#faq basically

1. How did you discover your path? The first time around, when I identified more as a Wiccan or Neo-Wiccan, it was an interest sparked from having a Satanic sister and a lot of pagan-inclined friends. As I grew away from it, stuck with too much structure in the resources I could find and not enough self-knowledge to grow away from that structure, I quietly and noncommittally worshipped Mother Nature through senior year and my first year of college. My recent path was discovered through a friend, who introduced me to a local crystal and metaphysical shop. The majority of the rituals and meditations I have done for myself have involved crystals, and were introduced to me by her. I also became interested in sites such as in5d, and the ideas of ascension and collective consciousness. There’s no way to deny that we are all connected. I am very comfortable right now to have no label to what I believe in, and dabble in practicing a little bit of everything - though most comfortable in kitchen witchery and personal crystal healing. I still worship Nature, embodied in Mother Nature, and like to incorporate small pagan practices in larger aspects of my life. 2014: This is still mostly the same. I still really have no focus on my craft and I'm okay with that, and I still have no label and I'm also okay with that. The umbrella term works well enough. I'm a pagan who practices witchcraft. And a bunch of other stuff mishmashed in.

2. How long have you been practicing witchcraft? From the very beginning, including little things and when I wasn’t actively practicing, about 6 years. Since I’ve started to incorporate it all more into my daily life and have become more grounded in it and solid on what I believe, about 6 months. 2014: I guess, according to my answer from last year, solidly for 2 and a half years. But that's not true. I always have big lulls, those unbearable slumps where I constantly beat myself up for not trying more. Because I feel like I am really passionate about my spirituality, but my tiredness and anxiety get in the way of me really getting into the groove of it. My recent move, I think, will improve that aspect.

3. What kind of witch are you? Kitchen witch, crystal witch, if I have to put “witch” in it. Otherwise, just a something. I like, on one site they said “eclectic witch” which means exactly as it says. I pull from a number of different beliefs and religions and pile together what works for me as an individual. I like the term “kitchen witch” because I always viewed it as not just literally in the kitchen, but just general magic that centers around the home and general problems. 2014: Just a witch. A general dabbler and eclectic pagan.

5. Do you have any ethics or moral codes that you follow? Don’t hurt others. No hating. Those basic golden rules, you know? Just in general do what will make you happiest without negatively affecting others. Help others when possible, don’t be selfish. Exude positivity. Etc, etc. 2014: My little bit of fluffy was still showing at that point. Everything is fine to me as long as it doesn't hurt kids, basically. Or really fuck someone up who doesn't deserve it (cursing is great, but don't curse someone because they looked at you the wrong way once). There are no rules in witchcraft. Not in witchcraft, it's the shit you tell your kids. Be nice. Love eachother. But it's okay if someone else chooses not to, too.

6. Are you a Solitary witch or have you worked with others in a Coven? I do have a roommate who I meditate with on occasion and we sage/cleanse our crystals together, and I have a few other spiritual people that I talk to about new discoveries/am comfortable doing rituals in front of. Otherwise, no coven, but definitely a knit community. 2014: (A year ago I was much more serious about how I portrayed myself, this was such a formal f'ing introduction)... Now, the house really is full of crystals and people with their heads cracked open to the world. So it is an interesting community, but not a coven. And I don't feel the need to join a coven, though I would love to meet more like minded people just to discuss stuff. Open discussions are always thought provoking, and while the Internet is great for it and tinychats are great, I would like to meet some local people too. I am mostly solitary. I like doing group things like grids and meditating together but for reasons what I enjoy most right now is the stuff I do completely alone.

7. Do you practice divination? If so, what techniques? So far, I’ve done no divination, at least not purposely. I have had feelings/premonitions before, but I have never sought those out. I’ve dabble much more in looking at the past than at the future. It is somewhat on the to-do, just because I find all practices interesting and worth a try. 2014: As you'll see in my next post, I fucking do tarot, so I fucking divine. Stupid Ali a year ago. I seriously think I was like "I don't read tea leaves and I can't see the future." Tarot, mainly. I occasionally try with tea leaves or oil splotches or sand or crystal balls, but tarot by far gives me the easiest results.

8. Would/do you read for others? Why or why not? I have a few times, with tarot, and am completely willing to. There are certain people I won’t read for, because of their attitude toward it or them having an energy that I’d rather not come in contact with the cards, but otherwise I have no problems reading for others. I do ask that they don’t ask questions about their own death or other people’s future deaths, because I’m not comfortable doing predictions of that sort of thing. 2014: Death still is a subject I won't answer about. And I'm starting to get sick about questions about love. YOU WILL FIND LOVE IT'S OKAY. But I don't like fueling people's fear about it, and that's typically what predictions about death will do to people, make them fear. And I don't feel like it's my responsibility or job to predict something like that. Better off unknown.

