Staying Motivated in your Studies and Oh, I Started a Study Group

Dear Neophyte,

This Needs Edited In The Future to Half Word Count

I do get pretty talky when I'm passionate and on a daeadline

Staying motivated in our witchcraft studies can be daunting.  All of us have a lot of life to live, a severe need for instant gratification, and almost no self-discipline. If you disagree this applies to you then answer me this: How much debt are you in that could have been avoided if you'd exercised more discipline?  Not your fault? Well, if someone held a super soaker gun to your head and told you to find a way to get your needs met without going into debt you'd have found a way to do it.  Firstly by prioritizing what was actually a need and then finding out how to get it on your income.

Time is income and the things that we want to accomplish in our magical studies are the "needs" we want to afford it.  Instead of buckling down and fitting our studies into the time we have, we go into debt with ourselves saying "I'll owe a 20 min meditation tomorrow because I wanted to fit in another episode of Oran before bed."  Then tomorrow you don't want to spend 20 min so you owe thirty for the next day.  The time debt becomes overwhelming and you give up.

Stop that.  

Stop time-debting to yourself.  If you didn't meditate today for 10 min then tomorrow you only owe 10 min.  That's it.  The long-term effects of meditation cannot be gained in one 30 min sit if you skipped 10 min sits for three days in a row.  Didn't meditate today?  You missed out.  Tomorrow is a new day and you start over from scratch.  This is both refreshing and frustrating.  You don't owe anything.  You didn't gain anything either.

That's how it works.

My sister and I started a study group.  This is month three and the topic is "Staying Motivated".  Surprised?  Don't be.  It's been three months since the last meeting and we only had two before then since the group was founded.  Oddly enough we chose this topic before we knew everyone was going to flake for three meetings in a row, though one was canceled due to illness and job loss on the parts of two members.

The study group meets on the waxing side of the full moon on the day that at least 75% of members can make it.  This time is the first time we're actually able to meet ON the full moon (which is tomorrow).  The three original members decided that when we get enough information and practical experience under our belts we'd like to form a working group.  We all have Shamanism in common so reconnecting with my totems would not go amiss. In the meantime we gotta get back to that place, hence a study group.

Here are my notes for Staying Motivated in Magical Studies

These apply to members of the study group specifically, though they can be adapted for solitary use as individuals see fit.

1) Study Groups - Staying active in the study group is essential.  Real work and dedication are required to incorporate witchcraft into your everyday life.  We are a self-study group who come together to share ideas.  We don't employ 'teachers', 'gurus', and certainly don't have 'mentors' who are already versed in their craft.  We teach each other.  That means everyone contributes.

Personally, if someone isn't contributing and is instead expecting to sit there absorbing everyone else's ideas then I plan a swift votekick from the group.  I'm not playing high priestess to someone who thinks they don't have to do the work and can just leech off of me while in a circle.  No.

2) Networking - Websites I recommend for general networking are Witchvox, Facebook, and Beliefnet.  For specific traditions, there are always websites for you too.  Kemeticism has the Kemetic Orthodox Church that supports the House of Netjer forums, amongst others.  Search your tradition and join the forums.  See if there are forums specifically for those in your area and start talking to people.  Meetup is a great place to meet new people who share your interests in witchcraft.  A while back I had a LOT of success using Yahoo Groups, though I can't tell you what they are like now.  When I was just getting started they were a great place to give and get ideas, advice, and encouragement.  Don't discount old-fashioned letter writing to people whose information you pull off the message boards of your local occult shop.  These shops might also tell you where to find individuals in your area who don't advertise.  That's how a member of my study group found out there was a sect of Odinist the next town over.  She got in contact and went for a visit to say hello.  Get out and meet other Witches!

3)  Mentors -  While I don't think that we're skilled enough in this group to be really mentoring each other, you may find a mentor in your networking whom you can go to for advice on certain areas.  ASK this person if this is a role they want to play for you and lay down some ground rules.  It is not ok to be calling someone before or after established hours for basic questions.  I recommend meeting up once a week to discuss your progress. Even if this meeting is 10 min phone chat.  Remember, it's not a social call so stick to relevant queries and remember to pay it forward for someone else once you've mastered an area enough to dispense some advice about it.

4) Weekly Check-Ins and Accountability  - I want our study group to have weekly check-ins.  Start a post on the Facebook page once a week and let us know how you're doing with the current topic.  Each member will respond with either a bit of advice or encouragement to keep going.   We don't encourage enabling of people not budgeting their time properly, nor are we going to allow co-dependence of agreeing with people's excuses not to do their homework.

As example:
Person A)  "Sitting still is so BOOORING.  I don't like meditation!"
Person B) responds with: "Dawg, have you heard of walking meditation?  Google that sh*t!"
Person C) responds with: "I do tai chi meditation.  That way I can move around while I zone out.  Give it a try?"
Person D) responds with: "Stick with it.  It's only been three days.  Get back to me after a week and see if you still have so much trouble holding still.  It could be that your body isn't used to being allowed to relax so give it a few more days and don't give up!"
Person A)  responds with: "Yeah, I'll try sitting still for another few days and if it's still not working for me I'll look into moving meditations.  I not into tai chi, but I'm sure I can do something else repetitive to help me let go mentally."

5) Why Witchcraft? - Knowing what you want out of your studies is key.  It's surprising how a lot of people think witchcraft will replace therapy, hospitals, social skills, self-improvement needs, etc.  When you get past all of that and the answer is you want these skills regardless of it not being a replacement for any of that then you just need to outline what those reasons are.  Example: I want to honor the seasons with appropriate rituals, be able to journey to the spirit world with my totem for self-discovery, and walk the mazes in my head without fear of being lost.  Then you're on the right path.

