Sewing for Athena

Last updated on: January 26, 2015 at 9:07 pm by Guest Contributor

Sewing for Athena 2015-01-26T21:07:32+00:00 Guest Contributor

LOGO Patheos Explore the world's faith through different perspectives on religion and spirituality! Patheos has the views of the prevalent religions and spiritualities of the world.

by Conor O’Bryan Warren

Athena's shrine. Image courtesy of the author.

Athena’s shrine shortly after being cleaned.

I stand before the shrine, my heart beating faster and faster as I get ready to present the pillow I made. I say my opening prayers and make the first round of offerings, raise up the agalma, place the pillow under it, and set it back down. The fit is perfect. I perform some divination to make sure everything went over well and it appears that it did. Athena was satisfied with my handiwork and the effort put into making the log cabin pillow.

Athena first compelled me to get involved with Hellenic Polytheism, and She provided the first impetus for me to begin worshiping the other theoi. She has seen me through severe financial hardships and a rough break-up and has saved me from the brink of failure. When I wake up in the mornings I see her statue first, and in the second round of libations I pour (the first always goes to Hestia), she is honored first. Her shrine receives the most offerings and her name is upon my lips the most. In times of fear, I pray to her for courage. When I need to keep my cool, I pray to her for calm. She is to my life what the sun is to an oak tree. As with the sun, sometimes there are clouds in the way that prevent me from feeling her radiating warmth. Other times the intensity of her presence is so strong that it almost hurts.

To say that Athena is important to me would be one of the biggest understatements I could make. Her presence in my life is its driving force. Everything of any import inevitably becomes oriented towards Her and what She would have me do. Yet, this doesn’t make life easier. I still struggle. I still have to earn a living and try to make ends meet. I get angry, behave childishly, and do things that are unwise. I act rashly and do things that embarrass me, yet at the end of the day I still feel the gentle and guiding hand of the Grey-Eyed Maiden in my life. She allows for errors, I have discovered, but not for laziness. I have found that, as I delve deeper into her worship and into the mysteries that make her her, I am forced to be brutally honest with myself and my motivations. Was I truly incapable of doing something, or did laziness and a lack of discipline get in the way? Honesty has been the key in developing a deeper connection with the Weaver.

Do not mistake her centrality in my life for a belief that she is some kind of divine “helicopter parent,” because I don’t believe that for a single moment. She does not exist to remedy my worries. My relationship with her is not as it is because she desires that I become a better person. Rather, I must become a better person because of what she would have me do. If I am to do the work the she wishes for me to do, there are certain traits and abilities in my life that I have to cultivate. Bluntly put, I’m only 21. I don’t have the experience necessary to do the things she’d have me do. So I train, I cultivate, I stop and meditate at her shrine and ask myself whether the decisions I’m making are going to make me into the kind of man who can do the work she’d have me do… or if I’m going to be the kind of man who just floats on through, who says to himself “good enough” and meets the minimum expectations.

Maybe that sounds a little self-flagellating, but I’m well aware of how easy it is to fall into the mindset of “good enough” and stop pushing yourself. I’ve learned that there is always a chance to refine your skills. And sometimes those skills serve in unexpected ways and take you in strange and new territory. Learning to sew, for example, led me to think about Athena’s many roles and epithets. It also taught me to be patient, to stay calm in the face of failures and set-backs, to avoid frustration when my fellows are sewing more beautifully and effortlessly than me. I learned that sometimes you have to go at your own pace.

I decided to learn how to sew and make costumes because sewing and handicrafts are in Athena’s domain. When I gave that pillow to Athena, I was not simply giving a gift. It was a thank you for all the ways that I became a better person simply by exploring the skills she governs. It was a thank you for the direction she provides my life.

I think I’ll start on another pillow.

Conor O’Bryan Warren is a Hellenic Polytheist who strives to bring back the rites and worship of his gods. He is an actor, writer, and student at the University of North Texas. He is also a member of Hellenion and manages his own blog at http://undertheowlswing.wordpress.com. Conor happily resides in Texas and spends his down time playing WoW with his boyfriend or Left 4 Dead with his roommate.

