Free To Walk a Pagan Path: Practical Spirituality for Every Day by Alaric Albertsson Page A

else
    in your personal practice, the symbol should be a reflection
    of your own spirituality.
    NOW I LAY ME DOWN TO SLEEP
    Thus began the bedtime prayer I was taught to recite as a
    child. One line of the prayer mentioned that I might “die
    before I wake”, which was a real possibility, but was never-
    theless more than a little creepy for my pre-school imagi-
    nation. My parents were monotheists, as were their parents
    before them, so the prayer was directed to the Biblical god.
    But just because a practice or tradition is Christian does not
    mean that it is not also Pagan.
    Like morning, the moments before you go to sleep are a
    good time to connect with and express your spirituality, but
    there are differences. In the morning many of us are barely
    coherent, and the events of the day have yet to unfold. This
    is why a brief, prepared prayer often works better. The eve-
    ning, though, is a time to reflect on what took place during
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    the day. There will inevitably be specific things to give thanks for, or to ask for guidance about. A memorized prayer might
    be suitable for a small child, but I have found that extempo-
    raneous prayer is usually more appropriate in the evening.
    Mentally list everything good that happened to you over the
    course of the day.
    If you cannot think of any good events, you probably
    need to dig deeper. It is highly unlikely that you are among
    the very few people who never have anything good happen
    to them. In my experience, the majority of those who feel
    that way do so because they take the good things in their lives for granted. Friends, family, your health, a source of income
    (even if this is modest), your home: these are all things to
    be thankful for. Today’s Pagans all enjoy the blessings of the 21st century. Compared to most of our forebears we live in
    luxury. We have light and, in the winter, heat at the touch of
    a switch. Food is readily available at the nearest supermarket
    regardless of any local drought or pestilence. These are won-
    derful blessings.
    Happy people are those who notice that their cups are,
    indeed, half full. By reflecting on the good things that have
    happened throughout the day, and then giving thanks for
    those blessings, you can join the ranks of the happy people.
    Conversely, a prayer before going to bed is also a good
    time to acknowledge the half empty portion of your cup.
    Look back on the day’s challenges, and on the mistakes you
    made, and ask for guidance. Who exactly you ask guidance
    from is your own choice. You might seek guidance from a
    god or goddess who you have a personal connection with,
    but you may as easily ask your ancestors for advice. Put a
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    sprig of rosemary under your pillow so you will remember
    any guidance they give you during the night when you awak-
    en the following morning.
    Since evening is a time for reflection, the bedtime prayer
    is also a good place in the day to offer prayers for those in
    need. These will usually, probably, be the people of your own
    tribe, whether you call this an inhíred or a coven or a kin-
    dred, but you may of course pray for anyone. Praying for
    others in the evening is another way of acknowledging your
    own blessings. It is more difficult to throw yourself a little pity party after you have offered a prayer for those confront-ing truly difficult challenges in their lives.
    Children can be encouraged to think of others by hav-
    ing them send “moon wishes” in the evening before going
    to bed. After tucking your child into bed, ask who he or she
    would like to send moon wishes to. You may need to prompt
    a very young child with several suggestions, but children very
    quickly catch on and enjoy this, naming siblings and other
    relatives, as well as school friends, who they would like to
    bless. After the child has named all who would receive the
    moon blessings, the list of names can be followed with a
    prayer such as this:
    Mona who shines his