Plagiarism isn't the most sincere form of flattery

Just a brief comment here after a recent incident I had with someone stealing parts of my blog posts from several years ago and trying to pass it off as their own work.  

I write this blog.  Just as it says, I am the sole author of "Flying Off the Broom Handle" and have been for 13 years and counting.  The thoughts I put here are my own opinions, my own tales of experiences I've had or thoughts which may cross my cranial spaces that I felt were worth sharing.  

Sometimes I do this to give readers something to chuckle about or contemplate or question.

Sometimes I write things that were inspired by conversations I've participated in while online or in public pagan spaces.  Things that made me curious or pissed me off.  Things that made me hopeful about the larger pagan scene or made me scratch my head.

But what I write here is my own content.  It has purpose and meaning for me because I've created it, drafted the words and cultivated the phrases.  From the passionate diatribes to the satirical rants...all borne from the witchy heart that resides within my own chest.  ((thump thump, hand to heart))

And so that is why my posts...ALL OF MY POSTS...are held in copyright. 

 
I want the words out there to be read and enjoyed, yes, but I want them to be known as my intellectual property.

If what I say inspires you, then fantastic.  If you have an AH-HA moment from them, that's wonderful!  If you get fired up and want to post a reply or offer a different view than what I've shared, please do!  

But please, be respectful.  If you want to "borrow" from my words, then please do the honest thing and ask.  I generally do grant permission for private use.  

What I don't do is want my words co-opted and used as though they belong to another author, another promoted agenda for which I've not given consent.  It is like having your name stolen, your identity taken or your likeness used to peddle goods that you have no idea you've been associated with.

So yes, I do take the stealing of my intellectual property seriously.  It isn't flattering to have someone outright steal your hard work.  It feels invasive, intrusive and hostile.  Not unlike someone coming into my home and helping themselves to my physical property.  

There are laws against stealing someone's personal property, and yes, there are laws against stealing someone's intellectual and artistic property and passing it off as your own.  Hence the copyright disclaimer, which I legally update every year, as posted on my blog page.

So yeah, plagiarism is ugly and painful.  It cannot be couched in clever, honeyed fawning of "Oh, but you had put things so succinctly and so eloquently, I thought you'd be honored to have it spread to a wider audience" ---- that's so much unctuousness it chokes me. 

Artists, be they famous, infamous, or just garden-variety diarists like me....we hold our creative endeavors dear.  They represent something of ourselves that we uniquely have produced and given to the world.  

We hope that folks will like what we do.  We hope they will find it useful, charming, thoughtful or contemplative.  We hope they will respect and honor the awen that sparked it.  Or the humor which spawned it within and led to the words on the page or screen.

In my case, I hope that readers will find the connection between me as author and themselves in the reading of my blog posts and rambles.

Mostly, I hope that if my readers do have a mind toward gratitude for any of my writing, they simply take a moment to comment, be it to cajole, sympathize or offer cheerful response and comical retort.  

Essentially, like so many things in life:  DON'T TAKE WHAT ISN'T YOURS.  BE RESPECTFUL.  BE HONORABLE.  BE DECENT.

And hey, don't lie.  

  

Yours, Mine and Ours: Is borrowing ok or disrespectful?

Co-opting, or adopting something for one's own use is pretty common in the pagan community.  It is a natural part of learning what is useful in your immediate surroundings or what you've learned from other people already doing herbal or rootwork in your area.

Then there is the tendency of late to decry "cultural appropriation" for every thing that may have cross-over usage in another culture or context.

I believe this is a slippery slope.

While I understand that arbitrarily stealing things from other cultures can be seen as insulting or demeaning, it seems that the great American melting pot is just that...a mixed breed of amalgamated and mutated recipes.

Mindfulness and respectfulness are where we are often lacking, folks.  If an object, gesture or practice holds sacred significance to a particular culture or race or tribe or group, we aught to be careful in our haphazardly adopting portions without taking care to respect the original context and society from which it is derrived.  We should be reverential in our adoptions and usage, and not just bastardize something because it appears to be cool, kitschy, trendy, or superficially aesthetically appealing.  And if we don't fully understand the idea or item in its original context, we really shouldn't just make up our own way of dealing with it out of expediency or a half-assed research citation.

Take the idea of smudging for example. 

I've heard on more than one occasion that using a sage or sweetgrass bundle is potentially disrespectful to First Nations people, as they had a specific protocol and ascribed usage for burning these in ceremonies which are sacred to them.

