Imbolc 2022: Let There Be Hope

By Blog, Wheel of the Year
  I had wanted Yule and the end of the Gregorian year to feel magical and peaceful, but 2021 refused to leave quietly. Nor did hanging my new calendar create an instant reset. In addition to the kind of drama which is typical when the family gathers for holidays and our old house gets snowed on, surging COVID-19 cases, a…
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Resilient Wetlands, Resilient Humans

By Blog, Real Wilding
Resilience: the ability to become strong, healthy, or successful again after something bad happens (Merriam-Webster) In my last post, muddy and buggy wetlands were something people wanted to change so the land would be usable for recreation or development. What humans fail to notice, however, is the value of unaltered wetlands in keeping us safe and helping us recover when…
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Get Out of My Swamp

By Blog, Real Wilding
For my Druidic studies I have been reading books about my local ecology. I couldn’t resist the crossover with my work with turtles, so my current read is The Ecology, Exploitation, and Conservation of River Turtles by Don and Edward Moll. In there is a section on wetlands. There are four types of wetlands in the Adirondacks: marshes, bogs, fens,…
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Wishing for Oaks

By Blog, Real Wilding
The valley I live in is known as “the banana belt of the Adirondacks.” The weather is generally milder than that of the mountains which surround us. While they do not at higher elevations, red oaks grow here. The land surrounding my house, however, is devoid of oaks. There are a few down the road and there are large stands…
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The Pilgrimage of Turtles

By Blog, Spiritual Ecology
A recent study conducted in my state found that turtles in wetlands surrounded by busy roads were more likely to be males. This finding only confirmed what I and other turtle rehabilitators already knew – during the late spring, many female turtles are hit by cars during their annual pilgrimage to lay their eggs. A pilgrimage is a journey, usually…
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Red Eft, Spiritual Nomad

By Blog, Spiritual Ecology
The red eft appeared from under some leaves and walked slowly down the hill towards the woods, seemingly oblivious to my presence. I shifted my gaze from the sapling that had been my meditation focal point to watch the eft. The bright red salamander stood out against the leaf litter, but the squirrels and chipmunks paid him no mind. By…
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Broken Turtles and Spiritual Journeys

By Blog, Spiritual Ecology
“Follow the turtle home,” repeated the box turtle, as he danced across the night sky. Each step sent a cloud of stardust flying, which left a sparkling wake behind him. “Follow the turtle home,” I heard again and again. When the drumbeat stopped, I came out of my first shamanic journey experience confused. What could that message mean? In the…
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