Mabh Savage's Blog: A Celtic Witch, page 14

Willingly Isolated

Day 12 of being in the house and practicing proper social distancing. Day 8 of full isolation due to symptoms. Day 5 of UK lockdown.

I got really emotional this morning. No idea why. I have so much to do, so many tasks to be done. Yet I suddenly felt useless, worthless; depression reading it’s ugly head.

But it’s not because I’m isolated. In fact, as I mentioned to a friend earlier, in some ways I’d be happy to wait this whole thing out without ever leaving the luxurious confines of my house (not actually luxurious) and back garden (pretty nice, thanks hubby). The actions of others who refuse to social distance or even take the epidemic seriously genuinely scare me. I don’t want to put my hands on a supermarket trolley that’s been coughed over by a symptomatic individual who refused to stay home. I don’t want to risk someone pushing past me to get to the butter, as happened to a friend yesterday. I don’t want to have someone cough in my face or watch them cough over the fresh produce, as one of my siblings witnessed the other day. It frightens me.

But there are so many people doing good things, wonderful things. Neil Gaiman has given everyone free rein to use his work for online videos. LeVar Burton has taken this permission and run with it.

The Pagan Federation is putting something online for the community every single day- an impressive feat! Today is a huge online discussion about symbolism, spread across four PF groups. Plus, there’s a chance to win some fabulous Moon Books prizes. Thanks to everyone doing wonderful things.

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Writing for Change

Covid-19 U.K. lockdown day 4, self isolation day 7, social distancing day 11; I think. Starting to lose track now!

This blog post is slightly self-indulgent, but I think we all deserve a little self-indulgence from time to time! I’ve been going through my accounts carefully to try and get my finances in order. As a freelance writer, this has meant going back over the paid work I’ve done over the past year. I’ve been delighted to rediscover some of the topics I’ve covered, which include:

Environmentally friendly green facades and living wallsHow animals improve moodMusicians like Yvette Landry who do amazing things for their local communitiesArticles for adult websites which are sex positive for all genders and make a point to include the LGBTQA+ readersNutrition articles which avoid focusing on weight or body shape

I hope that by choosing to write on these topics, in a positive and inclusive way, I’m encouraging readers to be more positive and inclusive too. It might only be a small change in a big world, but I felt like giving myself a little pat on the back for any impact I may have had.

COVID-19 So Far

I’ve been meaning to keep a bit of a journal because in years to come, I’ll want to look back and remember what was going on now. If I don’t write it down, the anxiety and constant dealing with stuff will wash away the memories I’m keen to keep.

We’re on day 9 of social distancing, because we decided to take the boys out of school before they closed because of lung issues which makes one of them more at risk.

We’re on day 5 of isolation, because one of the boys started coughing – scary times. He’s ok, we think, but still coughing so we’re being super careful about quarantine.

And, like the rest of the country, we’re now on day 2 of lockdown. My thoughts are with those who will really struggle with this, due to those in the home with them, mental health issues, or through genuine isolation i.e. not having anyone to help out and no way to get to the shops or pharmacy. I hope that everyone gets the support they need. We can’t get food delivered as everywhere is booked up or simply not doing it right now, but we were lucky enough to have friends drop stuff on our doorstep before the lockdown came into effect. We won’t break our isolation until the 14 days is up as I refuse to put others at risk. I can only hope that others in self-isolation have the support they need to get through this.

Brighter thoughts: today is sunny. The toddler and I have been in the garden. It was noisy and quiet; no traffic, no background car noise, very few planes. But bees, birds, butterflies galore. A wondrous symphony of nature. It was the first time I’d left the house in nearly a week. I definitely feel better for it. I know my body will appreciate the vitamin D!

I’ve been writing, making jam, making bread, and doing an awful lot of washing up. I’ve washed my hands until they’re red and sore, but found some decent hand cream in the cupboard, so they’re on the mend.

I’ve called creditor after creditor and had payment holidays arranged. If you need to do this, tell them you’re struggling financially because of COVID-19/Coronavirus and many are already set up to provide this help.

I said to a sibling earlier today, I can’t believe it’s Wednesday already, it’s gone so fast, but also, I can’t believe it’s only Wednesday, this week has lasted a year already. I feel like it’s a surreal dream state we’re floundering in. I need to stop treading water and swim to the shore, but I’m not exactly sure what that means. I know I want to write more, read more, make music, but I have so many emails and calls to make… Like many others, I’m trying not to let it overwhelm me.

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Online Moot Today!

Break up the boredom with our Online Moot which is all about trees.

The Pagan Federation hosts this two hour event for the Spring Equinox which you can dip in and out of. Hear some great music, take part in discussions, and wind down with a beautiful guided meditation. All the content will remain online for folks to access at a later point. See you there!

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Short note to say how I’ve always loved the radio, but it...

Short note to say how I’ve always loved the radio, but it’s really come into its own right now. Can heartily guarantee radio 2 right now.

Stay safe, stay strong, stop touching your face

Merry Spring Equinox!

Blessings of Alban Eilir, the Light of the Earth. Praise the new shoots bursting up through the ground, may we have their resilience to push on through.

Please come join us this weekend for the Pagan Federation Spring Equinox Online Moot which is all about trees! Here is the schedule for Sunday’s event. All from the comfort and safety of your own home.

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Online Support for You

At the Pagan Federation we’ve been talking about what sorts of content we should be putting online for our communities, to help them out when they’re in isolation and unable to leave their homes. We already do online moots and festivals, in fact, do please join us this weekend for the Spring Equinox moot about trees, link below.

What else would you like to see online? Videos? Stories? Readings? What matters to you and what will be useful, entertaining, or enriching if you end up in isolation, or indeed are you already in that position and wish there was something more we offered? Let me know in the comments.

https://facebook.com/events/s/pagan-fed-online-spring-equino/192724885365468/?ti=icl

Spring Equinox Online Moot

Anyone who is excited for the spring equinox and who loves trees, come along to our online moot next week!

With crowds and gatherings not being a great idea right now, the Pagan Federation have decided to help you celebrate the Spring Equinox from the comfort and safety of your own homes. More info to follow, simply click the event and select “Going” for further updates. Expect talks on trees, paganism, some music, discussion and more!

https://facebook.com/events/s/pagan-fed-online-spring-equino/192724885365468/?ti=icl

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Rose Petals

Drying out rose petals from an almost dead bouquet in a single layer. Once dried, they’ll be kept in an airtight jar or displayed in a pretty bowl- like this one! Can anyone identify the other two flowers already drying out in there?

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Valentine’s Softness

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An old #ValentinesDay poem (link below) which switches between cynical and soft- which are you this #Valentine2020 ?‬

‪https://mabhsavage.com/2017/02/14/my-tuesday-valentine/‬