Well, I would counter that while this is very true and documented as a usage, it may also be said that sage as an herb is not just to be found in the Americas.  It is native to the Mediterranean and was widely used in many ways by our European ancestors in culinary, medicinal and likely magical ways too.  There may be many cultures that have used this herb in similar ways.  So in my opinion, burning sage as an offering or use in magical parlance is not under the sole domain of the First Nations folks and if you are aligned with any number of other groups that also burned sage and other herbs as incense, offerings, gratitude gifts to deity or spirits, then you should be able to use it for similar purpose.

Conversely, the dream catcher --- THAT has origins that are solely a part of Native American culture. 

Thus, I personally would not include it in my random Boho home decor, let alone my personal magical workings without some serious consideration about why I feel sourcing this as a focus without the historical authenticity, intention and....dare I say it...permission to adopt something sacred and use it in my own way, a way for which it was not originally intended by design or spirit.  That smacks of disrespect.

It would be like taking the Eucharist (communion wafers) out of the Ciborium at my local church to use them in my cakes and wine ceremony in circle.  Just because they are imbued with sacred power in the context of a Christian setting and now I want to 'borrow' some of that energy to align with the new context I'm ascribing to them in my own usage....that doesn't make it respectful of the Christian traditions nor does it really provide any "oomph" to my circle rites.  It is not a congruent usage or contextual meaning.  It is piracy of another culture's spirituality.

This, too, is one of the concepts that I'm not sure cherry-picking eclectic folks really grok.  Sometimes this same idea comes in with regard to mixing pantheons of deities or parts of the historic celebrations of a mix of cultures without doing research first to see if they are truly able to be co-mingled without being disrespectful.

Now don't get me wrong, even ol' Gerald liked to adopt things from different cultures, it is true.  But there, I believe, he did research....heck, he actually spoke with tribal elders of said cultures about what they did and why...before he borrowed elements of their teachings to supplement what he was passed by his upline elders.

It is all about being mindful, respectful and thorough of research.  It is not about "gee, that looks cool or sounds like something I should do because I saw somebody else on YouTube do a 5 minute video about it.

If nothing else, the Craft is a life-long study and practice.  It is a school of hard knocks and a school of opening doors.  You should do your best not to learn the hard way, if you can.

Mountains, Meet-ups and Remedies for Being Lonely

Ok, so I made it to Colorado.  I'm here!!  I'm here!!

I'm sort of unpacked (it is a rental until May after all, then we hope to move into a house we BUY).  I'm mostly settled into my new job.  I'm delighted to be living in the same freaking state and house as my long-term love interest.

Now, Hallowe'en/Samhain is fast upon me....and I've got nuthin'.

I've battled through the homesickness of family and friends back in Chicago by way of FaceTime and care packages. 

But what to do without any of my pointy-hatted community of Brothers and Sisters of the Art?  I miss them like crazy.  And at this time of year, they're missing my annual tradition of bringing a Cauldron full of jello-shots to the Samhain feast! 

So what's a lone-witch in a new town to do?


Why....go back to school, of course! 

A goodly dose of humility and an opportunity to see how a western Wicca 101 looks from this new scene is in order.

Had attended a lovely, well-comprised lecture about "Magick and Spellcasting" today, as directed and hosted by a practitioner who appears to have actually had some training.  She knew her stuff and was an excellent speaker. 

I learned a lot.  I reinforced a lot.  I was grateful as heck to have a few knowing smiles thrown my way since it would seem that teacher figured out I was a ringer auditing the class. 

I had to smile throughout because this particular class was one of my favorites to teach and it was illuminating and delightful for me to view it from the student's chair all over again.  In any case, I walked out after thanking her for the lesson-within-the-lesson and was greeted by a warm autumnal day with a sunny, resplendent, Colorado bluebird sky.

One way to meet new friends is to go back to trying on the newbie hat for the day.

DEJA BROOM: Miss Manners For The Pointy Hat Crowd

"DEJA BROOM" denotes a blog repost from my old site.  Feel free to read anew, or refresh your memory to re-live the ranty goodness.  Otherwise, feel free to skip ahead to more modern mayhem

Did you know that there are delicate matters of etiquette and protocol you are expected to know and abide by when attending a ritual, even an open, public one?  Are you aware of what is expected of you as a guest to someone's covenstead and circle, so you don't make an embarrassing faux pas or accidentally insult your hosts?

