Surprise Tarot Reading!

Well folks I just did a suppose reading for myself, the first in a very long time and oh boy. I completely understand those memes about how putting off shadow work comes back to bite you in the ass.

I pulled several cards as I asked my deck questions tonight and the answers honestly shocked me, but in the same way you get shocked when something bad happens because of something you could have easily prevented, like keeping a glass from falling from the edge of your counter.

I didn’t get any pictures in the moment so this post will be sadly pictureless. As a notice to anyone who is startled by the cards I describe, I’m using the Santa Muerte deck.

I started with asking what I needed to now at this moment.

I drew the 2 of Pentacles, 6 of Cups, and 5 of Cups.

The 2 of Pentacles represents the issues we are having with money; and that while we are better than where we’ve been, we are not comfortable yet. The 6 of Cups represents my current overwhelm with my emotions and internal monologue. And the 5 of Cups represents the depression I’ve been suffering from; the image on this card in particular is of a figure in a pond with water rising around them, almost to chest level as they pleakly stand. I remember this card clearly because all I could hear in my head was I’m drowning.

I then asked what I can do to fix it, being the situation itself?

I drew the 8 of Wands and the Knight of Cups. This particular 8 of Wands is very vibrant and features shafts of wood coming out the undergrowth around a skull that is seemingly yelling. I understood this combination to mean that I must work through with my internal conflict to become the champion of my emotions.

I then asked if I was on the right path, asking as a yes/no answer.

I drew the Star next.

While I understand the place the Star holds in a traditional journey, it is different in response to a yes/no question; as a yes/no you have to ask how you feel about the card and what it means to you.

I took the Star to mean yes, but an iffy yes, the kind where you’re not quite sure but anything can influence the decision.

I then asked if I take the next step I had been considering, will my path be right? (I know this one is almost too specific, but I wanted to see what I could pull?)

I received the 3 of Pentacles in response. This card shows a farmer watering three spouts with love and care.

I take it to mean that by taking the time to grow my garden first, then the next step will be prosperous.

I felt like this is one of the longest organic readings I’ve had in a long time and it was great. I guess sometimes when you stop and listen, you can actually learn things.

Have you ever had an experience like this? Let me know in the comments.

Witchcraft 101: Honoring your story…

Hello my little witchings!

I know it’s been a while and I want to say two things.

For everyone who has still been visiting, thank you so much for your support. And for everyone that has been patiently waiting for me to come back, thank you as well.

The past few months have really highlighted how toxic my situation had become with my self talk, my work environment, and my goals. I took some time away to really think about what I’ve been wanting out life and I think I know now.

Honoring your story is the way you look at your own story and decide that you are still worth it despite all the trials and struggles you’ve faced. For several months now, I’ve been focusing on my story and working to honor the past I have. I’ve been, frankly, depressed about how my life has turned out and I’m not even 25 yet!

I visited an old friend this past April, and they told me exactly what I needed to hear; that I’ve been trying too hard to be responsible and I haven’t let myself live or have fun. And that I should focus on doing things for me.

So I took the time to look for a new job in the industry I want to work in and I started looking for a way out of retail. And I finally did it. I found a job at a veterinary clinic and I found a way out of working in retail. And my mental health has never been better.

I know my story is… boring and typical. I know my story hasn’t been written fully, neither the ending or the beginning has been laid out for you dear readers. But I know that the journey I’ve been on has taught me hard lessons I needed to learn.

Honoring your story is understanding that some days are going to be hard, and the version of you you wish you could be might never come true. But it also means that the hard days are meant to help you grow, the missed opportunities and missed connections are for a reason, and the you you want to be is everchanging and growing as you change and grow.

Honoring your story is forgiving yourself, which is still something I am actively working on.

Honoring your story is being your first line of support in heartache and victory.

When you honor your story, you are drawing connections to your past to forge your future.

I won’t lie to you. The last year has been the hardest I have lived through and not just because of Covid. In two weeks I’ll turn 24. Last year, I spent my birthday sitting on my couch getting drunk and mourning the version of me I thought I should’ve been if everything had been different. I still mourn that version of me. I know now that this version of me is the version I need to be. But it’s hard to reconcile your dreams with the reality of your situation sometimes. But that’s why we need to honor our stories and honor each other’s stories as well.

If you want to tell your story and get it out, please feel free to do so in the comments. Or send me a message via my contact page or on Instagram. I know telling my story to others has helped me gain insight to my own journey and if you have no one you can tell, tell me; I won’t post anything sent in confidence.

Daily Tarot Draw: Sept. 29, 2020

Are you guys as ready for spooky season as me? It’s the time for baked goods, lattes, corn mazes, and all things SCARY! I’m so excited for what this next month is going to bring.

But let’s get onto the card and get our daily dose of Universe Sass.

Today is the Six of Cups. It seems that after almost a whole month of being sassed about my actions and my thoughts and my money habits, we’re finally getting sassed about our emotions.

Cups represent our emotions and our heart. Sixes are compassion or problem-solving. When I see this card, I get a feel of balance; it takes a lot of balance to hold 6 cups, especially the way she is. In the Rider-Waite deck, the card is vastly different, showing two young figures surronded by light and full cups. But for this card, I feel like it’s reminding me to have balance in my emotions. Normally, 2s or 4s represent balance, but that’s part of being able to read a card intuitively.

I’m going to work on having more balance in my life today; between working with adults that act like children, trying to keep up with school, trying to get together with my friends, trying to get everything set up here and on my new Instagram account for the site, and having to maintian a household, I know I’m losing it a little. Maybe you see something different in the card; let me know in the comments!

So far we’ve pulled:

  • Six of Cups
  • Temperance
  • One of Pentacles
  • Page of Cups
  • Four of Cups
  • Queen of Pentacles
  • Four of Swords
  • Seven of Pentacles
  • Seven of Swords
  • One of Swords
  • Judgement
  • Two of Cups
  • Tower
  • Ten of Pentacles
  • Six of Swords
  • Four of Pentacles
  • Strength
  • Three of Wands
  • Two of Swords

Sign up for the Daily Draw Giveaway for a chance to win a whole Tarot kit when we finally get to the end of the deck! Check out the Giveaways page for more details and to sign up!

Daily Tarot Draw: Sept. 20, 2020

Mabon is right around the corner this week, with it following Halloween! I’m going to do a post this week about all the witch’s holidays and Wicca.

But on to today’s card!

Today’s card is the Four of Swords. One detail I love about this card is the nails in the coffin; we’ve already seen the Seven of Swords, where the figure inside the coffin returns.

