Innovation is something I struggle with in magic. Because on one hand, I have strong feelings about not trying to turn one's washing machine into a nuclear reactor. On the other, at some point everything was someone's UPG at one point. Where is that delicate line in the sand where you're being innovative in your own personal practice that stops just before you're invoking Oya and Yemaya in a closed circle because they're both orishas so they must work together well, right?
Sidebar: Gordon and I had an interesting discussion during his Shen visit. People are quick to be like, oh no you mustn't ever ever invoke Deity X from Y pantheon and Deity Z from A patheon! To me that's never made sense and I couldn't figure out why. I mean, yeah, they don't know each other and may find each other offensive but it's not like they've been to a million dinner parties together and had enough time to really work up a good hate-on for each other in all likelihood unless their customs run against each other's. Gordon pointed out that when you invite two deities from the same pantheon, they likely already have an established feud whereas deities from two different pantheons (besides again, offensive behavior but even that most people/deities are willing to put up with a certain amount if it's cross-cultural) haven't had time to really get into it with each other. It's the difference between a dinner party (two deities from two different cultures) and a family dinner (two deities from the same culture. Which is more likely to flip a table and start beating the crap out of each other? Family dinner, obv. I think it's why Erzulie and Aphrodite work pretty well together for me but Oshun and Yemaya, less so.
The easy solution here is, as always, do basic research. Is one deity a vegetarian and the other demands a blood sacrifice from an animal? Not the best dinner party combination ever. Feuding sisters? Don't put them in a locked room together because if they turn on you, you're toast, bro.
Believe it or not, what I found really inspiring for this post was the movie Being Elmo which is a documentary about Kevin Clash and how he started out as a kid in high school who was mocked for making puppets to becoming an Executive Producer, Director and Puppet Captain for Jim Henson. It's a pretty short film and as a maker of anything - magic, artistry, writing, etc. - it's incredibly exhilarating to watch.
The Hook
Because the hook brings you back/ I ain't tellin' you no lie/ The hook brings you back/ On that you can rely - Blues Traveler
Did you know that Miss Piggy's hook is that she has the personality of a leader of a biker gang in a girly girl body? Fozzy embodies Vaudeville and Elmo imbues Love. Each Muppet has a hook. In acting, you're taught that every line you say should have a motivation behind it, no matter how great or small. If you don't know what your hook is in your craft, in your career, in your art, in how you present yourself to the world, you're in trouble. Because if you don't know what you're trying to do, how will anyone else know what you're trying to do? If your statement to yourself and the universe is clear then it's much easier to accomplish, um, everything. It's okay if your hook changes, everyone needs to re-brand every now and then. Take some time and clarify to yourself what your hook is. Here's a hint, it should be about a sentence long. For example, my hook for La Sirene et Le Corbeau is "Every item offered by La Sirene et Le Corbeau is handcrafted in this old-world style setting from 100% local, sustainable sources. " My hook for my blog is "Radical P