themeadowbreeze

[themeadowbreeze]

31 Days of Craft- Day 31

What is your main motivation?

My motivation is to live my life with as little stress as possible. I want to feel content with what I have, and how I live. I don't need a big house or fancy cars or loads of money; I just want to feel better connected with the earth and enjoy the time I have here. Wicca helps with that.

As far as witchcraft goes, I mostly use it as a tool to help develop and build myself up. My mentality, my skills, my experiences. I use these to try to live the best life I can.

[themeadowbreeze]

31 Days of Craft- Day 30

What's your reason for staying a witch instead of falling off?

The quick answer would be because it's part of my religion. The tools I use for meditation and ritual are the same as those for witchcraft. The line between performing a ritual and casting a spell is very blurred, to me. I know what the difference is, but where does each one end and begin, really?

I don't really have a single, significant reason other than that.

[themeadowbreeze]

31 Days of Craft- Day 29

Do you dabble in divination? If so, show us your tools and how you've come to get them!

I do dabble in divination! Mostly in the form of the elder futhark runes. I don't really do readings too often, because very little changes in my day-to-day, that I don't see a need. But here they are!

Unable to get wooden coins like I wanted, I opted instead to write each rune in red sharpie on floral glass marble things. I initially tried clear, but you couldn't see the actual rune. I switched to frosted, which helped tremendously.

I'm interested in giving pendulums another try. I could never get them to work for me. But I recently bought a sodalite pendant and I'm about to fashion a pendulum out of it and try it out again.

[themeadowbreeze]

31 Days of Craft-Day 28

What is your favorite subject to research?

I don't think I have a favorite subject, particularly. I'd have to say I'm much more interested in the religious side of things than I am in witchcraft itself.

How does polytheism work when one believes in literal gods? Non-literal gods? What happens to one's soul after death? Do we even have souls? What are the exact mechanics of witchcraft? I'm much more engrossed in trying to figure things like these out than I am with casting spells.

So it's things like these I've recently began to research. I'd like to look specifically through a Wiccan's perspective, but I know I need to look into every religion's perspective, too.

[themeadowbreeze]

31 Days of Craft- Day 27

What is your zodiac sign? Do you know much about the zodiac?

I do not know much about the zodiac. Astrology isn't something I ever cared much for. I know my sun sign is Virgo, and I know that Virgos are generalized as being very analytical, logical, impartial, and critical. I cannot say that fully applies to me or any of the other Virgos I know.

I realize that there's several other signs in other houses that rule over different aspects of each person, but I do not have access to my exact birth time, or anyone else's, really. (Not to mention that birthing is a process, so a time of birth is kind of arbitrary in my eyes.) So unless I can get the full picture, I'd rather not waste my time with sweeping generalizations.

That's not too say that I wouldn't be interested in looking into the matter, and then deciding whether I believe in it or not. I simply lack the data on myself or anyone I know.

[themeadowbreeze]

31 Days of Craft- Day 26

What's your favorite element and why?

Air. On a physical level, I connect much with it. I used to sit and make breezes come through with my singing. Everytime the wind happens to blow a little too hard while I'm walking outside, I can't help but put a goofy smile on my face as I try to continue walking. While incredibly dangerous, I spent time watching the skies when tornadoes were nearby, instead of sheltering. Something about wind just makes me feel alive.

Metaphysically speaking though, air is favored just as much as the other elements. It's hard for me to try and find a good representation for air, because incense mess with my asthma. I'm thinking of perhaps making a ritual handheld fan or something.

[themeadowbreeze]

31 Days of Craft- Day 25

What kind of magic do you do? (Gray, white, dark, etc.)

Firstly, I don't really attribute good or bad with white or black/dark. Morality is much more nuanced than that. Also, to say white is "good" and black or dark is "bad" has some uncomfortable racial implications that I won't condone.

But to answer the question at hand, I see my magic as mostly neutral. Because I don't cast spells on or for other people without their explicit consent, the majority of my spells are just for myself. Mostly it's confidence building, sometimes protection. I even manifested a phone call back, once. I'm trying to use magic to build myself up as much as I can, without dragging anyone down.

That's not too say I'm anti-hex, though. I'm currently waiting for a problematic person at work to give me one more reason to hex them.

[themeadowbreeze]

31 Days of Craft- Day 24

Are you a solitary practitioner or in a coven?

I'm currently a solitary practitioner, but I'm now at the point that I would like nothing more than to be in a coven.

I don't think I'll ever find a coven though, due to myself being Wiccan and masculine- two things that I feel really makes others uneasy about myself. I tried joining an online group before, and got kicked without any explanation- I can only assume it was because of these two attributes of mine.