Fours represent stability and structure. Swords are thoughts and mentalities.

What we can see in the card, however, is that we are not building or growing, we are putting something to rest.

We can take this several ways; we can be putting an old mentality to rest, so to speak, or we can be letting ourselves rest after using our big brains too much. What I find odd, however, is the aspect of death that comes in this rest. Even in the Rider-Waite deck, it shows a man prone in a church, ready for his wake (maybe? that’s the only reason I can see being unconscicous in a church.)

Maybe it is that we need to lay the old parts of ourselves to rest, or maybe it that is is it time to let the past lie when this card comes up. For today, I’m going to take away that it is the perfect time to let go of that which no longer serves us; not only is it a new moon, and the cusp of fall, but it is the beginning of a new week and that means now is a great time to let go and move forward into the rest of this week and this year.

So far we’ve made it through 13 cards! That’s about 16.7% so we’ve got a little ways to go, but we’re making great progress!

  • Four of Swords
  • Seven of Pentacles
  • One of Swords
  • Seven of Swords
  • Judgement
  • Two of Cups
  • The Tower
  • Ten of Pentacles
  • Six of Swords
  • Four of Pentacles
  • Strength
  • Three of Wands
  • Two of Swords

Daily Tarot Draw: Sept. 5, 2020

Today’s card of the day is…

Two of Swords

The Two of Swords! Using my Santa Muete deck, we draw the card of the day.

Swords represent thoughts, and in tradition, wind. However I always see Swords as representing fire. Twos represent choices and balance.

According to the White Book for the deck, the Two of Swords means conflicting ideas, and the need to reconcile these ideas together. We can see how the blades of teh scissors are opposite of each other, instead of towards each other; image how hard it would be to use scissors like this in reality.

What can we divine about that for today?

Well, knowing we should be anazlying our thoughts and finding our conflicting ideas is a good start. I know I feel like I can either only work or only be in college, so maybe I need to work on coninciding these ideas into a coheisive idea about myself. With the coming elections in America, maybe we need to start anazlying our thought patterns and finding peace between all the information we’ve recieved about all the political issues ane candidates to make the best informed deision for ourselves and our communities. Maybe we need to take two conflicting ideas we have about others and reconcile them to see the truth of the matter.

While it seems like this card is asking a lot of us, perhaps insteads of diving in head first and clearing our mind-clutter, we should start small and focus on the most pressing issues that keep us up every night and take the peace from our mind before diving into the harder seated ideas.

If you feel something about this card, leave a comment! Reach out and let’s talk about all there is happening in this card.

Tarot 101: Numbers in Tarot

When it comes to learning Tarot, something every beginner needs to take into account is how numbers play into a reading.

Now, I know, I know; you don’t want to have to learn math or formulas! But you just have to bear with me. The numbers in Tarot don’t relate to math, which is a good thing most of the time. Mostly, the numbers relate to the cycle of the story.

Every suit follows a kind of story, broken down into chapters represented by the numbers of the suits. So the Aces are chapter 1 and Tens are the last chapter. Unless you get further into Numerology, for most beginner Tarot readers should focus just on how the story progresses through each suit. Then, after you get a little more comfortable with reading the cards, you should dive into Numerology and see if it fits with how you read.

So what do the numbers mean then?

Aces

Aces represent the beginning. Simple, right? They’re the first card in the Minor Arcana suits, therefore kicking off our Tarot numbers. Of course, between different suits, Aces can represent more; such as new business ventures in Pentacles or potential actions in Wands.

Twos

Twos represent either choices or balance. Twos are where we can start to see the multiple aspects of the numbers in Tarot. If we look at a Two of Swords and Two of Cups, we can see how the Twos in Tarot can differ; the Two of Swords represents choices and the Two of Cups represents romantic emotion.

Threes

Threes represent growth and relationships. Most Threes represent growth in either your wallet, your thoughts, or your social circle. With the exception of the Three of Swords, which depicts three swords through a heart, these cards are mostly positive and celebrate growth and friendships. But this is also where the story takes a turn.

Fours

Fours are where the story plateaus for just a moment. It’s as though we take a step back from the action to see the characters happy and stable. Which is what Fours represent; stability and structure. But the stability and structure see throughout the Fours is only leading up to the drama Fives bring to the table.

Fives

Fives are where the stories take a turn; Fives are conflict and loss, change. Five of Wands represent conflict and Five of Pentacles represent poverty. So the stability, celebration, and wealth seen earlier in the cards are now gone.

Sixes

But don’t get depressed over this story quite yet! Sixes are were things begin getting good again! Sixes represent problem-solving and compassion. So the issues that Fives have brought up, are now getting solved! Six of Cups shows fertility and celebration and the Six of Wands show victory! But the story isn’t over yet!

Sevens

Sevens are where we can see some of the personal growth that has come from the Fives’ conflicts. Sevens represent wisdom, faith, and understanding. Although not every Seven represents an immediate resolution of the conflicts beforehand, it does show personal growth in the characters and how conflict brings changes for the better.

Eights

Eights represent movement and change. Now, I know what you’re thinking; omg, more change, haven’t we had enough yet! But hold your horses, it’s a different kind of change! The Five of Wands represents conflict and fighting, and the changes that come with that, whereas the Eight of Wands represents the growth from change and how things have changed since conflict.

I think of the difference between Fives and Eights are Fives represent external change: changes brought about by forces you cannot control. Eights represent internal change: the change you can do in response to your life changing, the changes you can make to your own actions or thoughts.

Nines

Nines are where the story starts to come to an end. Nines represent fulfillment and completion. Now I know what you’re thinking; If Nines are the end then what do Tens have to do with anything! Slow down, kiddo! I’m getting there! Nines show the completion of the cycle, how everything ends up immediately after the changes and growth.

Tens

Now, how do Tens play into all of this? While Tens represent completion and transformation, there is a difference between Nines’ completion and Tens’ completion.

I like to think that Tens are the epilogue to the story, whereas Nines are the final chapter that finishes up the action of the story. If you compare the difference in the Nine of Pentacles and Ten of Pentacles, you’ll see that the Nine represents personal wealth and Ten shows community wealth; so in the short term, personally, you will experience wealth, and in the long-term, your community will experience wealth.

Now I can see your wheels turning; what about court cards? What about the Major arcana? What about-

Slow down and take a breath! We’ll get into the court cards soon and the Major arcana and the story of the Major arcana. There’s time to learn and there’s time to discover. Just be patient until I get everything written!

