Tuesday, February 25, 2014

ConVo 2014

Well, we went to our first ConVo this past weekend.  As norm my daughter and I completely stressed about everything for a couple of weeks before the event.  That's nothing new, we still do that before Midnight Flame and we're going on our 4th year of that festival.  So as norm, my daughter is running like a crazy person and I'm procrastinating till the last minute.  By the time we are ready to go both of us are rather stressed.  

The drive there was kinda nerve racking, I really don't like driving in or around Detroit, between the potholes and the crazy drivers, it's not a pleasant experience.  But we made it in one piece and truthfully, it was quite easy to find.  

I have to admit, the way some people were talking about it I really expected a HUGE hotel with trillions (okay, maybe not quite a trillion) people everywhere.  The hotel was actually very nice and there were quite a lot of people.  I think it was around a thousand people coming and going to the events and checking things out.  Of course, I'm guessing on that but at the raffle drawing they called a number that was over a thousand and since that was the number on our badges, it's a safe bet there was over a thousand. Either way, there was a lot of people there.

There was a room for artists to display and sale their artwork.  A good friend of ours had her prints on display.  She does lovely stuff.  It was interesting to look at the different displays.  I liked how there was such a variety, not like going to a crafts show and everyone is selling the exact same thing.  Next year I'm going to have to set money aside just for that room, I'm thinking.

The merchants room was smaller then I was expecting, I won't lie, but there was so much to look at and want.  It's probably a good thing it wasn't as big as I expected.  Of course we had to visit our friends' stall, The Magical Druid.  I really like their items and highly recommend them.  There were quite a variety of merchants, I spent way to much time and money in there. But I bought several things, magical and mundane, that I can't get around here.

I took several classes this weekend on a variety of subjects.  I was very impressed with all of the instructors.  It was a breath of fresh air to take a class from someone who had a good knowledge on the subject they were teaching.  The classes gave me some ideas on how to expand my practice.  They also solidified a few of my beliefs on my magical practices.  I am really grateful for the wonderful people who were willing to take the time to share their experience and knowledge.  

The thing that I enjoyed maybe the most was meeting up with old friends and just chatting and hanging out.  We had several new people come in to check us out, I do believe we may have some new members.  I know there was one lady who told us that we were the only group that actually welcomed her in and made her feel good.  Unfortunately, I had noticed that it was rather cliquey which is rather unfortunate.  It seemed like this is an excellent opportunity to expand your friends and experiences but a lot of people just seemed to only want to stick with the same people doing the same thing.  That was a bit of a disappointment, I will admit that. 

All in all, I really enjoyed myself.  Next year will be even better.  I'm looking forward to more classes, lectures, dancing and meeting more people.

Monday, February 24, 2014

The Next Step?

The other night while at work my mind started drifting, not an unusual thing since most of the jobs I do are very repetitious and it's very easy to zone out while doing them.  Anyway, I got to thinking about some friends who are Kemetic and some of their beliefs.  This thought led me to thinking about a visit to the Toledo Museum of Art that me and my daughter had taken a few years ago.  We were so excited to go because they were having a display on Ancient Egypt.  There were pieces of art work, jewelry and statues that had been taken from a tomb.  The big item that we were so excited to see was the mummy that they were displaying.  This was a big thing, you hear about them, see pictures of them but we were going to actually see a real one in "person", so to speak.  

Now, when we finally got to the case that held the mummy, all I could think of was how sad it was.  Looking down at this withered body wrapped in rags and looking so tiny and fragile, my only thought was how sad it was to have ended up here, on display for anyone to stare at.  The more I thought about it the sadder I became.  This withered, dried up thing used to be a person, someone who loved others, had people who loved them.  A person who had lived, loved and dead.  Their whole belief was that the items we were just admiring were buried with them for the sole purpose of their being able to continue their lives in the next life, like they had lived in this life.  Without those items, the artwork that talked of their life, their accomplishments and their funerals, most importantly, their names, they would cease to exist. I wondered, what happened to this poor soul when the items were taken from their tomb?  Was s/he living happily in the afterlife, then suddenly ripped out and scattered to nothingness because of the actions of the people who were taking their stuff from their tombs?  Did this person cease to exist?  While I enjoyed looking at the items, the mummy really depressed me, made me wonder why we needed to remove the body from it's resting place.

