Teaching Children About Energy

My youngest daughter has sensory issues and during this school year has been telling us that her tummy hurts when she is at school. 

After much inquiring and different types of questions, I believe I figured out that most of her tummy problems has to do with her level of stress. The kids are loud, there are around 18 other students, not to mention the teachers and aids. That is a lot for her. 

Add to that the fact that she has trouble trying new food so hates most of the food at school, and I cannot send her to school with a bag of chips for lunch (sigh). 

But her sensory issues also reveal that she is extremely sensitive to energies. 

Last night, I had her hold her hand up and put mine near hers and asked her what she felt.

"It's warm and it tickles, mommy!" She laughed. She wanted to do it again and again, then she held her hands together and made that connection that she could feel it then too. I told her that was her energy and that it is all around her. It comes up from the earth and goes down from the top of her head. 

Everyone has this energy field, and my daughter is so empathic that hers gets disturbed by others very easily. So my goal is to slowly introduce energy work to her, since she can feel this energy herself. I discovered it when I was about 13, myself, without anyone else showing me, and have been manipulating it around myself and grounding or expanding it to send energy as needed.

I am hoping that I can teach her how to ground the extra energy that is pooling in her stomach and making it hurt into the earth or into a tree. She liked the idea of hugging a tree.

The next step will be to work more with her on mindfulness. She is only seven, so I need to remember to take it at a pace that is manageable for her age. Remember, children are not little adults. They are at stages of understanding that do not match adults, so take it slow, keep it simple, and repeat as needed. 

Most of all, have patience, work on keeping your energy at an even level while you are helping them. If your energy spikes, the child will feel it if they are sensitive. I went through that trying to teach my oldest daughter how to knit (oh dear), I would get frustrated and my energy would spike. She would feel it and get discouraged even faster. That was my fault.

So anything you teach a child, remember that it is not about you, but about the child.

Will it help them,
Will it hurt them,
Are you staying calm.

Good luck to you and me!

Yule Song - Sing to Oh Holy Night

I love to take lyrics and change them to something else. And I thought, why not do it for christmas songs. The melodies are really lovely so often, so why not take the words away from Oh Holy Night and make my own song. Sing it to the melody. I may make a youtube video of it at some point.

Oh Night So Dark

Oh holy night, the stars are brightly shining

It is the night, oh the night of rebirth.

Night covers the world and friends come together

As we pass through this longest night to light.

A fire is kindled in hopes that light renews

Our love in each other holds us through a new morn.

Raise up your hands

Join hands in hopeful casting

Oh night so dark

Oh night, when light returns

Oh night, return, oh night

Oh gods of rebirth.

A comfort in friends as we make it through the dark

The sun will rise upon our tired faces

Welcome the dark

Don’t fear the gods who dwell there

Oh night, so dark

Oh night, when light returns

Oh night, return, oh night

Oh gods of rebirth.

My Depression

Disclaimer: This is not an attack on people who take anti-depressants or anti-anxiety meds, this is my story only.

For the longest time, I couldn't figure out why 9 years old was the year specifically for me for when depression hit me and I wanted to die. For when I started to bleed pain and literally felt like I had nowhere safe to go.

But as I have become an adult and a mother to two daughters, I realize that at 3, my mother and father divorced, and at 9, my older sister decided to start being physically abusive towards me. The bottom kept dropping out for me and suddenly, I had nowhere safe to go.

My grandparents lived in town, but as close as I seemed with my grandmother, it was at arms length. I knew that my job was to not mess up the one place I could go that my sister couldn't attack me at. So as my grandmother taught me how to play the piano by writing the notes in her hymnal, I made sure the quiet pedal was always pushed down so I wouldn't bother her or my grandfather when I practiced. 

At an early age, I learned that I wasn't safe around other people who were supposed to love me unconditionally. 

At an early age, I learned to be quiet and listen more than be heard.

At an early age, I learned that I could only rely on myself.

No wonder I have actually ran from healthy relationships (bolted as fast as I could) and felt like pain was leaking out of my wrists like they were sliced up. 

As a mother, my goal was to make sure that I was loving them unconditionally, and not letting my oldest daughter be physically abusive towards her little sister (boy did her attitude appear when she turned 10-11 though, she is mean sometimes without thought, just reaction). 