9. Do you believe in anything supernatural/paranormal? I believe in aliens, spirits, angels, alternate dimensions, demons, fairies, dragons, other mythological creatures. I’m sure there’s more I believe in! I have had contact with spirits quite a few times, though nothing significant in the past year or two. (I’d be willing to tell my stories to anyone interested, though now they seem somewhat less important to me than they were at the time.) My dad got me incredibly interested as aliens (and so did Trying Human, to be honest, and the creator was very inspired by real accounts of humans remembering contact with Greys and Reptoids and Nords, I believe). And there’s a post going around that describes it all perfectly to me. If across the world, hundreds of people were seeing the same phenomena/creatures without ever having contact with each other like we do now (there are ooooold accounts of alien vessels being seen from ships exploring the ocean way back when that are really amazing). Civilizations across the globe drew pictures of dragons and things before we even had contact with each other. Some of them have to exist. 2014: Gods, Alice. Deities and gods of all sorts, you forgot those. (I believe in everything.)

10. What are you beliefs on an Afterlife? I believe that in the afterlife, we all return to the collective consciousness. I really enjoy “The Egg” by Andy Weir (which I just found and reblogged, as well), and I think that’s a good example of what I think “the end” looks like. You fill every role. There is a bit of you in everyone, and there is a bit of everyone in you. We all come from the same source, we all go back to it. Even if there is nothing there at the end, I will be happy to go back into the earth and provide for a new cycle of life. 2014: Another answer that is still primarily the same. I don't know what'll happen though. And I will be surprised no matter what, I'm sure.

11. Does your family and/or friends know you practice witchcraft? Some of them do. I’ve found that the female energies in my life I can talk about it very freely with, but the males not so much. My fiance has been very accepting and listens and has participated with some of the crystal stuff, but it’s still difficult to feel confident talking to him about it sometimes. My mom was a big part of making me spiritual, so she knows and I talk about the things I do with her often. Friends, most know, because they ask about the crystals around the house or what I’m doing with a sack of crystals in my pocket, etc. 2014: Same. I have started opening up about it more (along with trying to be more casual about my sexuality too, so there's that broom closet/gay closet parallel again), but I still am always more comfortable trying to breach the topic with my lady friends.

12. Do/Will you teach and practice witchcraft to your children? Not without giving them other options too. I strongly believe that children aren’t ready for religion at a young age (politics and religion are things that adults vote and participate in for a reason), especially because they are so easily influenced young. I don’t ever want to feel like I chose their spiritual path for them. I enjoyed the way my mom did it. When we started to ask questions about church or religion or other things, she took us to a variety of churches and gatherings of belief and also told us it was okay not to believe in anything and let us make our own choice. She bought my New Age-y books when I asked for them when I first tried dabbling in it, even. I’d like to do something like that with my children. 2014: Choices are important for a child. And sometimes they have to make the wrong ones.

13. Matron Goddess [If you have one. If not, list goddesses that you favor] If I pick a goddess to focus on or make an altar/offering to, etc, I usually focus on some incarnation of Mother Nature. I also still really enjoy Bast and other Egyptian figures. 2014: I feel like I continually tried to adhere to worshipping Mother Nature because I thought that's what pagans do. I do love Her deeply, but I never worshipped her, just enjoyed her presence and what she gave me each day. But I never focused on her during worship or altars. I have had interest in several goddesses but have not pursued deities of any kind thus far. And I have learned since, as well, that you don't need patron deities to function.

14. Patron God [if you have one, if not, list gods that you favor]. I rarely focus on male gods, which is unfortunate. Right now I’ve been primarily focusing on the positive feminine energies in my life and improving on them. However, when I do focus on a male counterpart, it is usually a companion of Mother Nature who takes the form of a large dragon when I meditate on them. Anubis, Hermes, Pan are some favorites. 2014: Same answer as above. To expand, I make my altars to people. To the idea. And the offerings are open to anyone who wants them. My last two altars were for the people in my house and for me. No deities involved in who it was for.

15. Favorite pantheon? Greek or Egyptian. 2014: This is the same, but all are more and more fascinating as I learn about them.

(Note from 2013) I’m going to just do the last of the 31 Days of Witch all at once. I feel ugh answering questions trying to identify a label for what I believe and do and stuff. I just do what feels right, you know? And take little bits and pieces from things I see and adapt it. Mostly I’m just awful at doing something each day because I always forget about it. (Addition from 2014): These questions are unfortunately driving for labels and identifiers to your practice which I didn't and still don't have always. But they are useful as a quick jaunt down what I try to do.

