Bemused Brock is, well... ...bemused

[brock_tn]

I seem to have acquired a student.

I went to the Huntsville Area Old Ways Association meeting on the 30th, (we meet over dinner on the 2nd and 5th Wednesday of each month, and occasionally for coffee and conversation on Sunday mornings,) and I gave a little talk on the theoretical aspects of religious and magical ritual.  The talk was well-

Comments

[mageoflamancha]

Oh dear....and it was going so well up to that last line. Even if Loki doesn't usually show up- you've pretty much thrown the gauntlet down now.

[brock_tn]

It's a traditional complaint in our Tradition: at one point the High Priestess who trained me looked at her High Priest, then pointed at the sixty-odd adults gathered in a park for our Midsummer ritual and said "We said we were just going to have a little living-room coven, just the five of us. What the fuck happened?!?!?"

[mageoflamancha]

Maybe you should embrace the budding coven then- that might leave you a few nights free. Sounds like those you serve have the same sense of...humor...as mine do.

[brock_tn]

Among other Personages, I've had the An Mhor Rhiogain lurking in the back of my head since well before I ever admitted to myself that I'd gone pagan. Her sense of humor is, well...

...unique.

And on that note, I think that one of the most theologically profound statements I've ever heard came from Spider Robinson:

"God is an iron."

Because, you see, if a felon commits felony, then obviously...

[saoba]

Look at you, appearing like that, right on schedule and in the right place! Good initiate! Have a metaphorical cookie!

I made the offer but I was pretty serene in my conviction you would not refuse the challenge. You may not understand what a fine teacher you are but there are people who do Get It. Not to go all mushy and maudlin on you or anything-but you did us proud before and I have faith in you.

I'm not saying you have to have a little living room coven. But I do think you're going to have to step lively and be very firm if other seekers appear. Get a feel for the other groups and covens, so if you turn a seeker away you can at least give them a suggestion of where to look.

Remember to teach her the lineage- I might even be able to find the photos taken in the Quarter the day of Bear's memorial,

[brock_tn]

To be honest, I think that I actually have a reasonably accurate grasp of my abilities as a teacher. To the extent that I seem self-deprecating in that area, well, that may be understood as a reminder to keep my ego in check. One may be a good teacher, but that doesn't give one cause to be an ass about it.

And yes, you did make the offer. But it's not like I was really going to say "No, I want out," after all of the years of work and effort that culminated in that particular point in time and space. It's just that there are some times when the weight of duty seems heavier than it ought. Even if it's not actually as heavy as the figurative mountain in the famous aphorism

And so it goes

[mistress_nerak]

Just me, Tirion, Fox and Ash ... all alone in Nashville, no problem, no worries...

Yes, Brock, there is a reason why this is called a
'circle'.

Re: And so it goes

[brock_tn]

I find myself tempted to cue up Harry Chapin singing "All My Life's A Circle." But I don't think it would make me feel better.

I've danced this dance once already, and it ended, if not badly, at least with less-than-happy feelings. Am experiencing a "once burned, twice shy" moment, and I am not certain that the potential good that I/we might do will outweigh the potential for being hurt. Unfortunately, like Miles Vorkosigan, I have this thing about oaths, and vows, and obligations...

Re: And so it goes

[brock_tn]

Presumably. Although it's never really made clear that I have lessons to learn when these taskings come down from On High. Still, I tend to consider myself a work in progress, always capable of being improved.

I just wish I were less apprehensive about the long-term implications here.

[vicki_sine]

{chuckle} Well sounds like this will be home for a while.

student

[eyverska]

Little living room covens tend to grow. And outgrow the living room. Ahhh memories.