AcesBeginnings, Potential
TwosBalance, Choices
ThreesGrowth, Relationships
FoursFoundations, Stability, Structure
FivesConflict, Loss, Change
SixesCompassion, Problem-Solving, Harmony
SevensFaith, Wisdom, Understanding
EightsMovement, Change
NinesFulfillment, Completion
TensCompletion, Transformation

Tarot 101: Reading for Others for the First Time

So you’ve been reading for yourself for a while now, you’re ready to take the next step.

But what is the next step? How could you possibly do more than drawing a card every day and reading your own spreads? How could you grow even more as a Tarot reader?

Naturally, the reason you’re here, the reason I made this post, the reason you already came up with, is reading Tarot for others.

One of the first things that stopped me dead in my tracks before I even asked any of my friends or family for practice, was… How do I arrange the cards? You know how in the movies, the reader lays the cards out so the cards face the client, then interprets them. But when you’re a still new(ish) reader, it would be hard to try to remember what a card means for the upright interpretation, while looking at the upside-down card, while READING FOR SOMEONE ELSE for the first time!

That scenario alone gave me anxiety for a week about if I was ready or not to actually read for someone else.

After I came to terms with the fact that even the pros began somewhere and even if I mess up a couple readings, it doesn’t mean I suck at reading Tarot, I had to come to terms with what I would do when I sat face to face with a person.

So I hit the blogs and forums, searching out if any of those gracious pros had any advice for baby readers like me. And there was advice aplenty.

And it ranged from who to start reading for to how to arrange you cards to what you should offer to read. So I decided to make a quick post about all the advice that I’ve read about.

Who to read for

To begin with, read for someone who is 1. receptive and open-minded to a reading, and 2. someone who you can ask to spend the time it will take to read for them. This can be your sibling, your crazy witchy aunt, your eclectic coworker, you significant other, your best friend. Just someone who will be comfortable sitting with you for a while you get some practice.

Reading for someone you know first before moving onto strangers (which is also a good way to get better at Tarot), will let you get a handle on your first-time nervousness, how you want to conduct a reading, how you want to work with your cards.

Cards and your readings

Without a doubt, the number one rule you will get is ‘Don’t let anyone else touch your cards!’

But with reading for someone else, you need to remember that they need to contribute some of their energy to the reading for it to be accurate. Otherwise, stuff will pop up for you in their reading!

If you have two decks (I know, fancy), you can dedicate one deck for personal use and one for ‘public’ use. If you only have one deck, just remember to cleanse and charge your deck regularly, to help negate using it for multiple people and multiple energies.

Next is how you want to arrange your cards.

I, personally, like to have the client cut the deck, then I shuffle the cards and then spread them across the table so the client can get a feel for which card they vibe with. You may feel better having the client shuffle the deck themselves. Maybe you don’t want the client to touch the deck at all! That’s completely fine! Whatever you feel works best.

But when you go to lay the spread out, take into account how you want to read. For the first time, try to sit next to your client so you can both see what’s going in the card at the same angle. With practice you can do things like sitting across from the client, and even reading the cards from the client’s point of view (like in the movies). But don’t rush yourself just yet.

Spreads

This is the biggest advice I got from countless bloggers and forum posts: DON’T START WITH A COMPLICATED SPREAD!!! Even a traditional Celtic Cross spread can be intimidating when reading for a client for the first time.

Even if you’re comfortable doing big spreads for yourself, you have to remember that for a client, they have limited time, limited patience, and limited comfort in the situation. And you’re going to go into this first reading nervous, and when you’re nervous, you’ll make mistakes.

So do a simple spread, 5 cards or less, that you can whip out at any location and know like the back of your hand. Then, when you get stuck on the reading (because you will the first time), you don’t have to interpret many cards and make the interpretations work together. It’s like a built in safety net, to keep you on track and able to process the reading and able to process the reading for the client.

What to do when you mess it up

You’re going to freeze the first time. You’re going to misinterpret a card and it will haunt you for a few days after the reading. You’re going to get sweaty and nervous and your hands may shake a little. Your first practice client, hopefully a person close to you, may laugh a little, may even denounce what you say. But just remember, all beginners fail and all pros were once nervously failing their first reading, just like you.

And even if you bunk up your first practice reading, it’ll all turn out okay, because you can practice more, you can still talk to your practice client, you can still learn and grow and discover new tricks and interpretations.

How to make your first reading go right

  1. Choose somewhere comfy for both you and your practice client, to sit and read the cards
  2. If possible, get some drinks. If you’re meeting somewhere grab coffee or a smoothie with your practice client before sitting down to read. If you’re at a house, offer to make a pot of tea or some lemonade.
  3. Go over the rules of your deck, let them know whether it’s okay or not to touch the cards, just so everyone is aware of the boundaries before starting
  4. Also go over the ‘common misconception’ cards, like Death and The Devil. Explain that if these cards pop up, there is another meaning and you’ll answer any questions they have about card
  5. During your reading, just keep calm and remember that you are knowledgeable about Tarot and your practice client is there to support you
  6. Answer any questions you can. And if you can’t answer the right away, let them know! You can always send them a follow-up text or email and let them know that you did more research and wanted to give them a follow-up. While not standard practice, you’re still learning how to give a comprehensive reading to someone else.
  7. AND ABOVE ALL ELSE, THANK YOUR PRACTICE CLIENT!!! Thank them for letting you practice with them and thank them for taking the time out of their day to be with you, thank them for their patience while you learn, and thank them for being open-minded enough to have a Tarot reading done.

When is all is said and done, you’ll feel that you’re a better Tarot reader, no matter what. Even if you stumble and fail. But now that you’re taking that next leap into Tarot reading, keep practicing and keep working.

Tarot 101: How to Shuffle your Deck

If you’re new to Tarot reading, I bet you have the same question I did when I first started:

How in the world do you shuffle a Tarot deck?

Experienced readers kind of shrug at this question and just say, ‘well, you shuffle them?’

But that’s not what we’re asking as baby witches with our first deck! We’re not asking how to shuffle in general! We’re asking how we’re supposed to shuffle these larger cards that have SIGNIFICANCE!

So I’m here to help you out! Because I had anxiety for the first few weeks after I bought my first deck, of just how in the world I’m supposed to shuffle the deck?

Some of the things that hung me up for those first few weeks were how was I supposed to handle the deck in general. I was used to playing deck cards and just beating those decks up with playing. But a Tarot deck is special. You can’t quite use and abuse them like you would with a little ol’ playing card deck. These are cards you have to give a little extra energy and time and TLC.

Besides the reverence you should show your deck, Tarot decks are larger in size, which makes them difficult to handle the first few times you pick them up!