6) Don't Overdo It - Have a plan for getting where you want to go and know how to pace yourself.  You don't need to do 30 min of practice every single night, spending 10 min on three different exercises cause you want it all NOW.  10 min a night spend on nothing as simple as breathing is still Witchcraft.  It counts.  If you already know that your posture for meditation is fine then work on your breathing next.  Then clearing headspace.  Then the rest.  Step by step.  Figure out which exercises you want to get under your belt and in what order.  Break them down into simple steps and learn each step in its turn.

7)  Be Reasonable - Humans have ups and downs.  Allow yourself ups and downs.  You must fight giving into manic surges of want to study the same way you must fight depressed episodes of disinterest.  The balance it brings will be well worth it.  The Dark Night of the Soul happens to everyone.  Some people more than once.  The breakthrough is worth it as you're pushed to new levels.  Be kind to yourself, but maintain discipline. 

8) Study Guide – Write down what you want to learn. Write down the minimum level of proficiency you'll be ok with before adding another item to your repertoire. Don't think you have to master something before you can start learning something else. Most people never stop practicing to perfect their art. Be practical. Stick with ritual or skill basics such as grounding and centering before adding things like trance work. Break these items down to their simplest forms to see which steps you have to practice and in which order. Meditation as example: Posture > Comfort and Relaxation > Breathing > Visualization > Guided Meditations.

9).  Achieve Goals and Debunking “Perfectionism” - Goal setting can be its own class.  Take meditation as an example: "Each night at 5:30 pm I will meditate on my breathing for 10 min.  By the end of the month, I will be able to keep my breathing strong and steady and will be able to move on to visualization exercises.  By Lammastide I will be able to hold images in my head while maintaining strong breath for 20 min."  Planning to master meditation in a month is bogus.  Not letting yourself move on till you have mastered meditation is bogus.  Once you can do the basics you can move on to other exercises, if that is your wish. If by Samhain you hope to have all ritual basics under your belt enough to do a solitary Ancestor Rite then break down your goals month by month and piece by piece. 

10)  Daily Practice – Having daily practice makes something far easier to do. Don't think of it as extra activities you're trying to squeeze into your day. This IS your day. Practicing your daily shielding to prevent physic plaque should be no different than brushing your teeth to prevent cavities. If you don't believe it's just as important than refer back to your reasons and your goals. Why do you want to do this?

11) Min/Max Limits - What is the minimum you'll do in a day and still consider it as crossed off your list? What is the maximum amount you'll do before cutting yourself off? Finding this middle ground and staying as true to center as you can is the best way to stay balanced and not risk burnout. However, use your support group when you need to. Minimum is better than nothing, so in order to avoid disappointment, you need know what that is.

12) Progress Report and Reward – After mastering the basics it's ok to give yourself a reward before moving on to deeper or different skills. Rewards could be anything from books specializing in a certain subject, an item that symbolizes that skill, a title to use as you please, or a new tool you didn't want to buy because you didn't know if you were that into this particular form of divination. Turns out you're really good at tea reading and want to bigger, fancier cup to use just for readings.

A Note On Your Role in Your Progress: Let it not be said that it is the group's responsibility to drag you along, spoon feed you answers, and be batteries for your own magical endeavors. Book learning does nothing without practical applications to back it up. We can't practice your grounding and centering for you. We aren't the dressing-up brigade and some of us have an ultimate goal of taking a few members of this group and forming a working circle. But that means enough members need to know what they're on about for this to happen.

13)  Holy Days and Moons – Marking the seasons, your God's special days, and the phases of the moons help to incorporate your practices as part of your everyday life. At this point I don't consider someone a Witch if you don't any actual spellwork under their belt, don't mark particular points of the year, are oblivious to anything bigger than them, and just read books. Not good enough. Not nearly. It's what you do behind closed doors when no one is looking, that you aren't doing just to brag about it later, that counts. It's what people don't know you do because it's such a part of your life you can see the craft but not the separation of it from your daily life. The Egyptians didn't even have a word for 'religion' because what they did just WAS.

14)  Art, Journals, Writing, Music, Videos, and Shopping – I've gone through my local craft store and dollar store and mentally figured out what kinds of observances and spells I could do with what is on hand. I do this to keep me inspired. I write myself into fictions of my own life where I am the witch/healer/priestess I want to be and this inspires me to make it so. Magical daydreaming is for real. I look to books for inspiration on deepening my understanding and practice beyond the basics. The Old Craft witches of St. Thomas on the Poke set a high bar, but one that I know I can reach if I dig a little deeper and reach a little higher. Music moves me. Especially Blackmore's Knight and Loreena McKennitt. If you don't feel like doing that moon ritual just put on Dark Lady by the former or All Soul's Night by the latter and – nevermind the one is a Samhain ballad – see if the Powers That Be can even STOP you from lighting those candle and casting that circle! There is YouTube and the plethora of advice and encouragement for the beginners. You can listen to a Ted Talk motivational speaker speaking about how to get on with what motivates you and 10 min in you'll be shutting it off to sit down for some meditations. Lastly I keep progress reports in my BoS/journal. If I don't feel like moving forward then I sometimes look back and see what motivated me to keep going last time I felt like stopping. Selina kicked my arse for almost three months AFTER she was gone. Just the idea that this woman was running around spreading her misinformation and bullshat all over the place made me desperate to feed myself correct information and practices just to balance out the crazy. Record your motivations in your journal and read back on your progress. This should help you want to move forward since stopping would naturally require you to start over from the beginning once you took it back up again.

Magic is a muscle: use it or lose it.

Salutations,

Sesh

Samhain 2017, and Celebrating Sabbats You Don't Get

Dear Neophyte,

It's been a hot minute since I wrote about Samhain here.  I'll fix that once I get done moving all my oversharing from my Facebook to here, where it belongs.

