Part the Mists: A Podcast Interview

Rev. Badger and I attended an ADF festival, more of a retreat, with Columbia Grove, ADF, at Trout Lake Abbey in Washington. The entire event was meaningful. We met some pretty brilliant folks, including Phaedra Bonewits, whom neither of us had seen for ages. 

During the trip, I was honored to be asked for an interview with Arin. They asked me quite a few questions about how I ended up where I am. Also included in this issue are words from several members of the ADF Hellenic Kin.

Enjoy! Part the Mists Podcast.

So begins a new chapter...Married Life!

Today, Rev. William Ashton and I were joined in marriage at our home in Longmont surrounded by friends and family. Our presiding clergy was our own Rev. Derek Wrigley, and the ceremony was lovely. I feel blessed and doubly blessed for the love and support of so many wonderful people. May the blessings of love and compassion fuel the fires of your hearths.

By the waters that support and surround us, 
by the sky that stretches out above us, 
and by the land that extends about us, I offer you blessings. 
May your love run deep as the Waters within the Earth. 
May your spirits soar together as you celebrate your joys.
May your dedication to one another be as mighty as the Mountains upon which we stand, 
And may the fire that burns at the center of all things burn within your hearts for all your days.

What do you feel makes a person an effective leader in ADF?

From Leadership Development 1...

In order to succeed as a leader in ADF, there are many traits of which an individual must already be possessed. There is also a vast difference in the traits required for local leaders and international leaders. On a local level, a leader has a better chance for success when they are able to function within a group setting, and basic leadership training will often suffice. Individuals who wish to serve at an organizational level must be able to perform well with little support and be highly self-motivated. ADF does attempt to provide support in some instances, but this is inconsistent and difficult to maintain. We are an organization of volunteers, and we have a tendency to use this as an excuse to cover up the fact that we often do not give our leaders the tools they need to do their jobs.
In order for leaders in ADF to provide a better place for our folk to commune in fellowship and align our values with the work of the Three Kindreds, it is imperative that we instill a better sense of value in the human resources we have as an organization—and the human element may be the only real resource we have. We currently have a wide variety of leaders who are in various stages of burnout, and until we recognize this, we will not be able to provide the healing necessary for these once high-performing individuals to excel once more. It is time to move from “Fast as a Speeding Oak,” which we have used to allow ourselves to stagnate, to “Why not Excellence?”

Isaac’s vision is still relevant and sound. We are drifting as an organization, and sound leadership is required to keep us on task. Our leadership teams do not operate with collaboration or in consensus, which leads to quite a few folks who feel unheard and left out of some of the most basic but important aspects of ADF functionality. We have leaders who have been stating out loud that they are burnt out, and instead of providing relief to them, we have a track record of providing criticism that has even been coupled with a pronouncement of disappointment. In order to be leaders in ADF, we need to begin leading by example, not following the golden rule of “Do unto others as you would have done unto you,” but the platinum rule, “Do unto others that they would have done unto them” or alternatively stated, “Treat others as they want to be treated” (Allessandra, Platinum).

The number one, single most effective way of ensuring success as a leader, as a person that others will willingly follow, is to treat others with respect and dignity and in the manner they want to be treated instead of projecting onto them how we assume they want to be treated based on our own ego-reaction to their situation. Leaders have followers. If no one is following you, or if people are following you out of fear, are you really leading?

Advantages and Disadvantages of the Situational Leadership Theory

            The Situational Leadership Theory (SLT) was developed by Paul Hershey and Ken Blanchard in the 1970’s and is still a highly utilized if not foundational leadership style. SLT describes how interactions between the manager and the employee evolve over time as the employee gains knowledge and experience in their role.

            Early reviewers such as Claude Graeff (1983) criticize the theory nomenclature for the use of “mature” v. “immature” as a means of describing per performance manifestations of job-created exposure, experience, and skill (p. 285). In response, Blanchard, together with Patricia and Drea Zigarmi (2013) gave the theory a facelift, omitted the diminutive terminology, and simplified the overall description. The drill down still includes four distinctive types of leadership style—directing, coaching, supporting, and delegating—to be used in each situation based on the needs of the employee (Blanchard, Zigarmi, 2013, p. 52).

