Safe Haven

Fair day, all.

'Tis been a while since I have had the opportunity to sit down at my desk and post a message to all of you. This is an update to give you an idea of the many tasks we deal with.

As all know, 'tis been a difficult year for many around the country. I have spent much time at conferences in different states where my colleages and I discuss numerous issues that confront us and those in need of assistance. While we attempt to sort through the ongoing needs, we are also dealing with the needs of our own.

You recently heard from the newest member of our team, Jocelyn, and between her post an the following one by Kaithlin you should have a clear idea of but one of the many things on our agenda. Certainly, and without apology, each of our Kinds seeking our own is near the top of our list. With the dire needs all around, mayhap putting that issue first sounds selfish. But if one takes but a moment to stop and consider, one might realize the neccessity of that task.

Most assuredly, 'tis the desire to find our loved ones and bring them into the family that leads our search. But there is the responsibility of keeping each of our Kinds from dwindling to extinction. Of all the Kinds, Werewolves have suffered the greatest loss of their numbers and Witches run a close second. But for the past two decades each Kind has made great strides toward a comeback. The roots of the existence of all Kinds lie in the family structure; past, present, and future generations. Sadly, some of our own, like Jocelyn. are no' even aware of their heritage. 'Tis our fondest hope to find our kin. By starting the membership drive for the Lair we have heard from a few who are struggling to understand how and why they are different from the society they were brought up in.

Some Witches and Werewolves secretly partnered with Outsiders and their offspring never knew for a variety of reasons, or are only learning, of their true heritage. some were stolen at birth. 'Tis them and others like them we are searching for. They have a right to know of their origins and to have the opportunity to embrace their inherent abilities; to be whom they were meant to be. We offer safe haven to those seeking an understanding and we will do all that is possible to reunite them with their families; at the very least, help them to adjust if they have no family.

'Tis of great importance that each and everyone who applies for membership fill out the forms you receive in full and to the best of your knowledge, so that we may discover those looking for their own Kind. Blessed May You Be, Dream Teller.

Information update

Bonjour mes amies.

I hope you enjoyed meeting our last guest and hearing about her. Jocelyn is a welcome addition to our team. Not only is she a kind and considerate person, she is most willing to share her gifts to aid in our efforts. Her uncle, a long standing friend and staunch ally of the Warlock Gregory and Dream Teller, has sheltered and mentored her since finding her some six years ago.

'Tis sometimes the way of it; children of our Kind, separated from family and heritage, without knowledge of their origins. Witches are human and, like any other, they make mistakes that lead to those separations in various ways. But along with all the other things we do here at the Lair, we offer opportunity to those seeking their own. 'Tis part of why the membership angle was born. For those who sense they are different from the society they live in, and at some time in life they will experience feelings of being out of place or different, they can contact us and seek guidance. 'Tis much like any other organization which helps one trace one's blood-relatives, but we have other tools, our inherent gifts, with which to assist them.

Many of our Kind are scattered to the four winds and once that fact became obvious, 'twas a need, born. 'Tis our fervent hope to bring lost ones back into the fold, if they so desire to be reunited with family and others of their Kind. These reasons were the basis for Jocelyn's visit with you; to give a first hand accounting of what she experienced during her youth with another family who'd no earthly idea they loved and sheltered a gifted child.

Witches need contact with their own Kind for 'tis how we learn to hone our abilities. Just as children of other Kinds require guidance and discipline to become contributing members of their society, Witches need role models to guide us and teach us the widom of the ages; the wisdom to use our gifts, wisely. And, already, through the membership drive we are hearing from many who feel lost and without safe haven. Will all be something other than Outsiders? Certainly no', but some will be; as Jocelyn discovered she was.

As the membership drive is shaping up to be a resounding success, we will continue to accept applications through the end of August. Then, the membership will be closed until we can finish processing applications. Once accepted applicants are assigned a membership level the Council will then determine whether 'tis feasible to reopen the membership. Understand that we have no desire to create a 'monster'; a membership too large to handle, or administer to. So, if you've a wish to join be sure to apply for the application (e-mail your request) do so by the last week of August.

