My Path

  Let me start off by saying, I don't care how 'cool' your altar looks. I don't care how down and dark you make yourself appear. Paganism is not a fashion show. It's not a rebellious stage used to piss your parents off. It is a chosen path of beliefs, a nature based form of worship. Not some social fad or teen rebellion used to 'piss off society'.

  Okay, now that I have that out of the way, I will discuss what it means to me.

  I was raised in a Southern Baptist home by my single mother. I didn't have the typical christian upbringing though, thankfully. My mother is what I would define as a 'true christian', in the sense that she loves me and does not judge. When I turned twelve (eons ago, lol) my mother allowed me to make my own religious choices. If I did not want to attend church, I didn't have too. If I wanted to try other denominations, that was fine as well.

  So I went in search of religion, or lack of, I wasn't sure yet what or if I believed. I went to the Mormon's, Jehovah's and what not for a while. When I turned fourteen a friend gave me the Satanic Bible, and I read it. In all honesty I didn't find it to be my calling, it just felt like reversed Christianity to me and I had came to realize by this time I was not a Christian, so Anton LeVay's Satanism wasn't my thing either.

  Satanism did however show me there are other paths besides Christianity and Satanism. There was Paganism, many individual paths of it. I tried Wicca, and don't get me wrong I respect them, but I felt 'unbalanced' and not level. Everything, in my opinion, was too much 'light' and 'love'. I know, How can I find too much 'light' and 'love' unbalanced? Well this is where individualism comes into play. I personally felt, "How can I define light and love without dark and sadness?"

  So, I left Wicca and now follow my own beliefs. I integrate both dark and light into my pantheon and it works for me.

  Now, back to the orignal thought, what is Paganism to me.

  It is the air I breath, the water I drink, the bed I lay my head on, and the fire that lights my way. Paganism brings me closer to the Gods/Goddesses through practice, ritual, nature and the cosmos. It is existence.

Darkest Blessings )O(,

Aradia