I hope all of you who follow the Wheel had as wonderful an Imbolc as we did this month.?  Of course, me and my husband were also celebrating our first anniversary, so that made it even more wonderful for us.?  We do apologize for the long hiatus from the newsletter, but? everyone here came down with that nasty flu-cold in January and it's taken us a while to get caught up.? ?  In order to get the newsletter out the door in something resembling a timely fashion, we've unfortunately had to omit our Astrologically Speaking column this month.?  However, we are already working on the March forcast and we do have the first in our series on the Tarot in this issue.

Contents:
1.? New Arrivals, Updates, and Specials
2.? Turning of the Wheel:?  Imbolc and New Starts
3. Tarot:?  The Fool
4.? In Our Next Issue
5.? Information and Credits

Imbolc and New Starts
by? Amalthea? 

I have always had difficulty making decisions (must be the Libra influence in my natal chart).?  Sometimes it seems the most basic questions involving choice--what to wear, where to eat, when to leave, which movie to watch--seem to take me forever to answer.?  So when my then fiancee asked me to choose a date for our wedding, I think he was quite surprised when I immediately said "February 2."*?  Not being a pagan, he wasn't familiar? with the Wheel of the Year? or Imbolc, Bride's (pronounced "bri-dee) Day.?  However, I explained to him that Imbolc celbrates Brigit's (or Brid, or Bride's) betrothal to the God and he was no longer worried that somehow he had proposed to an imposter!

There was more to my decision than just the obvious bridal symbolism.?  Imbolc, meaning "in the belly"? is also a time for initiations, to celebrate the coming of new life that will appear with spring.? ? I felt very strongly that in marrying for the first time, I was being initiated into a new stage of life and,?  although my husband had been married before, he too was stepping forward into new territory--at least as much as I was.?  Also, we had both long ago recognized that many events in our lives up to this point had prepared us for each other and for taking? our journey together.

Since my husband is an Episcopalian and I am Wiccan, we decided to have a double-ceremony with a traditional church Wedding followed by a Handfasting.? ? For the first ritual, we had the Book of Common Prayer as our guide, which spells out the traditional marriage ceremony step by step.?  The importance of? the Christian? faith? to my husband,? his feelings of connectedness to that church and its community, the speaking of phrases that had been repeated in that house of worship for so many years by? couples with faithful and earnest hearts,? added? powerful energies that carried over into the next ritual.?  The Handfasting, we wrote for ourselves, with the help of my former High Priestess, who would be conducting the ceremony, and my covenmates, who wrote their own beautiful? Calls and Dismissals for the Elements.?  The theme of the second ritual was on our coming together from separate paths.?  In this ceremony, the "temple"?  was formed by the living circle of friends who formed our community.?  The two rituals together reflected both our differences and our common bonds.

Just over this first year? following our Wedding and Handfasting,? our new family has ridden? quite a few rough waves,? but we have held together well, I think.?  We have dealt with the realities of a recessive economy,? disapproving relatives, the unexpected addition of a dog? to our indoor-only animal population of two cats, and? fitting? inventory stock? into a living space already filled by? two households' worth of furniture and belongings,? all while learning to live with each other's habits, foibles, and idiocyncracies.? ? ? While I believe that the mutual love and respect we share is the foundation that makes the difficult times bearable and the good times that much better, I also think that the way we began our marriage--recognizing and consciously expressing? our commitment to? the new? path we were embarking on--has? and continues to set the tone for our relationship.

To celebrate our first anniversary? this year, we exchanged gifts, toasted the occassion with wine, ate pieces from the "anniversary layer" of our? wedding cake, and reminisced about our wedding and the events leading up to it.?  Then we reflected on how far we have come? and the changes that have occurred in our lives since? then.? ? Before we knew it, we? were talking about? plans for the future and going over the first steps? in making them happen.?  I hope it becomes a tradition.? ? I can't think of a better way to celebrate Imbolc!

*Since? my husband's? church doesn't perform weddings on Sundays, our ceremony? actually ended up being on Saturday, Februrary 1.

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Okay.?  I wasn't going to start this series with The Fool.?  I was going to go with intuition and grab a card at random from my favorite deck.?  Then I started thinking--a dangerous thing for me under the best of cirmcumstances--that this is February in a Leap Year.?  So what card immediately pops into my head??  Yup, you guessed it.?  So why am I surprised?

That young man (or woman, or girl, or fey, or creature) setting off on a journey with no idea what's ahead of him (or her, or it) is taking a great leap of faith.?  In fact,? The Fool is? often portrayed as a figure just about step off of a cliff without looking where they're going.?  The Fool has faith that his own feet will lead him in the direction he needs to go; if that's off the edge of a precipice or the edge of the world, so be it.?  Now, granted, this isn't always the wisest way to navigate through life.?  However, there is something to be said for The Fool's approach.?  When pushing past a boundary, the blind leap of faith is sometimes a necessity and some of history's greatest accomplishments began with someone following this strategy.

And just how does February 29th fit in with this, besides the L word??  Well, what better day to take a wild chance and head out on a new adventure than this "extra" day??  The Fool doesn't plan ahead.?  Instead, he says, "no time like the present" and? marches forth.?  February 29th is like the ultimate NOW!?  It is magickal because of it's regular irregularity.?  So, if you haven't yet scheduled anything for that day? this month, don't.?  If you have, postpone it, cancel it, do whatever you need to to clear your calendar.?  If you're supposed to work that day, then if at all possible, take the day off, switch schedules with a co-worker, whatever.?  Done that??  Good.?  Now, don't write anything in that spot.?  Don't plan anything.?  Don't try to think of what you'll do with the day.?  Don't call anyone and tell them about what you're thinking of doing, though if you do want to include them in an adventure, calling them and getting them to clear their schedule without any details on why can be fun!?  Forget about it until that morning.?  Then get out of bed and see where the day, and your Fool's feet, take you!

Some new, unusual jewelry items are coming to Magickalystics, as well as some lovely, fanciful? suncatchers--just in time for Spring!?  Astrologically Speaking will be back in March.?  Honest!?  After all, we do have an extra day this month to get it done, don't we?? 

Till then, Merry Part till we meet again and Bright Blessings to you and yours!

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You have? either finished reading, or have just scrolled past Magickalystics News , a monthly e-publication of Magickalystics Online Metaphysical Store.?  The manifestation of Magickalystics and this newsletter are? made possible by? the mysterious and arcane? Webweaving Arts as cast by Amalthea, Editor & Contributing Author.? ?  Address your comments to feedback@magickalystics.com.

Send? your article ideas/submissions, reviews,? and editorials to? newsletter@magickalystics.com.?  You will be notified in advance if your piece is approved for publication.

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