I have realized that because I don't trust people, I love to be alone. 

My depression isn't like a cloud over me, it's like a cloud around me that is most often thinner, but sometimes thickens and darkens. Especially in the week before my period. But if I make sure that my sense of self is not clinging to that blanket of darkness, I can sink below it and literally find myself.

This is where Buddhism has helped me more than Wicca, or Witchcraft. Buddhism helped me find my center and helped me to ground, which opened me up to more witchcraft in the end. Being mindful of each step, of trying to release any unhealthy attachments (and the guilt that comes with that). 

If you suffer from depression, don't avoid the original reasons. Seek therapy, turn it around in your head. If the origin occurred when you were a child, be angry, be strong in that anger that something happened to you that should not happen to a child. 

But most of all, be kind and loving to yourself. Hug the echo of that child that still exists and cries inside you. Hug that child and hug yourself. Because until we learn to kindly love ourselves, this world will not improve.

So mote it be.

Finally Figured It Out

Disclaimer - This is all based on my personal experience and is not in any way meant to be an insult on anyone's weight. This is how I feel about my body and who I am.


When I graduated from high school, I weighed between 90-95 pounds and was 5'6. I was skinny. Like stand up and get dizzy, everything going black for a second dizzy. It was wrong. 

I did gain some weight as I went into my 20's, but just enough to be healthy. Nothing crazy. Then I went on the depo provera shot and shot up to 150-160. This was jarring and I felt heavy, but I also felt depressed from the shot and some life stuff.

I got off the shot, and lost a little bit of weight, fixed my life stuff (not in that order necessarily). Then I got into my late 20's and had my first daughter. Oh my sweet angel, when I gave birth to her I had gone up to 190's. Afterwards I waffled back down to 160s and 170s. Then 4 years later, I had my second daughter and went to 207 at the time of her birth, and afterward went down to the 190s.. And stayed there.

Since then, I am literally not happy looking in the mirror because it didn't look like me. But who did I look like? And why did it bother me? I was a strong woman, I carried heavy stuff, went up stairs without too much of a huff. Was this fluffy person who I wanted to be? Why couldn't I be happy with my reflection? I hate sweating. I hate exercise (obviously). And I loved sugar haha.

Today I had a doctors appt for migraines, I had a whopper of one last week, and I weighed in at 199 pounds. 

So I had gained 109 pounds in the past 20 years. 

I don't want to be that too skinny girl again. But I don't want the rolls my stomach is turning into. 

Ever since Morrigan (hard and fast) and Lugh (gently but firmly) have been walking into my life, I have felt the call to be a warrior. Take that kickboxing class. Get a standing punching bag for the garage and go Buffy on it. I wanted to embody more strength as well as the softer sides to myself. 

 I am a mother. I have loved being a comfortable person for my daughters to cuddle with, but I also don't feel that I am giving a good example when my soul and gods are challenging me to step it up and let the warrior shine through. 

This won't be easy.

With having no thyroid, due to thyroid cancer, I tend towards fits of fatigue when I try to exercise. For example, I decided one day to go on a bike ride and got two blocks away before I had to get off the bike, turn around and walk it back, barely able to move for a few hours afterward. I can hoof it up three flights of stairs, so its not being out of shape, and it scared me.

But its time to push through.

Drop the soda.
Drop the chocolate except for treats.
Add a salad a day.
Start a walking group three to four days a week.
Go hiking when weather permits, love nature.
Do a few sit-ups, push-ups when I get up in the morning to give me some natural energy.

I can do this.

Lugh has told me I can do this.

Morrigan has told me to move my ass.

And they are right.

When it comes to being the Mother portion of the Maiden, Mother, Crone cycle, I have embraced it. The softness and the strength. But I don't want to look as soft anymore. I want to be more fit. More capable. More natural when it comes to my energy (less sugar, more endorphins). 

This is not an attack on anyone else's weight. This is a revelation that I have been coming too slowly. This isn't a diet I am starting, it is a folding into a way of life that I have been yearning for but afraid to start. For me. For who I am. I need to do this.

As I will it, so mote it be.

Talia Ravenspath

Who Do You Turn Too? And Why?

