When we awoke this morning, the land was blanketed in a soft and very stinky smoke. At first glance, it appeared that there was fog hovering over the lake; we rarely see that sort of thing here but since I'm from New England, where fog is a fairly common sight, my first thought was that was what it was. As soon as I stepped outside, I realized that the "fog" was actually smoke, and a quick internet search revealed that fires were burning in the Everglades. The smoke was so bad in some areas that sections of highway had been temporarily shut down. A few unfortunate travelers were stuck waiting for the haze to clear so they could be on their way; they couldn't see in front of their vehicles to drive for the white smoke. By this afternoon, the air had cleared considerably, but my throat is sore (in spite of my having spent very little time outside today) and the headache lingers. So far, Sparkle Fairy hasn't complained, and hopefully she doesn't have any ill effects from the polluted air we experienced today. This happens occasionally, when nature turns up the heat or the sugar cane fields are set alight, though the cane burning creates a blacker smoke.
Our weekend was interesting, a combination of Pagan and Christian activities. On Saturday, we had Sparkle Fairy's kids' group, where I found out she is a dragon in this year's ending ceremony for her class. We love dragons around here!!!! It was nice to be among like minded souls, but I'm a little sad that the class seems to be dwindling. Some of the families who used to participate have moved away, while others are busy with unrelated activities. The teens are all off doing teenager things and don't want to get up early on Saturday to go to the UU Church. This year's Beltane turnout at the UU was meager, with fewer vendors and many of the familiar faces missing. Sparkle Fairy and I were among the only parents and kids who showed up to represent the Pee Wees group. I don't know what's going on. On Sunday, we had an open house for our neighbors' church school. It actually wasn't too bad. I don't have anything against what they believe in, I'm just not so into the absolutism. Also, every time I wander away from my magickal lifestyle I miss it terribly. As well, it's hard for me to see the Bible as the one and only book that gives us the word of God. I mean, it was written by human beings, very fallible human beings, in a different time from the one we live in now. There are some wonderful and not so wonderful ideas within those pages, and I'm not saying there isn't any divinity present within them, but I'm not so sure about the "one truth" bit. I will confess to being in possession of a huge fondness for my Jewish roots and heritage, but get me in a group of rowdy Pagans and I feel right at home. Maybe it's the free spirit in me; it's just hard for me to be too confined, even if I do love the concept of grace and try to practice it in my daily life whenever I can. I'm a work in progress as far as that's concerned. I also feel deeply connected to nature, and feel it quite easy to communicate on some level with the wildlife in our yard (sparse as it might be), and my spirituality is intertwined with the natural order of things.
Well, my eyelids are getting heavy, and tomorrow will be an early day. Off to walk the doggie man and turn in for the night.
