Any Witches here? Part 20

[speakout]

Or Wiccans. or Pagans? Or anyone who is interested in a magical path or feels some magical stirrings.
A place for support, learning, swapping ideas and magical inspiration..
This is the 18th thread- anyone looking for a deep dive into juicy magical topics may like to browse previous threads.....
It is a long list!!
Part 1 //www.mumsnet.com/Talk/philosophy_religion_spirituality/3241689-Any-witches-here?pg=1
Part 2
//www.mumsnet.com/Talk/philosophy_religion_spirituality/3338025-Any-Witches-Here-Part-2?pg=1
Part 3
//www.mumsnet.com/Talk/philosophy_religion_spirituality/3366411-Any-Witches-Here-Part-3?pg=1
Part 4
//www.mumsnet.com/Talk/philosophy_religion_spirituality/3404406-Any-Witches-Here-Part-4-Edited-by-MNHQ?pg=1
Part5
//www.mumsnet.com/Talk/philosophy_religion_spirituality/3437092-Any-Witches-Here-Part-5?pg=1
Part 6 //www.mumsnet.com/Talk/philosophy_religion_spirituality/3482023-Any-Witches-Here-Part-6?pg=1
Part 7 //www.mumsnet.com/Talk/philosophy_religion_spirituality/3520269-Any-Witches-Here-Part-7?pg=1
Part 8 //www.mumsnet.com/Talk/philosophy_religion_spirituality/a3568622-Any-Witches-Here-Part-8?pg=1
Part 9 //www.mumsnet.com/Talk/philosophy_religion_spirituality/3637696-Any-Witches-Here-Part-9?pg=1
Part 10
//www.mumsnet.com/Talk/philosophy_religion_spirituality/3726266-Any-Witches-Here-Part-10
Part 11
//www.mumsnet.com/Talk/philosophy_religion_spirituality/3850635-Any-Witches-Here-Part-11
Part 12
//www.mumsnet.com/Talk/philosophy_religion_spirituality/3997761-Any-Witches-Here-Part-12
Part 13 //www.mumsnet.com/Talk/philosophy_religion_spirituality/4116107-Any-Witches-here-Part-13
Part 14www.mumsnet.com/Talk/philosophy_religion_spirituality/4213962-Any-Witches-Here-Part-14
www.mumsnet.com/Talk/philosophy_religion_spirituality/4328830-Any-Witches-Here-Part-15?msgid=113505801
www.mumsnet.com/talk/philosophy_religion_spirituality/4435233-Any-Witches-Here-Part-16?page=40&reply=118807589

www.mumsnet.com/talk/philosophy_religion_spirituality/4598225-any-witches-here-part-17?page=40&reply=122990208

https://www.mumsnet.com/talk/philosophy_religion_spirituality/4717929-any-witches-here-part-18?page=1

hi all, hope you don’t mind me popping on here. I sometimes do ceremonial magic courses through Treadwells and thes courses have popped up if anyone is interestedhttps://www.treadwells-london.com/events-1/introduction-to-pagan-paths-class

667TheNeighbourOfTheBeast thanks for your understanding.

Despite my own negative attitude towards the church my mother's attendance is good for her social life and also gives me respite.

I have come to know several of her church friends, and if they come around to visit I will make them drinks and snacks.
I have a large heated conservatory at the back of my house, so that serves as my mother's entertaining space for chatting or bible studies.
I make some small talk with them sometimes- avoiding the subject of religion of course. They know nothing of my pagan path.
Recently I was having a chat with some of the women about self care and keeping our cup full, especially when life is hard.
My words must have been impactful as I have been invited to give a talk to the church's women's group.
I will decline of course, but feel these is irony in me - a witch- being asked to address a bunch of christians at a church.

@speakout that made me smile that you had been asked to speak at the church, if only they knew lol !
I think that the church can provide a lot of support for people however my experience growing up in England is C of E and this is very much take it or leave it these days no one is going to be asking you why you aren’t at church, other types of Christianity are not so laid back! My limited experience of vicars is that they genuinely care about people in their parish and want to do what they can.