For Samhain this year In consumed 3 glasses of white wine, one of red, drug my hair through candle wax and then cut it off. It all sounds so dramatic till you hear that cutting off 4 inches of hair hardly makes a difference when you have 3 feet of the stuff, and the whine just made me sleep really well ^-^

That's what I did this year. Mostly because my sister is home and I decided I prefer to spend my holydays with the gods as they are meant to be spent.  I can't really do that when she's around - not that it's her fault but several years in a row I tried to get her to do holidays my way and she's not having it - so I'll do it when she's not.

This year I spend most of my holy days alone, as she only really comes out for three of the eight and in my opinion, it's half-arsing religion to only celebrate the ones you "like" or "see the point of".  Instead of that, I chose to spend some time each year for the last several going over and over and over what each holy day means and year after year after year I get it.  More and more, a little at a time, even the ones that didn't make any sense to me several years ago, they feel integral to my spiritual life.  They mark important occasions.  

If nothing else they help remind you of how close it is to the parts of the year you like the best.  Repeated over and over in ritual "The sun is reborn!  The days grow longer and warmer.  The Darkest Night is over and we the Witches rejoice!" (I just made that up, but it's the gist of my Yule speech said in ritual) help you to keep track of the fact that the best of winter is over and how you get to look forward to dying of heat stroke and being eaten by mosquitos in 70 days.

Kinda like the maturation period of cucumbers.

Salutations,
Sesh

New Book: "Spellbook and Candle: Cursing, Hexing, Bottling, and Binding."

Dear Neophyte,

I bought a book on cursing, bottling, and binding.  I'm really only in it for the bottling and binding, as I'm pretty sure I know how to curse someone.  For the most part, the book is actually just a historical account of a lot of known curses.  That's fascinating in its own right, as people everywhere had a variety of ways to f*ck someone over who'd f*cked them over first, but I was looking for more of a primer.



The ancient Greek lead tablets with writing on them (you see one being made in the show "Rome"), the curse of blacksmiths and windows on the kings of England (what Brit has ever liked their current king?  Non, that's who.), and Jezus defiling property by cursing a fig tree into oblivion in a fit of pique for having the audacity to not produce fruit for him to nosh on out of season.

I've only read about 40 pages in and already have curses from Egypt to New Orleans.  I'm hoping that somewhere near the back is a section on mechanics of throwing curses.  What's the point of telling us that you can melt a wax figure of someone to curse them into loving you if you don't know any more of the components?  Like what kind of wax, what make of pin, where do you put the remnants of the spell?

What if you want to end a curse?  There's no way to end a curse.  The author seems pretty set on this fact and reiterates in in the front of the book and through the curse type sections pretty well.  She also has several instances where she tells you directly that for specific spells there is definitely going to be a price to pay.

So far so good for my first kindle book.  I bought it after seeing it was only $5 on Amazon and thinking I usually spend that on candy from Dollar Tree once a week.  What if I spent that on books instead?  Going to build up a digital library this way.  And this way I won't have to share the books with sisters who like to spill everything from wax to chocolate milk on anything and everything. 

Not to mention how much she bangs a book up before giving it back.  Books she's had new for three weeks look worse than books I bought used 15 years ago.  Bless her cotton picking heart.

I became interested in the author because of another book I'd read where the author gave the preface.  Some instances of the book have her listed as the author and since I LOVE the Coarse Witchcraft Trilogy I wanted other works by her.  Coarse Witchcraft often talks about cursing and since it was a new subject to me that some people are so open to it I became curious. 

It was really this idea of "bottling" that did it for me.  So far in this book bottling is only mentioned once and I hope it goes into more detail later on, as the one given was nothing more than putting meat in a jar.

So I guess I'm adding new books to my collection.  Maybe I should do that for all the holidays: buy a book that correlates to that holiday. 

Other books I want to get include a history of Native Americans in Oregon and well as a book about the history of Portland, Or.  If there is anything that "A Witch Alone" taught me it is that if you're going to live somewhere and have the audacity to call yourself a witch then you had better be able to walk your talk.  Not even knowing moon lore or where the local sacred places of your area are is a travesty.  I love British authors and their ability to demand that you do your homework in all areas, not just purely magical ones.

Other books I want to get are herbology books on local foliage, lore books on local trees - as well as to track these trees down like Proff. Mary had us doing in her shamanism class - lore about my personal spirit animals, and more books on the religion of the Natives of this area.

My mythology class did more for teaching me what people in this area considered sacred and held dear than anything else.  It's from these roots that the village witch needs to draw her power.  She needs to know why salmon are important to this area, and who Coyote is, as well as the courses of the rivers - and there are a lot of them - and the lay of all the different terrains of this state.  We have everything from desert to sea, from sweeping forests to mountains that clear the clouds.  We even have a volcano.  Wouldn't the Native Locals know whats what when dealing with these forces?

Some people are a priestess of only the sea.  Or only the dessert.  Or only the forest (druids).  I aim not to be a fully-fledged priestess of all of these, but I certainly want to be a witch in tune with all of them and fully within my ability to feel, breath, read, and appreciate all of them.

"To Know" is the first tenant of the Witch's Pyramid.  Education is my first challenge.  "To Will" is the second tenant.  Deciding what to do with my knowledge is my second challenge.  "To Dare" is the third tenant.  Finding the sacred and making contact is my third challenge.  "To be Silent" is the fourth tenant.  Not scattering my essence to the wind by oversharing my wisdom.

Salutations,
Sesh

Tea, Dreams, and Studies

Dear Neophyte,

I've been drinking my sister's ADHD medication.  That is, I've been drinking the tea she was given by her naturopath to help with her ADHD.  It's just fancy blends of herbs and flowers that help the adrenal glands and whatnot. 

Originally they were supposed to be coupled with shamanistic works of deposession in order to calm oneself and get rid of whatever might be hyping you up.  That's why I love naturopaths: They work WITH you as a whole instead of against your body.

