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Mara's outdoor altar in the snow.[/caption]
We're quite snowed in here in Greater Portlandia. Snow turned to freezing rain and even the MAX trains have given up on getting people where they need to go.
With nothing better to do, we've been catching up on things that needed doing around the house. I did a little bit of cooking on Friday; nothing fancy, but I did manage to make dinner on my own without setting anything on fire. Today involved some cleaning and, since we weren't really expecting the storm to be this bad or last this long, being grateful that we had toilet paper and pantry food on hand.
The whole situation has a feeling of hearth behind it. We're sealed in against the cold outside. Sure, it'll probably rain out on Monday, but in the meantime I'm appreciating the warmth and the feeling of a snug home. I'm also appreciating the sense of working with - both with Mara, and with my spouse. For a variety of reasons, I've been very aware of the importance of our teamwork lately, in ways mundane and magical. Our wards are built to interact, and are stronger together than either would be alone. Her strengths build on my weaknesses, and vice versa.
I do not believe there are any hard and fast rules about what kind of person makes a good working partner; what you need will likely vary over the course of lifetimes. People who insist on there being a single best arrangement for everyone - and I come across it often in the Neo-Pagan community, though not everyone will generalize - are all too often limiting themselves and their partners.
Limits are meant to be transcended, after all. In magical practice, I find that it's always good to ask why the rules you learned exist, and to question whether they are necessary. Often they aren't. Sometimes they serve a purpose, but just as often, that purpose is long since lost and it's time to push beyond.