So after you get a little used to the feel of the deck, how do you shuffle them? How do you get so good at shuffling you look like one of those movie witches who can throw the cards all gracefully and artfully?

Handling a Tarot deck is going to take time and practice. For the first couple of months, I recommend one of two methods:

  • Good old fashioned kiddie shuffle, where you let be in a big messy pile and (GENTLY!) move the cards about. When you feel that they’re shuffled, you just scoop them back into a cohesive deck.
  • Or separate the cards into smaller decks and then gently shuffle the decks together by sliding a card off the top of each deck into a new new.

While these methods are not the fastest of shuffling, they will be gentle on the deck and help you get a feel of the card size and even the feel of the cards themselves.

You can always start with a smaller deck as well, as micro and travel sized decks are available and a good segway into a full-size deck.

Once you get a little bit more comfortable with the deck size you can get more into different types of shuffling. I personally shuffle by pulling chunks out of the deck and either putting them on top or on bottom of the remaining deck. Then, I shuffle the cards by bumping the top card into my right hand in various quantities; so with a full deck in my left hand, I swipe with my thumb a couple cards into my right hand, then I swipe a couple more cards under the new baby deck, then a couple more onto the top of the baby deck. I keep going until the whole deck is transferred from my left hand to the right. I’ll do that a couple of times until I feel like the deck is ‘ready’.

Don’t worry too much if the cards still feel a little unwieldy, you’ll get more comfortable in time. And don’t worry too much about if you’re shuffling is unsightly, ungraceful, or messy; grace and ease come with practice and time.

So don’t beat yourself up over being a beginner. Remember when you were first learning how to ride a bike and it was probably a little awkward, but as you practiced more and more, you became so much more good at riding a bike? Just let yourself learn and grow and before you know it, you’ll be able to handle whatever deck comes your way and shuffle like a queen/king/monarch (whatever you feel!)

While you’re still trying to figure out your style, watch Youtube videos and even practice different styles or whatever your hands feel like doing!

Witchcraft 101: Starting out…

Are you a little witchling, much like myself, who is ready to jump into the deep end?

You’ve done a bunch of reading, followed a bunch of accounts across social media, you’ve saved a bunch of memes and such.

You are so ready for this.

But you don’t know where to even start.

Sure, you have an idea of how pretty your book of shadows is going to look, or how artful you’ll arrange your altar, or how many amazing spells you’ll perform surrounded by candles and herbs and spirit.

But you’re still a baby witch, you don’t where to begin.

So where do you even begin? Where do you even go?

Well, let’s start with gathering supplies!

I know what you’re thinking, ‘Excuse me, we just went over how I am brand spanking new at this whole witchcraft thing and I have no idea where to start!’

So I’m here to talk some sense into you!

You have supplies! You got junk all over the place you can lose! Think about how all the ancestors and witches from the previous times were able to do so much with what they had on hand! You are not starting off from scratch!

Look through your house! I’m sure you can find at least one (1) of the following some where in a junk drawer or under a couch.

  • Candle(s)
  • a pen
  • a solitary scrap of paper
  • An herb
  • A spice

How many did you find? I bet you found things like:

  • a pen
  • a half-melted candle
  • a pad of sticky notes
  • or a half-used notebook from grade school
  • Some salt or pepper, maybe both

See, you aren’t completely bad off. Just take it slow, and go at your own pace. It’ll all come in time. No one is a master overnight.

And don’t worry about having a beautiful Book of Shadows yet, or even having an organized one. Books are hard to write and organize. So just start a folder or a binder or a notebook. I’ll even write a post about how to write up your Book of Shadows.

Keep learning and growing, little witchlings!

Witchcraft 101: Spells for closet witches

Are you closeted? And not in the LGBT+ plus way (live your best life though).

I mean like, are you in the witch closet? Do you still want to participate in all the spooky happening and witchy going-ons?

Well do I have some neat little spells for you! Just 3 basic little spells to do when you need to recharge those batteries.

Simple Space Cleansing Spell

Are you worried about doing a cleansing spell, but can’t burn things because of where you are, such as living in a dorm (where you can’t usually burn things like candles or incense or have a hotplate)?

Here’s a little spell you can do during your usual cleaning.

Salt is also good for cleansing spaces, bringing in an element of earth into your space, which is also good for grounding yourself and your space.

Any kind of salt will do, so whether your stealing salt packets from the dining hall or just the kosher salt from your cabinet in the kitchen, you can do this.

So depending on the type of flooring you have, you’ll need a broom or vacuum (to clean up).

Items:

  • Salt (any kind)
  • Broom for hardwood/tile floors
  • Vacuum for carpet floors

Start by scatting the salt around the border of the room, where the walls and floor meet. Focus on the salt absorbing everything negative in the room, like chaos, negativity, and energy blocks.

If it’s hard to image the energy getting sucked up, think of the bad energies like a juice spill and the salt is a magic (hehe, magic pun) paper towel soaking it all up.

Then just sweep/ vacuum up the salt.

And boom! Space cleansed! No burning/ endangered sage necessary. And if you share the space with a roommate/dorm-mate, they’ll be none the wiser and probably even thank you for doing some chores.

Simple Self Cleansing Spell

Now that your space is cleansed, you gotta cleans your own energy.

Besides meditation, which is easy enough to do and so many people are doing it these days, that nobody would bat an eye at you, but maybe you need some a little more intense.

All you need is your shower.

When you stand in the shower, letting the water wash over you, image the water taking all the bad energy from you, from head to toe. Let the bad energy wash down your body, across your fingers and toes.

Stand in the shower after you turn to water off, waiting until the water drains away.

Then step out feeling refreshed, lighter and ready for the day (or to sleep, whenever you decide to shower).

Bonus points, you can do this with a bath as well, if a bathtub is available. Just sit in your tub until all the water drains away at the end.

Simple Self Care Spell

So you’re space is cleansed, you are cleansed (and clean :)), so now what should you do? What else can you do while you’re trying to stay under the radar?

Get into some self-care! Everybody does self-care these days and your roomies won’t bat an eye at a face mask, a mani-pedi session, or some fuzzy socks and a soft sweater after a long day.

So add some witchiness to your self care with a little something extra.

I suggest teas! Teas of all kinds! A nice cup of tea is great for any day of the week, and relaxing too!

It can also help you get into learning herbs and their associations.

Don’t get disheartened by being a closeted witch, or that you can’t always do big, extravagant spells. Even experienced witches need to do simple things, like cleansing their space and giving their selves a little self-care.

