Hestia

Home's hearth.  Fire's heart.
Fan the flames til they impart
Light and warmth throughout this home:
Life to cook fat, meat, and bone.
Soot black hair in dancing fingers,
Modestly veiled so you might linger:
Lady of the fire centered,
Into this house we bid you enter.
Your sweet presence here imbued
Binds tender ties of love most true.
First and last, we tend to you.

The Greeks considered the hearth fire to be the center of the family household, and consequently society itself.  The Goddess Hestia is the living flame at the heart of the hearth fire, and is therefore the perfect goddess to invoke for a house blessing, or for help in preparing a sacred feast.  She was the first born of the Olympian deities, and the first devoured by her father, Cronus.  When Zeus freed his brothers and sisters from the belly of the titan, Hestia was the last to be released.  Therefore, she became known as the "first and last born" of the Greek gods, and was commonly the first and last deity invoked in the pagan rites of old.  Which makes sense when you think about it.  After all, if you're offering up a burnt sacrifice, the first think you'll want to do is light the fire, and the last thing would be to put it out.  While most pagans today don't practice animal sacrifice, the sound of sizzling bacon in a skillet or cauldron makes an effective accompaniment to this invocation, and I recommend incorporating it in her rites.




... and then there's my book, in which many gods, goddesses and mythic monsters make appearances in modern day San Diego.  Buy it here: http://www.lulu.com/spotlight/mythpunk1