diaryofadruid: A branch from a cedar tree (Default)
I have just finished my initiation into the Ancient Order of Druids in America (AODA), and I am now officially a Candidate! I am so excited to start along my learning path and in due time earn the title of Ollave Adept. 
 
Thus begins my work. Today I will be spending a great deal of time outdoors practicing stillness and meditating as well as beginning work on the Book of Seasons and reading at least a bit about the Trees of Tennessee (which ended up being a bit of a different sort of book than I thought it would be; it's actually rather short and contains nonnative species as well as native species, and unfortunately not the ones I need for the Book of Seasons). Today is not a non-meat-eating day but I might slip in a vegetarian meal just because I feel so whole and invigorated.
 
Of course, I veiled during the ceremony, which really helped my concentration as it is doing now. I wore a lovely green dress as I have reservations about wearing white robes when flame and ritual are involved, even in private, due to associations with white supremacy. I also had my candle for Oghma burning the whole time even though that wasn't technically part of the ritual just because I think I would like His presence during my workings and I see it as an invitation to come into my home.
 
I will admit that praying after all this time is a strange feeling. I don't usually pray as the Christian way has been engrained in me and I find it somewhat counterproductive to always be praying for things without thanking Deity or giving back, but I hadn't quite figured out how to do that (What could I possibly give a god that would be of any value?). Of course, I'd like to add the caveat that Not All Christians do that, it's just endemic to the way I was raised within my particular part of the Catholic Church. 
 
As far as the Sphere of Protection goes that one was a lot shorter than the one in JMG's book and I think I will be using this going forward since I don't always have the time or ability to concentrate for a ten-minute full-blown ritual on the daily. I got the same feeling from this one as I did the one in the book so I think there won't be too much trouble with that.
 
As I'm writing this I'm noticing that I've used the word "time" quite a lot, and that's something that this is going to take a lot of. I can only hope that as I continue to grow so does my patience and ability to concentrate on things for longer periods of time (there I go again!). 
 
Now that I'm done with my initiation I will be resetting my altar and writing up a post about my ogham pull today (my mini staves finally came in! Thanks so much to speckled wood crafts for their amazing work!) so I can begin learning the fews. I also enrolled in a course about the ogham with the Irish Pagan School run by Lora O'Brien and am considering purchasing a book she recommended in the slides so I can get the most authentic and accurate information possible about each aicme (I hope that's right).
 
Anyway, that's my cue to sign off for now! I had a great ritual experience and it really set the tone for the day. I can only hope to have many more great ritual experiences in the future. 
 
Yours under the cedars,
 
Quill
diaryofadruid: A branch from a cedar tree (Default)
Merry meet!

Today I am here to document which trees I am likely to use for the Book of Seasons. I will be doing three fruiting trees, three big trees, and three little trees just to keep things fresh.

FRUITING TREES
  1. Diospyros virginiana, the persimmon
  2. Celtis occidentalis, the hackberry
  3. Magnolia acuminata, the cucumbertree
BIG TREES
  1. Juniperus virginiana, the eastern redcedar
  2. Platanus occidentalis, the sycamore
  3. Liriodendron tulipifera, the yellow poplar (tulip tree)
LITTLE TREES
  1. Aralia spinosa, the devil's walking stick
  2. Cercis canadensis, the redbud
  3. Cornus florida, the dogwood
Why did I choose these trees? Well, all of them are native to Tennessee, which means I'll be learning more about local silviculture and if I choose to publish my manuscript others can learn about them, too. Admittedly I picked some of them due to their interesting common names (like the cucumbertree), but hey, that's not necessarily a bad thing!

My Trees of Tennessee book also came in today, so expect some posts about different trees in the near future!

Yours under the cedars, 

Quill
diaryofadruid: A branch from a cedar tree (Default)
Hello again! I am here to discuss my Exploration project, which I am very excited to share.

Most of the time one would pick just a single path to explore, such as the Bardic path or the Ovate path (for those who are unsure of what an Ovate is, to my understanding it means something similar to a naturalist but with spiritual flair). Me being me and wanting to become an Ollave eventually, I plan on integrating all three paths into a single project.

My idea for said project is to create a handpainted illuminated manuscript. This will consist of nine poems, lore about nine trees, and nine Druid prayers for a total of twenty-seven pages. I will call it the Book of Seasons.

This project will be broken into three steps: research, preparation, and creation. I am currently in the research phase, where I hope to remain just long enough to get my footing as this will be quite the undertaking and I do have a (somewhat self-imposed) time limit.

To prepare myself, I am currently reading Meetings with Remarkable Manuscripts: Twelve Journeys into the Medieval World by Christopher de Hamel. I will more than likely end up moving the Trees of Tennessee book for my Earth Path studies up from September 2021 or reading it concurrently with the other books so I can learn about the trees I need for that part of the Book (which I have already chosen).

As far as poetry and prayer go, I just need to find my muse and begin writing. I am very excited to bring it all together and will be documeting my experience with this project on this site to the best of my ability.

That's all for now! I will write more about the project tomorrow so I don't burn myself out on posts today.

Yours under the cedars,

Quill

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