The rise of evangelicals here in UK ,where you have to give a tithe, a tenth of your income and not just what you can spare in a collection plate smacks of a cult to me. I’ve also seen first hand with friends (who I’m no longer friends with) how nasty things can get if you don’t toe the line within this type of church.

@speakout That is funny that you were asked to give a talk but very flattering too.

In terms of the things you have around the house, I don't have anything obvious. I did have a print of a hare and I noticed a tradesmen giving it a very funny look, so I suppose he was onto me and possibly not happy!

I am a lot less into it at the moment. Generally I feel as if the universe is in a very strange space.

It used to be that in hard times, rituals made me feel better. Then it evolved that I only went to it when I felt really quite desperate... and now I don't know where I am on the path, or if the path is helping me. So I have put everything away.

I was learning to read tarot, but I put that away too. I would be interested in a tarot reading because it's thought provoking to hear someone else's interpretation of the cards.

However, where I live now, there isn't anyone, and to be honest I'm not sure I want to pay for that kind of thing anyway. But I found I got frustrated, trying to read my own tarot. Perhaps it's the case that someone else's perspective is more valuable in these situations.

I used to have a very good guide to cartomancy but that website has been taken down. I should've taken screenshots!

@EmmaEmerald i have packed away all of my things too. I was finding no joy or comfort in them.
I am going through a difficult time emotionally and mentally and can only liken it to losing my faith.
I come to these threads often still because it’s a wonderful and supportive community.

Hello pagans, witches, magicians and all, nice to drop in and catch up.

I have a quite obviously pagan house, (to those who recognise it) with my witchy kit interspersed with taxidermy and curios. I have a witch on a broomstick weather vane and witches balls in the windows, one really old, inherited from my husband's aunt, who was a witch.
It's just what I like, even from childhood, and now they're calling it names like Dark Acadamia and Gothic!

I too remember the days when there was next to nothing, apart from the Sorcerer's Apprentice, Atlantis and the other bookshops in London and the thrill of finding the odd second hand book.
I agree about the plethora of books, websites and pagan “stuff” that is available now, and that there is so much unhelpful nonsense to navigate through.

Another phenomenon I see nowadays is the rise of the “public pagan”.
The same faces at every conference and camp, giving talks and promoting their latest book.
I know some of these people and most are genuine and knowledgeable, but to some, their fame has gone to their heads… and one or two have misused it.

Hello all. So sorry people are finding it hard to find the joy. I think it's such a tricky time globally. So strange, that doesn't help.
I'm also having days where nothing feels very magical to be honest. On top of being told by DH that I am 'moaning' too much about my day job! Really the only solution to that is to not bother talking about your day to your other half. But that's not very healthy. He agreed on the latter. So what is to be done?! I don't think I'd have been so blunt. When folks vent, it really is just showing how much something else isn't working. And I'm working on moving away from my current very uninspiring career. That's got to count for something.

Anyway, I hope everyone has had a spot of sun today. That's been a tonic. I had dream we were going to have dull sky forever more, and it was such an oppressive and sad dream. Good job I don't know any Jungian analysts lol.

This is Kew Gardens the other day. It made me feel happy and so I am sharing it with all of you. I can't add the sound of the wind rustling the cherry blossoms but I would if I could. Sending gardening love to you all.

Hi all. Just starting to come back from.six weeks of illness and depression after mother moved into a care home. House emptied,goes on the market this week. Hugely stressful time and very sad.
A break in the endless rain got me into the garden and greenhouse,where I met the cause of the missing bird seed. He is a field mouse called Philip. I sat on the grass in the rain and chatted to him. He let me video him too. And suddenly I felt happy for the first time in weeks.

Hello sisters, sorry that I've not posted for a while. Life has been busy and I've had to put my craft on the back burner, although I always try and weave a touch of magic in everyday. Just catching up on all the posts, sorry that some of you have been struggling recently.

How are you finding the eclipse energy? I've been exhausted and dehydrated all day and everything has felt like really hard work! Im heading to bed soon. DS, on the other hand, says he feels totally energised and revived 🤷‍♀️

@VioletCharlotte I know everyone has a different interpretation but if the eclipse has effects in the days around it, I have been baffled how tired I am. I hope we feel better tomorrow!