 Some of these tips below are common sense and a few are requisites for the more traditional type circle arrangements, but it doesn’t hurt to err on the side of decorum even if attending a non-specific ritual gathering.

Ask permission before bringing outsiders with you. The reason for this is two-fold: unless otherwise stated in the invitation, it may extend only to you because of your relationship with the hosts. Outsiders, even spouses or family members may need to be cleared with the hosts or the other participants first. The second reason is that the hosts may be using the RSVP’s to their invite for a head count so they have enough supplies for the ritual or enough food for the feast.

Don’t come empty handed. This is, foremost, a hospitable ‘thank you’ to your hosts for all their planning and gracious use of space. A dish for the potluck feast, a bottle of wine or mead, flowers for the altar….all is wonderful gestures. Additionally, some invitations cite that the host group may be collecting canned goods, clothing or other items to give to charity. Or that they may accept, or even require, a monetary contribution to cover the expenses of materials used or the space rental if in a large forum. Sometimes these monetary contributions are on a sliding scale, but don’t be so gauche as to expect to not pay anything at all if the hosts have alerted you about this up front. Springing a “pass the hat” on you without prior warning, however, is tacky on their part.

Have robe, will travel. Most invitations will state whether or not street clothing is acceptable. And it is pretty darn unlikely that a semi-public or public event will be skyclad. For the most part, it is customary to have your own ritual robe to wear while in circle. Some hosts may have a spare for guests to use in a pinch, but don’t assume they will have one set aside for you….or that it will fit! If you don’t own a robe, usually Renaissance wear or all-black attire is a good choice for a substitute. Do not wear anything with monstrous logos --- save your Dickies shirt or your favorite sports team jersey for your own time!!

Bring your own personal working tools. Just like the robe, you should have your own personal working tools with you and not expect them to be provided. It goes without saying that you cannot expect to borrow any old athame! Should you find yourself without yours, just use your finger. Be aware that in some traditions, female witches are also “required” to wear a necklace of some sort. If you don’t have one, ask the hosts to borrow something.

A simple, yet powerful word: Hygiene.  It may sound ridiculous to have to put this on the list, but I can attest to having been in some public circles where this should have been on the loudspeaker. Brushing one’s teeth and bathing are mandatory. Some covensteads may offer facilities to freshen up if you’ve traveled some distance to attend, but don’t rely the hosts giving you a place to take a full-on shower if you’re coming to circle straight from your workout or whatever. Please arrive clean and groomed. Also be very sparing with your cologne/perfume; better to skip it entirely. I’ve been to rites where the person next to me was so overwhelming as to distract or clash with the incense. Please know that eau de parfum is not a substitute for soap and deodorant!!

Let your hair down. Again, according to myth, folklore and what is mandatory to some traditions, your hair should not be plaited or bound during ritual. Some say it is the work of the faery, some say it knots up the personal magic, some say it tangles the energy of the circle. Whatever the reason, it is nice to be completely unfettered during the rite…just be careful if you’ve got waist-length locks and are dancing near the quarter candles!!

Be on time….or if you’re unavoidably running late, do the courteous thing and CALL.  I cannot stress enough how completely obnoxious it is for people to use that lame-ass excuse of “Pagan Standard Time.” It is unaccountably rude to your hosts and the other attendees who have managed to arrive on time to have to alter their schedules to wait around for you. It may be that the ritual itself has a time-sensitive component which cannot be halted because you got caught in traffic, couldn’t find your keys or whatever. If you’re running late or have a flat tire, please be mindful that the universe does not revolve solely around you and call your hosts. Allow them the option of continuing to wait for you, to start the rite and cut you into circle late or else ask that you skip the rite this time.

Make your own babysitting arrangements.  Do not assume that it is ok for you to bring your kids or pets to the hosts’ home and that they will find something to keep them occupied while the adults are in circle. Either find a babysitter or call the hosts to ask if it is alright to bring your children. If you are allowed to bring them, you are responsible for their behavior and responsible for keeping them busy/occupied during the circle. Don’t expect that your hosts will have entertainment set aside for them or allow constant interruptions of the rite to cut you in and out of circle to attend to your children’s needs.

No talking or giggling during circle.  You would think it obvious that folks who attend the ritual would want to pay attention and participate fully, wouldn’t you? Unfortunately, there are always a few who think it is playtime and who find that if the attention isn’t on them, that it is appropriate to make comments under their breath, make sound effects, start giggling or goofing around or otherwise draw attention to themselves. If you cannot control your borderline ADHD behaviors, perhaps you should rethink your participation in a group setting. For all intents and purposes, you are like a visiting dignitary in someone else’s kingdom.