            The advantage of this style is in the assumed relationship that will build between the employee and their manager as the manager fosters the growth and development of the employees on an individual basis. As an employee shows growth, the manager will be able to provide additional responsibilities and freedoms to increase their opportunities to gain knowledge and experience.

            However, there are significant downfalls to this style inherently and  if applied inconsistently.  First, the theory leaves no instruction to allow the employee to take part in the decisions regarding their current skill levels. If the manager does not have the ability to fully assess the status of the employee in terms of need for support and direction, the employee will not receive the support or instruction necessary to complete tasks. The employee must be assessed and reassessed at the advent of each situation, and the theory does not currently state this. Further, this lack of inclusion may actually inhibit the relationship building between the manager and the employee and even create distance between them. There is also no provision for managing a group of individuals who are working on a like project. This can lead to the high performers and low performers alike finding difficulty in engaging. Lack of engagement is a key contributing factor to a decrease in work satisfaction (Blank, Weitzel, & Green, 1990, p. 593).

            Finally, many tasks require direct supervision based on degree level, training, and legal mandate. Norris and Vecchio (1992) point out the risk of this leadership style, particularly when there are a variety of employees with varying levels of experience from external settings. These individuals all require tailored relationships with their leaders, and those who oversee a large number of employees run the risk of fostering only a portion of the employees while others are without proper guidance and supervision (Norris and Vecchio, 1992, p. 845).

            Overall, Situational Leadership as a leadership style can be beneficial. Though there is significant doubt in the usefulness in a general setting, the benefits of the SLT are best-suited to mentoring and succession planning in a career path among peers.

References

Blanchard, K., Zigarmi, P., & Zigarmi, D. (2013). Leadership and the one minute manager:                        Increasing effectiveness through situational leadership II.  New York, NY: Harper                                   Collins.

Blank, W., Weitzel, J.R., & Green, S. G. (1990).  A test of the situational leadership theory.

            Personnel Psychology, 43(3), 579-597.

Graeff, C. L. (1983).  The situational leadership theory: A critical view.  The Academy of

            Management Review, 8(2), 285-291.

Thompson, G., & Vecchio, R.P. (2009). Situational leadership theory: A test of three versions.                The Leadership Quarterly, 20, 837-848.

Spirit of ADF

I have come across quite a bit of food-for-thought in my reading for my master’s program leading me to reflect on a wide variety of topics. My most recent reflection is a combination of the work I’m doing for school and my years in the pagan community. 

In his book, The Nonprofit Narrative, Dan Portnoy asks, “Who is the antagonist of your story?” Each of our organizations has a story that follows the Hero’s Journey. If we want our organization to be successful, he urges us to tell its story. The protagonists are easy to identify. That’s us. But who is the antagonist? 

As I sat with this, thinking about Mountain Ancestors, my mind took me to the greater community and ADF as a whole. Who is our collective antagonist? We must have one if we are bound together with such a clear, unified vision. As I reflected further, my mind wandered to the most recent ADF event, The Wellspring Gathering, where ADF holds the annual general meeting for the organization. Since I was unable to attend this year, I have been watching Facebook for stories, photos, and any other nugget of experience I can glean second-hand from my friends. And then it hit me: the antagonist is loneliness. 

We don’t need one another to pray. The mechanics are all there for us as individual practitioners, and I know that I am one of the many who need alone time with the Kindreds to thrive. What I also need is fellowship. That’s how I found ADF in the first place.

I had been a solitary witch for almost a decade when I was finally tired enough of praying alone to do something about it. I was looking for a coven, and what I found was ADF. I came to ADF through the website, the Wicca v. Druidry page to be exact, and from there, I found the courage to visit a local congregation. I needed to see this in person. I reached out to Three Cranes Grove, and onward my story goes from there. I was hooked. I found a safe, healthy place to pray and commune with other like-minded individuals. I found a rich and thriving community, and they opened up to allow me to be a part of it with ease. 