16. What are your Sun/Moon/Rising signs? I’ll give you even more. Sun in Pisces. Moon in Leo. Mercury in Pisces. Venus in Aries. Mars in Cancer. Jupiter in Libra. Saturn in Aquarius. Uranus in Capricorn. Neptune in Capricorn. Pluto in Scorpio. Pisces, ascendant sign also Pisces. (I can give you the planets in houses and my interplanetary aspects too if you as me.) I think this one seemed pretty accurate at getting it all right once you put in your info. Astrology I take with a grain of salt because I think no matter what is put in front of you, if you’re told to look for yourself in it, you’re going to. But this one was actually very spot-on other than a few things. I can give you my full reaction to it if you ask for it. Dunno why you’d be that interested, but I know some people like hearing about it. :) 2014: Astrology has become more interesting to me over the last year. I very much believe the planets have a pull on us, and I am full of Pisces. I am fucking full of PIsces. I knew this last year and don't know why I didn't say so. I am FULL of PISCES. AND I KNOW IT. AND IT IS A ROLLERCOASTER.

17. What’s your Element? According to birth, water, and I very much agree with that. I’ve always said that water “fixes” me. When I’m feeling anxious, if I run cool water over my hands it calms me down, and if I’m having an anxiety attack, if I can think of it, it helps then too. I feel super comfy in baths. 2014: Yes. Hot showers are my cure-all.

18. Favorite season? Fall. Not too hot, not too cold. Right now though… just waiting for Wisconsin to thaw. SO CLOSE. I love all the seasons, but winter always goes a tad too long in WI. 2014: I had no fucking clue what I was talking about last year. Winter was over by March. It finally stopped s-word'ing in WI only a short while ago and I missed the sun so muchhhh. Spring and Fall are tied. We had so many ridiculously negative days this winter, people died. XD except that's not funny, that's true.

19. Favorite tree? Weeping willows. 2014: Yep.

20. Favorite flower? Lavender or lilac. Apparently I like l-l-l-la flowers. 2014: Dandelions. It's always been dandelions. Whenever I fill out a questionnaire I blank, and I don't know how I forgot that dandelions are my favorite. HOW.

21. Favorite gem? I have to pick a favorite? D: I like fluorite a lot but I’m slowly getting turned off by it. Any type of quartz, mmmm. And then any that are warm colors, because they make me feel very positive and energetic. 2014: At the moment, citrine.

22. Favorite color? This or this. 2014: This. ^

23. Favorite animal? Any type of feline. I connect with housecats super easy, typically. 2014: Yes, yessss.

24. What’s your familiar? I no longer have one. I definitely used to view my old cat Luci as my familiar, as when I was first dabbling in New Age-y stuff and Wicca in middle school and though that was the way to go, she as always nosing in on my shitty rituals. Both of my cats were super good at working on my emotions. Would purr and be playful when I was happy, would come up and lick my tears and bat my face until I laughed when I was upset. 2014: My cats did do those things. She was not my familiar. I do not have a familiar and don't know if that happens in real life.

25. Favorite book on Witchcraft? Scott Cunningham’s Enyclopedia of Magical Herbs. I have at this point been alerted to the fact that Llewellyn puts out a lot of crock, and that not all of the definitions should be taken at face value, but I still think it’s a valuable resource for herbs. 2014: I know it's a silly book and it says ridiculous things. But it says straight out that it's folklore uses as well as practical ones. Still is my favorite, as well as Crystal Healing by Judy Hall.

26. Favorite website on Witchcraft? This I don’t have an answer for. The ones I’ve followed so far I think have a lot of very good things to say. 2014: Will update. The resources on deities and offerings. A few wonderful tumblr users.

27. Famous witch that you favor? Skipping. Don’t know. 

28. Favorite divination tool? Tarot cards. 2014: See what I mean? One question I didn't know what divination included and then later I was like "Oh yeah, tarot."

29. Favorite altar tool? My crystals. All crystals are feel-good to me. And also my mortar and pestle, when I get it back from my mom. She’s used it a lot and she’s naturally a very positive person and exudes a lot of positive energy. I’m excited to use a tool she’s gotten her hands on. 2014: Yep.

30. Do you have an altar? Kind of. It is often disrupted as it usually is my crystals in a pattern surrounded by other important statues and things that I own. And, as it is housed on top of my desk, I throw it around often. I need to either clean off my desk and really dedicate that spot, or find a new spot for it. 2014: My desk was an unsuccessful spot. It was hardly mine for most of its stay. Now, I have two spaces set aside for the special stuff.