Aug 15, 2011 -- 12:37AM, RavenTESL wrote:

Hi everyone,

After a lot of time reflecting, writing, meditation, researching, etc, I have found myself under the neo-Pagan umbrella. This is interesting and exciting, but of course confusing. More information leads to more questions, which leads to answers and more questions ... round and round it goes.

I'm trying to narrow down a focal point, a starting point. No, I'm not closing my mind to anything right now, but I feel like I'm drowning in ideas and theories and points of view, and am confused.

Here is what I 100% believe in:

- I believe in the spirituality of our natural world
- I believe in the balance of male and female higher powers/energies (dualities?)
- I believe people should do what they want to do, as long as they aren't hurting other people
- I believe the good/bad actions we create will come back on us

I want to google some more information, (and of course connect with other people here!) but I'm not even sure what the search words would be.

Any words of wisdom would be beneficial and greatly appreciated.

You are RavenTESL.  Everything else is up for you to discover and decide.

Oh, I admit I probably could have been clearer.  But, as you said, gorm, each statement brings with it a thousand questions.

I do have a way that RavenTESL can decide who she is — at least for the moment, since we are all constantly changing — but it is a bit of a pain in the rear.

Get a notebook.  It probably will need to be big.  Write down everything you believe.  And I do mean everything.  You believe that asparagus is the most disgusting thing ever, and should be banned from market shelves, then write it down. Carry the notebook around with you everywhere you go.  At least three months, but probably longer. After three months, it will probably feel weird not to have it. Read everything.  You disagree with the author?  Write it down.  Write down why. A book is too bad for you to finish?  I have been there.  Write it down.  Write down what the author could have done to make their book readible.

The point is, you have to become incredibly narcissistic, at least where your notebook is concerned.  You have to write down everything that you need to, to understand you.

If you need help getting started with this notebook, I would recommend listening to the Scrying Bowl, scryingbowl.libsyn.com/

5 minute podcasts where Oraia Sphinx gives a topic and lets you figure out what you think about said topic.  Very valuable, to me, anyway, when it comes to topics I wouldn't have thought of.

Anyway, this is a good way to figure out who you are.  It won't give you a label, but it wil give you an idea of who is lurking in your brain.