@Hedjwitch I love the idea of chatting to a field mouse. I hope he brought some comfort.

I was walking along today and got approached by a cat I've seen around before, he always comes up and does the "nuzzling legs" thing. The owner was gardening and said "oh my god....I've never seen him approach anyone...he is very unfriendly". I petted him and she seemed really surprised!

Familiars 🥰

Morning, magical/magickal sisters! Sorry to see that so many of us feel over-burdened and struggling to connect to our beliefs. The frenzy and pressure of modern life, not to mention the horrors in the world ‘out there’, are all particularly heavy at this point in history. I’m noticing more subtle signs in shortages in some British-grown vegetables due to the rain, and the seasons don’t seem quite balanced - climate change! In the face of all that, I sometimes wonder if the way I mark sabbats (and I do try to, in however small a way) should reflect what’s going on rather than what ought to be? Some years ago I circled for Midsummer with a group of friends to the accompaniment of a proper hooley blowing outside and torrential rain. It was also pretty dark! Post-pandemic, many of my Pagan friends have stayed put in that they don’t want to venture out into Nature or to visit a sacred site. We sometimes have to hunker down. My box with my chalice and athame is under the bed and hasn’t been used in a while. I do hold hope that I will be ‘out there’ again at some point. Meanwhile, the skies are clear today and there’s a robin on the tree outside. Everything in the garden is sprouting and flourishing due to the recent rain.

@MaculataO I’m sorry to hear about your OH complaining about you venting. I agree that’s what you should be able to do in a relationship. I’ve noticed though that my husband likes to have a solution for things and wants to “fix” it when something is making me unhappy or angry. When all I want is to let off steam and someone to listen. I’m not sure if this is a particularly male problem as society has different expectations of men and a lot of men feel like they need to step in and sort out their OH problems for them. I would say he’s probably feeling powerless as this is frequently what my husband really struggles with when there isn’t anything he can actually do to help.
Aren’t you one of the ladies who has very young children too ? A fantastic time but also quite challenging in regards sleep and rest etc.

@Hedjwitch so sorry you’ve been going through it, but so wonderful to hear about the little mouse ! I think these interactions with nature are truly magical, I spend a lot of time at home and I have a couple of birds that aren’t scared of me and will sit on the window cil or come into the kitchen if they think it’s time for more bird food , I have to keep the door shut now though to stop them coming in the house as my new dog who I’ve had for two years would try and catch them unlike my really old boy who couldn’t be bothered!

@Craftycorvid I completely agree with you about climate change it’s extremely worrying, I try to do my bit but I don’t read too much about it as it’s not great for my mental health.
@EmmaEmerald i totally get it with the cats 🐈‍⬛ making a beeline for you I’m the same and I’m not really a cat person and am allergic to them! My adult daughter always has cats following her and has one that jumps in her window and makes himself at home in her uni digs. She has also had crows following her on campus which I would love, they associate the students with food I think.

Sisters, my mother died this morning. Unexpectedly. I am bereft. She was a poet, an adventurer,a traveller,a lover of the stars and all nature around her.
May her spirit find a new home.

@Hedjwitch I am so sorry for your loss. I have no wise words to help you through this very difficult time, and would not presume to try. I am thinking of you, and will light an 8 O'clock candle for you and your family, and try to send you strength and healing. Blessed be.

Hedjwitch I am so sorry to hear your news, it must be such a shock after all the recent upheaval for the whole family.
Take each day as it comes and remember it's okay to feel however you feel when the shock subsides. We are here for you, BB.

@Hedjwitch I’m so sorry for your loss.

@Hedjwitch I am sorry for your loss 💐

@Hedjwitch sincere condolences.

So sorry, Hedjwitch, losing your mother is the hardest thing.

@Hedjwitch I'm so sorry, my heart aches for you

@Hedjwitch, 💐

I am so sorry Hedjwitch.
We as a community are here for you, I too will light a candle today to send love and support.
Be gentle with yourself, we are here if you need to chat, do whatever feels right to bring some comfort.

holding you Hedjwitch and sending comfort and strength x

@Hedjwitch so sorry to read about your mum, sincere condolences.