She decided that since the teas are supposed to be drunk without sugar that she won't drink them at all.  Well, they do taste pretty much like hot leaf juice in equally hot water if you do it that way.  But, hey, they aren't my prescriptions so I'm drinking them with at least enough sugar to float the actual flavors of the tea. 

The actual flavors are light enough to keep me interested and warm enough to keep me calm. 

I've noticed that I have more energy at work, sleep longer and better, and when I come home I'm typically not all over the place goofing off.  I'm usually goofing off in just one place.  That is after I do my energetic exercises. 

So I looked this tea up online since the prescription didn't include a list of ingredients and it's clearly like 10 different things in each of the two teas ("Adrenal" and "Serenity").  The one that I found on the Teavana website had a whole host of people saying it gave them vivid nightmares. 

Well.  Duh.  I'm pretty sure that herbs have properties that will loosen people's demons from their sources and set them loose.  Uncontrolled entities will either wreck havoc or leave.  It seems to me like the herbal energies are unleashing people's traumas so they have to deal with them.  It's called SERENITY for a reason!  You can't be serene if you're troubled with anxiety, PTSD, and a case of the jitters. 

You have to work through your trauma in order to get serenity.  Tea alone won't do that for you, but herb power of the herbs just might.  Especially if they haven't been overly molested by humanity in their process of becoming a neatly stored and overpriced item on the shelf of a mall kiosk.

That being said: I had another zombie dream on night two of drinking these teas.  It had no zombies in it.  I wasn't all that scared.  I had friends with me who weren't zombies or too awfully terrified.  We just ran around avoiding areas with zombies in order to gather supplies.  I remember keyly trying to o'rperch a wall that was either draped or painted white. I hope this means I'm getting around the 'zombies' in my waking life.

No, I'm not saying that anything that's happening to me is because of the tea.  On the waning parts of the moon, I sleep better due to low energy.  Sleeping better gives me more energy at work.  So does the good coffee I bought for the mornings.  So does eating far better as I tend to do when I watch cooking shows and make blackened tuna, followed by cordon bleu, followed by the perfect mushroom and goat cheese omelet, then onigiri. 

That and some effects of tea are instantaneous.  But not this tea.  It takes about 3 weeks to kick in fully and that's only if you take the recommended amounts.  I'm not taking nearly so much.  I predict I may never get the "full benefits" of this tea at any point.  But the point is that they do help me.  They still have a cumulative effect, even if it's slower.

The lack of overly sweet tea (I AM from the South) right after work and lack of too many sweets in general as of late is probably what's helping with my restlessness.  Let's see if this holds when the moon is waxing and I'm going apeshit with too much energy.  Or the next time I cycle around to an introverted period of depression.

Also, I started a study group for wayward witchlets that includes friends and family.  I predict a good 4 meetings before it either falls apart due to scheduling conflicts or people decide they need a different type of group and vacate.  None of us has cars, so there is that too.

Lastly, I am doing my energy exercises again.  In an attempt to avoid the burn-out associated with pretty much every other time I sat down to retake my studies I am not forcing time limits or forcing note-taking (though it's clear now I need to bend that rule a bit), nor am I forcing times of the day or even daily practice.  So far, so good as it's been about a week and I've done 4 days of practices using the 4 elements for channeling work.   I really do need to take notes, as being able to recall each of the elemental energies and what they felt like is important.  Hm...

More on each of these in the future as I'd like to detail my group as well as my new personal studies.

Salutations,
Sesh

Hekate's Hearth - Puerto Rico

Dear Blacky,

My sister, Rosie, and I sent 3 bags of food to Puerto Rico in the wake of the hurricane.  Below is a picture of the bags of food, along with my toes and the bottom third of our spinning stripper pole.

Giving away food.

No, I don't mean "dance pole, used for exercising".  I mean my sister was a stripper and it's for stripping exercises.  I've used it too.  It's for stripping.  Some dancing is involved.  Mostly the removal of clothing in a slow and sensual manner.  Stripping.

We also sent 5 bags of clothing.

We're generous, right?  Yes, we are.

Sort of.

You see, we had these clothes already in the hall ready to give away.  They don't fit or, in my sister's case, are stained and she no longer wanted them.  In my case, they were old hat from a time when I had just moved into this state, having fled the oppression of the South, and was finally allowed to buy clothing for myself.  I've come to not really like what I bought.  Back then it was fine, but now not so much.

As for the food, it was mostly leftover cans of stuff from the food bank that we have had sitting around for well over a year and had not eaten.  A holy f*ck ton of kidney beans, cranberry sauce, tomatoes of all kinds, and boxes of pasta that a co-worker gave me but that I will honestly never eat now that I know how to make it from scratch.

I'd have sent bags and bags of pasta too if I had not already opened them and resealed them into jars and mylar bags.

You see, this was the remains of my emergency backstock.  Herein lies the giving part, at least on my end:

I had been keeping this food around for emergencies.  It's been sitting on my shelf waiting to be made into gooey baked pasta dishes, or hearty chilies, or as a random dressed up side.  Eventually, it would all have been eaten.  I collected and kept it all from a food bank in town that I stopped going to when I wound up with way more canned and jarred goods than I had room for on the shelves.

The problem arose when I moved into a place that was too small to hold all of this excess food AND store all of my other items.  So I stopped going to the food bank and started just eating it.  My grocery trips have been short and small on the budget because of how much flour, rice, beans, and canned meats I still had at home.  I didn't eat a lot of fresh vegetables, but I almost always got fresh fruits.

Then it turns out I still wasn't going through it fast enough.  My sister moved back in and took half the space that was already too small.  So the food wound up in the drawers of my captain's bed, and on the shelves of my closet.  Originally it had all been on the shelves of the guest closet (her room now) so it all had to move.

