and Noble Fail.

Thank you for taking pictures of your widely various facades from different angles. So helpful to be able to differentiate the locations! Silly webmaster….

Don’t get me wrong, I *love* Barnes and Noble. It’s the consistent destination on Date  Night for Matt and I.  But when I fall down laughing at the ridiculousness of spending the time loading location pictures, I just have to say something.

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Jan. 8th, 2010 @ 04:49 pm Fae – Sample 504 plan for school-age children with Celiac Disease

Originally published at The Soccer Moms' Guide to Wicca. Please leave any comments there.

After way too many hold-ups, our daughter’s school will be convening a group of professionals to oversee the implementation a legal document that will provide protection for her while in school.  Because she is the first in our school district to be diagnosed with Celiac Disease (93% of people suffering from this are undiagnosed), we’ve hit quite a few roadblocks, but at least we’ve got a meeting at which to present our case for 504 implementation. I am sharing this plan in the hopes that other parents in our shoes might find it helpful.

Information on 504 plan from The National Organization for Celiac Awareness:“Section 504 is part of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973, and applies to all institutions receiving federal financial assistance, such as public schools. Under this law, public schools must provide a free appropriate public education and not discriminate against disabled students. This law acknowledges that the disability may not require special education services but a plan is needed to ensure the student receives an appropriate education accommodating the disability within the classroom. This law must accommodate a special diet, including the gluten-free diet which is the only known treatment for Celiac Disease.”

The Department of Education (ED) Office of Civil Rights regulations define a physical or mental impairment as any physiological disorder or condition, cosmetic disfigurement, or anatomical loss affecting one or more of the following body systems: neurological; musculoskeletal; special sense organs; respiratory, including speech organs; cardiovascular; reproductive; digestive; genito-urinary; hemic and lymphatic; skin; and endocrine… The regulations do not spell out every disease and condition that may constitute physical or mental impairments. Section 504(a) of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973, as amended, 34 C.F.R. 104.3(j)(2)(i) and the Americans with Disabilities Amendments Act of 2008 (ADAAA), Title II regulation at 28 C.F.R. § 35.104.

Section 504 Plan for Gillian XXXXXXXXX

School: XXXXXXXX School

School Year: Late 2009/2010

Gillian XXXXX                     XX/XX/X                      X                             Celiac Disease

Student’s name                 Birth Date                 Grade                         Disability

Homeroom Teacher: XXXXXXXXX  Bus Number:X

Objectives/Goals of this plan

Celiac disease is an autoimmune disease that causes damage to the intestinal

lining, interfering with the absorption of nutrients. Untreated, celiac disease

causes multi-system complications such as diarrhea, constipation, gas, bloating,

iron deficiency anemia, decreased bone density, failure to thrive, short stature,

and behavior problems.

The only treatment for celiac disease is a strict gluten free diet for life. Gluten is

found in wheat, rye, barley and contaminated oats. Therefore, all foods with

wheat, rye, barley and oats must be eliminated from the diet. In addition to the

foods being gluten free, it is equally important that these foods are not

contaminated by coming in contact with gluten containing foods during their

preparation or service.

1. Provision of Celiac Disease Care

1.1 All staff members involved in the care and education of Gillian must

receive training in the management of Celiac Disease. This includes teachers,

classroom assistants, substitute teachers, cafeteria workers, office staff, school

nurse, and any other staff that has primary care for her.

1.2 All staff who interacts with Gillian on a regular basis understands Celiac

Disease, can recognize symptoms of gluten ingestion, and work with other school

staff to eliminate the use of gluten containing foods in her meals,

educational tools, arts and crafts projects or incentives.

2. Meals and Snacks

2.1 The only treatment for celiac disease is a strict gluten free diet for life.

Gluten is found in wheat, rye, barley and contaminated oats. Therefore, all foods

with wheat, rye, barley and oats must be eliminated from Gillian’s diet. This includes

the obvious sources such as wheat breads, pastas, buns and rolls but it also

includes items such items as soy sauce, some broths and meat bases, some soups,

gravy thickened with wheat flour and breakfast cereals that contain malt or malt

flavoring. All labels must be carefully reviewed to be sure no gluten containing

grain is used in that food product. Also, items that are made in factories where equipment is shared with glutinous food cannot be served.