Witchcraft 101: Do’s and Don’t’s of love spells

Today is the day for all things love, lust, and romantic.

But what they don’t talk about for Valentine’s day, is the requests for love spells. And you know the ones we’re talking about; the Hollywood movie magic where with a special incantation(in Latin, obviously) the one you desire will be utterly obsessed with you.

But we have to lay down some ground rules.

Do… define what kind of love someone is looking for. There’s all kind of safe, effective rituals and spells for self-love and selfless caring for an individual. These kinds of spells are good regardless of belief system, because spreading love to yourself and others is healthy.

Don’t… perform spellwork for unrealistic requests. Some boundaries cannot be crossed and manipulated, such as one-sided love or bringing the dead back. So if you get a hankering to work some spells on your crush, or get a request for conjuring a dead relative, maybe just say no until your more comfortable in your practice.

Do… work some spells for yourself. Today is about love. Work some spells and rituals to show yourself some love. Cleansing bath with herbs and crystals, buying yourself a box of chocolates, tending your garden (if applicable), stargazing, or even a break from witchiness. Whatever you feel you need.

Don’t… feel pressured to lie about love. Maybe you’re doing a reading for someone and the signs aren’t there. Don’t feel like you have to lie to your friends or clients about love being in their future when it’s not. The truth may hurt, but it hurts less than lies that lead people on.

But most importantly…

Do… remember to have fun! Do so safely, of course, using proper spiritual and physical safety precautions (wrap it before you tap it). But today is a day of having fun and spreading love.

Witch 101: Finding your passion/direction/gift…

Some of the time I’ve been taking off, while away from school and my blog, I’ve been revisiting some of my old hobbies and new loves.

So for all my baby witches, myself included, how do you know when you’ve found your… focus, direction, gift?

I know when you start out as a witch, you see all these classifications of witchiness, like hedge witches, kitchen witches, green witches, white witches, dark witches…

And that’s not including all the religions and beliefs that go with the practice itself.

So how do you find what your type of witchiness is? How do you sift through all the history and beliefs and practices to find where you fit?

First things first, go slow. Dont rush through something unless it feels off.

For example, work with divination and gardening and cooking, unless you get a weird feeling in your intuition that says, ‘Hey, this just isn’t a good fit.’ Maybe you aren’t familiar with that intuition yet, so here’s a quick tip.

When you try on clothes before buying them, you know if something feels good or if it doesn’t. You don’t have to have a rational reason, sometimes that shirt just doesn’t feel right. Same thing with your intuition, you just know if something fits or doesn’t.

So try everything safely. Try gardening, try scrying, try baking bread, try divining via candles, try binding and healing spells. Don’t do anything you aren’t comfortable with

When you find a good fit, you’ll know it. It’ll come easy as riding a bike, or it’ll feel like a new pair of shoes, stiff and strange, but comfortable enough.

But now, you’re thinking about how your supposed to be classified. Are you supposed to be a green witch cause you’re a green thumb even though you love candle spell work and fire? Are you supposed to call yourself a white witch because you love healing magic and breaking through traumas, but you also love divination? Are you supposed to call yourself an eclectic witch just because you can’t pin down what you want to be called?

Good news, witchlings!

There’s no rules!

You can call yourself whatever you want. You can give yourself a title or not. You can give yourself a classification or not. You can invent your own if you’d like. And if anyone says anything, you have the most powerful banishing spell at the palm of your hands. Literally. Just flip off your nay-sayers and do your thing.

Witchcraft: palm reading…

Palm reading is literally the coolest thing I can imagine when it comes to secret witchcraft.

It’s like no one knows you’re a witch until bam! You look at their palm and tell their future. Then they’re shaken, they’re like, whoa you were a witch this whole time. Then you slip into the shadows with an eerie cackle, never to be seen again.

But what is palm reading exactly? What do witches see on the palms?

Well, buckle up kiddos, cause this is about to get spooky.

Palm reading is the art of looking at someone’s palm and reading the lines. Which lines you ask? Well, every palm is different, of course, just like everyone has unique fingerprints. But we all have some things in common, exactly like how fingerprints can be classified by shape even though we’re all unique.

Each palm, while unique, has certain lines that can be ‘read’ so to speak. These lines cross the palm in certain ways and are read in specific ways.

Just Google palmistry (the art of palm reading) and look at the image results. SO many results pop up and honestly, I won’t try to find one for you to look at because, depending on how in depth you want to get, that will depend on how detailed of an image you want.

So what’s the point of palm reading then? Why bother to learn it besides it being a cool party trick?

Well, you can tell a lot about a person from their palms and it doesn’t even have to be anything about their future.

Use palmistry as a way to determine if someone is a good vibe. Check their palms for callouses, scars, burns, and healing wounds. These things can tell you all about a person; their career, their work ethic, their carefulness or carelessness… And this doesn’t even cover the lines in their palms.

When you do get to their palms, take a look at how the lines cross over their palms. Take into account if the lines are long or short, continuous or broken.

The Life line runs from the heel of the hand across towards the thumb.

The Heart line runs from the edge of the palm, by the pinkie, just under the fingers.

The Head line is the longest line between the Heart (on top) and the Life (bottom).

The Fate line runs perpendicular to the Head and Life line, creating a triangle-like shape in the middle of the palm.

These four lines can help you divine someone’s destiny.

The length can tell you how long their life may be, when they may meet their love, how their fate and their life are intertwined.

Don’t be afraid to look up all the crazy posts out there telling you how to read a palm. Most of these posts go in depth about their character based on hand shape, how the shape of their fingers can influence their destiny, how the lines interacting can mean different things, what it means if the lines are broken, what it means if the lines are present…

Because after all…

Your destiny is in your hands.

Working retail: retail vs the real world…

Working in retail is like working in a whole different world.

It’s a world of perpetual smiling, nodding, and degrading yourself for the customer.

It’s a world where ‘professional’ is thrown around like salt on fries.

There’s nothing professional about it, honestly. How is it professional to ask children to show up and then refuse to tell them the rules of professionalism, subjecting them to a trial by fire?

How is it professional to ask that only certain employees can dress for the environmental conditions, while asking more who deal with those same conditions to wear other clothing?

How is it professional to allow dating within the company, but only until one party of the couple is promoted from their own hard work and dedication?

How is it professional to allow some employees to bend all the rules but some still have to follow them to the tee for no reason other than the managers have an attitude problem?

I worked in the real world. I worked in an office where I was required to be professional. I was required to wear a certain dress code and act a certain way based off my position. I understood that going into that job. I understood that I couldn’t wear certain clothes or talk in a more casual way and I knew that I was getting paid to act that way.

