Just an update. Wish me a happy birthday.

So, I'm taking Frater RO's Supernatural Assistant course. A lot of what he is going over, RO went over with me throughout our conversations over the past two years, but he's expounded on a lot of what he originally said, and the course has given me the opportunity to review everything again in a more coherent form and begin to reapply it after having done a lot of growth and learning.

When I first approached his Neo-Platonic basics, I had an intellectual understanding of the subjects, but a lot of the ideology didn't really sink in. Conjure magick was a very new thing to me and I hadn't yet learned how to pick up on the subtleties of spirit communication, or feeling a difference in the atmosphere, or any number of other factors that lead to a successful conjuration.

Perhaps I shouldn't say they weren't successful -- because the bumpy start is part of the success of the magick. Whether or not you experience noticeable effects, the spirit is present and is going to work for you. The process of change begins from the moment you start drawing out the lamens and the Table of Practice -- you begin interacting with the spheres and they begin harmonizing with your own sphere. A necessary and often painful process, though. My first go round with trying to acquire the Knowledge and Conversation led me to a paranoid mental breakdown and I fell away from spirituality, God, and magick altogether in my personal life. Sure, God is always present, but suffice it to say, I was not.

So, I am happy I decided to take the course. I have honestly forgotten a lot of what I originally learned, or simply read, rather and having acquired more knowledge, wisdom, and experience, I think I'm much for fit for the Work at hand. And honestly, it gives me something better to do than LBRP's every night. Not to say that's always the extent of my magickal Work, but the Neophyte rituals are my daily, no-matter-what rituals.

Even if the Knowledge and Conversation is in the relatively distant future, I fully expect a spiritual transformation from the Work I'm doing starting a week ago. I'm excited about the process and feel more well armed than last time. It's also cool to interact with other people who are using the same tech and trying to achieve the same results (no matter how different the in betweens inevitably will be.)

On a lighter note, my 22nd birthday is on Wednesday (the 18th) and I am getting a tattoo I've been waiting on. Before Scorpio was ever represented by the Scorpion, it was actually represented by the Serpent (Chaldean astrology). I thoroughly believe the Serpent is more indicative of the personality type of the Scorpio and I strongly identify with the animal. Not to mention, they're kind of just bad fucking ass.

So, here's the sketch. The final will be in color, with the M being black and blood red striped and the serpent being green.