Going to sleep with 10 tins of tomatoe paste, 3 jars of cranberry sauce and 23 cans of kidney beans smiling down on you is as weird as having a toilet located 10 feet from your bed.

En suit bathrooms are a no-go for me in the future.  It's too strange that the steam can only vent into your bedroom after you leave the shower.  That much water has no business being that close to my bed, and the toilet (as mentioned) is far-far too close to me at all times.

Anyway.

I started planning to just get rid of the food by regifting it to co-workers.  Occasionally someone brings some things, like the boxes of Roni in the pictures, and gives it away.  My plan was to take a bag full of food to work and leave it there till it's all gone, and then bring another bag once it's empty.

The part of this that has anything to do with being a Hearth Witch is my connection to Hekate.  Hekate is a Titan, not a Goddess, and She is the matron of the downtrodden.  Those on the fringes of society who need help and usually arn't getting it.  Homeless.  Wanderers.  Vagabonds.  Oftentimes Me.

Years ago, after recieving a dream from Hekate, I came to an understanding that I should help those who need help more.  I played around with the idea of a charity that I'd call 'Hekate's Hearth' where those exact people who live on the edges of society could come and get some help.  Sometimes it would be a bed, sometimes food, sometimes an ear to listen.  Nothing formal.  Nothing official.  Just a helping hand.  Maybe even some repair work.

The idea is that there are not enough Pagan charities out there.  Not ones that are actively pagan, who have a Matron they honor, and whose community and recipients know it's in honor of a non-patriarchal deity.  Not in the same way as some charities are just named after or in honor of a deity, but who actually honor a deity, with an altar where people can leave offerings and everything.

Hekate is a deity who rules in the dark half of the year.  Yes, She can rule anytime and is in all times, but She and Her dog like to be out when it's dark and thus They are associated with the dark half.  That being said, this is the time of the year when people are instructed to be given anyway.  I've never thought of pseudo-Christian holidays as instilling a sense of giving in anyone as they tend to be all about receiving, receiving, receiving.

Yet since the year of that dream, I am having more and more urges to donate and give to charity in the name of Hekate.  To honor Her.  To in some way make Her Hearth a thing that brings any type of warmth to those seeking light and shelter or any type from any type of cold.  To spread the love and light around a bit.

To polish my corner of the world.

Or in this case Puerto Rico.

So while my sister may have been giving these bags of food to her office to put with the rest being shipped down, they were actually all from me and all in the name of Hekate and to honor Her as matron of those who are destitute and in need.  The clothing was half hers, but the half that was mine was all in very wearable condition and most only 2-3 years old.

Today I honored Hekate by spreading the light and love of Her heart out around the world.  May every can of beans light a will to rise above in all who consume it and may every skirt be worn to dance the joy of seeing the situation inprove every day.

In Hekate's honor,
Sesh
Priestess of the Hearth

Storing Medicinal Herbs (The Halfway Homestead)

Dear Neophyte,

I've been collecting herbs for years.  The first batch of real healing herbs I ever received was from my sister.  It was back when I had no money and my Bible Belt town somehow thought that herbs were the devil so we couldn't even keep a natural shop open, let alone would anyone have taken me there to get herbs for healing.  Devil's magic.

Well, there are devils in every religion and mine is kinda cute. Even better, He's willing to cooperate in exchange for chocolate and whiskey.

Since moving to Portland I've regularly visited the Herb Shoppe.  Now they call themselves "Fettle", which I don't like.  I still call them "The Herb Shoppe".  No matter how pretentious it is to add extra letters to a word that is only four letters long.  What's that extra "e" even doing in there anyway?

I don't have pictures at hand, but I spent quite a lot of time cleaning wax out of old candle jars.  I then send them through the dishwasher and let them dry out thoroughly after stripping off the labels.

Candle jars, with plastic rings detached from the lids.

The inner plastic rings come out of the glass tops, btw.  Forgot that, and some of them still had strong wax smells so I had to scrub at them with a hot towel to get them good and soot free.

This is my collection of loose herbs.  You'll notice the writing on some of the bags looks very old and faded.  That's because they are probably 10 years or older at this point.  Yes, they still work.  I recently made cough syrup out of them and it went off spectacularly.

You may notice two different labels.  They are from the same shop, just renamed. 

This is the current herbal storage system.  This is by no means air tight but it is really nostalgic looking and I go in for that.  They're actually plastic ornament bottles I got at a craft store for really cheap.  Glass bottles this size are so much more expensive.  I got these last Yule-ish and put my smaller quantities of herbs in them.

Yule ornament bottles repurposed for herbs.

Last time I was at the herb shop I was there to pick up more cough syrup ingredients.  I couldn't remember if I was out of licorice or not.  Turns out I was not.  So here you can see ground licorice that is over 10 years old next to roughly chopped licorice that is only a few months old.  

Ground licorice and chopped licorice.

I put them into the same jar, with the older on top so that it gets used first.  I am so, SO very glad to finally be done with small plastic baggies (twist tied, no less!) for herbs.  No matter how careful you are some of it will always filter out and get into stuff after the second or third time you have to open it.

Ground licorice on top and ground on the bottom.  First in, first out.

I had hoped I'd have enough candle jars, but I did not.  I resorted to having to use mason jars, as you can see above.  The great thing about this is that it's vacuum sealable.  The bad thing is that it annoys me having them in mason jars.  Yes, it's practical, but I don't like the way they look.  Mason jars are for canning, imho.  Not for storing pretty things that I want to look at. It wouldn't be so bad if the rings were more decorative or the jars themselves didn't always have some kind of design or marking on them.  This obscures a clear view of the herbs, which I greatly value.  Again, aesthetics is 90% of why I buy a storage container for herbs.

I started with the herbs in largest quantity and started jarring them up.  What I don't like about bags is they will lay all over the place if you let them.  And you have to dig through them to find what you want.

