#bella sara coasters

[plaguetreasures]

Hello! I am Plague you can also call me Rune!

I been having fun lately making coasters, key chains and little chest to hold trinkets, dice, jewelry or more! So I decided to open a shop!

I am still getting the hang of making things but I'm slowly learning

I plan to update this Tumblr just as much as my Instagram

Some things about the shop:

Resin coasters and key chains can only be made from Friday to Sunday! So every Tuesday I list them on my etsy

I don't do custom key chains/coasters just yet but I plan to in the future

I do plan to do photos of pets, family, ect on the future I been working on that on the side!

Chest come with a little animal on them (or not) I haven't made that an option yet but the next chest I work on will!

I ship between: Monday to Friday!

Etsy: Shop

Instagram: plaguecreations

Here are few things I made and have listed !

[jasper-pagan-witch]

Rambles About Athena

I don’t make very many original posts on this blog, and usually for good reason - I want this witch blog to be a source of information for others, not really a place to vent or talk about my personal stuff (that would be my main blog, @fallout-and-dragon-age, but even then you’d be hard-pressed to find personal posts there).

However, there is one thing I’ve been seeing that I want to talk about - gods appearing differently from worshiper to worshiper, even only in presence and feeling. A while back, I saw a post about it but didn’t think far enough ahead to save or reblog the post. If I do find it again, I’ll share it so that you all can read it here.

Man, two paragraphs in and we’re not even at the topic I was bringing up. I warned you that this was going to be a ramble.

I was drawn to Athena from a very young age.

I remember reading books on Greek Mythology and being amazed at Athena being a strong goddess without being forced into some kind of relationship - even at that age, I was irritated by the idea of having to have another person to be considered complete, and even more irritated by the fact that powerful female characters would get turned into nothing when they ended up in a relationship with a man.

I looked up to Athena. Even more so when I read the Percy Jackson series and reading about the exploits of Annabeth Chase. I forgave that series for a romantic subplot because Annabeth didn’t just become a wallflower. It was sadly refreshing. We’re in an age where female characters don’t need a love interest to be awesome - even though romantic subplots are always under everything (ew), we have characters like Katniss Everdeen, Meg McCaffrey, Hermione Granger, and more.

So how does Athena appear to me?

Well, she usually doesn’t - not in the form of a person like many people who work with their deities claim, not in the form of her animals, nothing like that. Instead, she’s a distinct presence, but her presence is different for me than what you would think when you think of a goddess of war and strategy, but handicrafts as well.

Athena, to me, has some of the strongest motherly or big-sister-ly energy that I’ve felt. She’s reassuring, encouraging logical thinking even when I’m breaking down in tears. To this day, one of the times where I’ve felt her influence strongest was when I was lost about what to do about my family. It was a very distinct presence, so the point where I have no doubt about who it actually was.

Athena is a goddess of many things, but to me, above all, she is a protection goddess. She’s helped me get to places safely even when the odds are low. It’s something that I thank her for as often as I can, with energy offerings of milk in one of my favorite cups. She’s amazing for putting up with me for so long, especially through the rough teenage years.

What do I give her?

As I said above, I often give her an energy double cup of milk when I can. According to one book I have (The Encyclopedia of Magickal Ingredients by Lexa Rosean, review pending), cow’s milk is one of the best magical ingredients for spells to summon nurturing, prosperity, and protection.

She’s also got her own part of my (relatively large) altar. On it are many owl statues, a cup coaster from another county’s EMA (Emergency Management Agency), felt owl stickers, a tiny easel with a shiny Bella Sara Athena card, the tiny card of the Percy Jackson series depiction of Athena, a quartz point, and a small array of crystals for energy points. And that’s just on the raised box!

Close to the box but still on my altar is a glass bowl that my (not so) great aunt claims came from Greece, which is full of stones I associate with her, a mirror with an owl candle on it, a small granite owl, and an unpainted owl bank where I put my spare coins to save up for something nice for her. She also had seven candles (I burned two of them) - two red, three blue, and two that are red, white, and blue. Blue is a color associated with intelligence and protection, and red is a color associated with passion and energy. White doesn’t have as much significance to me as blue or red, but it’s also a protective color.

What devotional acts do I do for her?

