We are in the midst of celebrations decreed by the mainstream culture right now—as well as our own—but very soon we will return to the ordinary routines of our lives. The month and year on the calendar will change, but the season will be as it has been: in the…
Yule: The Light in the Darkness
It’s a very dark one this year. And, as for our ancestors, it promises to become darker and colder still in January, after the celebrating is long over. Our Sabbaths are rich with meaning. And sometimes that meaning persists beyond a season. We are about to go through a very,…
It’s On Us Now
As an Atheopagan, I have Principles. They are a set of values about what is Sacred and how we should conduct ourselves in the world. Those values are about to be severely challenged as the far-right government of Donald Trump threatens the world with environmental, economic…
On the Edge of Darkness: Hallows Reflections 2016
It’s a gray, dim day here in Sonoma County, under a foreboding blanket of low and heavy clouds. Forecasts are for showers throughout the day; it’s one of those Halloweens where parents crane their necks and scowl at the sky throughout the day, wondering whether they’ll get away with a…
The Beauty of Home
I live in a spectacular place: Sonoma County, California. I have for a long while, and especially since having to move back into an urban center after nearly two decades in the country, it’s been hard for me to remember sometimes how blessed I am, how remarkable it is here.
The Ecstasy of the Mosh Pit
I love punk rock. I was in high school at exactly the period that disco became a popular genre (which means that it was already dying in the gay bars and minority clubs where it had been born; by the time straight white people took it—because there was money to…