Random Act of Kindness

I, for some reason, chose to go make groceries in the middle of the day. In this heat. In New Orleans. I r smaert!

There is a point, however. Earlier, I was watching a documentary on the life of the Buddha. I thought it was quite well done, if not a little romanticized, but still touched on all the important points and facets of Buddhist thought.

So, when it ended, it was noon, and I realized I hadn't gone to the store yet. I gathered my bags and money, and set out. Boy, it's hot out there. Sun was at its peak. I started dripping sweat in no time, and grumbling to myself about being so silly, trekking out in this blasted soup of a day.

A truck pulls up next to me as I walk. I'm hailed by the driver. He asks "want a cold water or something?" I am a little stunned at first. He repeats this. I say a huge YES, and am handed what they have left - a red Powerade. I graciously thank the guys in the truck, and renew my walk.

It's not until I get to the store, make my groceries, and leave, that I put the pieces of this encounter together. I pull out the bottle of my red life elixir, and laugh as it all dawns on me. The story.

The story basically goes that the Buddha, not yet the Buddha, just a disillusioned young prince Siddartha, goes to teachers, and endures extreme asceticism, to the point of near starvation, until he just gives up. He isn't receiving any truths, any wisdom, he's just cold, hungry, and in pain. At this point of saying "oh fuck it!", a little girl brings him a bowl of rice porridge. It wasn't until then, when he was fed (by both the food and the girl's kindness, I think), that he found the strength to meditate under the bodhi tree, and discover the Middle Way.

I'm no Buddha (yet ;}), but I found the inspiration to write this blog in a random stranger who saw a hot, thirsty woman trudging along. Kindness. Compassion. That's really it. The little girl didn't see a future sage and founder of a major religion, she saw a hungry man.

I have no idea what I may become, but I want to honor that kindness. Just as I will do my best to offer random kindness to the next person in need I see - that person could be a buddha too! Or just a fellow sibling in the human family, which is honestly quite enough.

Kittehz!

I don't have anything to say. Just that this is an adorable pic full of win.

NEKHTET! RPD Rush!

I'm very "OMGOMGOMGOMGOMGOMG AWESOME! SOOOOOO AWESOME!" right now. I'm afraid I must post here, or explode, but I can't do much coherent posting.

I underwent the rite of parent divination (RPD) just now, and I have a seemingly endless grin on my face and a heart that feels like it will explode.
First was the Akhu (ancestor) divination, which was very encouraging, and had lots I needed to hear. Second was what the rite is named for, who's my Parent(s) - in this case, my Momma! Hethert-Sekhmet! Hemet (AUS) said this probably didn't come as a surprise, and, really, it didn't at all! It was just so wonderful to hear someone else acknowledge what my soul knew! Beloveds came next - Bast-Mut and Set. Neither are much of a shock either, and the instant I was told all the Names in my lineup, I felt like bursting with joy!

All my fears died in that moment. I might have doubts in the future about "organized religion", but this family is mine now. I'm so happy! This path isn't restricting me, it's letting me bloom like a lotus. I immediately agreed to accept shemsuhood. I expect to be named at the end of the month.

Nekhtet! Dua Hethert-Sekhmet! Dua Bast-Mut! Dua Set!

Music! Always Music! Raise it up!

Ok, so I love discovering new music. Good music, anyway. And thanks to Stephen Colbert, I found out about Florence & the Machine. Wow. Bombastic, pure emotion pouring out of Ms. Florence Welch in her voice, her movements onstage - makes me really think of Hethert. Yes, I'm sure She loves all music, but just look at that picture (stick of bells, not "authentic" but makes me think of a sistrum), then find some of the music to listen to.

Also, I'll admit, I'm thinking of my impending RPD. I try to be a "clean slate" mentally, but then I'm just watching my nightly comedy/news, and I'm hit with this amazing woman. And the urge to dance, and I feel a mental "giggle" in the back of my head. Kind of like "yeah, you know, silly."

Ok, and here's a video for ease of checking out this amazing woman + group. Also, I love geeking over this stuff.

Thoughts on our Mother

HELPED are those who love the Earth, their Mother, and who willingly suffer that she may not die; in their grief over her pain they will weep rivers of blood, and in their joy in her lively response to love, they will converse with the trees.
~from The Gospel According to Shug, in The Temple of my Familiar by Alice Walker

Sadly, this is only the second book by Alice Walker I've ever read, the first being her wildly famous The Color Purple. A couple of the same characters show up in this book from that one. I am not finished with it yet, but I am close, and I find it wholly stunning and sometimes heavy to read. It's taken me a long time to get through over half, but it's well worth it, to me - even if just for the three pages that make up "Shug's Gospel." I feel it would be some kind of stealing to type the whole thing out here, but I am far more moved by her beatitudes than any in the christian bible. In such a short space, spiritual, human truths about love, humanity, the Earth and cosmos, are made poetic and relevant to this world now.

One last quote - the very end of her Gospel.

HELPED are those who know.

My final feelings on the drama.

Militants

Ok, I'm pissed off. I'm angry. I'm also tired of certain know-it-alls.

This time, it just happens to be militant atheists. The drama started, actually, with my post about the ancient astronaut people.

For the moment, I'm a member of an ex christian forum. I link my blog to my profile there. And suddenly, someone decided to tell me that my "silly beliefs" are no better than those of people who think aliens built the pyramids because they think modern cranes can't lift more than 5 tons.

Um, what?

Granted, I have odd beliefs, but none of them, none of them so plainly fly in the face of actual observable fact. Not like the ancient astronaut people. Clearly, most cranes can lift more than 5 tons. Moving blocks the size of those that built the pyramids has been replicated with copper age tools in the modern age. The claims of the ancient astronaut people are patently wrong. My claims are unobservable. Doesn't make for a good argument, true, but I'm not claiming anything that is obviously wrong. That would be stupid. Nor do I proselytize, so I don't see a reason to justify what I believe - but I'm asked, all the time, to "back up my claims." I don't make claims about my beliefs. I state my beliefs, and sometimes, share my experiences. 

This whole vendetta blew up into something I don't care to get into (but I was called mentally ill, so that was sweet), but I am seriously considering leaving the forum. It seems that if one leaves one religion, joining another is considered stupid and delusional. And I don't need that attitude. I don't need a fundamentalist of a different stripe.

It really appears that many I have encountered who have left fundamentalist christianity just carry their fundamentalist "I'm right and you're wrong" worldview into atheism. Anyone that browbeats me for not agreeing with them is not a person I need to be around. Both are ignorant and, frankly, complete assholes.

Just a thought to leave you all with - ex christian means no longer christian. It doesn't mean atheist.

ETA: I just want to say that I don't dislike atheists as a rule. I dislike militant people, no matter what they call themselves. That is the problem.