To the many of you who have sent prospective members our way, we appreciate your efforts. Congratulations to those of you who have no' only earned your membership fee back, but continue to earn extra. But always remember that no' every applicant is accepted, so take care who you enlist as a prospective member.

To those of you attempting to infiltrate the membership in order to ferret out our location, 'tis a losing game, as you have already discovered. 'Tis no' worth the effort you expend and, as some of you have discovered, 'tis a painful lesson you learn.

Fair day, Kaithlin.

Lost and found

Fair day.

I recently joined the team at the Lair. For the past two weeks I've been busy familiarizing myself with the multifaceted personalities of those who come and go, here. Not only is there a strong kinship among the team members, the services the team goes out of its way to provide those in need is truly awesome. I was invited to join them for the fact of my special talents; gifts. But first, let me give you a bit of my background and history.

I was raised by loving parents; ordinary folks, with a middle-class background. As far back as I can remember I always felt 'different' amidst extended family. The feeling wasn't something I could actually put into words, just a difference that kept me slightly off kilter. As I grew toward adolescence I begen to feel as though I didn't belong with my family, or my friends. I began to withdraw and keep more to myself. I kept busy with schoolwork and my first love for which I had a true talent, art. My parents put my withdrawal down to shyness and encouraged my artwork, whole-heartedly.

Around the age of eleven I began to recognize certain abilities for which I had no point of reference and by the age of fifteen I felt so much alone in my uncertainty of what was growing inside me, by leaps and bounds. I continued to immerse myself in my artwork; drawing and painting what often manifested in my dreams; day and night. My parents considered me a dreamer and were awed by my talent for drawing and painting beautiful things they considered subjects of fantasy and myth. But deep in my secret self I knew what I put on canvas was of real origins.

At the age of seventeen I learned, by accident, the truth of my origins. I was digging through an old suitcase in the attic, looking for some old family photographs for my art when I stumbled upon what would forever change my life. I found an adoption certificate that proved I wasn't my parents biological child. I was devestated, not because I was adopted, but because they hadn't told me from the beginning. Too, I became obsessed with learning who my natural parents were and why I'd been adopted.

When I confronted them, my adoptive parents told me they had no idea who my natural parents were. Unable to have children of their own, they had wanted a child so badly and had been contacted by an attorney who handled all the details of the adoption. I looked for him only to learn he had passed away not long after the adoption took place. None of his relatives had any information for me, as all of his files had eventually been destroyed. From there, I didn't know where to turn for information.

Graduating high-school, I went on to University to major in Art. My adoptive parents were killed in an accident my Freshman year. I drifted apart from their extended family; cut ties, when I moved away to attend another University my Senior year. My artwork was already selling well for me and by graduation I was fairly well established. I had saved enough money to realize another dream. I opened a small shop of my own where, with my artwork featured, I also sell beautiful creations made of other mediums, such as crystal and porcelain.

I believe everything has purpose and comes about in its own time. Within eighteen months of opening my own shop, a new client entered into the picture that would gradually unfold to reveal my true origins. The moment he walked into my place of business I had the strange sense that I should know the stranger. My artisit's eyes began feeding information to my brain, age, mid-forties; height, six feet four or five inches; physique, near-perfect male specimen; olive complection which was the perfect foil for the most amazingly beautiful green eyes the color of a shadowed spring forest.... Well, to say the least, my hands itched to grab paints and canvas and set right to work capturing all of that mysterious masculinity.

What transpired was the sale of two of my treasured paintings I'd never intended selling. The sale had nothing to do with the exhorbitant sum of money I attached to them to deter anyone wanting to buy them, and everything to do with his carefully persuasive tone that filled me with a further sense of 'connection' to the man. Within months of the sale I would learn that the man had been searching for me for years, since 1978; my birth year.

The long and short of my tale is that the man was a blood relative, my uncle. His brother, deceased since my fifth year, was my biological father. My father had had a secret relationship with my mother, then married to a wealthy man. Her and her husband had a tumulteous relationship which he wouldn't allow her to leave. My mother met my father quite by accident and from there their feelings for one another grew. She became pregnant with me and fearing the wrath of her husband, didn't tell my father of her pregnancy. She severed ties with him and at my birth her husband learned I wasn't his biological child. He was a powerful man and with his wealth behind him he divorced my mother and left her penniless, gained full custody of me then secretly adopted me out.

