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Saving the best for last. I totally love this one, but I had forgotten about it because it got sold long long ago.
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Tin, she does beautiful work. I love the one with the antlers. I might not be convinced the pagan gods exist anymore but it reminds me of the peaceful feelings from that part of my life
@Mikhael Re: "I might not be convinced the pagan gods exist anymore but it reminds me of the peaceful feelings from that part of my life"
Well, she is Pagan, but she does not believe those gods actually exist. (Although, we do have Pagan friends who DO believe those gods are real.) For her, though, Pagan is just a term of convenience. For all practical purposes, she is just as much atheist as I am... *chuckle*... The difference, though, is that she enjoys the "spiritualism" practices that help give her focus and peace of mind. Our house is thoroughly decorated (inside and out) in a Pagan fashion. And, quite honestly, I have to admit I enjoy the sense of serenity and tranquility all the various Paganistic statues, artwork, and altars bring to our home. It's almost like a mini museum, in a way... *chuckle*...
So, if that part of your life brought you peace, why did you abandon it?
I think I got really caught up in the new identity of atheist. I binged so much Seth Andrews and Matt dillahunty aron ra and Richard Carrier and other really thought provoking people, that I honestly made a FAST shift over to atheist, even though I had had doubts on and off since childhood, and my anxieties about Catholicism and hell and miracles really RUSHED in to fill that void. But I have been speaking to atheist and agnostic pagans more lately, those who find comfort with nature, meditation, ritual and habits. Even something like tarot; I don't believe in fortune telling but I know firsthand that a good spread can force you to think about uncomfortable parts of your reality and present that could be detrimental, offering a new perspective.
When I was pagan, my patron deity was Hades, not because I wanted to be all ooooh death and edginess, but because a representation of death, to me, helped me deal with the inevitable difficulties in life. Some things we can change some we can not, and that aspect of my life helped me learn to choose my battles and put my energy where it mattered and could flourish.
Idk, that might be something I wasn't emotionally ready to abandon, at least in terms of natural means, not metaphysical
@Mikhael
Re: "When I was pagan, my patron deity was Hades,...*
My wife's matron diety is The Morrigan. Various aspects of this goddess are infused into our home decor... *chuckle*... It suits her quite well, too, I must say... *grin*...
Re: "I think I got really caught up in the new identity of atheist."
From my experience, many folks seem to get way too caught up in some sort of "identity." It's almost as if they feel like if they don't have some sort of "group label" with which to identify, then they are of no value. Or maybe they feel like their life has no meaning without some sort of "group affiliation". I could be wrong about that, but it's hard for me to really know, because I cannot recall that I ever had that problem. On the contrary, I always had a problem with BEING "labeled" in such a way that would "lump me into a specific pigeonhole". In other words, I sometimes went out of my way to AVOID being labeled. I always preferred to be my own person. Hell, even in the military I was always doing some little something or other that was not always in full compliance with the status quo, just for the purpose of maintaining my personal identity to some degree... *chuckle*...
Anyway, point being, it is my personal opinion that getting all caught up in wanting to be a part of, and being identified as part of, any one specific group just seems WAY TOO LIMITING to me. I don't have to be part of a group or agree with everything about a group in order to utilize the good parts of that group to my own advantage. Make sense?
I guess what I am saying is don't get so caught up in wanting to "fit in" with others, that you leave behind other positive aspects of your life that help make you happy and help you cope with day-to-day life. And if anybody criticizes you for doing those things that make you happy, then that is THEIR problem, not yours. Labels be damned.
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