Clean jar and a bag of raspberry ready to marry.

A brick of raspberry leaves. 

Raspberry and jar, married.

I repeated this for each of the others till I ran out of large candle jars.  I'll have to invest in some smaller candles.  They regularly go on clearance at my work place.  I melt the wax out and make briquets out of them and use them in my candle warmer.  That way I don't have to babysit a flame and I get my jar that much faster.  I know I could just buy jars online, but the shipping would make it cost the same as the candles, and then I miss out on getting the wax smally-good-ness.

Herbs rehoused in former candle jars.

After I ran out of large jars I resorted to the canning jars, as described above.

Herbs in mason jars.  At least till I can find better jars.

I had four different kinds of ginger.  Dried ginger chips, ground ginger, ginger flakes I had dehydrated myself, and whole pieces of dried out ginger.  I kept the ground ginger in my spice cabinet but moved the rest into one jar.  

It doesn't really matter how your herbs come if you plan to make inctures or syrups out of them.  I think it only really matters if you plan to make tea or something like that.  Maybe even for bath soaks, as it all soaks the same in a muslin bag.  

As for bath soaks:  Do what I do and toss them directly into the bag and pin some muslin over the drain when you get out.  I like the herbs floating loose in the water.  They change color when the vitality is washed out and you know your bath is at peak performance then.

There is my herb shelf before and after.  I have to keep it on the bottom shelf else my roomie will take too much notice of them and want to borrow borrow borrow.

Before

After

No matter if you use your herbs for medicine or for magic (these are for both) be sure to store them properly.  Less than airtight jars are fine if you use them quickly enough, but only vacuum sealing or freezing will work to preserve herbs you don't use that often.  

Salutations,

Sesh

The Halfway Homestead

Living with a Shield Maiden

Dear Neophyte,

Living with a Shield Maiden:

Comes into bathroom in middle of night. Stubs toe.
"Holy hell, that hurts! What the f*ck? Feels like I just kicked a... Gods on High, Bonzoo! You left your axe in the bathroom floor again!"

Salutations,

Sesh

Facebook Spirit Guide Meme

Dear Blacky,

I don't often find a spiritual meme on facebook that isn't some hippy "love everything" B.S., but this one really applies to me!



It should say, "Anubis is tired of being your everything, and the hummingbird is getting depressed!"

Sorry guys: I'm not a great shaman.  I'm not even a really dedicated witch.  Like, I do things, but not often and usually as a last resort.  I let my last offerings MOLD for Gods' sake!

I am ashamed and "at some point" I'll get better.  After I get used to my new job, and the new schedule, and get back on track with my New Year's Dissolutions, and then start eating healthy again...  Because the most important thing comes last.  Right?

RIGHT??

Salutations,
Sesh

A rant about Discrimination of Christians

Dear Neophyte,

This is not a nice thing I'm about to say, so if you're flabby of emotions, then go away.

A meme I pulled off facebook.

Yes, I seriously wonder how any woman could follow religions that CURRENTLY tout rape, murder, forced marriage, forced impregnation, lack of control of one's own body, unrealistic expectations of gender, subjugation, slavery, war over pride and materialism, war “for god”, lack of self-worth, degradation of pride in oneself, segregation, unrealistic expectations of family and marriage, and a “god” that's literally full of every excuse in the book: Hint: It's always YOUR fault, never because THEY dropped the ball or just didn't care at the moment.

All of this in the form of poorly translated, deliberately mistranslated, and incomplete archaic mythology from a culture that is not only NOT YOURS, but died out hundreds of years ago. Entire sections of some of these books have been removed deliberately and hidden from the masses. Masses who were subjected to rape, murder, and being conquered “for their own good” so these works could be shoved down their throats. Lets not get started on the loss of culture and lack of respect for Natives everywhere. Not to mention the destruction and loss of Native religions around the world.

Lets start with how cute it is when these religions, used to being entitled to force otehrs to convert, are not legally allowed to rape and murder anymore. Then add to that laws protecting others from being forced to conversion. Continue on with laws protecting minority religions. Now you have an entire generation who are no longer threatened with murder, protected from forced conversion, and living in a society which accepts diversity. This generation is ending the tyranny by not simply ignoring these mass religions, but fighting back with their own rights to be LEFT ALONE.

No, being told to leave someone ALONE is NOT the same thing as someone persecuting you for being Christian. You had a nice terrorism streak, and now it's over. We're not afraid of your bullying anymore, and I know you're having to grow up now. Stop throwing a temper tantrum and face it: No one is denying your right to your beliefs, place of worship, or voting for your hatefull politicians. THAT is what you did to others for the last two thousand years. THAT was persecution.  

Salutations,

Sesh

Happy Ostara 2016

Dear Neophyte,

Happy Ostara everyone. Today is the first day of spring so throw down a picnic blanket, get some fresh flowers and drink some good wine in celebration!

Here are some pictures I pulled off google image search which captures what I like, love, and feel about this holy day.



You see a cute plate of chicks and I see food.  What I love about Ostara is that it means the delicious food is coming back!  All the fresh fruits and vegetables that aren't available during the colder months.  Putting it together on a cute plate it just bonus.



Today is a day to reaffirm our beliefs in our Gods, our way of life, and to reconnect with the changing seasons.  If you don't feel like a priestess of your Gods then the holy days are a time to make it right.



It's still chilly outside, but the Goddess of the Green is coming, already kissing the land awake in some areas.  Hail Ostara!



