There is something rather strange going on.

Besides being Pagan, I'm also a musician. I play bass guitar and do some back-up singing in a couple of different bands. My brother and my children, along with many of their friends, are also musicians. Something we noticed a couple of years ago was that the entire music community for our city seemed to splinter pretty badly. There were several factors - the city had decided that anyone under the age of eighteen was not allowed to enter a business whose primary source of income was from alcohol, and that stopped about half of the local bands from being able to play gigs anymore. About the same time, several of the more popular local acts headed out west to try and get that "big break," - they all came back home, wiser and probably a little more jaded (if you're wondering who they were, it was Pillbox, happyendings, and Someone Still Loves You, Boris Yeltsin. SSLYBY is still out there, working hard to make a name for themselves).

Well, yesterday in my daily cruising of the 'net, I ran across a series of posts on one of the local boards about band ettiquette. Besides being a really good discussion about what's expected when you play a gig, it was civil and somewhat reminescent of "the good ol' days," which are approximately five to ten years ago. I thought, "how odd - pretty much the same time our Pagan community started drifting apart."

That's got me wondering now. Was the whole "splintering" effect a city-wide phemomenon? Maybe across the nation? What happened in that time frame that would have caused an entire region to start backing away from each other, no matter what their affilliation?According to people who study these things, there are two occurrences that bring people together - a common enemy or a common goal. I know in the past when the Pagan community has had the ability to focus on a common goal, we have achieved great things. I know that focusing on a common enemy brings a lot of anger and discourse into a group, and while it may unite people for a short time, eventually all that anger starts getting turned into the group, and that's never a good thing. So here's my theory:

I believe that the events that occurred on 9/11 created an atmosphere of "us against them." War mongers and demagogues have been riding that wave for the last seven years. We as a nation are getting really tired of feeling like we have to be on guard all the time and angry with the world. For crying out loud, we all have to live here - we might as well get along with each other! Anyway, every medical study in the world can tell you that living under large amounts of stress on a constant basis is bad for your health. I think we've finally begun to realize that and slowly - VERY slowly - we are starting to come back together, not just as one group or another, but as people seeking other people's company and support. We're tired of being alone. We're tired of looking for the boogey man behind every corner.

If we can reunite under a common goal (not succumbing to the horrendous economy and surviving these hard times) and rise above the hate-mongering, I believe we will be a stronger people for it. Not just as a community, but as a nation as well.

It's time, folks.

Thoughts on the election

Yesterday was a rather momentous day - no matter who you were voting for. Granted, I am a "tree-hugging liberal," and yes, my candidate won, but either way, we were going to see history made. But now that it's over, it's time to get down to the real work at hand.

We all know our nation has been splintered for years by the whole "we're right, you're wrong" mentality that's been permeating not only our government, but our communities. I've seen in our own backyard, within the Pagan community. How sad is that? Here we are, supposedly standing up for each other and trying to protect our family, our friends, our neighbors from the attacks we've faced for years, and we've been so busy telling each other how wrong we are that we've lost most of our cohesion. Why are we doing this? Have we become so complacent that we just don't care about community anymore? Can we truly afford to be so divided?

I'm thinking "no," folks.

If anything, these past few years would have been a really good time for us to pull together and show true unity, not turn on each other and try to prove how superior this bunch is compared to that bunch. I know, I know, there are quite a few places in the world where there hasn't been any in-fighting and their sense of community is stronger now that it ever was, but all I've got to deal with is my own little corner of the world right now. If you are a p and live in the Southwest corner of Missouri, then you know it's not exactly all warm and fuzzy around here, and that's coming from our own people.

For the past couple of years, I've been trying to think of some way to see this part of world come back together like it used to be. Is that possible, or are we screwed? Have we destroyed our respect for each other so much that we will never be able to see a sense of community like we used to? I'd like to think we are more mature than that.There are some fresh faces locally, folks that have been seeking, but have not found their path yet. Folks that want to be a part of the greater good. That gives me a great deal of hope. I am actually seeing movement forward. It's been a long time coming, and I'm glad to see it's finally happening.

The next step is going to be getting those of us that have been around for a while to stand up and be willing to help guide these new people. I know, times have been tough lately, but we are seeing the dawn of a new day and I don't want to get left behind, stuck in the same ruts we've been in for that last few years. I know that I can feel hope again. I can see possibility again. We need to move forward and capture some of this momentum for ourselves.I am also seeing a change for Pagans and Wiccans in general. For many, many years we have taught and worshipped in a rather haphazard manner, each of us doing our own thing and not being concerned with it. That's fine - I honestly have no problem with that - but I also believe that it will be our demise if we continue to ignore the fact that we are growing, and sometimes it's good to have a little organization.

Yes, that's right! I said it! ORGANIZATION!!!

Seriously, though, if you look at some of the bigger groups across the country, how do you think they got where they are? Circle Sanctuary, Aquarian Tabernacle, Reclaiming - it didn't "just happen." They put effort into creating what they have, and I believe that if the Pagans in this area want to see something similar, we are going to have to put forth the effort with more than just lip service. We have a lot of intelligent and talented people around here - I don't want to see that go to waste.

So - let's do this. It's a new day - Carpe Diem!