After thinking about this rather depressing subject I started thinking about how different religions had their own beliefs on what happens when we pass from this life. There are so many different places people believe we go after we die. Heaven.  Hell.  Nirvana. Isle of Apples. Summerland.  Reincarnation.  Nothing.  You get the picture. There are so many thoughts of what waits us when we leave this life.  

What happens once our spirit leaves this body?  My belief is that our minds, to some extent, create our afterlife.  Bare with me, this is an ongoing, evolving belief that I've been working on for years.  I believe that our minds, our thoughts, help form the afterlife we will be experiencing.  I don't think it controls it all, but I believe that at the beginning, when we leave our bodies, that our minds will create a reality that we expect, that we can deal with.  Of course this can be a double edged sword, if you believe in Hell and feel that is what you deserve, then that is where you go, same as if you believe you deserve Heaven, or Summerland.  That is where you will go.

Now, this thought lead me to what about Reincarnation? What about the belief that we all come from one source and that when we die we go back to that source?  How does this fit in?  I don't know, but it makes for some interesting thoughts. I honestly can't say I believe in either, but I remember reading somewhere that energy does not cease to exist, it is always there.  I believe our spirits are made of energy, so when we die we have to go somewhere.  Now, do we keep living different lives for all eternity? I don't know.  Maybe, but why?  Would it be to learn lessons?  That you can't move on till you learn that lesson? Or just to experience different types of life?  Would this go on forever? Or would it stop when you learn or experience all that you want?  Do you eventually find your way back to the one source that all life comes from. Before anyone says "Hey! What you mean by that?" I do believe that all life, everything in existence comes from one source, even the gods, goddesses, nature spirits, all that, come from this source.  That is my belief, so since this is my blog, I'm going with it. 

I remember reading in a Dean Koontz book, Odd Thomas, one of the main characters believed that this life is just boot camp, that the next life is war or the great adventure.  Now, I don't believe this is boot camp, but I kinda like the thought that the next life (and possibly the next, etc) are great adventures.  Before anyone laughs at me for developing an idea from a book, I am not saying this is what I believe in, but I think it's an interesting thought.  Sometimes you read something that makes you go "hmmm?"  Even if it's fiction, if it's a "hmmm" thought, it can be worth looking into or at least exploring.  When you think about it, it is in a way another variation of reincarnation.  I think I could go with each life as an adventure or a new experience over lessons to be learned.  After all, who's to say you won't learn any lessons having an adventure?  

Thinking about all these ideas about the afterlife makes me wonder why some spirits don't move on.  I know some people say they could be just an echo of something in the past, kinda like a recording of an event that happened.  Maybe, could be.  I don't know.  Could it be this persons' soul is stuck at this moment in time?  Forced to relive this one moment over and over again?  I'm thinking it's a possibility, especially if our minds are what really makes the afterlife what it is.  Maybe these echoes are people living it over and over again, unaware that they are doing it and unaware of anything else around them.  But then I started wondering about the spirits that are aware of the "living".  Why are the aware?  Why do they refuse to leave?  What are they afraid of?

Which makes you wonder, if these spirits we are seeing are just humans in another energy form, why are they stuck in this spot or time like this?  Was the experience so bad that they can't stop relieving it? Are they to afraid to leave?  I know some claim family members come back to warn, comfort or just check up on them.  So that leads to another thought.  As energy forms, can we not only choose our afterlife, but could we also choose to travel among different planes of reality or time?

As you can see, my thoughts bounce all over the place and take me on some interesting adventures.  I was hoping writing this would help me sort out my thoughts on this subject.  It did help some, but now I've more questions because of it.