I may have been born smack in the middle of Generation X... but, with a West Coast mom that was a closeted hippie (a copy of "Sun Signs" on her nightstand, no less), my fate was sealed.

There was a framed painting on the wall above my crib with my birth details surrounded by illustrations of all the zodiac signs. I remember looking around the ring of animals and figures every night to fall asleep. In middle school, I found books about Jain, witchcraft and Buddhism in boxes of my mom's college things. (She didn't practice witchcraft. She was just interested in learning about all these mystic practices, because it was the 1960-70's.)

After my mother passed, I found even more books and knickknacks she had been acquiring since college, related to every alternative spiritual practice you can imagine... she was intrigued by all of it. I inherited all her astrology and tarot books and cards, but also her fascination with mysticism, mysteries and miracles.

I mean... come on. I didn't stand a chance. All the "Reality Bites," Depeche Mode, theater class and brooding teenage nihilism in the world couldn't have kept my dreamy mystic side down.

I immersed myself in it, any chance I got. It was a natural curiosity, but also a way to learn things that my mother had learned -- and stay closer to her memory, in a way. I studied color theory, voodoo and santeria, astronomy, astrology, and the symbols of ancient Egypt. Dharma, Gnosticism, Shinto... yep. I have superstitions for days. Plus lots of opinions on the occult and esoteric: energywork, horseshoes, ancient Greek cults, numerology, the Kumari? Sit next to me, I'll dish. The Eleusinian mysteries? I didn't even have to look that up to spell it right just now. Runes, tea reading, palm reading, mommy mushroom retreats... you get the idea. All of it fascinates me.

And all the major world religions and belief systems, of course. Want to talk about transubstantiation? The wife of Jesus Christ? The threads uniting the Abrahamic religions? Opus Dei? The Stations of the Cross? The ecstasy of St. Teresa and why it matters that her exhumed remains are "uncorrupted"?

I'm your girl. I'm obsessively curious, I love learning, and I love mystery. Earth is a big wild planet -- and as humans, what we know pales in comparison to what we don't. Who is to say what among all these mysteries, beliefs and rites is real or not? I find that the more someone claims they know, the less they likely actually understand. And so many of these practices are essentially doors to higher self-awareness, anyway. Which is a good thing no matter which door you choose to enter.

So I study and synthesize everything mystical... even as my cynical, pragmatic, rational side (the one that works for government officials, has a 401K, and carries strong opinions about the Oxford comma) knows that much of our human mysticism is just fable and campfire tales.

But not all of it. And maintaining a sense of curiosity, wonder, and belief in the possibilities around what we don't know are good for us. (Ironically, that's science. Just wait till I get going on the intersections between spirituality and neuroplasticity.)

This is hilarious. >>>

I told the AI image generator to make an illustration of a "brunette in her 40's with a background of stars and planets"

and apparently it heard, "take Kelly LeBrock from Weird Science and draw her like a fortuneteller." 🤦‍♀️

Whatever. Totally keeping it.

tl;dr

Rational, middle-aged, reasonably-productive member of society likes to use mystic concepts, traditions and symbols to help make sense of a crazy world for herself and her friends...

and nobody gets hurt.

So, I say... let's play with what appeals to us, and let the nihilists and evangelists sort out the rest.

Life is already hard enough, to go without any magic at all.

Embrace your sense of "why tf not?" and see where it leads you.