Episode 18 - the big good bye

Click here for the final episode

It has been an amazing ride recording the Magical Earth for all of you. Sadly all good things must at some point come to an end. As the Facebook fans and blog readers already know Susan and Jacinthe have had to step back from working on the show. It became nearly impossible to schedule times to record episodes and live got busy all around. You can see all the details of their farewell post at on the blog you can also here all the details in the show.

It was with a lot of thought and discussion that Alex and I decided to bring an end to the Magical Earth. It started out with 4 of us and we would rather start something new and let be remember as the quadcast it was. That being said we are not ready to give up on the Pagan Podcasting Community. We have started our own new show called the Spirit of Life. You can find it at http://spiritoflife.podbean.com/ we both hope that you will continue to listen and look forward to hearing from you. Any farewell messages you have can still be sent to themagicalearth@gmail.com

Thanks for listening and please walk softly

And then there were two

Hello - these are not show-notes but life notes from Susan & Jacinthe...

It is with great sadness that Jacinthe and Susan have decided to leave the Magical Earth.  This is due to personal reasons - a little bit of this, a dash of that - some family related, some health related, some work related, some life related - and we think it better that we step away and stop holding back Cliff and Alex from doing this sacred work mostly because it has become damned near impossible to get our schedules to match and allow all of us to be in the same time/space continuum to get the shows recorded on any kind of schedule.

We wish them well, love them dearly, and plan to tune in and listen to see where they will take the 'cast in the future.  We thank you - our listeners - for the time you have spent with us.  For Susan, it has been a deep blessing to share her passion of Sacred Poetry with you, and for Jacinthe - sharing her thoughts about the sacredness of the Earth, gardening and food/cooking is her greatest joy.

Jacinthe and Susan are still on Facebook - you can find us there - and Cliff & Alex will pass on any messages that may be directed our way.  We're all still good friends - nobody is fighting or breaking up - its just a question of time and space management -and who knows what new and wonderous things will grow in the space that is being cleared by the universe.

Thanks for walking with us - thanks for listening to us - keep on listening to The Magical Earth - you know we will - and above all ............. thanks for listening to these two old and highly opinionated women. :)  To Cliff and Alex, thanks for opening up this crazy podcasting world to us.  It's been a great adventure.

to everyone ....

May the Lady and Lord light your path on this fragile planet.Walk softly.
Susan & Jacinthe

Episode 17 - We're Meeeeellllllllting !

The Magical Earth - Ep 17


Greetings, fellow travelers, and welcome to the Magical Earth. Let's walk together a while...

Our check in reveals that the weather is damp and the snow is melting, and our old decrepit bones are achey and our allergies are flaring up and we're a wee bit congested. "What a drag it is getting old ..."

Three of us are also enjoying the National Beverage of Winnipeg - "the Slurpee". Jacinthe doesn't like them. Go figure.

We resume our Olympic commentary - and note all the "pagan familiar" symbols and ritual components of the opening ceremonies - from the greetings of / to the four directions, to the raising of energy through sacred dance - all these symbols made sense to us - and the subsequent spectacle of Canadiana Unfurled - it was amazing.

Cliff thinks that many of our athletes raided the Superhero wardrobe - bobsledders looking like Spiderman, speed skaters that looked like Xmen - and a certain Manitoba Skeletor that was The Flash. (yay Jon Montgomery!)

Thanks as always for your emails (themagicalearth@gmail.com) and comments on the Facebook page. We were sent an email with a great cartoon of a woman knitting via video game - we'll see if we can include that here in the show notes.


We each give our final thoughts (Jacinthe & Alex are already fantasizing about spring cleaning...)

To wrap things up - on a sombre and respectful note - Susan dedicates a poem to the people of Georgia, in honor of their fallen Olympian .... To An Athlete Dying Young by A.E. Housemann.

Until next time - walk softly ...

Episode 16 - The Olympic Edition

The Magical Earth Episode 16


Greetings, Fellow Travelers, and welcome to another stroll on The Magical Earth.

Our check in reveals the following:

Cliff is about to be published - his short story - Rescue Dogs is being included in a Friday Flash Anthology for 2009! Woo Hoo! We are so proud of him.

Alex comments on the sign in front of the church down the street - "Suffering From Truth Decay - Brush up on Your Bible". Many of these signs come from a subscription service and there are books of the really good ones. If you want to make your own Church sign - try this. Of course - we'd love your suggestion on what the sign outside a Pagan Temple say? Send your thoughts to themagicalearth@gmail.com

Susan is playing with new yarn, has hired a minion at work (yay), and reminds everyone that there are Cats in the house, and there might be feline intervention in the sound mix.