To be honest, not many. I’m always doing volunteer/schoolwork or studying things I’m hyperfocusing on. I suppose those may count, but I don’t verbally dedicate them to Athena (because I forget).

When I really want to thank her for something, I’ll take a bottle of sun or moon water out under a mulberry tree on my property and do a libation for her. I would pour out something else, but I want to keep my milk (because IT’S EXPENSIVE) and I can’t nor want to buy wine or some other alcohol.

Sometimes, I’ll just sit down and talk to her. I get nervous when addressing her (I always call her Lady Athena) but eventually, I get over the nerves and anxiety. It’s reassuring to just sit and talk without having someone try to rebuke or debunk what I say. Not only is it reassuring, but it’s a breath of fresh air.

In closing...

Athena is a goddess that has been a near-constant presence in my life, even when I fell out of witchcraft and out of practice. (Which is a story all on its own.) I’ve learned a lot about myself and have more-or-less figured out how to think critically when overcome with emotions.

And there is some organization to the rambles. Who would have thought?

[aly-ashy]

    Bella wakes me up bright and early. "Wake up! Wake up! Wake up!!!" She yells while jumping on my bed. "Okay! Okay! I'm up!" I laugh. "Today is the day you become a princess!!!" "Technically I won't be a princess unless I marry the prince." "Whatever." "What time is it anyways?" I ask still a little sleepy. "6:30" "Well then we better get going." I wink at her and get out of bed.     I walk over to my closet to get my clothes that we picked for the goodbye ceremony. Bella and I decide that we should curl my hair and make a flower crown out of blue cornflowers since that's our providence flower. After my hair is done we go down to enjoy our last meal as a family, for awhile. I have spent the whole morning trying to take everything in. My whole life is about to change... I know it's for the better but still I'm a little bit worried about it. After we eat and I finish getting ready I have time before we have to leave for the goodbye ceremony so I decide to go visit the Moores.     I walk down the street and rang the doorbell. Within a few seconds the door flies open and I am instantly engulfed in a hug. "Hi Aly!" Cassie says with a smile. "Hey Cass." I see Benji sitting on the couch so I sign a quick hello to him and make my way into the kitchen where the parents and youngest daughter Charlotte are eating breakfast. "Today is a pretty big day for you isn't it?" Randy, the dad asks. "Yeah it is." "Are you nervous?" Cassie asks. "Oh definitely! But I'm also really excited so it's gunna be okay." "You'll do great." The mom, Sara says while putting a hand on my back. I sit down and talk to them for about a half hour before it's time for me to go. "Thanks for coming over Aly. We will be at the goodbye ceremony but it was good to have a nice talk with you before everything gets crazy." Sara says as she gives me a hug. "Yeah I'm glad I came over too. I'm going to miss you guys for sure." I say as I give all the kids hugs. I walk home and finish getting ready really quick before I have to go.     When I am all ready we load into the car and drive towards the park that we are having the ceremony at. "Make sure you don't screw up while you’re talking Al, the whole country is watching you now." Dalen says teasing me and adding a slight shove. Dalen and I have always loved teasing each other because we are only a year and a half apart. "Yeah and maybe if you pretended to be nice to me the whole country will see that and then you can get a date for once in your life!" I say smirking.     My whole family laughs and continues to joke around. We finally get to the park and I see hundreds of people waiting to send me off. The selection is starting to feel more real with every step I take towards that stage.     While the mayor is speaking I kind of zone out and look over the crowd. I don't know everyone here but I know a lot of them. Some are my friends or friends with someone in my family, some are frequently in the bakery, and some I know of but don't know personally. In some ways it makes me sad because I am about to go somewhere that I won't know anyone but it is also kind of comforting knowing that I have so many people cheering me on back home. Suddenly I hear "Lady Ashworth do you have anything you'd like to say?" I nod and walk over to the podium. "Thank you Mayor. What a crazy experience this is and I'm sure this is going to be one of the least crazy things I experience in the next few days." This earned a few laughs so I smile and continue. "I can't tell you what is going to happen during this selection but I can tell you how much it means to me for you to all be supporting me. As I look over this crowd I see so many people that I consider to be friends and family. So, thank you for supporting me. I hope I can represent Labrador accurately in showing how wonderful you all are. Thank you."     