Witchy Goodness

"Are you a Witch?"
"Why Yes, I am!"
"What does that mean?"

A huge thank you to award winning author, Cynthia Richards, for allowing me to guest post on her blog, "Deep Thoughts and Junk," for Witchy Week.

Check out my guest post "Witchy Goodness," where I share my personal thoughts about being a practicing Witch in today's world.

https://deepthoughtsandjunk.wordpress.com/…/witchy-week-na…/

Memories of Loved Ones

My family and I have been touched by the “Falling Leaf” spell, we recently read in Llewellyn’s Spell-A-Day Almanac, written by Mickie Mueller. We’re still trying to catch a falling leaf, which has been harder than one would imagine, but it is so magickal trying to grab one as it falls from a tree.

There’s a sadness that comes with this time of year. As we watch the leaves float down, loss of loved ones, things we’ve lost or discarded, situations that didn’t quite work out come to mind.

For me, I find I am still grieving the passing of our dog, Shadow who crossed over in January.

I don’t know why after 9 months I find myself missing her deeply. Perhaps it’s because she loved this time of year, or maybe it’s because her coat resembled a beautiful Fall day, or maybe it’s because the veil is thinning, and she was a magickal, spirit dog. And perhaps it’s all of these things.

My first Samhain (pronounced Sow (like cow) –in) altar I put up many years ago was in honor of our beloved dog Misty, gone many years now. I was thrilled to find the sacred in Halloween season. I had always believed there was more to the season, than just violence and horror, and being freaked out of your mind. Not that I don’t love Halloween, it was just as a lover of Nature, a believer in the Turn of The Wheel, I knew there had to be more to the Holiday than just goblins and ghosts.

For those of us who practice the Craft as our religion, October 31^st is the night we honor our loved ones who have gone before us. It’s a wonderful way to touch and remember our loved ones on the other side. 

It’s wonderful to have a special night that occurs annually, when we can be with our dearly departed. It keeps their memories alive in a special way. It gives us a chance to be with them in our homes or sacred spaces. And it adds reverence to the night of October 31^st.

There will be several others who will also share our ancestor altar. But this year, the star guest, will be our little dog, Shadow.

Witches In My Front Yard

There are Witches in my front yard! Of course I put them there. They spin around on metal broomsticks, flying in mid-air, atop a metal spike which balances them, like a tightrope walker in the sky.

I love these little witches. I picked them up at a vintage furniture store that was going out of business. Every year I try to add to my collection, picking up unique pieces that speak to the season of Halloween and the sacredness of Samhain.

It's hard not to want to put everything out at once, but I try to stagger putting up my decorations. Simple Fall decorations come first, things that can last until after Thanksgiving.  I definitely do not put out Christmas decorations until after Thanksgiving! I love decorating for Yule, the Winter Solstice and Santa Claus. I love elves and Dickens themed decorations, but I wait. I wait for the Season to turn, which can be hard, in our society's rush to get into buying, buying, buying, for the Holidays.

I'm also working on my outfit for our local Witches' Ball. This year we're also attending a Day of the Dead celebration. I'm excited to have two events where I can wear my Witchy clothing. It is our season, after all.

I'm also excited that on a recent vacation, I met a woman from Sleepy Hollow, NY. I met her in a gift shop in Maine. It was lovely she shared with me, what it's like to grow up in Sleepy Hollow, how her ancestors are buried in the Sleepy Hollow cemetery, and how the town definitely takes advantage of Washington Irving's "The Headless Horseman." Which by the way, if you've only seen the movie, you owe it to yourself to actually the read the story. What a fantastic tale!

Cinderella Pumpkins

It's that time of year. Ghosts, goblins, witches, monsters, zombies and all sorts of amazing horrors, designed to thrill and chill us make their appearance. It's Witch time.  If you've been in the broom closet you can safely come out, without fear of ridicule. If you're a closet Witch or Witch sympathizer, you can honor your Witch self and not feel bad about it.

In Colorado, this time of year can be funky. We're known to go straight from Summer into Winter, with only a few weeks of Fall in between. We always feel doubly blessed if Halloween night arrives and we don't have wear winter coats over our costumes.

For many years, I've attended Witches' Balls here in Denver and in New Orleans. For practicing Witches, this is our time of year. We don't consider what we're wearing costumes.  To us it's a chance to wear our real clothes! I've been adding to my Witch closet for years. Each year I get excited to see what I'll come up with, for Halloween/Samhain night.

Nothing thrills me more than to wear my gowns and cloaks. It's great to attend Witch Balls with people who really do believe in and practice the Craft. The Craft is our religion. It's not something we don for one night of the year. But this post isn't about our religion. It's about the magick of believing.

Some dear friends gifted us with a Cinderella pumpkin from their garden. We picked the one we wanted and brought it home. The pumpkin is the embodiment of believing in magick/magic. Who didn't love the story of the pumpkin that turns into a carriage? Everyone I know surely wishes they had a fairy godmother. Now is the time of year to grant yourself three wishes!