2.2 In addition to the food itself being free of gluten, the food cannot come in

contact with or be contaminated by gluten containing foods. This means the gluten-free foods need to be prepared in a separate area, cooked in separate pans, toaster oven or microwave, and served with clean gloves.

2.3 In order to provide a balanced meal containing the 4 groups necessary for

reimbursement, a gluten free bread or bread alternative must be offered at all

school meals. This would include such foods as a gluten-free bread, gluten-free

roll, gluten-free cereal and gluten-free pasta. The meat and meat alternative

must also be free of gluten containing grains such as fillers in hot dogs, poultry

injected with wheat or barley, and a gluten containing grain used as an extender

in other meat products.

2.4 School food service personnel will develop a system for identifying Gillian when moving through the cafeteria line so that a member of the staff can ensure the selected food is safe. To facilitate this, Gillian will identify herself to service staff or use specially code lunch tickets if desired.

2.5 The school will designate a person to be responsible for ensuring that lunch

tables and surrounding areas are thoroughly cleaned before  lunch. It is

recommended that a designated sponge or cleaning cloth be used for the gluten

free area to avoid cross contamination.

2.6 Teachers will give Gillian’s parents a 48 hour notice of any special

events outside the classroom at which food will be prepared that is not from the cafeteria. The school will provide Gillian’s parents with a gluten-free food option for said event. Her parents may choose to provide appropriate food for the event.

2.7 Classroom parties where food will be shared will be gluten free. Gillian’s parents will supply lists of easy-to-find grocery items to homeroom parents and/or teachers.

2.8 Snacks will be available in the classroom, or Gillian’s backpack, or the nurse’s office (whichever is deemed most viable) in the event that she becomes hungry. Because she can only ingest a small amount of food at a time, she needs to eat more often. Gillian has promised to use this privilege conservatively. If it is more convenient and less disruptive for the class, she can quietly eat a small snack at her desk.

3. Bathroom Access

3.1 Accidental exposure to gluten may cause gas, bloating and diarrhea;

therefore, Gillian shall be permitted to use the bathroom without restriction. If she deems it necessary, she will be permitted to use the bathroom in the nurse’s office in case of serious stomach cramping and cold sweats, so that she can be overseen by an adult. Gillian has come to the edge of passing out when symptomatic.

3.2 Benadryl will be available to Gillian should accidental exposure occur, as hives often appear when cross-contamination occurs. This can be dispensed at the nurse’s office at Gillian’s digression.

3.3 Gillian will also need access to hand washing facilities after handling

products that contain gluten such as Play Dough or paper-mâché.

4. Classroom Art Projects

4.1 Rubber gloves will be accessible to Gillian for projects that contain gluten such as Play Dough or paper-mâché. As stated in item 3.3, Gillian will need access to hand washing facilities after handling these products.

4.2 Parents will be informed at least 48 hours in advance of any non-airborne gluten-containing items being used in a project so they can make appropriate substitution if necessary (I.E. gluten-free ginger bread cookies for building a house).

4.3 School projects utilizing glutinous ingredients which can become airborne (I.E. volcanoes) must be substituted with another project or gluten-free ingredients, such as gluten-free flour.

5. Field Trips and Extracurricular Activities

5.1 Parents will be notified of upcoming field trip plans that would involve food or

food-related activities. The school will provide parents with a gluten-free meal

option for any off-campus school-sponsored activity. The parents may choose to

provide appropriate gluten-free alternatives.

6. Communication

6.1 The school staff will keep Gillian’s Celiac Disease confidential, except to

the extent that Gillian decides to openly communicate about it with others.

6.2 The school staff will provide reasonable notice to her parents when

there will be a change in planned activities such as field trips or parties.

6.3 Each substitute teacher and substitute school nurse will be provided with

written instructions regarding Gillian’s Celiac Disease care.

6.4 Prior to the beginning of every school year the new classroom teacher will

receive a copy of the 504 plan and will review it to ensure that the steps

necessary to keep Gillian safe are clear and understandable. Written

documentation of this process will be provided to her parents before Gillian

enters the classroom.

7. Emergency Evacuation and Shelter-in –Place

7.1 In the event of emergency evacuation or shelter-in-place situation the

student’s 504 Plan will remain in full force and effect.

7.2 Gillian’s parents shall provide the school with a 3 day emergency

supply of non-perishable gluten free foods.

