Re: Musings on Random Musings
My first memories of growing up were with my mother living with her parents right after she divorced my dad. They (the grandparents) were very Catholic, so they were always going to Church, and usually taking us (me and mom) with them. My mom was not very religious, though, so once she re-married and we moved out, that was the last I saw of Church. Then I was sent to a Catholic High School. True, mom sent me there mainly because it was a college prep school, but religion was still pretty unavoidable.
For most of my life, I considered myself Christian and spiritual, but never religious. Then, in late 2008, early 2009, I had a pretty severe case of cognitive dissonance with certain important elements of Christianity, which (to me) made it impossible for me to keep calling myself Christian. I was spiritually adrift for a while, and found my way into Paganism. There is really no "label" for my Path, though I once heard someone describe me as a "solitary shamanic eclectic practitioner". In other words, I'm not part of a group or coven, and most strongly resonate with shamanism, but will still draw elements from other traditions which also resonate with me.
In fact, today my wife and I are marking the Solstice by driving to the Luray Caverns to pursue personal spiritual guidance.