In retail, not only are you not paid enough to really care how you act but, with how stressful it is dealing with not only your customers, but fellow employees, people wonder why there are some many stories revolving some of the biggest retailers in the world.

I can’t comprehend how consumers still choose to shop at these places that are obviously horrible to work, let alone shop.

My own parents continue to shop at a retailer where not long ago, people experienced domestic terrorism and died from gun violence. My parents weren’t apart of the tragedy, but they still choose to shop at the place where things like that happen.

Maybe what I’m trying to convey is that as consumers, we can end this cycle of high school drop outs being underpaid and underappreciated, just by taking our business elsewhere. We can end this cycle of poverty where the CEOs of the big retailers take so much of the profits and the low-level employees struggling to make ends meet between 2-3 jobs by refusing to give these people any more of our money.

And I’m sure some of you are thinking, but don’t you work at one of those places? Won’t you be affected by them losing business?

Sure I will, for a little bit. But I can always find a new job better serving my community and existing outside of the drama and hysteria that is retail work. Or I’ll die from homelessness after 6 months without a job. But either way, I win in the short term.

Witchcraft 101: Incense…

God I love incense.

I feel like incense is one of those things that every witch loves passionately and lately, it’s been getting a bad wrap from those moms. You know, the ‘Gregory doesn’t need vaccinations, I have essential oils and gluten-free pasta’ moms.

But for witches, incense is like… my jam.

Incense is used to bring fire into a spell or ritual, safely (cause you can’t logistically have a bonfire in your living room). Then, the fact that each scent has it’s own alignments.

Like, every one secretly loves incense and lighting shit on fire. It’s something in our primal caveman brain.

So what do you need to get started with incense?

Nowadays, most stores are carrying incense (for those Karens out there).

So you can trek down to local grocery and pick up some sticks and light up.

Here are some of my go-to flavors I love to have around the house.

  • Lavender – I mean, duh. Any witch worth their salt keeps some lavender around the house in one form or another. Incense is one of the easiest form to keep around and light up when you need it. Lavender is used for promoting peace and calming, whether through aromatherapy or through potions (i.e. some Celestial Seasonings Lemon Lavender Lane tea, which is also my jam).
  • Sage – While not a traditional sage bundle, I keep a couple sticks around to help with quick, on-the-go cleanings. Like, when I need to sequester myself away and recharge, I can sit in my office space and light up some sage, and create a space just for me to recharge my energy.
  • Lemon – I just really love citrus. Citrus, especially lemon and orange, always makes me feel like something is clean and fresh and bright. Lemon incense is good for luck and success.

Now a few things you have to know about incense.

You can’t just light it up like a blunt and start smoking.

Okay, you can, but you need a little something extra.

Just like with candles, you have to watch incense around small children and animals, and you should never leave it unattended for extended periods of time (if you have to leave for a moment to get your cup of coffee, then cool, but don’t light it then go out partying with your friends all night).

If you do have to leave (emergencies happen, no biggie) then make sure to put out your incense. You can put it out by dunking the tip in water, wetting your fingertips and squeezing the tip (like an old-timey candle), or mashing the tip, like a cigarette butt, into an ash tray or the incense holder ash groove.

Lavender and cats don’t mix. If you have cats and want to burn some lavender incense, just be aware they cannot breakdown certain aspects of lavender and it can cause moderate health issues, like nausea and vomiting. When I want to burn lavender incense, I seclude myself in my office away from my cats and my cats’ food with an open window and the fan on. I make sure the room is completely clear of smoke before allowing them back into the room.

There’s no right way to pick incense. Of course, there’s some traditional flavors everybody swears by, but honestly, if a certain scent gives you a headache or brings bad memories to mind (cinnamon is my bane, if you know what I mean), then don’t try to make it work. There are always alternatives you can use, and you can always tweak a spell to work for you. Maybe lemon doesn’t bring to mind wealth, but pine does (you know, pine trees are green, money is green), then focus on the intent instead of the community.

So here’s a quick breakdown of the most common incense flavors.

FlavorAlignmentUses (rituals, rites, and spells)
AmberFire and Airwisdom, truth, love and desire
Cinnamonpersonal power, protection,
inflaming passion,
countering love spells
CitrusLemon for confidence, good luck and
goal accomplishment
Orange for joy, good fortune, prosperity,
and marriage happiness
Dragon’s
Blood
FireThe coffee of incense: because of the
rarity and power, it adds a kick
to any spell work, esp. useful in love
magic, protection, and oath-making
Evergreenwisdom, cleansing,
protection, money magic
FrankincenseThe stand -in: because of the commonality
works for most spell work, including
setting sacred space, offerings, and
purification
HoneyIdeal for works for drawing prosperity
wealth, and luxury
JasmineThe MoonFor New moon and Full Moon rituals,
encourages prophetic dreams and
spiritual magic
Lavendercleansing for the home, body and mind
useful for healing and meditation
Patchouliattraction magic, like money spells
Raincleansing, healing, relaxation,
esp. good for ‘clean slates/fresh starts’
and calming anger
(Fresh Linen scent can be used in a pinch)
RoseVenuslove incense: attracting and keeping love, usher in romance and self-love,
can also open the heart
Sandalwoodonly for benevolent works; cannot be used
to curse or compel, used to consecrate, heal,
removing negativity, , bringing peace,
wishes, bless altars and ritual spaces
Vanillacalming an area, promoting mental and
physical arousal, stimulate good luck
happiness, prosperity, and knowledge-seeking

Incense is a great way to jump feet-first into witchcraft. It’s pretty affordable, and even if you spend too much at first, there’s no way you’ll burn through 50 sticks of incense super fast.

Tarot 101: Tarot Journal…

When you first start reading Tarot cards, many people recommend starting a Tarot Journal.

So what is a Tarot Journal?

A Tarot Journal is basically exactly what is sounds like. It’s a journal where you write out things you learn about Tarot. Many use it as a daily journal, where they have a daily draw and interpret a card for the day, then journal about the day. Many use it as a reference for draws they have done, such as a draw done last week about their cousin’s wedding and referenced now a week before the wedding, to see what the cards may have referenced.

So what’s the significance in a Tarot Journal? Why should you get one?

Think of it this way; would you walk into school without a notebook to take notes about your classes? Would you go to a conference or a lecture and not take something to write notes with? Probably not. So give Tarot the same courtesy you would a teacher or a speaker at a presentation.

