your friendly neighborhood witch.

Today on my romps around London, I found a twig from a Rowan tree. A tree of so much magical potential that one of its many nicknames is, in fact, the Witch Tree.

How could I NOT do a spell with it?

So today, I did a little home warding charm called a Rowan cross, for warding the home from negative energy and ne’er-do-wells. This particular charm goes back a long way here in Britain – a few hundred years, at the best guess. I reckon you could also carry this with you while traveling, both to protect your things and to keep from getting lost – another use of the good ole’ Rowan tree.

Here she is, with instructions to follow:

For this, you need only two things

A twig at least 6 inches long, or 2 twigs of 3 inches or more, either from a Rowan tree or any other tree you associate with protection and the home.

Red thread, string, or yarn

(optional) Glue

You can do any sort of mood-setting ritual you like. Personally, I simply lit a while candle.

If you have one 6+ inch twig, cut it in half. Once you’ve got two little twigs to work with, decide whether you’d like to glue them in the middle to make a cross to help you get started. Personally, I didn’t bother. They stayed fine after my first couple rounds with the yarn.

Tie them together in the middle loosely with your yarn. Now, we wind the yarn!

So as not to make this stupidly linguistically awkward, I found a nice little diagram on how to do this if you’re unfamiliar with this pattern. Basically, you go over to the right side of the twig, under to the left side.

You can cover as much or as little of the twigs as you like. Personally, I just went until I felt it was done.

I tied the yarn around one of the rungs and passed it over the flame, asking it to protect my home.

Then you can hang it in front of a window, a door, whatever entrance you’d like to protect.

But when every candle correspondence posts tells me what a long, flickering, east blowing etc. flame means I just … I shake my head.

A long flame doesn’t represent something long term, it represents a wick that is too long or drawing too much fuel.

A flame flickering to the east means … there’s a current source in the west. Are you breathing on your candle?

If the flame is about to extinguish it’s so small, it doesn’t mean dark days are coming. It means the wick is being smothered by the fuel source, it’s too short, or there isn’t enough fuel for it to burn.

Etc etc etc

I just …

This is candle care 101 and people think it tells the future - it tells me y’all are putting strain on your purses by burning through candles improperly.

And I’m like.... do you think none of your ancestors were gay? Really? Over the last thousand years? Back when everyone had ten kids? Not one was homosexual? Or bisexual? Or a person who experimented? Not one? And that they all care? Like every single ancestor from Adam to 1890 hates the LGBT community? There wasn’t one cool grandma?

It’s rooted in this notion that every person born before 1980 is some kind of mega-bigot and that’s just not the case. I don’t think that’s a safe assumption to make, especially when we’re talking about a large group of people who cannot speak for themselves. I was always taught that someone becomes a capital-A Ancestor when there is no living memory of them on our plane of existence. So unless they were keeping a written record or stories have been passed down, there’s no way to know how they feel without interaction. There have been cool people in every time period and there have been assholes in every time period.

People will try to say, “oh but my family is all really Christian” or “well in our traditional culture this was forbidden.” And I’m like, what were they before they were Christian? You don’t have any pre-Christian ancestors? Were all your Christian ancestors practicing modern American Fundamentalist Christianity? And in your traditional culture, was this always forbidden? Or was it just taboo and people were still out being gay regardless?

And even if all your ancestors are spiteful, why not adopt some ancestors? Why not call upon the Mighty Dead? Why not honor your Beloved Dead?

And why would you assume your ancestors wouldn’t change over time? I feel very strongly that they can and do. If someone can change their life around in five years, imagine what they could do with 800.

And why would you assume your ancestors wouldn’t love you? I think a lot of people who come from traumatic backgrounds hear a constant whisper - a whisper that says, “The world is not to be trusted and you are not worthy of love.” And you are worthy of love. Don’t let your trauma stop you from seeking love (from the living or the dead, for that matter).

There have been many times where the need to cleanse has come up but because of one thing or another I haven't been able to break out the ritual for it. So this spell greatly helps. I hope it'll help you as well.

Needed:

A white candle

Candle holder

Matches/Lighter

To Conjure:

Place the candle in its holder and say the following before lighting,

"As a moth is drawn to fire, so is negative energy drawn to this flame to be cleansed and purified."

☁︎ 𝐰𝐢𝐭𝐜𝐡𝐲 𝐧𝐞𝐰 𝐲𝐞𝐚𝐫 𝐦𝐚𝐧𝐢𝐟𝐞𝐬𝐭𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧𝐬 & 𝐣𝐨𝐮𝐫𝐧𝐚𝐥 𝐩𝐫𝐨𝐦𝐩𝐭𝐬

yes, i know we still have a little more time left in 2021, but i wanted to put this list out sooner rather than later to give people a jump start on their planning and manifesting for the new year.