8. Parental Notification

8.1 Gillian’s parents shall be notified immediately in the following

situations:

* The student has eaten a food item that contains gluten.

* The student has symptoms of gluten ingestion such as abdominal

pain, cramping, diarrhea, or hives.

9. Emergency Contacts:

XXXXXXX

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Jan. 6th, 2010 @ 01:50 pm Fae – I Know You Will Love Me Anyway

Originally published at The Soccer Moms' Guide to Wicca. Please leave any comments there.

When I was a teenager, my mother told me that all a marriage needed to survive was two people who wanted to make it work more than they wanted anything else.  This has held true for me, and has become one of the pillars of my marriage to Matt.

I’ve been thinking about Matt, and my life, and that he’s stayed with me through 15 years of mistreated anxiety and depression, untreated PTSD, a gastric bypass, and a year in bed due to undiagnosed iron deficient anemia. He stayed with me thinking that he might have to take care of two young children and a bedridden wife. He stayed with me through flashbacks when he’d try to touch me and I’ll jerk away.  Although I’m finally on the right meds now, and I’m treating the anemia with iron infusions, I’ve always wondered why he would stay. I met him at a time in my life when I was newly sober, struggling with so many issues, and I felt as though I was broken. Matt has taught me, through these almost 17 years of companionship, that I am not broken – although he and I agree that I am bent:) Without him by my side, I tell you without reservation that I wouldn’t have made it to my 30th birthday.

Although I pride myself on watching deep, philosophical and intellectual films:), there’s a movie called ‘Rockstar with Mark Wahlberg and Jennifer Aniston’ that really caught me in the last few minutes, and it has a song that makes me cry every time I watch it. It’s called “Colorful’ by a band called The Verve Pipe. I wanted to share it with you, and I’m including the lyrics below the video, even though they’re easy to make out in the clip. There are better quality copies of the complete song that are easy to find with a simple search (and of course you can download it on itunes). I like this one, because it’s taken from the movie.

The show is over close the story book
There will be no encore
And all the random hands that I have shook
Well they’re reaching for the door
I watch their backs as they leave single file
But you stood stubborn, cheering all the while

I know I can be colorful
I know I can be gray
But I know this loser’s living fortunate
Cause I know you will love me either way

Most were being good for goodness sake
But you wouldn’t pantomime
You are more beautiful when you awake
Than most are in a lifetime
Through the haze that is my memory well
You stayed for drama though you paid for a comedy

I know I can be colorful
I know I can be gray
But I know this loser’s living fortunate
Cause I know you will love me either way

Look ahead as far as you can see
We’ll live in drama but we’ll die in a comedy
I know I can be colorful…

Thank you, Matt, for loving me either way.

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Jan. 5th, 2010 @ 12:20 am Turn-around Tuesdays – Chapter One: The First Step and Chapter Two: Obstacles

Originally published at The Soccer Moms' Guide to Wicca. Please leave any comments there.

Every Tuesday, Juniper and/or Fae will pick a great blog post from our  friends and write a paragraph about it. We’ll  include a link to their post in our paragraph. We’re going to invite you to do the same – find a post that you’ve found that moves you (and it doesn’t have to be from today, it can be an older post) and share it here. We’ll have a centralized list of of recommended posts here, and a button that can link us together. The group can grow and grow, we don’t have to limit the amount of recommended posts…but it would be a way for us to find incredible things to read, and remarkable people to meet, recommended by our peers, without having to surf for hours. The goal is all about sharing interesting posts, and interesting people. I doesn’t have to be limited to ANY topic, religion or ideology. We can’t wait to read what you find!

Here’s Fae’s pick this week:

I have recently come upon a blog called “Journey of the Stag Warrior”, written by a man who is relatively new  to paganism. He’s chronicling his journey, as well as the obstacles in his way – which at this time are numerous, and serious life-changing events. He’s written about how he’s handling these things in the third peron, which is really looking like the beginning of a well written fictional short story – b it’s not. He’s had subsequent posts, and I’m reading them, but I hope he continues this thread, in this aspect. As well as being an incredibly self-aware person, he’s a quite talented writer. Here’s Chapter One: The First Step, followed by Chapter Two: Obstacles.  Hope you enjoy it as much as I am!

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

So here’s what you do…if you’d like to read the post,  click through to Journey of the Stag Warrior and read the article. If you’d like to leave comments for him, feel free!