My best bet would be forming a coven with my family, and that will likely never happen.

[themeadowbreeze]

31 Days of Craft- Day 23

How do you deal with the hate that being out of the norm comes with?

As far as me being a witch goes, I receive little to no hate at all.

As far as me being a Wiccan goes, I personally receive no hate, but I see a lot of people tend to avoid books and products from Wiccan authors and producers, and so I feel like maybe, perhaps, my religion is scaring people off. It makes me reluctant to do anything online.

I understand many of the criticisms of Wicca- Gerald Gardner was a thief, a liar, a blabbermouth, a cheater. As a Wiccan, I don’t like the guy. But as much as I don’t like the guy or the circumstances of Wicca’s foundation, I can’t pull away from many of its core messages or aspects. The ultimate form of religious "worship" should be celebrating life and its cycles.

Sometimes I feel like my gender identity puts me out of the norm, and that people are avoidant of me in that regard. When scrolling through witchcraft-centric social media, everyone assumes everyone is female, and the thought of a male in their spaces makes them feel somewhat uneasy.

It's probably not very helpful or healthy to say, but to avoid potential hate in all aspects of my life, I just avoid interacting with others.

[themeadowbreeze]

31 Days of Craft- Day 22

Are you a closeted witch? If so, how do you conceal your craft?

As far as my relatives are concerned, I have one foot out of the closet. I’ve came out to my aunt when I first started, because she had found my supplies while snooping around. However, she didn’t press any further, so I never had to fully explain myself to her. I also admitted to my sister that I actually believed in a God and a Goddess, but never outright said I was Wiccan to her, or that I practiced witchcraft. I’m unsure if she has pieced it all together, however.

I’ve got many family members that are Wiccan/pagan witches, but its something nobody talks to each other about. I feel like witchcraft has become mainstream enough that it’s not really a big deal for most of my family, to the point where everyone just kinda keeps the nitty gritty of what they believe and practice to themselves. For that, I am thankful.

My partner knows that I am Wiccan and that I am a witch, but they don’t seem to care enough to understand what all that entails, mainly because they think its all nonsense. The same goes for their family of which we live with. They’re all neutral, and for that, I am thankful.

Other than that, there’s not really any reason for anyone to suspect me to be a witch. I tend to stray away from any associated aesthetics, and I only perform spells and rituals in the privacy of my room. It’s not really a subject that comes up in conversation with friends or acquaintances. 

[themeadowbreeze]

31 Days of Craft- Day 21

How do you show yourself self-love?

That’s a bit difficult for me to answer, because I barely know what self-love is, and what actions are actively self-love vs. passive survival. But I’ll try my best!

When I have to do something I really don’t want to do, or that I’m terrified of doing, I always reward myself afterwards (with food, a rest/break, a purchase, etc.)

Every few weeks, I have myself a “spa” day (buzz my hair down, shower longer than usual, pumice my feet, etc. etc.)

I occasionally try new out new things/ go after new experiences. When I was much younger, I thought I knew I’d never be able to do anything. Proving past-me wrong feels nice.

I’ve started being able to defend myself against my inner critic, instead of taking everything the inner critic says as gospel.

And honestly, I’d consider most of the spells I’ve performed up to this point as self-love spells, as they all are for self-improvement. Spells for strength to move on from toxic relationships, spells for confidence in preparation of job interviews. Spells for bringing about new friendships, spells for protection while traveling. 

[themeadowbreeze]

31 Days of Craft- Day 20

How do you help others with witchcraft?

If we're talking about how I help others through witchcraft, I generally wouldn't without their explicit permission. I'm not really out to many people, so the opportunity to make an offer isn't there.

If we're talking about how I help others on the topic of witchcraft, I also don't do that, either. I'd really like to, though.

I wanted this blog to be the public version of my BOS, in hopes that it may help someone else out. But it’s not playing out that way. I’ve been on this path for about 7 years now and while I have my ways of doing things that I’m somewhat happy with, I feel like they are not up to par with other people’s standards. 

Every once in a while, I’ll see a post on Reddit that has a question, and I’ll muster the courage to answer. I’ve gotten one question on here that I’ve done brief research on and answered.

But other than that, there’s not much I can do. The witchcraft that I practice is very much tied to my spirituality, and I’ve noticed that many people are turned off by my spirituality. I don’t really feel welcomed.

I can say, however, that I’d very much like to have some sort of witchcraft supply store someday. I always wanted to hand-craft goods for a living, be it candles or journals. But that seems like it would be more of a retirement thing, honestly.

