Between Two Worlds

I have been getting a little taste of what it is to be a vodou priest and active spiritual worker this past two weeks. I’ve been bouncing between my day job and various services: initiations, spiritual parties, and an exorcism.

Gotta say, I’ll be happier when I don’t have to bounce out of bed after two hours of sleep and do nine hours and a two hour commute in an office. Especially after spending the whole night doing whatever work lies in front of me. I’m holding up pretty good for an old lady, but I have a strong desire to be a sloth at least one day this weekend.

I’m struck by the different worlds they represent. In an office, I am a creature of logic, which is to say neurotic and painstaking explanations of minutiae (which is engineering in a nutshell). It is tedious, exhausting, and as per the usual, the social dynamics of an office are passive-aggressive and defensive in the extreme. My day crawls by, slow and tedious.

In spiritual work, I am free to explain nothing. I don’t have to deal with the filters, judgements, and assorted problems that people litter communication with. I am just there, doing whatever’s necessary at the time, whether it’s making herbal concoctions, singing, or what-have-you. Time flies by. I’m not often tired (in fact, one of the wages of spiritual work is that the lwa give back some of the energy we spend because we’re working with them and the spirit is not stingy.) I am free to exist in a space, whatever that means at the time.

Interestingly, the lessons are happening in both spaces. In the office, I am learning about self-control, about the need to let go of reputation and professional pride, and that I possess a completely effortless capacity to defend myself. I don’t even have to get excited about it.

In the djevo, I am learning something of what it means to serve the spirit around people who are both also servants of the spirit and those who come for healing. It’s a familial affair, really: work, interspersed with conversations and gentle family bickering. I am learning about the judgement of a priest, as well—there are ‘forms’ per se for spiritual work, and regilyeman (the rules and order), and assorted family traditions, but a surprising amount of spiritual work resides in the judgement and creativity of the priest.

For now, at least, I have a foot in both worlds. I am here to learn what I can.