Life is so strange.

There are up's and there are downs.

There are times when we want to be with people and not be alone.

And there are times when we just want everyone to go away so we can hear ourselves just THINK.

Everyone has issues, everyone has problems. But what can we do to get through ours? It depends on the problem. 

Morrigan:
For some relationship problems, Morrigan has actually been by my side to give me strength and a little bit of snarkiness with backbone. It helped.

She can also help you open up your sexual side more, to be more daring and open to exploring your sexuality.

Morrigan is a goddess of strength and daring. She challenges you and others around you to be better.

Brigid:
Creative and warm, she will heal you if you let her. Brigid will drown you in a soft light that lets your inner child heal and transform to a more whole person.

Danu:
The mother goddess, another healing goddess that will unconditionally accept and love you, no matter what. Good to call on when your kids get to be that age (you know the age haha).

Lugh:
Creativity, warrior, laughter, sunshine. This god is great at a party, great to call upon when you need a sense of warrior that is less aggressive and angry that Morrigan can be, though they can come hand in hand. Also a great god to call on when you want inspiration for creation, break through that writers block with Lugh at your shoulder!

Just a few tips from my favorite gods that are whispering to me. 

Who are the gods you turn too? Why do you turn to them? What personality traits do you appreciate from them and why? What do you need right now?

Breath and be well!

So mote it be.

Tali Ravenspath

The Dark

Be not afraid
The dark surrounds you
Be not afraid
As it hides you from sight
Be not afraid
The dark is within you
Be not afraid
The dark simply holds you.




Talia Ravenspath

The Comfort of Rocks and the Ocean

My family and I went out to Salem, Massachusetts last month, and to be honest, I just wanted to be at the ocean side.

So that is what we did (and everything else was overpriced anyway).

While at the ocean my children and I looked specifically for quartz, of which I found many, but we also found this fascinating rock, which I cannot seem to get enough off. The light and dark of it is fascinating to me.

Life is so hard, and as the Buddhists will say, we cause most of our suffering from clinging to our attachments and our own suffering. We don't surrender through the suffering, we hold it close to us like a tattered blanket and let it define us. As someone who has suffered from chronic depression since she was 8 years old, I can honestly say that rocks are comforting.

Life is about change, and you would think that rocks, to me, would be about how they are something that doesn't change. But they do change! They wear down, you can smash them, you can grind them up. Nature will do all of these things naturally. The stone above is smooth, but from water. It didn't come off it's original place of rest smooth like this! Rather, the ocean tumbled it along, easing the sharp edges and wearing it down until it came to rest on a little beach in Salem, Massachusetts that was covered in stones and pebbles.

Why does it give me comfort?

Because of the idea of rolling rocks. Of our souls being a rock that is tumbled through life, yet we still keep the colors we had at the beginning of our life. Our shape changes, and perhaps we lose some of ourselves, but we gain a new understanding of where we are strong inside and where we are weak.

Life is like the ocean, rising and falling with waves and currents. Sometimes at ease and gentle, sometimes with storms that rise out of almost nowhere. Sometimes we see the storms coming and we just cannot swim fast enough to get out of the way. Sometimes we are able to dive down below the waves and hold on fast until it passes. 

Rocks, trees, the earth itself and the ocean. These are things we can touch and feel. The rocks and trees are decades to thousands of years old (if not older depending on the object). This is an amazing thing to realize and meditate on. 

Think about the problems that you had last year, or even ten years ago. Have they resolved? I bet many of them have. Some of them are even funny now.

Our spirits are old, as old as the stars. Our bodies share star dust. This life is fleeting and rocks, the earth, the ocean and trees tell us to slow down, feel the rhythm of the earth. Feel the waves and listen to them crash on the beach over and over again. Watch the trees sway in the breeze and sway with them. Live in the moment, because the past is gone and future is not in our control. Live in the moment. Feel that moment, let the past go and the future go and surrender to that moment. What you feel isn't depression or anxiety when you do, but peace. Not happiness or joy, but a sense of being and belonging. 

It's really quite amazing.

So mote it be.

Birthday Post (TW mental health)

Today is my birthday.

I turn 38 years old. 

Nothing about aging really bothers me all that much. I don't mind the gads of gray hair I have, and love dyeing it blue for fun. 