Maybe you won’t get anything from a reading, just like sometimes you walk into a class and it’s a movie day. And sometimes it’ll go over your head because you’re diving in too deep without understanding the basics, like trying to do calculus with only 3rd grade multiplication tables. But that’s where your journal comes in.

I been using mine for daily draws, to help interpret cards, to jot down interesting spreads I see on Pinterest, or to jot down notes on cards I haven’t drawn yet or difficult cards I’ve had to delve deeper into. And if nothing else, you can use your Tarot Journal just for the witchy aesthetic. Use it like a regular journal to help keep track of how you feel before and after a reading, to track which cards keep showing up for you, complicated spreads broken down for easy of use, deck you want to buy later, or neato little things you figure out along the way.

There’s no wrong way learn and Tarot Journals are a sure bet to help you keep your new knowledge in line and organized so you can actually reference later if you need to, or keep it around for friends or family to reference down the road. If you don’t know where to start, look into Bullet Journalling and just come up with your own spreads to suit your witchy needs.

Tarot 101: Basic Tarot Rules…

Let’s get right into the nitty-gritty of it all. Tarot has some basic rules that you have to follow to get any result. Like being on a diet; to lose the weight you have to follow some rules.

So what are the rules? Well, it kind of depends on who you ask. One tradition that many are choosing to ignore is that you have to be gifted your first deck. I think it would be a great tradition to uphold, but if you’re like me, then you don’t know any practicing witches yet. Especially within your family, like mine, a family of very white, Christian people. So it would’ve been a cold day in Hell before I received my first deck via gift. So many people who are starting out buy their own decks (or are forced to buy their own deck really).

So here are some hard and fast rules that generally do apply to Tarot.

  1. You gotta put some energy into your deck to get them to work. What does this mean? Well, you got to put some spiritual batteries in those motherfuckers for them to really start pumping out anything. So how do you charge the batteries? The most common way is to just handle them; shuffle them and put them back in order to get a feel of that specific deck and their own energy. Or put them in natural light, like moonlight or sunlight (i prefer moonlight so the colors don’t fade as fast, but if you’re going to be around a little sunbathing won’t hurt for a few minutes). Now I know what you’re thinking, ‘what the fuck do you mean ‘charge your cards?’ So the simple explanation is to think in terms of physics. Everything is made up of molecules which vibrate, so you have to use other forms of energy to get your card molecules to vibrate in a frequency your body and spirit can work with. This means using energy from the sun (solar power anyone?) or your own body heat (thermal energy?) to get in sync with your cards.
  2. You gotta store them right and treat them right. This is more of a common sense rule. Many people suggest storing your deck in a silk or cotton bag, sometimes with crystals to cleanse the energy (I’m not a big crystal believer yet, but I know there is a shit ton of lore behind crystals and the unexplained, so maybe something in there is true?). I personally store mine in antique headscarves from my great-grandma. Now, these are specifically cotton or silk (like everyone else says) but they are good quality and because of the age, help me to treat the cards with reverence and respect. If the deck comes in a sturdy box, they can also just be stored in the box, which will keep them safe from unintended damage.
  3. You gotta use them. Crazy idea I know. But think about it; the only way to get better with them is to use them. The only way to get used to a deck is to USE THEM. I get the whole appeal of buying like 20 decks, because there are so many with amazing art out there. I understand just wanting them for the aesthetic of the deck itself and maybe just keeping it for decor because it’s so damn pretty and you feel bad about using it. But think about all the nice things that will never get used because of this thinking; all the fancy dishes or amazing linens or luxury cars that sit around because people are afraid of them wearing out. But why have them just to collect dust instead of actually using them for their intended purpose and bringing a little bit of joy to your life with the beauty of the deck.
  4. You have to decide if you will let other people touch your cards.  This sounds like a weird rule but, hear me out. The actual rule is that you really shouldn’t let other people touch your cards at all because it will mess with your deck’s energy. Personally, I don’t mind if it’s someone I know personally (like my mom or my boyfriend) because I know, 1) where their hands have been prior to them touching my cards so I know they won’t get dirty, 2) I know them and their vibes, 3) that I’m in an intimate setting where I will have the time and opportunity to properly cleanse the deck’s energy after. I can understand why some people want no one else to touch their decks period. It is very intimate because of the time and energy invested in the deck, but also I can understand why you wouldn’t want strangers to touch your deck, especially when you don’t know their vibe or if their hands are even clean, or if you aren’t going to have the time to restore your energy or your deck’s energy (say running errands or back-to-back readings at your sister’s bridal shower). But in my opinion, this is a decision you will have to make based on how you feel about your cards. Maybe it’s a deck-specific choice or a blanket policy.
  5. Practice, practice, practice. This one is self-explanatory. You have to practice to get good at reading the cards. You have to practice to get a feel for the deck. You have to practice just as with any new skill or knowledge. You can’t learn advanced calculus overnight (trust me I tried and it didn’t work), so don’t expect to get the hang of Tarot overnight (unless you share how the hell you did it)
  6. You have to have a Space™.  Many people agree that you have to a space specifically for learning Tarot, a space you’ve cleansed with sage or incense and devoted entirely for your spiritual journey. Knowing that some people live in small studio apartments or are trying to hide their witchcraft from their family that they live with (or judgy roommates), I think you just have to be able to have a little corner you can slip into or even just a mental zone. I look at doing Tarot like a student; sometimes you won’t have the place to study and lay out all your materials, but if you have the time while you ride the bus or eat your lunch, then you can still study, or in this case, work with your deck. Maybe it just means shuffling the minor arcana while you ride the bus. Maybe it means doing one-card draws about the crime drama you’re obligated to watch with your significant other. Maybe it means waiting until the kids are in bed to pirate the kitchen table for your extensive spreads. I don’t think you have to have an actual corner to practice in, but definitely a mental corner.

These are just some of the rules I’ve seen floating around the witchcraft community online. Maybe there are others I just haven’t discovered yet. There are totally ones I’m going to ignore because I don’t see how they apply productively to me.

Let me know in the comments below some of the things you know or learned. Or to give me a written example of all the ways I’m fucking up.

Tarot 101: Finding your deck…

This is simultaneously the hardest and easiest part of Tarot.

Why is it easy? With all the resources available, it’s easy to find stores in your area that sell Tarot deck, as well as find them online. You also have the resources available to here what other people think about a certain from reviews and forums, which can help make you an more informed buyer, especially if you order them from Amazon or what not.

But now the process becomes harder. With all these resources at your disposal, it’s going to feel overwhelming just from the decks available at your local shops.

In this sea of beautiful artwork, differing content, different sizes, and loads of customer reviews, how do you know if you can work with this deck?

