Let me start off by saying that I’m not a big fan of introductions, as I think they typically leave a lot of questions unanswered. I can’t possibly tell you every relevant detail about myself in the space of a few paragraphs, and I find reducing myself down to small key points incredibly frustrating, as I am avidly against reductionist thinking.

So, I’ll start with the basics. Then, if you have questions, feel free to ask them. I’ll do my best to answer them.

In the mundane world, I am a graduate student working towards obtaining a Masters in History from Appalachian State University, the same school from which I obtained my BA in History. I also work as a graduate teaching assistant in the History Department.

From here on out, the rest of this information is pertinent to Paganism.

I started working with Loki nine years ago, and I began serving him as a priest about three years ago. Right after I started serving him in that way, he made it fairly clear that he wanted me to create a space where people who honored him could come together in a community without having to fear being ridiculed by those around them. After a brief discussion with Karlesha Silverros, we decided to create a Facebook community, since it’s easier to bring people who are part of a minority together online than it is to bring them together in person.

In that regard, Loki’s Wyrdlings (facebook community) and Loki University are the two main things I do in my service to Loki. I also give him many offerings, and those offerings typically include chocolate (esp. orange chocolate), and toys – especially toys that are problem-solving puzzles like Rubix cubes.

The other relevant Pagan information to tell you, I suppose is that I’ve been Pagan for 18 years and largely solitary – completely solitary for the first 16. Even though I’m fairly comfortable in my path due to that experience, I am always learning. I strive to learn as much as I can, and that may be a product of the fact that I am oath-sworn to Odin. I wear the Valknut instead of Mjolnir for that reason, and I do so with the full knowledge of what this path means. I also serve Odin as a vitki.

I ascribe to what has been come to be called “hard” polytheism, although I would just call myself a classical polytheist. I do not ascribe to the view of “all gods in one source” view or the view that gods can be broken down into archetypes. That comes from my strong distaste of reductionism, and I refuse to reduce the gods down. That said, each god, from my perspective, does carry multiple aspects, and it is sometimes easier to understand each aspect alone. However, it is important to remember that all aspects are always present. That’s all I’ll say on that for now.

I believe in developing close, intimate relationships with the deities I honor (and by intimate I mean in the friendship sense, just to clarify), and I believe each deity possesses their own agency, so I treat them as such by showing them the respect they deserve. That said, the list of deities I honor within the Norse pantheon is as follows: Odin, Loki, Thor, Ullr, Mani, Tyr, Freyr, Freya, Sigyn, and Niorun.

Outside of the Norse pantheon, I honor Quetzalcoatl, Bastet, and Hermes Trismegistus. I blame my roommate for how Quetzalcoatl came into my life, as she works with the Aztec pantheon. To a small degree, Bastet as well, since my roommate is primarily Kemetic, but I can’t blame her to the same degree as she doesn’t work with Bastet. She doesn’t work with Quetzalcoatl either, but she does work with his brother. It’s a long-standing joke between us. As for Hermes Trismegistus, he is the only syncretic deity I’ve ever had approach me. As an aside, he is a syncretic combination of Hermes and Thoth (Jehuti/Tehuti).

As for my personal practice, outside of honoring the gods through libation and ritual, I try to live my life in honor of the gods. Everything I do serves as an offering to the gods – the career I’m pursuing is, itself, an offering to Odin. That is how deeply I live.

In my local community, I serve as a seer, a priest to both Loki and Freyr, a polytheologian, and a historian. In terms of my role as a seer, I was trained in a closed family practice from a young age, so I understand spirit work and the dangers associated with it fairly deeply. On my mother’s side, I am a direct descendant from the MacGregor clan who was (and is) known for their uncanny psychic foresight, especially in matters of strategy and war. On my father’s side, I am a descendant of the De Léon family. The first recorded name of that family was Moses de Léon, a Spanish rabbi and Kabbalist who lived c. 1250-1305 and is believed to be the composer of the Zohar. For those unaware of what the Zohar is, it is the core text of the Kabbalah.

In my community, I help those around me learn to harness and access spirit in a safe manner when I am able. I spend a large bulk of my time trying to either prevent people from doing something stupid or cleaning up the mess people make by doing something they thought they were prepared to do until they got in over their head. I live in an area where the veil between the worlds is at its thinnest, and I have had to deal with demonic entities several times over the past two years. More and more people are beginning to see spirits and deal with the ramifications of the thinning veil, and I worry for the safety of everyone who approaches spirit without the right training. I don’t want to see anyone get hurt.

That said, I supplement my seer skillset with Norse shamanism, and I also largely adhere to the cosmological view of the Norse world – especially when it comes to things like Wyrd and the way time works.

Of all the principles I adhere to, this one is the most important: Everyone is free to live as they choose, free to believe as they choose, if and only if they do not threaten to harm me, my family, my friends, or the people in my communities.

So yeah, that’s me, severely reduced. Please feel free to ask questions.

I stand firmly behind Declaration 127, and I will never support racism or supremacy in any form.