[themeadowbreeze]

31 Days of Craft- Day 19

Are you a spoonie/disabled witch?

I guess I could be considered a spoonie witch- I feel burned out of things very quickly, even from things I love doing. Finding motivation to do anything besides my job is a real struggle for me. I put EVERYTHING off until the weekend. Honestly, my lack of motivation and struggle to keep my space clean is what initially got me into candle magic- and even that seems to pull a lot out of me at times.

There’s a lot of witchcraft-related things that I’d like to do, but can’t at the moment- observing esbats, having full-on rituals for each sabbat, and doing daily divination readings to name a few. I’d very much like to interact with other witches, but between a job and taking care of the household I live with, I just feel drained.

There are small things that I’ve come up with to help- following witchblr and witchy subreddits is a passive way of receiving reminders of upcoming sabbats/celestial events/news. Since I work third shift, I’m always at least acknowledging moon phases and esbats, even if I’m not doing anything for them. When I do have the free time to focus on spirituality and witchcraft, simply lighting a candle without any intent is enough to set the mood and get the ball rolling.

[themeadowbreeze]

31 Days of Craft- Day 18

What’s your spirit animal, if you have one?

I do not have one. Native Americans have spirit animals that act as guides or guardians. I believe they are chosen on a tribe-by-tribe basis (but that could be wrong, I’m not finding much info on this). Since I’m not Native American, the concept of spirit animals does not pertain to me.

[themeadowbreeze]

31 Days of Craft- Day 17

Create a self-love spell and do it if you’re able to!

(I don’t think I’ve ever opened up at this level to anyone around me. Posting this definitely feels weird. But if there’s any chance that this could maybe help someone else, then I feel compelled to share.)

Something that I’ve always struggled with is how my identity is pretty much in conflict with everyone around me. I’m a mascandrogenous enby, who tries and wants to present as a man, and I’ve pretty much been living with one foot out of the closet for the past 5 years. Some people act supportive sometimes, while being actively transphobic at others. Some seem pretty on-board with it, yet misgender me constantly because they haven’t taken it seriously yet. I feel like everyone thinks I’m joking when I say that I’m not a cis woman, and I’m just in a constant state of stress over it.

So I figured that, for me, a self-love spell should be one that affirms my gender and grants me the confidence to be myself, without any doubt or guilt. This can be modified to better suit anyone else’s needs. I’d also consider this a ritual more so than a spell.

The ritual!

I have a monthly routine of buzzing my own hair. With each size guard I switch between, I’ll recite a line of this chant.

“Heavenly parents, I call unto thee. What I am is not what they see.

They see a woman who won’t play the role. Their insistence of that is taking its toll.

Heavenly mother, grant me relief. Soothe my soul and banish my grief.

Heavenly father, make me be stern. If I never speak up, they never will learn.

Wistful compliance, may I have none. Heavenly parents, I am your son.”

[themeadowbreeze]

31 Days of Craft- Day 16

What is your favorite type of spell?

For perhaps the past few months I’ve really been into candle magic. They’ve been really effective, and they seem to be really easy and simple for me.

I’m pretty low-energy, and I burn out of things fairly quickly. When I started out, I was under the assumption that all magical workings should almost be this dramatic, elaborate “performance”. It wasn’t until I started doing candle magic that I learned that that didn’t necessarily have to be the case.

It’s as simple as focusing on your goal as you dress a candle. Light it and wait. Perhaps set your candelabra on top of something.

What have I done so far with candle magic? I wound up getting a promotion. I started being able to open up and starting friendships with my coworkers. With my new position, I do presentations daily without a hitch (it may not sound like much but it’s a big deal for me). Life in general has been looking up.

[themeadowbreeze]

31 Days of Craft- Day 15

Do you do bath/shower magic?

While showering sometimes, I’ll meditate and put out the mental energy to cleanse myself spiritually. When I do so, I imagine my body as a semi-permeable object, allowing the water to run through me, and I imagine the water rinsing my chakras as I reflect on what each one represents. Every time, however, when I get to my solar plexus, cleaning it this way causes discomfort, bordering on pain. I’m either doing something I’m not supposed to, or I’ve got some serious problems I need to sort out concerning that chakra.

What’s interesting that I’ve noticed is that even before I got into witchcraft, showers were my go-to for alleviating anxiety/negative moodsets. They were effective, and I had no clue why. Eventually I put it together- they refresh and renew, literally and metaphorically!

While living in the house that I am living in, baths are not an option for me. I occasionally come across posts of bathrooms and tubs decked out with candles, flowers, crystals, etc. and always wind up feeling a bit jealous.