If you have a friend whose post you want to share, here’s how you do it…(look at my post as an example if you have any questions…it’s easier than it looks:)

1. Write a paragraph or two about your friend’s post  in your blog, and make sure to include a link to the post you’re writing about so your friends can click through to it.

2. Name your post “Turn Around Tuesday – [and then the name of your friends' blog]“.  Look at the name of my post today for an example.

3. Copy and paste the code below at the bottom of your POST (in the HTML tab). This code will put a button on the bottom of your post so the readers can join Turnaround Tuesday if they wish.


4. After posting, come back here and fill out the Widget below the button with the following information:

Link Title: Name of your friends’ post (the post title, not the blog name).

Email Address: YOUR email address (it won’t show on the page, don’t worry).

Link URL:  Copy and paste YOUR Turn-Around Tuesday POST, not your main website.

5. Hit the ‘Submit Link’ button.

That’s it!

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Jan. 5th, 2010 @ 12:01 am Giveaway is still on…are you having trouble entering?

Originally published at The Soccer Moms' Guide to Wicca. Please leave any comments there.

Just dropping a note to say that we’ve been told that we’re having issues with our day 23 giveaway, but we can’t figure out what it is. If you find a problem with commenting, please email me here with the reader or feeder you’re using…

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Jan. 4th, 2010 @ 08:24 pm Fae – Yay, Another Mother Moon Giveaway!

Originally published at The Soccer Moms' Guide to Wicca. Please leave any comments there.

Janie over at Mother Moon’s Message is blue:) Considering that we just had a blue moon, I’m not surprised. Instead of getting the blues, she’s giving the blues, making up an awesome gift basket with a blue theme and sending it out!

The time and care she puts into everything she does is really remarkable, so I’d recommend a trip over to her site to take a look:) Enjoy!

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Jan. 4th, 2010 @ 02:39 pm Juniper ~ One (Maybe Not So) Little Word for 2010

Originally published at The Soccer Moms' Guide to Wicca. Please leave any comments there.

Ana at Deep Inside My Broom Closet and ONe PiNK FiSH at perfectly pagan both posted about a little tradition started by Ali Edwards in 2007. The idea is to choose a single word on which to focus for the entire year. Edwards writes: “Essentially the idea is to choose a word (or let it choose you) that has the potential to make an impact on your life.”

When I came across Ana’s post, I commented thusly:

The word that keeps throwing itself at me is FAITH. I’m reluctant to use it, maybe because I can’t help but picture the word “blind” in front of it. But it won’t let go of its hold on me, so I’ll let myself sit with it for a while and see where it takes me.

I wrote that about a week ago. Since then, I’ve had a weird relationship with the concept of faith.

I’ve hinted that things between Leo and me are shaky. I wish I could say more, but I can’t. What I can say is that my faith in the strength of our relationship was blind for a long, long time. I needed to believe that our love was special, unbreakable. I was terrified to take a good look at what was really happening between us. Ignorance wasn’t bliss, but it was better than abject terror.

I feel like we’ve hit bottom in a lot of ways, but that bottom isn’t as scary as it might have been. Neither one of us can say for sure what will happen, but we’re both being completely honest and sensitive with one another, balancing our desire to please and/or avoid conflict with our true needs and concern for the health of our family.

For a while last week, I felt like my faith was being eroded. I felt my world slipping out from under me, leaving me spinning in a void. Funny how moments like those cause hard truths to bonk one over the head. I’ve begun trying to look at things differently, for my own sanity as well as for Leo’s sake. I realize that I have to let go of defensiveness and desperation. I have to allow space and time for healing to take place. I need to be patient, without relinquishing my own need for contact.

I need to have a new kind of faith… faith in myself. No matter what happens, I will survive. I’ll be alright. I may experience loneliness, depression, anxiety, and anger, but I will also have pleasure and friendship and emotional growth. No matter what, I won’t stop living.

That doesn’t change what I want, or my fear that I won’t be able to have it. But it does change the quality of my faith from something that depends on others (e.g. Leo) to something that depends on me. That’s reason enough to make it the focus of my year.

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Jan. 3rd, 2010 @ 10:08 pm 31 Days Of Yule Contest Starting Back Up Tonight!

Originally published at The Soccer Moms' Guide to Wicca. Please leave any comments there.

