ezekielk
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Posts: 70
(6/13/02 1:48:16 am)
Reply | Edit |  My Altar of Memories
As a "natural witch" I tend to create my own original spells to meet whatever situation summons my healing gifts. I even have created my own kind of altar, which I lovingly call my "Altar of Memories". It is such a vibrant, positive presence that brings joy to my heart, as well as a significant degree of psychic stability (if you know what I mean; if not, please ask, and I'll describe further).
The Altar Of Memories can be any bureau or desk or table. Presently, it is a modern office desk with a slick black veneer. Two thirds of it is covered by a rainbow cloth that was probably made to cover a bed or sofa. Glued to its sides is original art by some street people, include some Voodoo-type ink drawings (all deities of joy and compassion).
In a little round, blue decorative cardboard box, are a silken green hanky with a gold flower on it, a gold pen and a matching gold pencil. They were gifts by a young woman, Angie, whom I rescued from being bashed in Golden Gate Park. Her lover, Johnny, was/is a good buddy to me, though he is still homeless and addicted to heroine. Many, many stories revolve around the hankie and pens, including when Johnny and I went shroom- picking in Golden Gate Park on Dec. 30...when we had a tremendous rainfall of over 10 inches in a few hours! This was the biggest rain I've ever been in, and biggest in San Francisco since 1879! Dec. 30 is also the birthday of my One True Soulmate, Randolph, to whom my entire website (and life) is dedicated. He knows I love the rain, so you can imagine how extraordinarily this great rainfall affected me...especially when I was high on psilocybin for the first time in my life.
A teddybear sits on the desk's raised ledge. That was a gift for another buddy, "Lucky", who I met on the streets last summer. A custard pie brought us together. An incredibly lovely man, I miss him terribly. Don't know when he'll show up in the city again...but I know he will, for our spirits are tightly bound. You may read about this magical custard pie adventure at:
gay-bible.org/mana...x_itch.htm
That page also includes a poem I wrote to Lucky.
Lucky also left behind some unfinished macrame, which inspired me (after he was gone some weeks) to write tales about the courtship rituals of Thracian warriors. Those are oral tradition, which I will never write down. Others are free to record my tales. My spirit guides told me a few months ago, to stop writing so much down, and switch completely to oral tradition.
On my Altar of Memories is also a little stuffed dragon (beany-baby perhaps). I call her "The Christmas Dragon", for she is made of red and green felt cloth...and I found her during Yuletide. I had written about her some months before, in an unfinished story. The story was stolen...then the stuffed dragon showed up a little later in time. To read an account of this stolen tale, called "The Elf of Gwynnyd Cavern", go here:
gay-bible.org/neochrist.htm
You'll need to scroll down a tiny bit, to get to that part of my essay. To jump there once the page is loaded, just do a quick search for "Gwynnyd".
Also on "The Altar" is a little wooden box with a cherub carved into the lid. I found it only minutes after praying to my guardian angel, to watch over me. (I do drug rehab. and street counseling; a dangerous mix sometimes). After the prayer, I stepped to the back porch of my large apartment building, to dispose of some garbage...when I came upon this "angel-box" someone left there. Inside this tiny box, I found: a bunch of dried rose petals, and a tiny card with a prayer, like so:
GUARDIAN ANGEL PRAYER
Oh Angel of God, my Guardian dear, to whom his love commits me here. Ever this day be at my side to light and guard, to rule and guide. Amen.
Taped to this card is a golden bracelet charm of a happy little angel. I have since added to the contents of this box: hand-written letters to each of my loves...going back to my very first (Robert Matthew Childers). In each letter, I wished them well, and hoped to be with them again; only this time to never part. (Looks like I'm destined to have quite a retinue of gorgeous lover-dudes. Do you hear me complaining? Nah!) Also in this box is a folded printout of a newsgroup message by one "Flora":
---begin Flora's message:
From: Flora and Eric Floen (floendesign@earthlink.net) Subject: Re: My First Prophecy Fulfilled Newsgroups: alt.religion.shamanism, alt.religion.wicca, alt.religion.druid Date: 2000-12-18 15:29:38 PST
Thank you. I like to think that people can disagree on an issue and still be friends, but this is only possible through courtesy. You work very hard to promote awareness of your views, and though I find some of your methods exasperating at times, I respect your commitment and the diligence with which you pursue your particularly unpopular cultural goals. One thing I will allow no one to say, is that Zeke Krahlin is a quitter or a sellout, or that disapproval discourages him. No matter what the discouragement, Zeke keeps on fighting.
For that, I salute you most profoundly.
Blessings, FLORA
---end of Flora's message
The box itself is kind of "kitsch", and I would never have kept it, except for the timing of its arrival into my life. Obviously, my angel was responding to my prayer, with a delightful gift of reassurance. He's also very corny, and uses "kitsch" to facilitate his absurd sense of humor. He's half-Scot and half-Irish, and very big on Celtic and pre-Celtic lore. That's my Randolph for ya!
For a temporary time, there is an extra-large sweater folded on my altar. It is a lovely bulk-knit, mostly blue-green, but with speckles of gray throughout, and a few thin horizontal white bands. I bought it for my new best buddy, David...and it looks great on him! He already took another sweater I gave him, and the next cold evening he visits, I'm sure he'll pick up this one, too. He is not homeless, but very poor, living on General Assitance, in a house where a kind person rents him a room.
There are so many mementos on my desk--each with a great story--I can't begin to tell you all but a few! But I will soon have a new altar...a small, free-standing cabinet that is hexagonal in shape. I found it about a month ago, and am just now gearing up to "spring-clean" my room, to make this cabinet the new altar. The story behind this cabinet is truly amazing. You can read about it here:
gay-bible.org/mana...x_gift.htm
Presently, the cabinet sits (slightly recessed) on the left side of my altar, and complements the entire room. It really looks right at home in my humble dwelling!
That's all for now, folks. I hope some will be inspired by my description of the altar, to create their own Altar of Memories. It's really a nice way to reflect on past adventures, and meditate on those people who have come into your life and left it with a spiritual treasure of some sort. FYI, I have another name for my altar, and that's: "Altar of Miracles".
UPDATE 6/21/02: Finally, a photo of my altar:
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Lavender-Velvet Revolution
http://surf.to/gaybible
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