I walk back to where I was previously standing as I hear the mayor announce that I will be leaving for the airport in just a few minutes so they will let my family say goodbye first and then anyone who would like to do so quickly may. I run off stage to be by my family. I start with hugging Bella and make my way around. When I get to Nicholas I see that he is tearing up. "No you can't cry! Now I'm going to cry!" I while we embrace each other. "I'm sorry it's just going to be so different around here without you!" "Oh so they're tears of joy then.." I say with a wink. "Of course." I hug my dad last and he tells me to do him proud. And somehow that encourages me more than anything else that has been said to me. Because, I know that as long as I do my best he will be proud and I know that I can do my best.     After my family the Moores come over. I hug each of the kids that are basically my family. Sara doesn't let them stay long because she wants to give other people time to say goodbye. But before she goes I tell her that I will write them letters and keep them up to date. Many more people come over and wish me well and tell me goodbye. It is kind of an emotional roller coaster so I'm mostly glad that it is done. I give my family one more quick hug and get in the car to go to the airport.     When I get to the airport they have me get right onto the plane. I get on and see a couple other girls and I sit down in the general area that they did but not next to either of them. I spend the first half of the flight going through scenarios in my head about what could happen from here on out. With about an hour left in the flight I finally hear one of the girls speak. I'm pretty sure it was Cecilia but it might have been Viola. I tune into their conversation but I don't join until Cecilia asks me a question. "What about you? Are you nervous?" "Of course!"  I smile a little at being included into the conversation. "I'm nervous too, but also sorta excited, you know?" Cecilia adds and Viola nods in agreement. I get out of my seat so that it will be easier to carry the conversation. They introduce themselves and I am happy to receive confirmation that I did know their names. I introduce myself as well and it is quiet for a few seconds before the conversation starts again. "So, what are you guys going to miss most while we're at the palace? I know for me it's going to be my dad and brother." I turn to Viola to answer her question and say "I'm will miss my families most for sure." At that thought I look out the window as if I could look and see them one last time before I go. Cecilia looks at me confused and says "Families? As in multiple?" Duh. Of course that would be confusing. "Yeah, I'm obviously going to miss my parents and my siblings. But also the family I nanny for. I have become really close with them over the last year and a half and it's going to be really weird not to see them all the time." I say hoping that it makes more sense now. Cecilia sighs and says "For me I don't know, I mean I guess I'll miss my siblings. I love them to death but it will be nice to be away from my family." She pauses for a beat and finishes by saying "I needed a little escape." I nod before Cecilia asks me a question. "How old are they?" "The oldest girl is named Cassie and she is 9. Benji is 7. And Charlotte is 4." I say with a small smile in just thinking of them.     We continue to talk for the remainder of the flight or at least until the pilot says we need to buckle up for landing. When we land we walk through the airport which is full of people. Hundreds of people are here just to catch a glimpse of us. If that isn't a surreal moment I don't know what is. I hear people calling my name from all directions and I try (with little success) to wave to each of them. Security is making us move through really fast because one of the selected got killed by a rebel and they don't want it to happen again. I have been trying not to think or talk about it because I know that I’m in safe hands and I don’t want to let it ruin the experience. Eventually we make it through the airport and to the limo that will lead us to the palace.     When we get to the palace we are ushered into a big room with mirrors and clothes everywhere and I know what the next step on this journey is. Makeover. I like how I look just the way I am but I also like to change things up every once in awhile. A lady directs me to a station on the other side of the room. I sit down and my stylist introduces herself as Jaca. "Most of the stylists here will just do what they think looks best without really consenting the girls. But I believe that people look their most beautiful when they are comfortable with how they look, so what do YOU want to do today?" "Well my eyebrows haven't been done in a while so that needs to be done, I really only wear full makeup on special occasions but I guess this is as special as it gets isn't it? So you can do that and for my hair... I've kind of been thinking of going lighter, but I don't know. What do you think?" "I think that sounds like a perfect plan. Especially the hair." Jaca starts by dying my hair and then does my eyebrows while my hair is in the tinfoil. After that is done she finishes my hair (including a trim and styling) and then does my makeup. After we finish there she takes me to pick out a dress. Together we decide on a one shoulder, two-tone red dress. When the whole makeover is done someone takes me to a room where we are supposed to stay until everyone is done with their makeover. As I think over everything that has happened today I decide that the whole experience has been kind of overwhelming but I could definitely get used to the life of a princess.