Week 1 of "The Dedicant Program through the Wheel of the Year"

A Quick Introduction...

So, this is about my 5th or 6th time attempting to get through the Dedicant Path work since I joined ADF. In the past, I've run into many snags that dropped me off the wagon: mislaying my journal and other materials, illness, work issues, and procrastination.

I'm hoping this time it sticks. I've changed my outlook on the DP, and my approaches towards completing it. I want to utilize Michael Dangler's excellent "The ADF Dedicant Program through the Wheel of the Year" booklet because it directs the student to carve out regular time to complete spiritual work -- something I've been sorely lacking over the past several years.

And I'm already a little behind in terms of the schedule I've worked out for myself, but only by about a week. I didn't make it to Cedarlight Grove for the Samhain ritual (and didn't have a viable back-up plan in place to do a ritual at home), so now I'm a ritual longer in completing the work, but that's ok.

This blog, linked to the Gmail account that I utilize for ADF email lists, will house my DP work over the next 12 months. I hemmed and hawed about putting it online, but you can't misplace a blog. Plus, this is all stored on the cloud, so it's unlikely to get zapped (though I will be saving off copies on my external hard drive at home, just in case).

After completing the DP, I hope to go on to other training programs, and plan to house that work here, too. For now, this place will be solely about my Dedicant work. The name, Spiraling Flame, honors both the spiraling journey we take through life and my patroness, Brigid.

Without further ado, my journal reflection on Week #1 of the DPttWOY (this is the acronym I'll use to save time in the future):

Week #1 Homework

Why have you chosen to take the first steps on the Dedicant Path?
I want to learn the path of ADF Druidry, and I want to take other training courses offered by ADF. The DP is the gateway to that. Druidry can enhance my path of Witchcraft and will bring me a step closer to building a path of Celtic Witchcraft that is inspired and embraces the old ways and practices rather than just being "Wicca with Shamrocks".

Is this a step on your path, or will this become the Path itself?
Both, I think. Learning Druidry is a step on the path I believe I'm on, but it's also a viable practice in and of itself. I like the emphasis on honoring the Gods and forging strong relationships with them, which I find is lacking from a lot of contemporary approaches to Witchcraft which envision the Gods as archetypes rather than as some sort of distinct beings.

What do you expect to learn?
I never "expect" anything, but I would like to learn about the Irish Gods, how the Ancestors honored them, and how I might add those ideas to my practice. I expect to find some way to put together regular devotional practice. I expect to come away with a deeper understanding of myself, how I view my spiritual journey, and how Druidry can inform that.

What would you like to get out of this journey?
Fun. Wonder. I'd like to learn some new things, feel more confident in my relationships with the Gods. Learn  how to put into practice things I've reading about and only wishing I could do. I'm hoping to become grounded again, after feeling lost and drifting for a few years. I still love Wicca, and I still consider myself Wiccan, but I've come to realize that I need more, spiritually, than I was getting out of my practices of Wicca. I needed to add something new to the mix.

Do you know where this path will take you?
No clue. I've learned that it isn't wise to chart the trip too tightly, or you miss a lot of scenery and serendipedous missteps along the way. I know, roughly, what direction I'd like to be heading in, but I intend to stay loose and go with the flow, and see where the roads and rivers take me through this forest.

If you have been in ADF for a long time, why are you starting only now?
I've actually started the DP several times over my time in ADF, only to flame out a few months into the process. Although the "Wheel of the Year" booklet isn't a mandated way to take the course, I like that it breaks things down into small chunks per week. I need to develop a more regular spiritual practice, instead of working in fits and starts as the mood takes me, so having regular work every week is a way to meet that goal.

On the other hand, it is a bit like falling off the wagon when I end up getting distracted from the work for weeks on end. I have a bad habit of putting my spiritual needs last, and then being bitter about that. I'm hoping this time, it sticks. I've changed approaches and attitudes, I'm starting to attend functions at my local Grove... I want to go through this work now for the sake of doing the work and recentering myself, and not necessarily because I want to do other training programs. Yeah, I do want to do other training programs, but I've come to realize that the DP isn't the entrance exam to those things. It's country I need to travel through before setting off on any other journeys.

Does it look hard or easy?
It looks challenging. But that's good. If it was easy, everyone would do it, and pagan paths are never easy. Sometimes there's smooth sailing, but these aren't paths for people who want everything spoon-fed to them and wrapped up in gilt boxes. But it doesn't look overly hard or demanding, either.

Which requirements appear to be difficult to you now, and which appear to be easy?
The easiest things are often the hardest... attending the 8 high day rituals looks easy, until you hit a roadblock. Like you plan to attend Grove ritual, but something comes up, and you didn't plan for ritual at home. So you let it slide. This is how it goes with me, and it's one challenge I'm approaching with different strategies this time around.

The reports and such look difficult, but only because I tend to overachieve. Reading a few books or doing a little research isn't hard, but I'll need to resist my temptation to write a dissertation on everything. The DP reviewers don't want 100+ pages of material to review.

Meditation and visiting my nature spot may or may not be difficult. It depends on how successful I am at carving out regular time to work on my spiritual things, as opposed to just laying on the couch and watching TV or thumbing through a book. I get tired at night and my motivation isn't always there.

Do you have doubts, questions, or concerns that you need to ask about?
I do have serious doubts that this time, things will "stick". But I need to press on through all that. I'm definitely hoping to get a mentor once I formally join the Grove this weekend. I need someone to be available to give me a kick in the butt when I'm getting too bogged down in other things. I think the requirements are straightforward, and as long as I remember to be concise and not write term papers, and to not neglect my spiritual work in favor of too much couch-potato time, I'll be fine.