Music is always a big part of my holy day celebrations.  Here are a few Ostara songs that made it into my playlist this year:

Lisa Thiel - "Ostara (Spring Song)"

"Autumn in Asheville" by Emerald rose

Generic Ostara Music Combination

Decorations are of course important to every holy day.  In my house we change them out seasonally.  That is, four sets of decorations.  Some might think that's too much, but consider that we only decorate the living room by changing out the picture above the fireplace and some hangings on the wall.  It's not more than will fit in one rubbermaid tote and most of us have plenty of room for it in our garage or under the bed.  I go the extra step of also changing out my sheets and curtains to reflect the theme of the seasons.  The old stuff gets stored in the drawers of my 'captain's bed'.

Your inner light also gets honored at this time.  It's growing stronger and should be shared with the world.  This picture also represents the gardens all of us are planning, even if it's only in flower pots in the windows.  The third thing I love about this picture is that it her dress looks very comfortable.  Ostara is the day I begin packing away my winter clothing and bringing out my summer ware.  It's the time I also go through my winter clothing and either give away what I didn't wear that much, reuse the fabric to make something else, or repair it before stowing it away.  Trust me on that last bit: you do NOT want to pull a pair of pants out of storage and find out the front button STILL has not been replaced.

Lastly this is an inspiring and artistic season.  Paintings like this, utilizing symbology of your choice, would be easy to make even using crayons.  As mentioned earlier, the picture hanging over the fireplace gets changed every season and usually to one we've created ourselves.  I painted half the pictures in my house so I very much enjoy the process of creative expression through canvas and acrylic.  No, I didn't paint this one, but it really wouldn't be that difficult if I wanted too.  It's quite beautiful and peaceful. 

I'm so very glad I'm keeping diaries of all the things I do for the holy days.  It's helping me create my own traditions.  Find out what I did and didn't like and dig up deeper meanings in the symbols and acts.

It helps me actually be a Priestess of my Gods.

Salutations,

Sesh

Pagan Gift Giving

Dear Neophyte,

I don't know a person who doesn't like books.  This being said, I also don't know many people who aren't Pagan and don't want to add to their already considerable collection.  With this in mind I've decided to start a new tradition this year: giving books as gifts.  

This meme on facebook inspired the idea:

                                      

Now giving books is not exactly new to the whole Yule thing.  It's just not a special gift to get a book; it's one of the many, many ideas of possible gifts.  What's behind my idea of Yule book giving is to make it a special thing to receive a book.  

Of the three families I knew growing up each one of them had a tradition of giving out one gift on Christmas Eve.  Usually which gift gets to be opened is not selected by the opener, but by the giftee.  That is, it won't be the biggest and best of the gifts (which it would be if the gifted got to pick).  It's something small like a music CD, doll clothes for a doll they already have, or a set of napkin rings which would look good on the table the next day.  The gold jewelry and mongoose bike were the big gifts of the next day.  These gifts usually are enough to hold over the enthusiasm of the holiday participants and give them something to fiddle with between Yule Eve and Yule Day.

My idea is to replace these random gifts with a book which is actually chosen by the gifted, purchased by the giftee, and actually given to the gifted on Yule Eve.  They can then spend the time diving into a world of book rather than sweating the anticipation of having new things the next day.

While conservative Christians are taught that Christmas is not about the anticipation of gifts, that is just not how humans phychology works.  We want things to help ensure our survival and berating ourselves for anticipating having our very real physical needs met just seems anti-Spiritual to me.  I don't follow any logic that says you're not suppose to look forward to getting gifts on Christmas.  

That being said, Yule is different for Pagans the same way Christmas is suppose to be different for Christians.  Christians give each other illogical gifts from department stores and gift cards to places people wouldn't shop on their own.  I've noticed Pagans tend to give practical gifts like books on edible mushroom identification, knitted shawls, and pressure canners.  Things that are creative, immensely personal, and often hand made.  Oftentimes Pagans will exchange magical supplies and statuary.  Yule tends to have a heavily religious theme for Pagans whereas most who claim to be Christian don't even sing happy birthday to Jesus, let alone exchange images of Him for their altars.  Assuming they even have altars to their Gods.

Pagans are deeply spiritual and open with each other about our spirituality.  We care about and lean on each other's stories and information even if it's not from our God/desses.  We reach across the veils that separate the different pantheons and often reach out to each other's God/deses when reaching out to our Pagan friends.  For example I have three different deity images given to my by three different people, and they are currently on my altars.  I didn't have to put them there; they did seem to fit.  These people don't follow my pantheons and don't worship my deities; they saw something they thought I would like and got it for me.

Pagans are also extremely practical.  We're earth-centric, most of us, and understand that the limited resources of the Earth are being used up at an alarming rate.  To combat this most of  us are some kind of environmentalist and deeply care about our impact on the environment.  This directly correlates with how self-sufficient we become in order not lesson said impact on the environment.  Which leads to our love of giving and receiving practical non-dust-collecting gifts, handmade gifts, and books.

Things to consider for your Pagan friends:

Books, of course!

In Portland Oregon or Online

Such topics as Kemetic Paganism, Spellwork for Children, Kitchen Witchery, Book of Oven Dehydration, Seasonal Cookbooks, Gardening, Knitting, Home Disaster Preparation, Dog Training Manuals, Herbalism, etc.    

I deliberately did not post links to specific books.  Books are incredibly personal and there are so many out there that cover just aspects of a specific subject that it would do me no good to link you books which work for me (Women's Herbal Handbook) but may not work for you (if you're male).  

You want to avoid giving them a book on Yule Eve that goes along with a present they won't get until Yule Day.  If you get them a knitting book, but they don't own knitting supplies then that not only gives away what else you may have gotten them, but defeats the purpose of a book to hold them over till they got to open other gifts.  This is why I like the idea of letting the giftee pick out the book and tell you what they want (or give you a list such as provided above).  If you can't do that then use common sense.  The book should stand alone or compliment something (a dog?) which they already own and have access to.

Crafting Supplies

We LOVE arts and crafts!

Clay

They can make their own altar bowls, pentacle, jewelry, statuary, and more!