Treat the hosts with respect and you will be treated likewise.  Do not critique the ritual while it is in progress; besides, most folks don’t want to hear “in my group, we do it this way” sorts of feedback. Even if you have something nice to say, please save it for private disclosure after the rite.

No drugs or alcohol prior to the rite.  This too goes along with being responsible for your behavior…..hello Rede anyone? Intoxicants and hallucinogenics alter your cognition and perceptions. Those around you in circle who come to expect a certain level of perfect love and perfect trust from their fellow attendees cannot be confident that you will behave accordingly if you are drunk, disorderly or spaced out. If the objective of most rituals is to get everyone on the same mental/emotional/spiritual plane, it is immensely difficult to do if a participant is whacked out on something. This may also include the ingestion of some over-the-counter cold or allergy medicines too. So if the warning label says “do not drive or operate heavy machinery,” chances are it is probably not good for you to take prior to ritual.

If you’re sick, do not share in the communal cup or do not attend the ritual.  Please don’t spread your illness to others, especially in light of this latest round of cold and flu season! If you’re sick, stay home. If you’re recovering from being sick, please be considerate and not partake of the communal cup. Asks the hosts to give you your libation in a separate vessel or else just “kiss the cup (at the base)” when it is passed ‘round the circle to you but do not imbibe.

Find your own transportation.  Kindly make your own arrangements to get to and from the ritual site. It is not the responsibility of the hosts to retrieve you from the airport or the train station. If you don’t have your own vehicle, call a cab or share a ride with other attendees, etc.

Disclose any allergies. This may seem a bit silly, but it is practical. Outdoor rituals have the episode of bee or wasp stings. Some indoor rituals are hosted in homes that have pets and if you’re allergic to fur, feather or other pet dander you could be in for a sneezy night! Same goes for food allergies. Best to know up front if you should skip partaking in the ritual cakes if they might contain tree nuts or other ingredients which would make you need a trip to the ER. Doesn’t hurt to ask.

When proper, do not disclose real names of participants. Out of respect for privacy, there are some events where the participants may wish to be known by a pseudonym or “circle name” only. Do not “out” anyone by their real-world name if you happen to know it unless you have permission to address them as such.

Always move deosil in circle, unless expressly directed to do so by HP/HPS. A good way to remember this is always walk with your right side facing the center of the circle. Perhaps it is a superstition, but for some traditions, this idea is further extended in that you are not to do any ritual movements or gestures using your left hand (even if you are left handed). You may want to either ask the hosts or just observe what is customary for that group and follow along.

Try to stand in alternating ‘Male-Female-Male-Female’ while in circle. Again, this may be a strict rule for some groups and an ideal situation but not mandatory for others. When in doubt, it seems best for energetic purposes to position participants in this manner. Take a cue from the host group as to whether or not they observe this custom.

Go to the bathroom beforehand. Just like when you leave for a long car ride, please take care of your private business before things get underway. It is disruptive to the circle’s energy to have to cut people in and out of the sacred space for potty breaks. Pregnant women do get special dispensation for this though. *grin*

Shut off your cell phone, Bluetooth, iPod or other electronic device.  It is all about not disrupting the flow of energy folks. Not only should you NOT have such electronic device with you in circle, but please turn them on mute or completely off during the rite. Nothing shatters group concentration like hearing your annoying ringtone or the rhythmic buzz of your cell in the background of a meditation or during a pinnacle point of the ritual.

Be aware of any “home court” rules. Different covens or groups have their own local preferences. For example, if they put their altar in the East and you’re used to working with yours in the North or the Center, you have to abide by their local customs while on their turf. Do not expect to impose the version of ritual style you may be used to working in someone else’s ritual space. If you fear something may be so distracting or abhorrent to you that you do not wish to participate, ask to be cut out of the circle and quietly, peaceably leave the ritual. Do not wage a formal protest in the middle of the circle.

Lastly, say 'Thank You!'  A little courtesy is worth a lot these days.  Showing appreciation for the amount of time and effort your hosts have put into the event is gratifying....and may garner you more invites in the future!Should the ritual you plan to attend not advise you of these things by word of mouth or as a part of the written or online open invitation, it is in your best interests to contact the hosts in advance to make inquiries BEFORE the event. Chances are they will be busy on the day of and may not have time to answer you properly or fully, so be contentious and ask them well ahead of time.
- - - - -