Introduction

I have a lot of tools downstairs in my basement, in the back where people don't normally spend their time.  I probably can't name all the individual tools that I have without looking at them.  I probably can't tell you their exact positions in the room relative to each other. 

I don't have to.  If I see something that I need to work on, I can usually tell which tool I need to use to do the job.  And I can usually go in and find it quickly, because I basically know everything I have in there and generally where everything is.

They are my tools, and when I need one, I know where they are and which one to use to get the job done.

It is my hope that The Living Rede will be a valuable tool in your life.  You don't need to know it by heart.  You don't need to be able to recite it from start to finish.  Just know it is there and you can pull out the parts you need when you need them.  Just like my tools downstairs.

The Living Rede (or just "the Rede" from here on) is basically my entire belief system distilled down to a few concise points.  I was definitely "in the zone" when I wrote it, writing all but three stanzas in a single morning of inspired clarity.  Something happens when you put your thoughts down on paper.  It makes them more real.  Tangibly real.  In fact I had tears in my eyes and was very emotionally affected by the act of taking what my heart felt and putting it on paper - making it "real" and tangible for the rest of the world to see.  I guess it's kind of like publishing your diary - it's your core out there for everyone to see.

My purpose in expanding the rede to a full course is to try to explain the points that may not be immediately obvious to people other than me, and to try to show how it flows from one point to the next.

I am also hoping to get people to think about things from a different perspective, and what may not "click" the first time you hear it may ring true when it is spelled out a different way.

So here we go...

Before I wrote this, I had been feeling spiritually disconnected.  I had been too wrapped up in running my business, taking care of my customers, and trying to spend enough time with my new family after having a new little boy.  I had been spending all of my time in Mundania, the purely physical, or "mundane," world that we find ourselves in if we don't take time to connect to Spirit, God, your Higher Power, or whatever you relate to when you look beyond yourself.

To try to get back in touch with Spirit, I decided to take a class at the local new-age bookshop, as I personally relate better to the "free spirits" that are often found there than the people in the local churches.    Though I do not truly consider myself Wiccan, I have found their beliefs to be the most in line with mine of all the religions I have seen.  So off to the "Bell, Book and Candle new age mystical emporium" in Baltimore for a Wicca 101 class to get myself back into the world of active spirituality.

One of the first assignments (yes, they actually had the nerve to give us homework!) was to write a poem as an introduction to our Book of Shadows (a mystical-sounding name for a personal journal documenting your magical and spiritual experiences).  We had discussed the Wiccan Rede (see Appendix A) in class, and I decided that I wanted my introduction to be an explanation of how I see the universe works.

This is what I came up with.  Off to the musings...

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