✎ what did you accomplish in your craft in 2021? (did you learn a new skill? did you successfully perform a spell? did you find a new, helpful resource?) how did this make you feel?

✎ write a 'hello' letter to 2022. try to keep things light and positive. it's okay to acknowledge fears or negativity, but try not to dwell on it. talk about something you're excited to happen in the year. you can take it month-by-month, season-by-season, or stream of consciousness.

✎ what kind of goals did you set for yourself in 2021? did you accomplish them? why or why not? will you try to achieve them in the new year?

✎ what are five habits you would like to break in 2022? how do you plan on accomplishing this?

✎ pick a handful of happy moments you experienced in 2021 and write about them. focus on how it made you feel. try to describe it. think of ways you can experience that feeling again going into 2022.

✎ think of twenty-two goals you can set for yourself in 2022. they can be a mix of big and small, things you know you can easily accomplish and things that will take time. what is your reason for wanting to achieve these goals?

✎ what are some things you would like to improve in your craft in the new year? think of things that are big and small. create a list of small steps you can take to achieve them. go into detail. imagine how you’ll feel once you accomplish these goals—how will you feel?

✎ what does your ideal life look like in 2022? how do you hope to feel? how do you want to look? how do you want to act? what steps can you take to make all this happen?

✎ write a goodbye letter to 2021. thank it for all the life journies it supplied you. you can acknowledge the bad or negative, but try to make this letter as positive as possible. use this as an exercise in raising your vibrations.

✎ write what an ideal day in 2022 will look like. be as detailed as possible. don’t only describe the events that that place, but the vibe. describe smells and sounds.

✎ write about the kinds of people you would like to attract in 2022. how will you accomplish this? write about the types of people you want to avoid in 2022. how will you achieve this?

✎ describe an ideal week 2022. be as detailed as possible—describe the events and feelings that surround this week. does the week start on a traditional monday or another day of the week? is there something special about this week (is it your birthday or some other holiday?) or not? are you spending it with someone? where do you go? what do you do? is this outside of the norm?

✎ create a list of manageable daily goals for 2022. brainstorm and write them down. then, choose three. (try to do these for one month. after that, if you feel like adding one or two more, do so. otherwise, stick to those three.) (ex. draw a tarot card daily, meditate, make your bed, drink 2x glasses of water, journal.)

✎ create a list of manageable weekly goals for 2022. follow the same steps as above. (ex. do a three-card tarot spread, practice kitchen magick, create a page in your grimoire, take a walk, read a book.)

✎ create a list of manageable monthly goals for 2022. follow the same steps as above. (ex. clean your room, cleanse your space, change your bedsheets, celebrate the moon cycles, set goals for the month, set an intention for the month, do a tarot spread for guidance, do yoga.)

✎ create a list of manageable seasonal/bi-annual goals for 2022. follow the same steps as above. (ex. celebrate the seasons/witchy holidays, do a deep cleanse of your home physically and spiritually, donate something, practice self-care, create a past/present/future tarot spread for advice, bake bread.)

✎ create a playlist of high-energy songs you’ll listen to on january 1st.

✎ describe your ideal self in 2022. what do they look like? what do they do? what steps can you take to accomplish it? how can your craft help you achieve this ideal self? can you use something—like the law of attraction or law of assumption—to help you achieve this ideal self?

✎ research a list of positive affirmations for your 2022 life. write them down and keep them someplace visible so you can look at them all year long.

✎ set an intention for the year.

✎ if money wasn't an issue in 2022, what would you do? where would you go? how much easier would life be if you didn't have the burden of money weighing on you? would you spend all the money on yourself? would you spend money on your friends and/or family? would you put the money in a bank? would you donate a sum of the money to a charity or multiple charities?

✎ pick a word to describe 2022 and try to incorporate it in your life the entire year.

✎ research what 2022's colors are or pick your own. write down what those colors symbolize or correspond to.

✎ what does 2022's numerology mean? how can you apply that in your life?

✎ what are you ready to receive in 2022? how can you make yourself available for this?

✎ by the end of 2022, how do you think life will be different? how will it be the same?

✎ how can you welcome positive energy into your life? list some easy things you can do to raise your vibrations. keep in mind, it's unrealistic and unhealthy to be happy all the time, but this is an exercise to help you find joy or feel lighter whenever possible. (ex. dance, sing, clean something, go for a walk around your house, walk outside, play dress up, donate something, cook, read, listen to subliminals, meditate.)

