00:00:00.000um cliff and me uh what kind of stuff from the outside community are you looking for
00:00:14.240and what would you say to folks looking to be more active in the astro community um
00:00:21.760so i certainly understand the last half of your question the first half of your question i'm not
00:00:26.640certain on the best way to answer first uh i believe very strongly that the afa is the
00:00:35.760aussitrew community we are the community of folks that are out there practicing aussitrew as a
00:00:40.960community so what i would recommend for folks wanting to be more active is first and foremost
00:00:46.720to join the astro folk assembly in doing so that'll get you connected with your local folk
00:00:51.920builder and or go to your githia and just getting out of your comfort zone and being willing to go
00:01:00.320to an event even if it means traveling a bit i know it's daunting but i've never heard someone
00:01:06.160travel to an afa event and then regret uh the travel time um that's where the magic happens
00:01:13.600it happens when you do this as a community when we get together as our afa family and stand before
00:01:20.320our gods, that's where the magic happens in Ausatru. So anybody wanting to get more involved,
00:01:27.320if you look at any of our websites, and they're linked in the description of this video,
00:01:32.700but each of our Hoffs has a website, and on it has a calendar of events, and you'd be surprised.
00:01:39.180There's a pretty wide dispersion of where events are, and chances are certainly if you're in the
00:01:44.560United States, you can make it to an event. Other selected international places, you can make it to
00:01:49.760have been as well but in the united states it's going to be rough if you're in hawaii
00:01:54.720barring that we can we can connect you with some folks um so yeah reaching out and doing that as
00:02:01.120far as what we're looking for we've largely found that personally and we're just looking to grow
00:02:08.800and expand that and to build a tighter connection with the gods we see
00:02:13.040see our faith so often in a cyclical way. And I think that that's a very two-dimensional way
00:02:21.060of looking at it. Yes, there's a cycle, but if it's done right, it's a spiral. And so we're
00:02:27.080increasing and we're growing and moving upward. The more we're in that gift cycle, the more we're
00:02:32.080doing the right things at the right time. What are your thoughts, Cliff?
00:02:37.260well yeah i was gonna i was gonna hammer in the uh the the notion the the truth that um
00:02:48.700the asatru folk assembly is the asatru community heathenry odinism any such uh such term that
00:03:00.200sometimes people use for that um i i firmly believe and and and this is with some experience
00:03:06.780because in that time before i joined the afa i was i was shopping around with uh with groups that
00:03:12.860don't do things the way that we do um because i wanted to know what was what and the austral folk
00:03:18.220assembly is the only religiously focused group that there is dedicated to our folk our ancestors
00:03:30.940and our gods um so joining the austral folk assembly is um the biggest first step um or
00:03:40.460if you're not sure then contact your local folk builder and you know come come check us out in
00:03:47.080person they'll they'll want to know a few things about you before they'll be comfortable having
00:03:50.480you around to you know bring you around our our people because their their safety is important
00:03:56.660But if, you know, they check you out and, you know, maybe meet you one-on-one first at a coffee shop or something like that, you know, come and see what we do in person.
00:04:09.940If, you know, if you're like I was and you need to see it firsthand in order to believe it or to, you know, to trust it.
00:04:18.640Once you're sold, then the best thing that you can do is to participate.
00:04:23.420come to every event that you possibly can that's something that most of us just do
00:04:30.800once we're involved because we want it so much and we love it um tell your friends and family
00:04:37.380um i i referred earlier to being normal as a good thing what what we're doing isn't strange
00:04:45.900it's the most natural thing we could possibly be doing and being openly also true to your friends
00:04:55.320to your family to your employer to any other social or political or whatever things that
00:05:06.780you're involved in you know your hunting club your gun club the crochet club whatever doesn't
00:05:13.060matter what it is, all those extracurricular and hobby type things, be Asatru every day
00:05:20.060because that's what's going to give some person out there who has Asatru as a birthright
00:05:28.540and just doesn't know it, the opportunity to claim that birthright.
00:05:36.460Yeah, be Asatru is the best thing that you can do.
00:05:41.680And if you still haven't had enough, if you're doing all that, then talk to your folk builder about becoming an apprentice.
00:05:49.840You know, if you want to make things happen and you want to build, you know, a stronger Asatru community where you are, you know, in your own town, in your own backyard, if there isn't one, then make it happen.
00:06:05.080there's nothing stopping you we will back people up who want to form kindreds who want to you know
00:06:12.120see if they are a good fit for being an apprentice and and want to do the work um a lot of it is very
00:06:19.800rewarding it is not always fun sometimes it's discouraging because you know you you see our
00:06:27.640folk at their best and at their worst and sometimes they let you down and sometimes they surprise you
00:06:33.160and exceed your expectations but yeah i mean take on the challenge we you know
00:06:41.080we'll we'll give you work if you want it absolutely