Cauldron

A step on the Pathway of Service.

Last weekend, the first Morrigan Encampment took place on a small farm in Wales. It was the first major event put on by The Warrior's Call – pagans united against fracking. Our aim was to do exactly that: to unite the pagans of South …

So you have found a cause that you are truly passionate about. You may have found a tribe of people who share your concern and your passion, online or in real life. You have even identified something you would love to do for your cause. But it is still hard …

A step on the Pathway of Service.

If you've been around the self-improvement community, you know that a lot is made of one's life purpose, and how you need to follow your heart to find fulfilment, health and happiness. As a result, lots of people spend years tying themselves in …

“It's amazing, you know,” Amanda said. “This water. It flows all the way from here to the Thames and into the sea. And it mixes with the ocean. And then it becomes clouds and it rains down back here.”

“Yes!” I enthused. “And you drink it and pee it back …

Steps on the Pathway of Service.

One of the most powerful things we can do to challenge the status quo of our fossil fuel addicted world is to grow some of our own food. And it's good for our health as well.

Most of us buy most of our food …

Steps on the Pathway of Transformation

Where did the breakfast you ate this morning come from? When you take that question back far enough, you always end up with the elements that make up our world - soil, air, sunshine, water – and with someone working with those elements to produce our …

The big issue of our time, and the one that gets me exercised, is climate change. And its battle ground in the UK at the moment is fracking.

The issue has become so real of late. The effects of climate change are to be seen and felt across the globe …

As I write this, I'm waiting to hear the outcome of my friend's court case in Brighton. This summer, he was arrested at Balcombe while protesting against fracking at the Cuadrilla drilling site. It's got me constantly refreshing Facebook, where another friend has been updating us.

My friend is passionate …

Steps on the Pathway of Sorrow .

Fracking. Aside from it sounding like a variation on a dirty word, the facts of this technology for extracting fossil fuel send shivers down my spine.

After drilling a hole in the ground, explosives are used to make cracks in the shale rock. Thousands …

Inspiration for the Waxing Seed Moon

For the first time in the New Year, I managed to do one of my little solo rituals in the garden. And as soon as I started, I realised how long it had been and how much I missed it.

From the moment I …

A step on the Pathway of Transformation .

I love the New Year. It feels like an opportunity to begin anew. Dreams and intentions feel fresh once more, and old routines can be dusted off and revived, transformed for a new purpose.

This New Year is extra special, as there will …

Steps on the Pathway of Service

Today, I realised something. The way to make community is to join one. Or several.

For months now, I have been working on this series of posts, collecting and creating resources that keep our souls resilient in challenging times.

When I started, I was …

Steps on the Pathway of Sorrow.

When we started thinking about our Westacre renovation project, I saw it as an opportunity to educate and inspire people. I assumed that we would have plenty of time to get our story out there and motivate people to adopt some of our solutions …

Steps on the Pathway of Service.

'All our relations' is a famous phrase. It comes from the Lakota tribe of North America and invokes a profound truth our own culture has forgotten.

We are one big family. All of us who live on this Earth are brothers and sisters, whether …

Steps on the Pathway of Transformation

Over the last couple of weeks, something has subtly changed.

I have come to trust Life and accept all aspects of myself to a greater degree than I ever have. I stand in the world with more confidence than ever before. I have learned …

Steps on the Pathway of Transformation

Why did I ever think that it would make sense to write the steps on the Four Pathways in order, one by one? Life isn't that well ordered. And the flow of inspiration takes twists and turns like a river through a landscape.

Over …

The Pathway of Sorrow, part 1

Last week, I wrote about the challenges that face us in today's world (climate change, impending war, social injustice, …) and how all of us feel those things in our bodies.

It is important to feel these emotions, as they are signals from the greater …

Step onto the Pathway of Sorrow, an introduction.

Chaos. It's a strong word to use. But these days it really feels like our world is descending into chaos and there is little hope of changing it for the better.

Start with the threat of climate change, which is already unavoidable and does and will continue to affect every …

Step onto the Pathway of Love, part 4

I am on good speaking terms with quite a few of the trees and plants in this garden by now. But dearest to my heart is the apple tree behind the house. She is a grandmother guardian of this place, a beautiful …

Step onto the Pathway of Love, part 3.

This morning at 5 am, rumbles of thunder woke me. I lay there, listening to this uncommon sound and the hush of the rain falling, counting the seconds before flashes of lightning lit up the room.

I'm glad I woke up. I …

Step onto the Pathway of Love, part 2

Slugs are the enemy. They have eaten virtually everything I've tried to grow in my veg patch this year: carrots, parsnips, brassicas, beans. All gone. So I'm not particularly impressed with slugs at the moment.

But I decided to do a little …

Step onto the Pathway of Love, part 1.

Idiopathic pancreatitis. It came back and put me in hospital for a few days.

The pancreas is an important organ that makes different kinds of hormones and also produces chemicals that help with digestion. Mine doesn't behave very well. In the past two years, it has become inflamed twice, for …

Westacre's Spiritual Centre is slowly taking shape. I have written a basic framework for its teaching and put it on the Westacre web site.

If it speaks to you, please share it widely. Over time, it will become a great resource for strengthening your soul in times of uncertainty.

Click …

This morning, people started shooting badgers in Somerset and Gloucestershire. It is a 'cull', an attempt to stop the animals spreading Bovine Tuberculosis between cattle herds. Scientists gravely doubt the effectiveness of this action. Many are concerned that the cull will in fact disperse surviving badgers and make the situation …

Full Flower Moon (better late than never!)

I can't even begin to tell you how beautiful it is. Just looking out of the living room window, I see the young green of ash reaching for the sun, the white of cow parsley against the beech hedge, different blues of lungwort …

New Flower Moon

We're having one of those typical English days. We've had a mixture of sunshine, drizzle, heavy showers, more warm sunshine, and now thunder and hail. You never know what you're going to get next.

It's a bit like life. Any given day can be a mixture of …

Beltane

Spring has finally sprung at Westacre. Just three short weeks ago, the last of the snow still lingered in the shadiest corners of the garden. Now the sun is shining down warmly, and flowers are blooming everywhere. We have damson blossom, cowslips and seas of forget-me-nots.

Because of the …

Full Wedding Moon

Today, I did some magic in the garden. My intention was for all the deep connections that we make in this place, and the work we do for the good of our planet, to spread out into the world.

It is my hope that Westacre will become …