Needing My Just "Re-Wards"

It's been a strange few weeks around here. The effects of the last nine months have finally hit me, and they had quite a punch. Consider: I've been through major surgery, extreme pain from the external fixator, re-learning how to walk in a new CRO (which, by the way, is not fitted correctly), the end of several relationships, return to work with its pressures and veiled threats, invasion of privacy, and two expensive repairs to the home. And hey! Let's not forget the mystery hives!

While I braved it through when it was happening, I look back now and get the shakes. Concern about my continued healing process, unanswered questions as to failed friendships, (Am I that bad a judge of character? Are there people who deliberately hurt others for power?), and instability in my industry have me loopy. I'm too young to retire, too broke for another mortgage, and yet I'm slowly being talked into a move to Maryland by my siblings – who are all moving to Maryland.

There are fears from the past, fears for the future, and now my family's been hit with a string of bad luck. There have been layoffs, car crashes, sick shih tzus (no, not Rufus), and a general shake up of the world as I've known it. I'm so exhausted by the time I limp into the house in the evening, I can barely turn on the light. Yet, the phone calls start immediately..like my butt's on a timer. It's my sick elderly neighbor first, then family then friends, then the neighbor again ... and each with their own tales of woe, which they freely share. Then, when finished, they unfailingly ask “Why do you sound so down?”

Call off the flying monkeys!!

It's enough to make you crawl around amidst the squeaky toys, banging the living room floor boards, chanting “Must be a way out...must be a way out...” No, it doesn't help, but Rufus thinks it's a hoot.

 So, what to do. Curled up in my jammies one evening, I though about how my house use to feel cozy. Now, it has a tumbled, stressed overcoat of negativity. I want my cozy back! The answer – new wards. It's time to take back my house, even if the rest of everything is sliding into the flames. Then I thought, why not share the knowledge? So, for those of you needing a clean sweep through your environment, here is a little “re-ward”.

First: Decide what kind of a protective symbol speaks to you. It could be a classical sign, ogham, something from the Druids, Christian, Egyptian, or one you developed yourself. If you'd like, you can even borrow mine (see blurry drawing below). The point is this: the symbol has to mean something to you. Even if you just use a pentagram, make the symbol one in which you can focus your energy, trust, and believe to have the power to protect.

 As to my personal rune, allow me to walk you through the elements: The “V” at the top is actually the horns of the God (Divine Male), and the half circle shape at the bottom is a crescent moon, the “horns” of the Goddess (Divine Female). The vertical line is the “World Tree” that connects all levels of being, and the horizontal lines top and bottom represent the concept “As Above, So Below.” The diamond shape in the middle shows the four corners of the World, and the crossed lines inside the diamond symbolize my property. The waxing and waning moons to either side show a perpetual cycle. In short, this rune says: from wax to wane, from world to world, from above to below, and the land betwixt and between, may my premises be guarded.

You can decide how to make your wards. You can find 4 rather flat stones and draw/paint upon them, you can buy river rocks for the same purpose, or you can even use seashells if they call to you. I decided to make mine from polymer clay, like Fimo or Sculpey. I made 4 flat “cookies” of the primary colors, mixed with a light sand color. I next took a screw driver and pressed it into the clay, making the designs. I baked and cooled them according to the directions, and then outlined the rune figures with a gold art pen.
 

You should now bless your wards with the four elements. Sprinkle them with salted water (Earth and Water), rub a little incense ash onto them (Air), or use your own breath to blow across each ward three times. Finally, pass them through the heat of a lit candle (Fire).

Hold each ward and tell it – aloud – what you wish it to do. Don't be too vague on this. Don't say “Keep all negativity away from my house” because “negativity” comes in all shapes and forms: your own bad mood from a conflict at work, sick kids dragging their tushies over the threshold after school, the bearer of sad news, etc.! It may be better to be specific. For example: “May these wards protect my premises, and all within its borders, from any negativity intended to hurt or cause ill. May Evil be turned aside, as well as deliberate dark acts against us. May our loved ones leave their burdens at the door.” That covers just about everything intentional, as well as bad spirits – metaphysical and human.

Finally, place your wards at the four corners of your property. This doesn't have to be literal. If I were to place my wards in the actual four corners, Rufus would be chewing on two, and the lawn guy's mower would be chewing up the others. I'll place mine at the four corner of the house, tucked in the gardens and under the deck. You can put them inside the four corners of your house or apartment as well. The important thing here is to state your intention: “As I place this ward may it's powers extend beyond this wall, and to the borders of my premises/property.”

Once placed, envision the wards being connected by a line of electric blue energy. See your premises enclosed by this grid of protection, then let the vision fade. Periodically, envision this grid again, to recharge it. You do not have to touch the wards to do this. They can stay where you placed them.

Am I sure this is the time to re-ward myself? Oh yes. I went to see the surgeon in PA yesterday. Everything is progressing fine, except I need a new CRO. I got back to my sister's house without any problems. However, when I went to leave, I did a header into the driveway gravel. I took two years off my poor sister's life, as well as several off my own. Plus, gravel hurts, damn it! My shoulder was wrenched, my arm was scraped, and my knees looked like a connect-the-dots game.

Once home, I went down another two times.

This morning, I am working from home, too stiff to walk or drive. Yeah, it's time for a whopping big dose of “Bad go bye-bye.”

There has been one bit of pleasant news. My piece on Gargoyles in New Jersey will be running in the next issue of Fate Magazine. It will be the one with Yoda on the cover, so watch for it! After the piece is published, I'll add some gargoyles shots, that weren't used, to the next few blogs, along with any pictures readers send me.

Well, that's it. Let me know how the wards turn out for you, and be careful out there. The world has gone mad.