Preserving and raising Truth  

In lines 6 & 7 of the Audacht Morainn it says: 

    6. Let him preserve Truth, it shall preserve him 

    7. Let him raise truth, it will raise him. 

Truth is a long game. A commitment to truth only works as a long game, a lifetime strategy, a way to influence the odds. 

We live in a time more significant and chaotic than any I have lived through. I see people posting about our "post-truth" world. I see the immense influence of power and celebrity. I see in the history of humanity how heartbreaking the consequences of our whims and weaknesses can be. We're a funny old species, so very human after all, time and time again. We are mostly short-sighted but so incredibly powerful. 

Business, art, and politics have tempted me to push aside or ignore the requirements of truth. Love and fear seem so much more important in the moment than the seemingly needless short term risks of truth. The desire to be admired, or accepted always seems to press a finger to my lips and urge me to not contradict a pretty lie about myself that someone else makes. 

But these build weakness into the structure made of time and decisions, little hidden flaws that undermine the journey of life and spirit. 

On the other hand, as the Druid advised the king, truth strengthens, it preserves and it raises. 

It doesn't flow like the perfect line at a bar at closing time. It rarely aligns with impulse or hunger. It is frequently awkward, interrupting, inconvenient, even difficult to express. Sometimes it means turning aside much desired praise, or putting us in conflict with someone we admire, need, or want to impress. Sometimes truth seems deeply unfair. Sometimes the outcomes of truth can only be seen as unjust, a universe out of balance. 

That is why truth is a long game. 

Truth has required me to have boundaries when I wanted to not need them, when needing them made me face fear and weakness. Truth has required me to see myself when that was uncomfortable. Truth has taken its sweet time to offer me the happiness that could only come from radical self honesty, in doses small enough for me to handle. Truth created opportunities I didn't want to have, to speak about ugly things, to accept broken things. There were times when truth made me feel like I was naked in a snowstorm. Truth made me give up on dreams that didn't belong to me and didn't serve me and it broke my heart to pieces to do it. 

But it was true. 

Truth has a feeling to it, like fine wood, trimmed and finished by a master carpenter, like my Dad. Truth has a wholeness and a wholesomeness that reveals itself over time. 

I have been naked and alone in the snowstorm, crying and lonely, and disconnected from my dreams, only to find out that I was not ever alone, that I was surrounded by people who took my worst moments and gained strength for themselves. They witnessed my damning grief and saw a depth of love that they valued. They listened to my unmasking and heard the possibilities of freedom. 

People have seen me chose truth and it gave them strength. While I felt disconnected they experienced empathy. When the time came and I needed to see myself more clearly I found myself in a community that reflected back to me those strengths, depths, possibilities. 

What we do matters. And we are always in community. Individualism is a lie. 

Let me preserve Truth, it will preserve me.

Let me raise Truth, it will raise me. 

And let me always be a part of this fragile web of humanity, of Pagan community, and chose love. 

Peace of the mountains to you, 

Paulie Rainbow

founder: Druidry Centered Women's Circle of the Rocky Mountains