Post by cass on Jan 26, 2015 17:38:49 GMT -6
Hey, I'm Cass (or Toasty). I have a spiritual tumblr and a tumblr for basically anything else and that's pretty much it for my active web presence atm. I'm a Gaelic polytheist who honors Manannán, Lugh and Brigid. I would like to devote myself to Manannán, but my mental health keeps making me unsure of how good of an idea that is. Unlike most Gaelic polytheists, I've felt largely drawn to the Isle of Man over the last several years (Manannán's fault clearly), so I've been trying to do my best to learn more about Manx customs, folklore and history. I've also been dabbling a bit in sea witchcraft lately.
When it comes to spiritual background, I grew up in a non-religious house (chemists for parents who are pretty skeptical about everything, though not anti-religious) and have an extended family full of Catholics. It can be weird having both those views influencing how you see the world and they're both definitely things I'm trying to get past. I started getting really into witchy sorts of things in the late 90s (mostly this meant raiding my mother's herb rack to make weird mixtures of things and meeting up with a couple of friends to be weird during full moons - I was like 13), then got interested in druids and Welsh mythology in highschool. I'm not sure exactly how long I've been focused on Gaelic polytheism, but it's been several years at this point.
Outside of religion, my great love is music. I worked several years on a BA in music (with a minor in religious studies) before dropping out a few years ago. Mainly I play cello and sing, though I can play other instruments as well. I'd really love to get together with other Gaelic polytheists to create spiritual music for offerings and hymns and such that aren't the same neo-pagan chants I see everywhere, but the only person I've really talked to about this lives in England, which makes things difficult. Social justice and activism is another thing that's incredibly important to me, and something I'd like to include as part of my spirituality. Other than that, fandom and learning random things are pretty much my hobbies right now.
I'm gender fluid and consider myself queer as my gender makes my sexuality difficult to define. I have ADD and most likely fall somewhere on the autism spectrum, as well as chronic depression, generalized/social anxiety and a slew of other learning disabilities. Accessibility is something that I've had a lot of problems with in recon circles and I can't wait to work with others here on coming up with ways to improve this in our communities. My mental health and chronic pain issues are something I've been needing to work out in terms of my spirituality, it's probably the area I've been having the most issues with.
When it comes to spiritual background, I grew up in a non-religious house (chemists for parents who are pretty skeptical about everything, though not anti-religious) and have an extended family full of Catholics. It can be weird having both those views influencing how you see the world and they're both definitely things I'm trying to get past. I started getting really into witchy sorts of things in the late 90s (mostly this meant raiding my mother's herb rack to make weird mixtures of things and meeting up with a couple of friends to be weird during full moons - I was like 13), then got interested in druids and Welsh mythology in highschool. I'm not sure exactly how long I've been focused on Gaelic polytheism, but it's been several years at this point.
Outside of religion, my great love is music. I worked several years on a BA in music (with a minor in religious studies) before dropping out a few years ago. Mainly I play cello and sing, though I can play other instruments as well. I'd really love to get together with other Gaelic polytheists to create spiritual music for offerings and hymns and such that aren't the same neo-pagan chants I see everywhere, but the only person I've really talked to about this lives in England, which makes things difficult. Social justice and activism is another thing that's incredibly important to me, and something I'd like to include as part of my spirituality. Other than that, fandom and learning random things are pretty much my hobbies right now.
I'm gender fluid and consider myself queer as my gender makes my sexuality difficult to define. I have ADD and most likely fall somewhere on the autism spectrum, as well as chronic depression, generalized/social anxiety and a slew of other learning disabilities. Accessibility is something that I've had a lot of problems with in recon circles and I can't wait to work with others here on coming up with ways to improve this in our communities. My mental health and chronic pain issues are something I've been needing to work out in terms of my spirituality, it's probably the area I've been having the most issues with.