Jacinthe is on new pain meds, and we're all a little goofy! Other than that - she is working lots, life is good - no complaints - and is knitting her poncho (46 rows plus a collar to go!)

Remember to watch our Facebook page for announcements of our impending recording sessions (usually every second Thursday) - and send us your thoughts, questions, comments, and join us in the Facebook chat function in real time.

Reminder that we are doing Top 5 lists in our Ostara podcast - send yours along - or your requests about what we consider the top ten whatever! Again, our email is themagicalearth@gmail.com

We discuss the Olympics. We want to be very clear that we are talking about the Institution - not the athletes, or the Games themselves. Our running commentary starts out a bit on the caustic side - but we move towards the magical aspects as we explore how we feel about this cultural bombardment of sporting culture.

The Olympics were very pagan in their origins - and there are lots of online resources talking about that - from this article on the Ancient Olympics in Wikipedia and other places, as well as the occasional media article - like this one from the Winnipeg Free Press. The discussion ranges far and wide, and ends with some Canadian Pride. (remember that this was recorded before we knew how crazy Vancouver -and the entire country - would get.) We are also proud that the Royal Canadian Mint in Winnipeg cast the medals. Here's a picture of the Mint - but it doesn't have the Olympic window decorations - they have the images of the medals "on" the glass 30 feet high - it is spectacular.


In closing - we offer our blessings to our athletes.

For our final thought - Susan discusses the new We Are the World - and encourages all of you to go to iTunes to download and donate a few more dollars to the Haitian Relief Fund. We end the show with a song from Michael Franti (we would follow Michael Franti into battle.)

Hey World - Walk Softly.....

A New Promo

The Magical Earth Promo

Hey folks

Here is our new promo feel free to use it in your show. Drop us a line and let us know so we can return the favour.

Walk Softly

The Magical Earth Quadcast

Episode 15 - Intention (using a familiar metaphor)

The Magical Earth - Episode 15


Welcome, fellow travelers, as we walk together on the Magical Earth ...

Thanks to all our listeners - old - new - aged - faithful - we have seen an increase in our subscribers and we are very appreciative of the time you invest in us - let us know how you heard about us - and what you think! Your comments here on the blog and your emails to themagicalearth@gmail.com help guide us in the way we shall go.

Our checkins reveal the following truths:

• Alex got laid off, but has plans to go to University and take Theatre - concentrating in stage craft and costume design. Light a candle that funding comes her way to make this possible.
• Jacinthe talks about her daughter's ongoing battle with crystal meth addiction - and offers hope to anyone who is walking a similar journey. Please let her and / or Susan know if you have a similar story - or a loved one / parent / child / life mate / friend that is struggling with addictions - there is strength in hearing each other's stories. Places like the Addictions Foundation can offer real help - for the families as well as the addicted person. Find the help you need near you - and ask for what you need.

• We digress into a conversation about being Pagan parents in a non-Pagan culture, and what it means for Pagan children to be "different" from their classmates with different holy days, etc...
• Susan is just plain grateful that she won the birth lottery - and doesn't take it for granted. She has been writing more, blogging at h"Where I Am, Knitting is Also - Not a Knitting Blog" on some self-introspection about how to contribute to and create community. That gives Jacinthe more time to read and to cook.
• Cliff also talks about his writing, and we all have various levels of lust for the iPad. Thanks to the good folks at FailBlog for the image.

So - we use knitting as a metaphor. Please stick with us - there is a point to the preamble about knitting - it really does lead to a deep magical conversation about magic and intent. We talk about the tools of our trade - needle size, wool types (like Fleece Artist - great Canadian yarn company) - and our patterns. Alex mentions her 10 for 10 project - doing 10 new things in 2010 and Ravelry - a social network for the crafty set. You can connect to Alex (Tamile ) Jacinthe (as Jacinthe ) or Susan (suhurrell) as a knitting buddy. Cliff is STILL not knitting. We also refer to Knitpicks - and the KnitPicks podcast - with thanks!!!

We also remind people to join us on our Facebook page - and to give us feedback! It is from this feedback that leads us to our topic in a fibre-kind-of-way. This is NOT a knitting podcast! We are here to talk about intent! Knitting is the metaphor for INTENTION. Mentally substitute "magic" or "prayer" " for the word knitting - think "ritual" for "pattern" - its a bit of mental gymnastics, but it makes sense - in some places more than others.

