Superior
~ Deborah Garrison

She came to dread the way he would wander
into her offic his eyes flicking over the papers
on her desk as though it offended him
to have to interrupt tasks that were being done
for him, as though the details she was mistress of
would needlessly clutter his manager’s mind.
As he talked of the Big Picture, of who was soon
to die and who to win a prize, the pencil
she held poised a few inches above the text
she’d been correcting when he breezed in
was her only protest. Did it irk him—
the way she kept her shoulders slightly rounded
over the  page, the way the graphite stub in her smudged
fingers accused him?

Probably not, as he warmed to his speech;
he was a thinker-aloud, couldn’t have a thought
unless he spoke it out before an obedient listener.
She saw the air thronged with his conceptual
offspring; if she didn’t keep her slack mouth shut
(now he paused, mid-phrase, touching the air
with an index finger just where he saw
his point appear), she might actually swallow
one of his soap bubbles, like a cartoon character
sucking her whole 2-D world
back down. He talked on.

She agreed, she agreed, she seconded his thesis,
and with each murmured yes her certainty mounted;
she would never be one of them—a Director, a Manager,
an Executive Thingy. She didn’t have the ambition.
She was simply a pencil, scratching, pausing,
picking her way down an obscure page.
She liked her fate.
But would she be left alone to enjoy it?
He hovered there—couldn’t bear to release her—
now about to turn and go—but no.
He was settling into her single chair and leaning near
to confide more fully in her.

Bindrune For Change and Resources: Hagalaz, Nauthiz, Dagaaz

If you are new to working with bindrunes, I suggest you read the introductory bindrune post here, then return to this post to read about this specific bindrune.

Sometimes we know change is coming, and other times change is thrust upon us. This bindrune will help you marshall your resources to weather the storm.

Hagalaz (left, in red): Hagalaz is the disruption that initiates the change. Ideally, the disruption is one of your own creation (making a choice to change) rather than externally imposed (such as the hail storm referenced in the rune name).

Nauthiz (center, in black): This represents what you truly need in the situation to navigate the change. Nauthiz can be seen as the fire-twirl that sparks the needfire to keep you alive in the storm created by Hagalaz. Nauthiz forces you to focus on what truly matters, and helps you focus the wild energies of Hagalaz into productive action.

Dagaz (right, in orange): This is the moment of actual change; the storm calms, the sun returns, the hail melts and becomes water to prepare the soil for new growth. You have survived the storm intact, and landed in the new situation, where you can take action towards improvement.

The bindrune on the left was done in colored pencil. The one on the right was done with calligraphic marker. They are the same bind rune, shown in two different media to give an idea of how the same bindrune looks different depending on how it is created.

You could put a drop of rosemary oil for focus, or a drop of your favorite oil on it to reinforce the energy with your personal scent. You can also use a magical oil, such as a hoodoo oil like Star of Success, or other type of specially prepared oil.

You have what you need to make it through; sail forward with confidence born of persistence.

Not Like Dante
~ Lawrence Ferlinghetti

Not like Dante

discovering a commedia

upon the slopes of heaven

I would paint a different kind

of Paradiso

in which the people would be naked

as they always are

in scenes like that

because it is supposed to be

a painting of their souls

but there would be no anxious angels telling them

how heaven is

the perfect picture of

a monarchy

and there would be no fire burning

in the hellish holes below

in which I might have stepped

nor any altars in the sky except

fountains of imagination

Nothing is so often irretrievably missed as a daily opportunity.
~ Marie von Ebner-Eschenback

Some experiences are rare, perhaps even once in a lifetime—the chance to compete in the Olympics, or to see the competition in person. When those opportunities arise, we surprise ourselves with our ability to gather resources and devise plans to make the possibility into an actuality. We may not make all of them happen, but we give our all in the attempt.

At the same time, we have countless and more frequent (even daily!) opportunities to engage in smaller activities which are just as important, if not as grand.

We can choose to get up early enough to make a proper breakfast to nourish our bodies, instead of inhaling a bowl of cereal over the sink before racing out the door. Our bodies are healthier, our minds calmer, and our sense of self-care reinforced.

We can choose to detach from whatever screen we are glued to (sometimes multiple screens—I know people who check social media on their phone while watching television) and spend time with someone else in the house, creating moments of togetherness, and perhaps fond memories of shared joys and honest connection. Or we could go for a walk and reconnect with our own self.

We can choose to play endless rounds of a video game, or we can choose to spend an hour on the game, and an hour reading a book, learning a new language, making art, or making cookies.

For me, many of my choices are shaped by the demands of the travel schedule for my day job. Not a brag, not a complaint, simply a fact. There are times I travel when I’m able to maintain some semblance of my self-care routine and devotional practice, and there are trips when I’m fortunate to keep to the 7/2/1 rule (7 hours of sleep, 2 meals, 1 shower every 24 hours) amidst the flights, conference sessions, and keeping up on client work.

I am astonished to find that, for the first time this calendar year, I will be home for six consecutive weeks. This is an incredible opportunity for me to pull back and consider how I spend my days, and how I might want to change some things.

One of the things that has suffered the most neglect due to my travels (other than my back yard—seriously, feral is as feral does) has been my writing, and in particular, this blog. So, one of the first things I am changing about my day is building back in time to post here. The Daily Draw will likely not be returning any time soon (you probably wouldn’t believe how much time it actually requires, and I’d rather put the time to other topics). The Daily Poem will continue, and will become more-or-less daily again (except weekends, because I am rediscovering how delightful it is to go 24 hours without spending any time on the computer!). The Weekly Bindrune will become weekly, once again.

I’m considering different ideas for posts, and other (related) topics. I’m not entirely certain how this will look in six weeks—we’ll find out together!

Shiva Tears Off
~Anonymous, from Sattasai 5.55

Shiva tears off
Parvati’s underclothes
during love
Playful delicate hands fold across
two of his eyes
the third eye she kisses
may it
protect you