☁︎ 𝐝𝐞𝐟𝐢𝐧𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐦𝐚𝐠𝐢𝐜𝐤

defining your magickal beliefs is an integral part of witchcraft because it isn't the same for everyone. your beliefs affect everything in your practice. it's okay if you aren't sure how to approach this or don't have a clear-cut idea for what magick is. your beliefs will shift over time, which is a good sign of personal growth. treat this as a journaling exercise. if you're handwriting your grimoire, you might want to write most of this down on a scrap piece of paper or type it on a notes page while you gather your thoughts. that way, when you write it in your grimoire, your thoughts will be cohesive.

how to define your magick:

research the different magickal theories and pick what you feel most connected to. (this post by user @/eclectic-witchling is a great starting point, but don't stop here. do some more research outside of tumblr.)

think about what your magickal limitations are. what are things you know, without a doubt, magick can't do? what are things you know it can do?

explain what you think magick should be used for

explain what you think magick shouldn't be used for

learn the differences between wicca, paganism, and witchcraft, then decide if you will use witchcraft for religious purposes or not

where do you draw your power from? (deities? spirits? the universe? the moon? yourself?)

do you need tools to use your magick?

have you discovered a label that you think fits your brand of magick? if there are multiple, list them. if you haven't, feel free to create your own or skip this.

what does magick mean to you? what does it look like? is all magick clear cut black-and-white, or is magick grey? is there such a thing as 'good' and 'bad' magick?

how do you feel - or want to feel - when you practice magick? can you visualize this feeling? try to describe it

US Elevation.

They said “before dinosaurs,” but we have a cave here that began forming between 450 million to 550 million years ago.

There are no bones in that cave. No fossils. No nothing.

That’s because this cave began forming before bones existed on land, and had only just started to exist in the ocean. Shellfish hadn’t evolved yet. Limestone, which forms many caves, was just starting to become a more prevalent rock.

those are over a billion years old.

that’s why they’re so small. they’re the last ancient remnants of a lava flow 5 miles thick. the lava didn’t kill any dinosaurs. or any fish. or any animals at all. because there were no animals. you know what there was?

algae.

those mountains were 5 miles tall when the most advanced life on earth was algae.

☆ Beltane Lemonade ☆

Even though Beltane has already passed, this lemonade recipe can and should be enjoyed whenever you care for a refreshing drink.

Ingredients: ☆ Ginger (Money, Power, Success) ☆ Lemons (Friendship, Longevity, Purification) ☆ Lemon Balm (Healing, Love, Success) ☆ Rosemary (Healing, Mental Powers, Protection) ☆ Spearmint (Healing, Love, Mental Powers)

A is for arnica, bruises to ease

B is for borage, and borage for bees

C is for cumin for curries and stews

D is for dandelion tea to infuse

E is for elder, black berries for wine

F is for fennel, expeller of wind

G is for garlic to ward off the flu

H is for hyssop, flowers pink, white, or blue

I is for iris for perfumeries

J is St. John's wort for nervous disease

K is for kingcups once used for its roots

L is for lovage for fresh tasting shoots

M is for mallow, a moisture resource

N is for nettle, a rich fiber source

O is for orach, a pot herb of yore

P is for parsley to keep at your door

Q is for quinine from the chinchoma tree

R is for rosemary, hair remedy

S is for sage to cure a sore throat

T is for thyme, a cleanser of note

U is for ulmis rubra, the slippery elm

V is for valerian, nature's nerveine

W is for wintergreen, used for its heat

X is for xanthium, rabies to treat

Y is for yarrow for staunching blood flow

Z is for zingiber (ginger), warmth to bestow

by me, a fool who doesnt wanna die anymore 

never make a suicide joke again. yes this includes “i wanna die” as a figure of speech. swear off of it. actually make an effort to change how you think about things.

find something to compliment someone for at least 4 times a day. notice the little things about the world that make you happy, and use that to make other people happy.

talk to people. initiate conversation as often as you possibly can. keep your mind busy and you wont have to worry anymore

picture the bad intrusive thoughts in youe head as an edgy 13 year old and tell them to go be emo somewhere else

Like every time I trip and fall, instead of saying “l’m just a disaster human” I say “I’m the epitome of grace and beauty”

Or like, when I draw a picture I’m not 100% happy with, instead of saying “my art is trash” I say something like “you know I think it’s time we replaced the Mona Lisa”

When you do that you get to make a joke, but you’re ALSO getting practice building yourself up, y’know?

I replaced “I’m stupid” with “I’m a God damn genius.” “Move over newton” “another masterpiece”

I replaced “gross/ disgusting” with “sexy/attractive” “the hight of elegance”

I replaced “I suck/ that sucked/ this is bad” with “fantastic”, “a lovely time”, “ swell/jolly good”

Replace every negative with a positive. Say it so sarcastically. Make it complicated make it entertaining have fun with it.