But each birthday, except for last years, I feel horribly depressed, tearful and weighed down. 

So I'm trying to figure out why.
I have a good, reliable, job. 
My husband is a good guy and things are ok there.
My daughters are awesome (well, one is, the other is starting to become an evil preteen).

Sure, I live paycheck to paycheck, but, this is something that has been there each birthday for as long as I can remember... Except for last year. Last year I spent the weekend, and my birthday, at the beach. For hours. It was everything you could imagine it could be.

But today I'm at work, trying to not cry. 

People on Facebook are sending me happy birthday messages, and yet nothing helps. I just want to crawl in a whole, pull a blanket over the top of it, and cry until its over.

Why?

There are a lot of possible reasons.
Shitty childhood.
Genetics.

You know what? Next year I am going back to the beach, alone. I love my family, but I need that day to be away from people who rely on me and have a one day a year where I do something just for me. Every year. Just one day. Because I felt peaceful last year. I felt happy. I felt content.

Goddess, Danu, mother of all.
I call to thee to help me get through this day.
So often, I am a mother to all
It wears on me and empties my cup.
So please give me this day.
Give me this day to feel the caring sent my way.
Give me this day to realize that feeling.
Help me, Goddess.
Danu, help me.

As I will it, so mote it be.

I'm off to do some self-Reiki healing. :)

Be Well!
Talia Ravenspath

Mother to All

What a month this has been!

Between my children going back to school and my husband having some back trials, I have felt all a-whirl.

But what should arrive in the middle of all of this chaos? My Danu statue at the soon to be closed pagan shop (already mourning the loss of that space). 

Stock photo of my own statue.

What was so timely about it was the fact that I had been feeling very much like a mother to all. I was being pulled into so many different directions that Danu's arrival was not just physical, but spiritual as well.

Danu
Mother to all
Protector
Wise one
Help us carry our burdens
Step by step through this life.
Help us be our best mothers
As we raise our children in this life.
Help us to be our best partners
As we walk with in this life.
Guide us to be warm
Guide us to be wise
Guide us to be accepting
Guide us to be calm.
As I pray it
So mote it be.

Some gods come charging in, like Morrigan, who is more demanding all the time. And others come sliding in quietly, like Lugh and Danu. 

When you are ready to commit, they are ready to guide.

Be Well!
Blessed Be!
Merry meet again!
Talia Ravenspath

Heading to Salem, Massachusetts

In less than 2 hours, I will be on the road with my husband and two children to Salem, Massachusetts. 

Even though I have lived in upstate NY for most of my life, I have never been there and am looking forward to seeing all the sights, but specifically I need to spend some time at the beach.

My husband asked me which day I wanted to go to the beach and I said, both. He laughed and said that we couldn't see Salem really well and go to the beach both days, there wasn't time. And I realized he was right (especially if I wanted to hit up the yarn shop). 

I will have pictures and stories to tell you on Monday, so until then; enjoy your weekend and be well!

Slan!

Pagan Books for the Experienced

Back in 1993, when I first started researching paganism and witchcraft, there was no internet (for me) and my local library had very little in the way of pagan books. 

Today have a plethora of resources, from the internet and through bookstores. It is a renaissance of writing on the topic, from different paths and specific gods to more in-depth topics beyond the Wicca 101 how-to guides, like that of the good Scott Cunningham (who was my first).

Interested in Brigid? May I suggest Tending Brigid's Flame: Awaken to the Celtic Goddess of Hearth, Temple, and Forge by Lunaea Weatherstone.

This book is a fantastic book that a beginner can get quite a bit from, but someone who has been practicing for a few years and hears Brigid call can learn quite a bit as well. The author touches on the christian background (perhaps a bit too much for me at times) and her more ancient background as well. She outlines sample ceremonies with a few lightly personal examples on how Brigid is kept alive in the authors life on a regular basis.

Another author for the more experienced pagan is Raven Grimassi. If you are interested in Strega, this is a great place to turn and he has many books out that may interest you. I actually ran into a bookstore in Laurel, Maryland where he had signed several, much to my joy.

