HoneyHexe Herbalism

Go into the woods.

“How do I—“

Go into the woods.

“I am going through—“

Go into the woods.

Or if you live next to the sea, to the sea.

Or a desert, into the desert.

Or a grassland, into the grassland.

Or a park with as much treecover as you can scrounge- better yet, make a day of it, leave the city, and go into the woods/the sea/the desert/the grassland then.

My thoughts are that way too many young people care about having their craft validated by outside sources and it becomes dangerous for them because anyone selling empty positivity gets an easy way in. The origin is irrelevant, what matters is the actual content and efficacy of your craft itself.

If it works, why should you care what I think? Every family had a First Witch at some point. Maybe you're that. Maybe you're an echo of an ancestor long forgotten. Maybe we're really all distant descendants of the very first. Maybe not.

That's kind of what witches do, gather bits and pieces. I'd be lying if I said the things I do now resemble overmuch the things I was taught as a child. I jumped the fence because I didn't want to stay beholden to arbitrary limitations. So did every witch. Where that exposure came from, whether passed down or cobbled together, is irrelevant, at the end of the day. A great deal of what I do now was cobbled together outside of the family traditions.

Hereditary status exists in some cultures, but that doesn't necessarily mean it always equates to anything that really matters.

Power hasn't got shit to do with pedigree, and the ones insisting it does are the ones who just need to be superior. No matter how lofty your laurels, resting on them is a great way to stagnate while others more ambitious are actually doing the hard work, making sacrifices, putting pieces together, building something powerful.

Look how far you've come from where you started. Should anyone but you really get an opinion about the validity of your progress? The proof is in results. Not the backstory.

I feel like there's this desire for legitimacy and acceptance (from both family and the wider community at large) in a magical practice that people think would exist if they came from a hereditary line. And the natural desire for some guidance ties into it too. But those things don't necessarily come with that background (and the few times they do are at this point overhyped and overrated).

As you even mention in your reply, a magical family practice of any kind often comes with rules and restrictions of their own if you're to follow it. At the very least it comes with expectations. Some chafe at that kind of collar.

Yes, people are born with varying levels of power and different gifts. Yes, that often goes through family lines. But anyone can be born with power. And everyone can attain more power through one way or another. A cunning and dedicated person who has no background that they know of can easily learn more and be/become more powerful than a hereditary witch.

Yes, those of us not from hereditary lines are different than the ones who are. But we chose it. We worked for it. We pushed ourselves because we wanted it. Unless you're trying to claim a title with none of the work, hereditary status means nothing in terms of the effectiveness of your practice.

The folk remedies and superstitions taught to me by my family members are explicitly not witchcraft. Like you said, many are even anti-witch. I tie them into my local, folk based craft but I personally feel like calling the lessons from my family "witchcraft" would be an insult to them.

My rosary praying every day, bible reading, God-fearing, Scots-Irish grandmother would beat me black and blue if she caught me calling what she does witchcraft. Folk healing is one thing. Witchcraft is another. Both might be types of magical practice but they're different at their core. So while there might be overlap from the folk traditions of my family and my workings with the craft, to claim that I came from a family of witches would be a lie. Therefore, I am not a hereditary witch.

At the end of the day, what people decide to call themselves is none of my business. Everyone's practice is their own and if someone feels the need to lie on the internet to get praise from strangers they have bigger issues going on.

Sure! I'd suggest making it if at all possible. They aren't very hard to make and instructions can be found online. I think there might even be some posts about how to make one here on tumblr. 

The basic principle of it is gathering two or three handfuls of sticks and binding them to the handle. Depending on your method you might be bunching the sticks into groups, attaching them together, and shoving your handle in. Or you might be soaking the sticks in warm water, tying them to the handle facing up, then folding them over so they point down and tying them again.

They’re traditionally Ash or Oak wood for the handle, Birch twigs for the bristles, and bound with Willow (soften in warm water) but you could make it out of anything! Switch out the bindings for cording or twine. Swap out the bristles with a woody herb like mugwort. Make an entire mini version using herbs like lavender or rosemary- whatever you want, it’s your gift to your friend!

Having a cup of something like chamomile tea, which acts as a mild natural sedative, to calm you down isn't magic. It's science. There's nothing wrong with it unless you're trying to do actual magic.