Shadow’s Sanctuary By Lisa Nieves

I recently went on vacation without my family. Just me.  Nowhere exotic, just away.  I stayed in a nice hotel in a sleepy little town.  I had all those little amenities usually associated with hotels; coffee/tea pot at the ready, massaging shower heads, tiny fancy-smelling soaps, big puffy pillows, etc. 

     I enjoyed one of the simple pleasures of being away from home. My wardrobe was chosen before leaving home.  Clothes coordinated and fit just right; accessories were always complimentary. No frustration about what to wear. All the planning and work was done. Getting ready was a breeze.

     I had only a few fixed activities planned over the course of four days so I had plenty of time to lounge about, meander through town and soak in the hot tub. I awoke refreshed each morning and coaxed the day with a nice hot cup of flavored tea.  I meditated and honored God & Goddess each night after a luxurious bubble bath, then retired to the comfy billows of a king size bed with a steamy novel and another hot cup of tea.

     I witnessed the sunrise on the Summer Solstice from an ancient Native American site, Ft. Ancient.  A Sacred Site where ancient peoples built mounds that align perfectly with solar and lunar dates.  I witnessed the Solstice Sunset at another Sacred Site, The Great Serpent Mound. The coils of the snake also align perfectly with solar and lunar dates. I took many pictures and met new people.  I returned to my hotel feeling closer to Mother Nature and with the renewed knowledge that we are all connected; Earth, Sky, and Humankind.

     I returned home calm, collected, relaxed and a bit spoiled from the convenience of hotel life.  I wanted to hold on to that feeling for as long as possible.  I immediately started transforming my bedroom from a place where I sleep to ‘Shadow’s Sanctuary’. I removed clothes, accessories and other ‘stuff’ that no longer thrill me. I cleared off a dresser in my bedroom and brought out the seldom used mini coffeemaker.  A drawer now houses tea, a small tub of sugar and necessary utensils.  I pressed all of my clothes and hung them by color in the closet.  I hung soft fabric on the rails of my cast iron canopy bed.  I keep a small folding table under the bed to hold a light meal or tea service. I moved my collection of ambient music cd’s to the bedroom so I can escape on a whim. I gathered my scented bath oils and soaps and favorite shampoo/conditioner into small containers that I can carry in a small caddy, along with a candle and a novel, to the tub for a leisurely soak.

      I have also made small changes to my daily routine so I can experience that ‘on vacation’ feeling every day.  Each evening I fill the in-suite coffeemaker and prepare my travel mug with tea and sugar.  Each morning when I wake, I flip on the switch.  While I’m getting ready, which is now a breeze because everything that fits is at my fingertips and ready to wear, my tea is brewing.  I now have time to enjoy a leisure cup before work in my quiet sanctuary and always have an escape after a hectic day. The stress of my life hasn’t changed but its now easier to deal with it in a healthy way.

     I spent only a few days away from home but the peace and serenity I experienced and my refreshed connection with God & Goddess has endured long after getting back to ‘real life’.

 

Those Magnificent Unicorns – Lisa Revelt (Mom Wolf)

Many people routinely work with the faeries, dragons, mermaids, gnomes, leprechauns, and others of the elementals realms, but not many work with, or know they can work with, the unicorns, who are also part of the elemental realm.

Mention the word “Unicorn” (from the Latin words “unus”, one, and “cornu”, horn) and most folks think of the white, one-horned horse which decorates a pre-teen girl’s bedroom on posters, stuffed animals, and other figurines.  The Europeans, however, described the Unicorn as having a spiraled horn, a horse’s head and body, a stag‘s hind legs, a goat’s whiskers, and a lion’s tail.   Colors vary from all white, to India’s description of a white body, red head, and blue eyes. 

The infamous horn (straight, spiraled, or striated) is said to detect and be an antidote for poisons.  If the horn was dipped in muddy waters, the waters became crystal clear.  If one drinks from a Unicorn horn, it is said they have good health all their life, as well as be protected from poison.  Powdered horns were said to be worth ten times their weight in gold, and whole horns were priceless.  Apothecaries carried the horn until the eighteenth century; before then, rulers paid great sums for the horns.

Since Unicorns were hunted for their powerful horns, it is no wonder they have become so mistrusting of humans.  I think of the movie “Legend” with Tom Cruise and how one must “never touch a Unicorn.“  The image that comes to mind is of watching the unicorn pair frolicking in the stream, in an enchanted forest full of those of the elemental kingdom, as Tom Cruise and Mia Sara’s characters look on.  Children are known to be able to see them.  However, if we adults come to them in perfect love and perfect trust, they are more than willing to work with us.  All we need to do is say, “Unicorns, please help me with this situation.“  According to D.J. Conway’s “Magickal Mystical Creatures”, the Unicorns are not interested in working with those who refuse to straighten up their personal morals, so clean up your act before contacting them.

After moving to Lakewood in the Summer of 2007, I was able to display all of my Unicorn figurines on my mantle (they were some of the first items, non-household, to be displayed) and become re-acquainted with these wonderful creatures.  I missed them.  Even though my mantle changes, I always have one near my altar in the living room, lending its positive attributes to my workings.  I also started working more frequently with Doreen Virtue’s oracle deck “Magical Unicorns”.  I found this a wonderful step for getting in touch with the Unicorns.  All we need to do is ask them, “Unicorns, please help me with this situation.”  I use this deck sometimes alone, and sometimes with my faerie, mermaid and dolphin, and Goddess decks.

Meditate and ask them to come into your life.  Promise to do something to help the environment (recycle, pick up trash, use cloth bags, give to a worthy environmental cause, etc). 

Pulling a card from the oracle deck, I leave you with this message:  “”Hello and Goodbye:  You’ll soon see that this change will make things better.”  Sometimes we have to make changes, let go of the old in our lives and allow the new to enter.