My Pagan Path

Holy Hera  I can't believe it! I have been a Pagan for about 5 years now! Even I didn't think I would stick to being a Pagan this long and neither did my fiance (who now admirers me for having stuck at it for so long and "Given the house personality and a different vibe to it" - yeah his exact words- YAY go me).

Having moved to Scotland from  London where I used to live with my gran,(but due to personal dilemmas my family and I could no longer stay there, so we went our separate ways) and moved to Scotland to be with my fiance who was already living there in a big council house. Since moving in with him, I got involved with many things such as the local village CubScout group and so became the first young Assistant Cub Scout female Leader and subsequently witness the change of integrating female cubs to the cubscouts (yeah coz we had to bring equality into it blah blah). So it was all new to me having getting involved with cubscouting and have been doing it ever since to this present day.

With this new change also came the daunting task of making friends and this is where my pagan practice started. I got introduced to it by an ex friend of mine, who was into Wicca and Polytheism and  I immediately clicked it to being where my religious and spiritual path was going. So I did a lot of research on what it was to become Pagan and what wicca was all about (as one does when starting out as a pagan) and that is when I found the likes of "CharmingPixie Flora", "TipToechick" and a few others on Youtube and that is when I was hooked! I sort of felt as though I had indeed "come home" as I never seemed all that convinced that Christianity was the religion for me, plus I felt a connection to the Alternative therapies like herbalism, Kinesiology, Accupressure, Accupunture  etc. So a lot of my Pagan practice grew from them and their infinate knowledge and wisdom. Its wasn't until much later in 2008, that I would be veering away from the wicca side of things and begin to explore other paths.So for a good year or so I went by the whole wicca pagan path thing and this is what my altars looked like back in 2007/2008: 

Beltain Altar

Samhain Altar

So as you can see above, my past altars, they were very "cluttered" and I put literally anything and everything I could get my hands on and there was just a lot of "STUFF" that I had accumulated over the year or so. Then as my practice progressed I began to feel that I wasn't getting very much from all this "Chaos" and felt like I wasn't being focused enough. So I had to find some sort of way to be more focused on what I truly wanted in life or just "keep going with the flow" which although can be good in a some ways, it can lead to a lot of distractions and not being able to focus ones energy on certain things. So I thought this is not going right at all and that is when I began thinking of other Gods and Goddesses because the ecclectic wicca thing seemed too vague and "wishy washy" in my personal opinion and needed a more dogmatic and stricter approach to my practiceand I felt like I had no connection with any gods or goddesses ie the horned god or triple goddess.

Subsequently that is when I got in touch with the Olympians and circumstancially came across Chris Aldridges youtube channel, who was very much into worshipping the Greek Pantheon and which gave me the incentive and inspiration to go down the Hellenic path because I always loved reading about the Greeks, Romans and Egyptians since primary school and had always been fascinated by the myths and legends of the Greeks. So I prayed to the gods and "advertised/introduced" myself to become one of their devotees and after that day they sent me countless signs in the following weeks  such as these pottery finds which I purchased willingly:

small vase depicting dionysus and hermes

Sarpadon being carried by Thanatos & Deimon

I was so happy that the Gods accepted me and was happy as could be. During that time I  was attending an Administrationg and I.T course at a local college and I would always say a prayer to Hermes to keep me safe whilst I travelled (also to be light of foot if I was running late to catch the train - which worked because I always caught the train on time), To Apollo for blessing me with his rays of sunshine and health and to Athena for strength and wisdom. During the summer months I would sometimes take the shortcut to the train station via a small forested path and say a prayer to Artemis for granting me safe passage through her forests (believe me that path is by no means smooth if one is in a hurry to catch a train as it can be very treacherous). Then one day to my surprise on my way through the forest to get the train I came across a young buck deer, which was grazing happily and whence I came face to face with it , it gave me a look and then went on its merry way. I took it as a sign from Artemis that she had been hearing me after all !! Having prayed constantly to the Greek gods that is when I decided that the Hellenic Path was definately for me and when I labelled myself  a "Hellenic Pagan/Hellenist" follower of the Greek Gods of Olympus.

So I have technically been a Pagan for 5 years, yet only a Hellenic Pagan for only 4 as the first year didn't count for me. Its not to say that I no longer observe the  "Wheel of the Year" as some  Hellenists do practice  it, like the Summer solstice and Winter Solstice etc but not Halloween as Halloween is NOT a Hellenic holiday, but I still incorporate it into my practice as ancestor worship and also a time to give honour and reverance to Lord Hades and his Queen Persephone and of course my own Mother who died back in 2001. So to keep me focused in my daily devotionals and prayers each morning I follow a simple calendar which was drawn up by  "The Temple of the Greek Gods which you can see here by following this link:

http://www.thetempleofthegreekgods.org/p/temple-calendar.html

I personally find this calendar simpler and much easier to follow than the Athenian calendar which is much more complex and complicated, although I may start incorporating it into my daily practice, but for now I'm comfortable with the Temples calendar and the Wheel of the Year.!

Month of Zeus Altar

So since becoming a Hellenic Pagan/Polytheist,  have come across a great many other like minded individuals along the way , who have not only inspired me , but also shown me great advice and inspiration and if it wasn't for these people I wouldn't be where I am now. So a big thank you to the following people to whom I am so grateful to for influencing my life in the most amazing ways whether it be through Youtube and or Facebook:

TipToeChick, Flora Peterson (aka CharmingPixieFlora on Youtube), CricketSong, Chris Aldridge, Mezaenaset, Elani Temperance,Connor W, Sav Costi, Johnathan Blackthorn, Vas Panayiotou, and many many more of you who I have befriended over the past years that I have been Pagan . Last but not least my ever loving fiance (Future hubby to be) Ronnie McCullagh who has been not only my friend, but also my loving and supportive partner in life with whom I couldn't live without - love you so much Panda Bear <3 <3 xx

NB: If I have not mentioned you , then please do not feel offended ,I have so many Pagan friends that the list would be as long as my arm (or longer) but know that I am greatfull to each and everyone of you for being my friend and part of my life.

May the Gods bless you all Hail the Olympians!