I chose this picture because it's pretty mostly, but as you can (sort of) see, I have pictures of my ancestors, feathers to represent the nature spirits, and various little statue representations of the God I feel most connected with. I also have a little bowl to represent the sacred well, candles for the sacred fire, and my staff in the background as my world tree representation. It's located on the easternmost wall of my house, to meet the rising sun.
Aside from the fact that this is a very standard ADF altar set up, I felt that it fit my needs, and felt very appropriate. Ancestor representations were important to me, because I still feel very spiritually connected to them, and it seemed like the proper place to honour them. Nature Spirits were kind of a given, as I highly revere all forms of life. Representing the Gods was a little tougher, as the one God I have felt close to the most in my life (other than just the pantheistic sense of the Universe) is Ganesha. ADF does not officially recognize Ganesha, as He is not described in the Vedas. I haven't felt called to work with any other Gods yet, but I will add anything that seems appropriate when the time comes. I'm always open to meeting new Shining Ones!
The Three Hallows are simply added because I needed to start somewhere, and have become more meaningful as time passes. Each time I work with them, whether I do a Two-Powers Meditation or not beforehand, it works as a subtle reminder to ground and center. It's like Two-Powers Lite – the fire being the spark of inspiration and a reminder to be in the moment, and the water being the grounding element from the earth. My staff is important to me both as a world tree representation, and also as a reminder of how deep this path actually runs for me, even though I'm still new to Druidism. I made that staff back when I was 12 – I hunted around in the woods for hours to find the perfect (fallen) tree branch. Even though I'm new to the formal concept, I'm not new to the spirituality.
As well, I have various spiritual knick knacks I've accumulated on my altar - some crystals that seem appropriate for the time of year, maybe an affirmation I want to give some oomph, and the trinkets I was given when I finished my Yoga Instructor training.
As far as improvements go, I'd like to make some altar cloths that would be more seasonal looking – ideally I'd like a different one for each high day for added flair. I also look forward to being able to add more God/Goddess representations on it, as soon as I feel a connection or inspiration to work with them! Ideally I'd like something a little larger and possibly higher, maybe with less places for my cat to hide in it.
