What a great time I had at the Phoenix Pagan Pride Day 2008 event!

Anyone who knows me knows that I am not Wiccan (nobody's perfect) but my wife, Caria, is.  So for me to say that the Phoenix Pagan Pride Day 2008 event was awesome speaks volumes about the diversity of such an event.  There was something there for everyone, and a very family friendly environment to say the least.  It was like a bizarre without the church-sponsored-obligatory-thumpings that usually accompany such things.  But you have to remember, Pagan Pride Day isn't so much about celebrating their chosen religion as it is about celebrating life itself - as a matter of fact, aside from the title of the event, by looking around you'd think it less Pagan-centric and more Renaissance Fair-ish in nature.  The fact is that Pagans chose to celebrate the gifts that life have given them with other like-minded individuals and the title represents a means to attract those individuals - by no means do you have to be Pagan to enjoy yourself there.  I'm sure that, if queried, many of the visitors there weren't Pagan at all, just curious souls or families in search of a day of fun - and fun it was - there were smiling faces everyone I looked.

Everyone there was so nice and very chatty, I could have easily spent the day just talking with all of the fantastic vendors alone, but alas, there was more to see and do, and pictures to be taken, so I pressed onward.  I unfortunately missed the Opening Ritual because I arrived late (I was on Pagan time), but I did catch some of the entertainment (belly dancers!!!), perused the vendors booths (there are truly some talented individuals in the Pagan community, everything was so beautiful) and caught the glorious Closing Ritual in which Caria and her coven sisters Sandy and Hummingbird all took part in in various portrayals of the four elements.  The absolutely beautiful and mesmerizing Closing Ritual itself was justification enough for attending this year's Phoenix Pagan Pride day event, and I look back at all the rest of it as fantastic precursors to the Closing Ritual.

If you haven't had the opportunity to attend a Pagan Pride Day event, I suggest you find your nearest local event and make a day of it, I guarantee you won't be disappointed.  Not Pagan?  Who cares!  Go anyways and enjoy a small venture into a fantastical otherworldly experience, you may just learn a little about yourself and this world you live in, and maybe, just maybe, you might have a blast with your family in the process!

To find a Pagan Pride event in your neck of the woods, visit the Pagan Pride Project website for dates and locations for your area.  If you are an Arizonan, you could always subscribe to our Calendar of Events page or subscribe to our Public Events RSS feed  and find Pagan Pride and other open-to-the-public events that are just as enjoyable!