If you want to skip all the "casting on" of preparatory stage setting - skip ahead to where the conversation get a bit more magically specific (but not much) at 38:55 - but really - its worth ploughing through the rest of the preamble.

We mention two books - Wicca Covens by Judy Harrow and Deepening Witchcraft by Grey Cat. Cliff is going to put an Amazon affiliate link up on our blog - so go through that portal to order your books and we get a penny or two to keep the lights on at the Magical Earth studios.

If you have ever received a Susan created "Circle of Love" - please snap a quick photo with your mobile camera - and send it along. I'd love to create a gallery of all the blankets and shawls I've given away over the years. No pressure. (maybe no pictures).

Susan talks about the situation in Haiti - having connections as a Canadian with a Haitian-born Governor General, and a dear friend whose mother is Haitian born. Please pray for the people of Haiti - and find a cause that you support - Susan supports Doctors Without Borders and Mennonite Central Committee. Think about praying for Haiti on the 12th of every month.

In our final thoughts - Cliff praises Canada's own DART - Disaster Assistance Response Team who are bringing water purification technology to Haiti. This makes us all proud to be Canadians. (Susan also references Michale Prichard's LifeSaver water purification video that is part of TED talks - and is a worthy philanthropic effort in need of support)

Alex refocuses on Intent as a guiding principle of magic and life. Jacinthe can't wait for the snow to melt and to get her hands back into the mud (garden lust). Susan is reminded that intent is everything - the seed that we plant that grows the tree of our life. She also mentions Dee's project at Pagan FM to create a Pagan musical recording to raise funds for Haiti.

Cliff is all about the lists - for our Ostara episode - we are all bringing a list of 5 favourite things - a list or two - to share. We invite you to either ask us for our list of our "Five Favourite whatever's" - or to send us your own Five Favourite lists - we can't promise to get to them all - but we'll do what we can. there will be an episode or two between now and then - so thanks for keeping tuned it.

Susan closes the show with an original poem, cause she forgot the big book of Pagan poetry. Hope you enjoy.

Until next time,

Walk softly .....

Episode 14 - No Fools LIke Yule Fools. No Fooling!

The Magical Earth Episode 14


Greetings, Fellow Travelers, and welcome to the Magical Earth, recorded Dec 17th, 2009.

A Quick Check in - after we discuss the snowball effect of life in the fourth quarter of the year and how the cultural cues and clues are both more and less predictable.

How much of the Christmas culture do many Pagans participate in? Do Pagans have Christmas Trees (yes, they were ours first). Do you exchange Christmas gifts with other Pagans? How do you, as a Pagan celebrate - mark - participate in Dec 25th? There are no right or wrong answers - just explorations of your personal practice.

(We talk about our Christmas Eve Orphan tradition of movie going on Christmas Eve - this year - Avatar! Followed by Sherlock Holmes.)

Cliff references his current Question of the Week on The Modern Pagan - Bombarded on All Sides. We also talk about our personal "wish lists" - everything from a knitting swift and / or a wool ball winder for Alex. Susan has already received her holiday gifts (a new laptop and a new TV) - so that leaves her with a wish for a new knitting needle set - but would settle for a Boler trailer. Jacinthe wants 10 hours in a recording studio for Musique Magique and a digital camera, more Le Creuset, and Cliff wants to be a published author by a real publisher so he can be a published author and hold a copy of his own book in his hot little hands.

Cliff references this great writing blog - Writing Excuses. Susan suggests two books by Judy Harrow - Spiritual Mentoring and Wicca Covens.

We acknowledge that we have "wants" - not needs - and that we are all grateful for what we do have. It helps to put our relationship with abundance into perspective by seeing how "desire driven" our wants are, and how far removed they are from being "needs". This is a time of year to acknowledge the blessings in our life that have sustained us through the dark time, now that the Light is returning. We chat about how our Circadian rhythms are completely "off" and we blame climate change.

We recap our knitting projects, for no particular reason except that's what we do. :) Cliff still isn't knitting.

International Calendar Change Day is approaching, and we each have our own resolutions or anti-resolutions to challenge our resolve. Health - Frugal Living - Lifestyle Changes - we shall see how we go.

Closing thoughts, and holy-day blessings from each of us - to all of you.

Susan closes with two pieces of sacred poetry - again from Galen Gilotte's Goddess Book of Hours, and the God Book of Hours.

Until next time, walk softly.

PS:
Have you purchased your Walking the Hedge calendar yet?