My father learned of me a year or so following my birth from my mother, who was dying of cancer and told him the truth on her deathbed. Also a wealthy man, he began the search for me. My stepfather had gone to great lengths to keep what he'd done with me secret so that my biological father had great difficulty unraveling the secret.

To add more to the mystery, my father was a true Witch but he'd never told my mother of his origins. He employed all he had at his disposal to search for me and eventually revealed the information to his brother; a powerful Warlock. It was because of who he was that my father died; in a vicious war between Covens. My uncle took up the search for his brother, vowing to find me and bring me into the family fold. And, at long last, found me.

Needless to say, the man who used me against my mother for his own sense of revenge, is no longer the wealthy man that he was. In fact, he is penniless; a vagrant on the streets, for many years now. My uncle saw to it that he got his just dues. I now know why I always felt different and couldn't belong, elsewhere. The blood of the Witch runs through my veins and I am finally at peace with myself.

The biological family that welcomed me home with open arms is quite large. I am now where I truly belong and over the years my 'gifts' have made themselves known and my family has helped me nurture them to the fullest. I am 28 years old, as yet unattached but looking forward to the day when I will meet my true life-partner and begin a family of my own. I reside with my uncle, a fine man who gives me a sense of purpose, and who continues to teach me of my heritage.

My uncle is the man who introduced me to Dream Teller; his close friend and ally, and now mine as well. I am happy to be a member of this team and looking forward to my first assignment. Blessed May You Be, Jocelyn.

Celebrate....

Bonjour mes amies.

Everyone here at the Lair wishes all of you a safe and happy 4th of July.

As you might know, several states in our great country are experiencing bad weather. Last week the East Coast suffered flooding from several days of heavy rain. This week the Gulf Coast region is experiencing heavy downpours and it looks to continue for another week. Up around the North it appears a cold front is set to pass through that region. Non, I am no' a weather reporter. I am just calling your attention to the simple fact that wherever one may reside, one does no' escape the whims of Mother Nature.

While many of you will enjoy outdoor activities to celebrate Independence Day, others will take their celebrations indoors. No matter the weather, we Americans will no' be denied our celebrations of freedom. And 'tis freedom we hold most dear to our hearts. But too often we tend to forget at what price freedom is claimed and maintained.

Even as our military troops stand and fight on foreign soil for the very freedom we will celebrate this day, will you spare a thought or two for them? I sincerely hope you will find a quiet place at some time this day and offer a moment of silent prayer.

As is always the case with war there are divided camps; some for, some against, and some who just do no' give a tinker's damn one way or the other. Whether for or against sending our brave warriors to fight on foreign soil, I urge each of you to remember that those thousands of proud men and women answered our Commander-In-Chief's call to arms. They are there, living the war while the rest of us are home celebrating the fruits of their labor. Do you get the sense that something is no' quite right with that picture? They place their lives on the line while we sit back and celebrate?

If you are no' feeling at least some small measure of discomfort from the above questions then you must fall into the catagory of no' giving a damn. Folks, 'tis time to stop pointing fingers, playing politics, and no' caring; time to lend support to the troops. They need to hear of our care and concern and no', merely, on the occassion.

If you have ever been a victim of flood, hurricane, tornado, or any other major disaster then you should remember how it feels to be on alert, fearing what may or may no' befall you and yours; how it feels to be displaced, no' knowing how or when you may return home. If 'home' is even standing. Aye, some of us suffer for weeks, even months at a time when natural disasters strike. But we can eventually recoup and go on with life as we know it.

No' so for our military troops. On returning home those survivors of war carry the memories of many things, loss of friends and comrades; death and destruction worse than any major natural disaster could ever perpetrate; and for many of them, physical disabilites.

My point to all of this? Aye, let us all celebrate our independence but at the top of our list of thanks should be a prayer and gratitude for every soldier who stood tall and proud in the past and those who do so now, for the lot of us. 'Tis our troops who won this Country her freedom, and 'tis her people who should give something back to them. As Dream Teller would say; Ponder.

Blessings upon every man and woman in our military. To those of you involved in war; know that everyone here at the Lair keeps vigilant, and our prayers are ever with you. Fair day, Kaitlin.