Here we go again, for the last 10 nights! We’re kicking it back off with something really special,handmade Ogham Staves from a wonderful woman in the U.K. I’ve seen some incredible runes, and these look like a similar divination tool with a different flavor. Click the banner above to go to the contest page, and good luck!

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Jan. 2nd, 2010 @ 04:49 pm Fae – The Pagan Parenting Column is Up! Any Suggestions?

Originally published at The Soccer Moms' Guide to Wicca. Please leave any comments there.

Our first columns for PaganParenting.org have been posted on their site, and Juniper and I are very excited about the opportunity to write for them. This site is brand new, still being developed, and really has the possibility of  filling a much-needed niche – a parenting-specific hub with forums and many other features designed to help new parents, and parents new to paganism with children of all ages. It also gives pagan parents rich with experience a place to share their knowledge. There are many wonderful resources on the web now for us, but this is the first I’ve seen that caters to pagan parenting in this way.

Juniper and I would love to know if you have suggestions for column topics.  We want your ideas!

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Dec. 31st, 2009 @ 11:19 pm Fae – More Than I Ever Hoped For…I’d Have Settled For So Much Less
Tags: , ,

Originally published at The Soccer Moms' Guide to Wicca. Please leave any comments there.

Tonight is Matt and my 15th wedding anniversary.  Aidan is sleeping over with his friend Marcus (they may go skiing tomorrow), and Gillian is spending the night with my parents. Matt and I went to our favorite french Thai fusion restaurant, and then we were going to see a movie, but we decided to save the $30 and come home and get in bed – it’s freezing.  I gave him three choices of what he’d like to while cuddling and staying warm, and the first two were watch a movie or play Scrabble. We’re watching a movie right now, but we’re keeping our options open:)

I copied Matt’s blog post from today, and I wanted to share it with you.  I still can’t believe that, this man chose me. I hope to spend the rest of my life showing him how grateful I am.

Here’s his post:

I woke up this morning to put in my half day working from home (thanks Matt!) (yeah, i love working from home) looked out the window, and saw the snow coming down. Reminded me of a day 15 years ago today when it was snowing and there was this girl upstairs in her parents bedroom getting ready to marry me.

We had the ceremony done by a justice of the peace, written by us, in her parents house. About 50 people came, relatives, friends from NJ And TX and NY and just had a really nice day. Hectic until the minute everyone started walking down the stairs. Then it was like magic. From where I was standing in the living room, I Could see everyone in the main hallway watching her come down the stairs. Seeing her when she rounded the corner was like magic, like everything was right and all the planning, stress, and nervousness was all worth it and we would be one finally. We’d lived together for a year, but this was totally different.

The only thing I remember about the ceremony was her. I was so nervous, I almost wiped off the still drying nail polish from her fingernails. That and her dress came undone about halfway through and someone had to refasten it. It was just a collar button, so it wasn’t anything tragic. Everyone had a good chuckle.

Now it’s 15 year later, we’ve moved from Texas to NJ, We’ve had two wonderful children, and I’ve had about 3 or 4 jobs. It’s never been easy, and sometimes it’s been work. It’s always been full of love, friendship, and care. I pledged myself to this wonderful woman long ago in that livingroom across town and I would go back and do it in a second.

I love you my Fae, now and always. These are for you:

You turned life around
made me realize the man
I always could be.

You said yes to me
long ago. Say yes every
day till end of time.

Watching you come back
from numbness and hopeless
is seeing you born.

My partner my friend.
Stay with me now and always.
Put your hand in mine.

Happy 15th baby.
Yours now and always,
Matthew

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Dec. 31st, 2009 @ 02:54 pm Fae – Never Trust Your Caller ID….

Originally published at The Soccer Moms' Guide to Wicca. Please leave any comments there.

Matt and the kids were in New York at his parents house for a few days, allowing me to decompress and have a mini-vacation, which I ate up. It’s amazing what a few days alone can do for a harried housewife:)

So I’m sitting around with a friend who’s a writer. She happens to be a bit obsessed with the Twilight series..ok, more than a bit. Perhaps passionately, deeply and compulsively would be a bit more succinct. Being a writer, she’s found a creative outlet for her obsession – she’s writing Fan Fiction (is that supposed to be capitalized?) I’ve been begging her for months to let me read her stuff, but she’s gotten red and shy and refused. Which only piqued my interest more. A bit like a terrier, I growled and tugged on the hem of her jeans until she acquiesced and let me read it. Not only was it well-written, it was *hot*. The kind of hot that’s only really good when it’s well-written enough for you to dive into the story.