It is this spirit, the Spirit of ADF, that has fueled my passion for Our Druidry. Who is the antagonist? It is isolation. It is loneliness. What is the mission of our organization; how do we intend to fight this antagonist? By consistently providing a safe and healthy place for polytheist and polytheist-friendly individuals to gather in community to make offerings and build relationships. This is what we are all trying to do in our local groves, and when we gather at festivals, we have this underlying theme of purpose that joins our voices as one when we light our collective fire.

May the fire that burns in our hearts shine with the light of all fires in unity and with love.

Devotional Polytheism and Alone Time with the Kindreds

Devotional Polytheism and Alone Time with the Kindreds

There have been many articles written about devotional practices among polytheists. Folks who have listened to my music already know I am most definitely counted among those with devotional-type practices. 

Before I left Christianity, I was a musician in that realm, too. I played and sang with the worship bands in several churches, and I even led some of the worship music in the college Christian Fellowship group I was in. It was actually the music that kept me from leaving the church, even when I knew it wasn’t the right path for me. I knew I was a polytheist long before I knew anything about Wicca or Druidry or even neopaganism. I didn’t have names for these things. All I knew was singing brought me to a place where I communed with several different beings with distinct energy patterns (I am energy sensitive. Not all people are).

My Wiccan years weren’t full of much music. All the music I produced then was fairly secular and heavy with emotionality. It wasn’t until I joined ADF that I began to blend music with my religious path once more.

I have over a dozen devotional-type songs that I’ve written, but I haven’t written anything in over a year—until this evening. My reflection on this evening’s creation centered on why I have been so lacking in creativity. I mean, I’m a Master Bard, and music has always been such a significant piece of who I am. 

A month ago, we attended the Ad Astra retreat in Kansas where Rev. Badger and I sat on a panel discussing family paganism. One of the statements I made was, “I don’t pray well with others.” This is very, very true, and I know there are others like me. 

As I was reflecting on these two pieces of information, it dawned on me. I don’t pray well with others. I think I actually need to be alone to pray. My personal prayers are private and intimate. In this place alone can I find the stillness and quiet my spirit needs to hear the songs the Kindreds are singing that I so desperately try to catch with my pen and guitar. I need alone time to be a devotional polytheist. Otherwise, I’m just going through the motions.

Fortunately, we are an orthopraxic, right action, religion. Going through the motions is the part that is required. It’s not that I don’t get anything out of these motions, because I do. I love the gift of witnessing others pray. It is a joy that I am blessed with as a Priest. It is renewing to pray with others, and it definitely helps to build good, solid relationships. What I don’t get is anything new.

Devotional polytheism is a way of praying. It’s a way of connecting. And some of us, extroverted or not, need to express our devotional polytheism in private. Much like a seed in the ground, songs and poems and prayers come to me in this solitude, and when I emerge, I have a beautiful blossom to share. 

At the Center: A Song for the World Tree

At the Center: A Song for the World Tree

by: Rev. Melissa Burchfield, ADF Master Bard

Intro: C  F  G  C

Am             Dm              G                  C

      Sing to the Waters, the ever-flowing Sea

F                  C              G

     Sing to the Fire in the Sky

Am                  Dm              G                               C

     Sing to the Waters that flow through you and me

F                     Dm                     Esus               E(maj)

     Sing to the Fire on high that crackles merrily

C             F             G                        Am

     At the center, a spark falls to the sea

F              C                            G

     Boiling Seas and Roaring Waves

C             F                     G                       Am

     At the Center, grows forth the Sacred Tree

               F                                    C 

From the misty depths where the Fire meets Sea
G                         Am

Reaching for the sky

       F                   C             G  C       F   G   C  

Oh, Sacred Tree, grow within me

Sing to the Waters, surrounding all the Land

Sing the Land on which we stand

Sing to the Waters, sing to the Sky above

Sing to the Land, The Earth, The Mother of All

in fullness, joy, and love

At the Center, where Ocean meets the Land

Where misty shapes dance on the breeze

At the Center, the place where life began

By Holy Well, by Fire on High,

By Earth beneath our feet

       F                   C                  G           Am 

Oh, Sacred Tree, hold fast the ways between

       F                   C      G        C          F    G    C      

Oh, Sacred Tree, grow within me

Drop Box Recording