Imbolc 1999 Newsletter Paganism 101 - The Tides By Adrianne Harris

"The tide is high, but I’m holding on,
I’m gonna be your number one"
(Blondie, 1981, John Holt)

As has happened a couple of times in this column, a series of questions are posed. They are meant to be places for you to start thinking about your relationship with the natural world around you. It is not an exhaustive list of questions, and I would hope, that as you look at this list, there will be other questions that come to mind - follow these, and see where they lead you. This column is not a ‘how to guide to Paganism’, but is a column to get you thinking about various aspects of the world, and how these might relate in a Pagan world view. All contributions are welcome, be they experiences to share, or columns themselves.

Think about how the world effects you

• Do you know how the tides move in your local area?
• Do you know how the tides are effected by the moon?
• Do you know if you have king tides in your area?
• What significance do you relate to king tides?
• Are you in tune with the changing tides for your area?
• Or perhaps your energy ebbs and flows as the sun grows and dies in the day?
• Are you even effected by the natural world in your day to day life?
• Do the tides impact on when and how you do things?
• Do they influence your moods and thoughts?
• Are you more positive as the tide is rising, and more reflective as it moves back to sea?
• When you swim in the ocean, do you notice if the tide is high or low?
• When your feeling blue, do you look to the moon?
• Do you then look to the tide to see if it is a daily fluctuation, or a monthly one?
• Do you look at the tides when planning rituals, spells, meditations, workings?
• If you live in an intertidal area or a rural area with freshwater lakes, dams and rivers, do you consider the tides at all?
• If you live in a rural environment, where have you placed the element of water on the compass (assuming you work with an elemental system - not everyone does)? When you extend this point on the map, which part of the coast line do you come to? And what’s going on with the tides there?
• Do you know how the tides change all around our great country? (e.g. king tides and tides that range in size and distance covered, as well as length of time between high and low tide, and how long it takes to change, Is it a subtle feel, or a dramatic feel as in the Kimberly’s?)

Have fun with these questions, and feel free to share your thoughts or experiences with the rest of us! Blessed Be.