Craft Paper

My sister does watercolor and is perpetually out of paper.

Depending on what kind of crafting they do you could give them drawing paper, watercolor paper (pictured), cardstock, calligraphy paper, and on.

Fabric

The seamstress, Etsy owner, fabric hoarder in us all.

This works best when they are in love with a particular type of fabric (brocade is pictured) and don't mind getting random amounts of it, and they have the room to store fabric they are not currently using.

Knitting Looms

Expect to get a hat and scarf from this person on your birthday.

For Pagan children and adults who don't fancy moving yarn around with sticks.

Remember: When shopping for anyone who is crafty to focus on crafts you know they already love.  Try not to get someone started in a new craft if you don't know they've been wanting to do it for a long time.  This could mean wasted money for you and disappointment for them.  A safe bet would be to avoid things like Chinese Calligraphy Kits if you know they don't enjoy handwriting letters or even drawing.  Use your common sense!

Practical Gifts!

Pressure Canner

Taking kitchen witchery to the next level!

Owning a canner is like some sort of Pagan membership requirement.  If you know a Pagan who doesn't own a canner they must be new.  Help initiate them this Yule!

Recurve Bow

This image is Artemis approved.

Nothing says "I love you!" like dangerous weapons.  Better if they can bring down a deer and fold up for easy carrying in a tote case.

Non-GMO Seed Kit

Earth-centric religion followers are all about the heirloom seeds.

Practical sense indicates don't get your friend a selection of goard and corn seeds if they live on the second level of an appartment complex.  Stick with a variety of herbs instead.  I have purchased from this company and they are wonderful.

Soap Making Kit

The gift that keeps on giving.

Soap is a fun and personal gift, as a lot of people have skin allergies and you also need special equipment (not provided in kits) to cook it at home.  Make sure the person wants to make soap and is willing to forfeit a pan forever to use for just making soap.

Practical gifts means anything which will help make a person more self-sufficient and less dependent on "The System" to provide.  Pagans are each and every one practical people who go out of their way to develope skills to make life easier, simpler, slower, deeper and more fulfilling.  Being able to bring down a deer and then can the meat are two skills which make you independent.  To say the least these activities bring us i line with our Gods, who hunt and farm the land the same as us.

Handmade Gifts!

Recipe Box

Especially for folks finally in their own place.

Craft stores abound with wooden boxes.  You can varnish plain wood, or paint, burn or stamp designs on the outside.  A clear topcoat keeps the box looking nice.  Use blank index cards inside, print out your own, or buy special recipe cards.

Drop Spindle

Almost no chance of pricking a finger!

Craft stores sell wooden wagon wheels and wood dowels.  Most of them also sell hooks that screw into walls.  Glue the wheel in place 2" from the top of the dowel.  Screw the hook into the top.  Measure down 18" from the top and cut it off.  A kitchen knife can work for this as most dowel rods sold at craft stores are extremely soft wood.  Technically you're finished now.  You can paint, stain, varnish or oil the wood.  I sharpened the bottom tip of the one I made so it would spin on a chair easier.

Coloring Book

Any theme they enjoy will work.

Google search "Pagan coloring pages" (or any other theme).  Print them out.  Either put them in a binder or tie them together with ribbons.  Make a cover page and a back cover and you'r finished.  If they don't also cave pencils or markers you should provide some of those too.

Tea Blends

Tiny potion bottles of tea herbs.

Everyone I know owns a tea ball so I really love the idea of loose tea in small jars.  These jars are available from craft stores like Joann's and have cork tops.  Tea recipes are available online, or you can portion out some loose tea you already own.  

Religious Supplies

Selection of Herbs

For Magic, Cooking, Healing.

I love the idea of putting some of the herbs you already own into small glass jars, adding antiqued labels (instructions online) and giving them as gifts.  Don't forget to write the correspondences on the back of the bottle.  If you don't have enough to share you can order them online as sampler kits and transfer them to bottles when they arrive. 

Statuary

Go for authentic, not artistic.

Sexualized statues only venerate the divine as recipients of sex and so I really don't like these modern takes on statuary.  It seems almost all of the modern statues are huge-breasted, slim waist, rippling abdominal muscles, and violent.  As if the gods were never anything more than ideal beauty standard contest winners.  For that reason I would never give one of these statues as a gift unless the person said they wanted that one specifically.   Those images have places on altars while that particular aspect of a deity is being invoked, but not all the time.

Spell Kits

Purifying detox bath salts.

Is your friend going through a hard times?  Do they need money?  Do they need peace of mind?  Do they need serenity?  Make them a spell kit!  It's not hard to find the ingredients around your house and recipes online.  Bath salts are my number 1 make-ahead-spell-kit which has already been primed.  Breaking the seal activates the spell and your recipient just needs to pour and soak.  Other spell kits involve candles, cord, felt, and a variety of things.  You can get supply lists and ideas online.

Magazine Subscription

Circle Magazine

Pagan publications have been around for decades.  Some of them are a hundred or more years older at this point.  If your friend likes the idea of new ideas, networking, being able to unplug from the internet to read new information, and taking their reading with them (without buying a new book) then give them the gift of a Pagan Magazine subscription!  A goodle search pulls up half a dozen well-known and reputable publishers.  Be sure to get one that your friend would like even if it's not your own personal taste.

So there you have it.  My Pagan gift giving ideas.  I'm going to get a book for my sister for Yule Eve (a self-help book), and I'm almost done getting the rest.  What I really want to get her is an 18" doll and dress it up to look like Lagetha from Vikings.  I also want to get her a shirt that says, "The Gods Smile on Brave Women" that I saw on Etsy.  I'll probably just make the shirt, if I wind up having enough time and money to do that (along with everything else).  

She's getting me tea and dishes.  I <3 my practical, Pagan sister!

Salutations,

Sesh