Arts, Crafts & Cooking

Previous Post

June 23, 2014

Seekers and Guides: Teaching Wiccan Values

Next Post

June 25, 2014 Socially Responsible Magic: Why is Social Responsibility Important?

Browse Our Archives

Select a Category A Lakeside Hearth Adventures in Wortcunning Alone In Her Presence Arts, Crafts & Cooking Birthing Hereditary Witchcraft Book of Blackbirds Book Reviews Born-Again Witch Cauldron, Sword, Spear, & Stone Cermony and Liturgy Columns Community Dandelion Seeds Dear Jasmine Druid Thoughts Editor's Picks Everyday Pagan Family & Household Practice Family Traditions Full Frontal Magic Gateway Goddess Guest Articles Happily Heathen Health and Wellness Hearth of Hellenism Heathen Woman Hills of the Horizon History Holidays Horse Goddesses Interfaith Interviews Irish-American Witchcraft Jewish Witch Lamp & Labyrinth Letters from Midgard Literature, Media, Film, Music Loop of Brighid Love, Sex & Relationships Magic or Magick Making Light Naturalistic Traditions Nature News Outside The Circle Pantheisticon Politics Prayers, Poems, Blessings & Stories Queer Femme Mystic Queer of Swords Recipes Ritual and Practice Science and Research Seekers and Guides Seeking the Grail Socially Responsible Magic Spear of Athena Star Made Witch Syncretic Electric Technology The Blooming Staff The Busy Witch The Cartomancer The Crow's Nest The Dance of Pagan Recovery The Hearth of Hellenism The Lady's Quill The Other Side of the Hedge The Path of She The Rantin' Raven The Witches Next Door The Zen Pagan Theology, Ethics, Philosophy Tree City Witch Urban Earthwitch Wayfaring Woman Witch on Fire Wyrd Words

Select a Month January 2026 March 2025 December 2024 June 2024 April 2024 March 2024 January 2024 December 2023 November 2023 October 2023 August 2023 July 2023 May 2023 April 2023 March 2023 February 2023 January 2023 December 2022 November 2022 October 2022 September 2022 August 2022 July 2022 June 2022 May 2022 March 2022 February 2022 January 2022 December 2021 November 2021 October 2021 September 2021 August 2021 July 2021 June 2021 May 2021 April 2021 March 2021 February 2021 January 2021 December 2020 November 2020 October 2020 September 2020 August 2020 July 2020 June 2020 May 2020 April 2020 March 2020 February 2020 January 2020 December 2019 November 2019 October 2019 September 2019 August 2019 July 2019 June 2019 May 2019 April 2019 March 2019 February 2019 January 2019 December 2018 November 2018 October 2018 September 2018 August 2018 July 2018 June 2018 May 2018 April 2018 March 2018 February 2018 January 2018 December 2017 November 2017 October 2017 September 2017 August 2017 July 2017 June 2017 May 2017 April 2017 March 2017 February 2017 January 2017 December 2016 November 2016 October 2016 September 2016 August 2016 July 2016 June 2016 May 2016 April 2016 March 2016 February 2016 January 2016 December 2015 November 2015 October 2015 September 2015 August 2015 July 2015 June 2015 May 2015 April 2015 March 2015 February 2015 January 2015 December 2014 November 2014 October 2014 September 2014 August 2014 July 2014 June 2014 May 2014 April 2014 March 2014 February 2014 January 2014 December 2013 November 2013 October 2013 September 2013 August 2013 July 2013 June 2013 May 2013 April 2013 March 2013 February 2013 January 2013 December 2012 November 2012 October 2012 September 2012 August 2012 July 2012 June 2012 May 2012 April 2012 March 2012 February 2012 January 2012

TAKE THE

Religious Wisdom Quiz

Who said, "Come and see"?

Select your answer to see how you score.

Paul Philip Peter John the Baptist