I dove, and was thoroughly enjoying the read when my phone rang. I glanced at the caller ID and saw “Matt – Cell”.  Excited to share the story, I answered the phone by yelling “I’M READING PORN!!”

I hear a tentative reply in a voice that sounds remarkably like my ten-year-old daughter….”You’re eating….corn?”

I screamed and dropped the phone, and then fell on the floor laughing so hard I couldn’t pick up the receiver. Every time I tried to pick it up, I heard her saying “hello?” I’d drop the phone and fall over laughing again. My friend, who had been sitting next to me, was now on the floor next to me trying to breathe. I’m not sure if it was shock, horror or hysteria. I finally caught my breath enough to say “Gillian?”

“Mommy, did you say you were eating corn? We fell over again. I think, for the first time, I actually hooted I was laughing so hard. Shockingly, she was still saying “Hello, Mommy,” when I got the phone back to my ear.

“Yes, honey, (snort) I’m eating corn…can I (choke) talk to Daddy for a minute?” I hear a rustling noise, and muttering, and then Matt’s voice. “Hi Fae, you EATING CORN?”

We were back on the floor in peals of laughter, phone receiver forgotten. Thank goodness Matt’s a quick study, a great father and my best friend…

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Dec. 30th, 2009 @ 02:28 pm Juniper ~ Me and My Shadow

Originally published at The Soccer Moms' Guide to Wicca. Please leave any comments there.

I’m all by myself today. Physically, at any rate. Well, the dog is here with me, and the other pets are in the kids’ rooms, but other than that, I’m completely alone.

Leo and the kids are away visiting his family until tomorrow. They left Monday morning, and I promptly hightailed it down to Fae’s house. My mom took the pets, so I had no responsibility for two days other than myself and my chosen sister.

The amount of energy I absorbed just being with Fae was incredible. We did almost nothing but talk. It still amazes me that we have so much to say to one another after more than six years, but we do. We’re totally in sync. I told my therapist this morning that Fae’s brain is kind of like an external hard drive to my brain, and vice versa. (I think Matt will get the analogy, if no one else. :-) I’m such a geek.)

I left her house last night at 10 and got home around 11. I got into bed around midnight and fell asleep relatively easily. My eyes popped open at 6:30, though, and I felt like I was having a panic attack. My chest was tight and my breaths were short and shallow. I managed to deep-breathe my way back to sleep after a little while, but when I woke up again at 8, I was anxious and groggy and unable to go back to sleep.

As I’m sitting here in bed at 2 in the afternoon, with no real plans for the day (I might go to a movie later, or I might just hang out online), I’m feeling anxious and afraid and maybe a touch guilty. Leo has the kids, and they’re fine (I’ve spoken to them all a few times a day since they left). Why do I feel like I’m forgetting something, or missing something?

My marriage is insecure. I feel unsafe overall. Maybe time alone makes it too easy to give in to the fear and worry. Fae was able to distract me and get me out of my head, even though we did talk a lot about my situation. Now that I’m alone, I feel the wheels spinning in my mind, causing all the anxiety gears in my body to engage.

I was really looking forward to this time without the kids. Now that I have it, I find myself full of worry and a bunch of other unpleasant emotions. What the hell is wrong with me?

Do I use my daily responsibilities as an excuse to push aside my deeper feelings and my stress? That seems paradoxical to me, since those responsibilities cause me stress. Maybe I’m using one type of stress to cover another, deeper, scarier kind of stress. Without all the daily pressures to distract me, my shadow side is making itself known.

I’ve read or heard different definitions of the “shadow side” or “shadow self,” most of which had to do with acknowledging one’s baser desires/instincts, or coming to terms with one’s weaknesses as well as strengths of character and ability. Some talked about dark deities and their relationships to us humans. Almost all discussed the importance of balancing the shadow self with the “light” self (for lack of a better term).

I don’t feel balanced. I feel like I could easily be consumed by the darkness working through me. So which path do I take now? Do I try to cope with the shadows by balancing (or subsuming) them with light? Or do I let the shadows overwhelm me for a time in hopes that they pass over me, leaving me stronger and no longer afraid of what they might bring?

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