While this may be the right question, I want to elaborate for a moment on this particular question. If you’re a beginner like me, I wouldn’t worry about breaking the bank with the most beautiful deck you can find because your materialistic heart says you need it. I know this seems like a call out, but this is the main question I want you to focus on when you look at a deck, can you REALLY work with this deck? Can you picture yourself handling the cards over and over? Is the finish glossy enough for traditional shuffles (since if you’re like me, you haven’t quite picked up the hang of shuffling the standard sized Tarot which is larger than an average deck)? Is the deck a good size for your hands (I have very small child-like hands, which makes this an issue for me)? Can you imagine doing spreads and readings with these cards?

I know this seems like a lot to consider, but it’s helped me get two good decks off Amazon without ever touching them in person.

But my favorite little piece of advice, I found from Marie Kondo on her new Netflix series. Although her series is about organizing your home using the KonMari method, she asks her clients something very important about their stuff. ‘Does this spark joy?’ It totally floors me every time I use it, because some things you have to keep around (say a hammer for emergency repairs) but other things, you don’t have to hold onto (like a dress from your 8th grade Sadie Hawkins dance). So ask yourself this when you look at a new deck, especially if you’re online shopping. If you can’t see yourself holding this deck, working this deck, feeling joy and growth from this deck, then don’t bother to get it.

Unless you’re going to start an art collection of Tarot cards. Then go for it, I suppose.

I’m not trying to scare you off buying a deck. But I don’t want you to pick a stunning deck for you to work with it twice and realize it just isn’t for you. It would be like investing in a Ferrari for your first car only to find out you only like driving Civics (nothing wrong with either vehicle just a comparison of how even though the luxury is there, you may be comfortable with something that you can beat up a little since you’re still learning). But just take the time to research and investigate before you decide on a deck to save yourself from having decks piling up in your house, pouring out of cabinets and drawers, overflowing closets, spilling from under the beds and piled in the sink.

 

Tarot 101: Introduction to Tarot…

Consider this a crash course introduction to Tarot. Tarot is one of witchcraft’s more commonly portrayed aspects in modern media. Everyone knows of the crazy old woman reading Tarot cards and palms at her velvet-covered shop with a big ass crystal ball.

Tarot decks contain 78 cards. These cards are split into two main categories; Major arcana and Minor arcana. Major arcana makes up 22 cards of the deck and have the most famous cards, like The Lovers and Death. The Minor arcana cards make up the remaining 56 cards of the deck and is made of four suits.

However, the suits are different than a standard deck. Where a standard deck’s suits are made up of Hearts, Diamonds, Spades, and Clubs, a Tarot deck’s suits are Cups, Pentacles, Swords, and Wands. Tarot suits do coincide with regular suits, so if you’re trying to be sneaky or looking for a new Tarot challenge, you can use a regular deck just as you would a Tarot deck. Cups coincide with Hearts, Pentacles with Diamonds, Swords with Spades, and Wands with Clubs.

The Major arcana is numbered, starting at 0 instead of 1. We’ll go over more of the Major arcana later on.

Tarot is a form of divination magic, like reading tea leaves or casting oracle bones. Another form of card divination is oracle cards. Oracle cards can come in different kinds of deck sizes and content. Tarot is normally based on one set standard.

Most decks based their face illustrations off the Rider-Waite deck, which has been in print since 1910 and is considered the standard for  Tarot decks. Nowadays, there are many illustrators creating their own stylistic face illustrations for their own Tarot decks, drawing from the Rider-Waite deck as inspiration.

Many pros agree that to start learning with a deck based on the Rider-Waite deck since it is such a common and accessible deck. As well as being the most common deck available, the resources online are countless if you need help interpreting a card or learning a new spread.  Besides online, there are books upon books you can reference.

That’s just some of the basics involving Tarot. With a topic this old and rich, there’s always more to explore and discover and learn.


Check out more about tarot in some of these posts:

https://literallytiredaf.com/2019/03/01/tarot-101-finding-your-deck/

Check out some of my social media to see content I think is great from fellow witches.

http://the-drunken-witch.tumblr.com

Instragram: @the_drunken_witch

Intro to Witchcraft…

We all know about the witch hunts where many woman were burned at the stake or drowned for any reason at all. Witchcraft was more of a blanket term back them to describe anyone who wasn’t fitting in with societal norms.

But witchcraft itself has somehow persevered through the years and is seeing a resurgence of late as more and more women are delving into the history behind it and are finding that it is a much more open community than originally led to believe. Not only is it an open community where members are more than willing to teach and answer questions about witchcraft and wicca, but it is also becoming a more holistic approach to spirituality than other forms of organized religion.

Some of these benefits include worshiping who you want without any guidelines on exactly how you HAVE to worship your deity. You also can pick from across cultures all around the world to find a deity that actually suits you and your life instead of a monotheistic religion. Not only is the spirtuality aspect a major winner of why so many people are turning to witchcraft and wicca, but the fact that many attributes of spell work and witchcraft itself revolve around nature and appreciating nature.

So for some who are wiccan, a day at church could be hiking a local mountain and cleaning up litter, or taking a walk through the woods and appreciating the nature that surrounds their area, or maybe it means going down to a local park and sketching some of the squirrels and birds to give as offerings to a deity. I personally understand how any of these activities, done with the proper reverence, beat sitting in a musty old church all morning listening to a man try to interpret a book instead of doing so myself.

Now before I get carried away, let me make a disticntion.

Wiccan is the nontraditional belief system (however considering witchcraft has existed longer than organized religion, maybe this should be considered traditional) of worshiping Non-Christian deities and more than one deity. Most people refer to it as a form of paganism and I guess it counts on a purely technical basis, considering how the dictionary defines words.

Witchcraft is the blanket term for practicing various forms of magic, usually in correlation to a deity, but not always.

So you can be wiccan and practice witchcraft or you can be wiccan and not practice witchcraft, or you can practice witchcraft and not be wiccan. But that’s the beauty of witchcraft. It give you the options and choices to grow spiritually how you want to and with what suits you.

Does this make witchcraft evil? In the eyes of some of the more extreme Christian groups, yes. But for one group who believes that being gay is wrong and that vaccinating your kids is wrong and that divorce is wrong and that only one person has the answer and the other that appreciates other cultures and nature and works primarily to bring about positive solutions to problems… You can see where I’m going with this right?

So maybe you can see why I’m getting into witchcraft. I can do my own thing without have to play into the notion that only one god exists to try to explain the vast amount of uncertainties in the world. Or maybe I’m just an old-fashioned kind of girl 😉