His Hereditary Witchcraft: Secrets of the Old Religion was a fascinating read, as it delved into the various connections to history and any ancient sources for witchcraft (like Aradia) that he makes through his family lineage (in particular). It's a very easy to read book and if interested in studying something with some historical connection, it's a great addition to your library.

If you are a bit of a skeptic as to the magic part of witchcraft, a fantastic read is The Science of the Craft by William H. Keith. To be fair, I just started to read this because my education through Reiki and my personal history of manipulating and using energies to send healing and comforting energy towards people made me interested in quantum physics. Yes, I said that, quantum physics. He lays it out quite brilliantly and I think this book would make for a fantastic discussion for pagans/witches who have been practicing the craft for a while. It is extremely readable and Mr. Keith breaks the theories down brilliantly. (And if you have a Kindle and Prime on amazon, it is free to read on kindle unlimited.)

These are just three suggestions for people who have been around the pagan block a few times, like me. I hope you give them a chance and get something out of them. 

What do you suggest? 

What have you been reading?

Be well and Blessed Be!
Talia Ravenspath

What Is Your Go-To Gemstone?

Ahh gems. Stones. Minerals. Fossils. 

These all have the ability to resonate in different ways, and not everyone feels the vibrations the same. But I usually have at least one stone in my pocket (sometimes more). Not to mention what I'm wearing on my hand and around my neck.

What are your go-to's? And why?

For years, I have worn a moonstone ring on my hand. The moonstone is a great stone for inner growth and strength. It enhances psychic abilities and intuition. My hand would look strange to me without it, now. 

Some other stones that call to me are clear quartz stones, which are natural healers and cleansers of other stones. It is a fantastic stone for those interested in Reiki as it wo
rks really well to cleanse all the chakras and provide clarity of mind. 

Jaspers of all type are wonderful, but there are so many! Seriously!
But all of them are fantastic to encourage that connection to the mother earth and are stones of grounding and wisdom (as well as being beautiful). 

But what type of stones touch your heart and spirit? What stones call to you and why?

The stones that call to me are mostly healers because I am a natural energy healer, which is why I am drawn to Reiki. Certain stones can draw us to them because of the place we are in our life and development of our spirit. What lessons do we need to learn in this life? What are you going through right now? Are you riding high and need to keep some hematite nearby for grounding? Or are you struggling and need some rose quartz to keep your heart from giving up?

Each full moon, make sure you leave your stones out to charge them with the energy of the moon, even if the night is overcast. The energy of the moon recharges their natural vibrations each turn and helps us use them to their best effect until the following day.

Think about what stones draw you and why, this can help you identify what life lessons you are dealing with and can help you focus your intentions and spell settings so that you are helping yourself along your path. But most importantly, as always, be kind to yourself. Be compassionate. Not arrogant, but with humility just give those broken and scarred selves inside hugs. Because who doesn't need a little bit of a hug?

Blessed Be!
Talia Ravenspath

Finding a Local Coven

The title of this blog post is misleading. I am not going to write a how-to. Rather, I'm going to weigh in on what I've noticed, that there is a great need and call for teachers and covens in this country.

How do I know this?

Pagan Facebook pages.

On a daily basis, people are posting that they are looking for a teacher. And hey, I completely get it. I have been following the pagan, and oftentimes Wiccan, path for the past 25 years as mainly a solitary. It can feel like there is only so much you can learn from books.

You do the ceremony suggested, maybe tweak it a little and you do it when the full moon comes around, or the new moon. Or the sabbat. 

But you are alone and it can be very isolating and it can be very hard to find answers to simple questions such as "is this right?". The answer is usually, does it feel right? But I really do get the desire for a teacher. The main point for that is that when you go out and really start to meet other pagans and witches the book learning isn't seen as learning. 

Have you noticed that?

Sure, you know how to call a circle, you know about what altar tools are related to what elements. You have had success in making charms and other spells, but you did it all alone so the question remains. "is this right?" and unless you have training from an established coven your experience doesn't seem to count much.

Gosh that question haunts, "is this right?".

But the answer remains true.

Does it feel right?

If your spells are successful, if you feel connected to the goddess/god, if your studies are continuing and you are using what you learn.. What is the point of questioning yourself because it is working for you?

But the point remains, even for me, that at some point it would be nice to have some type of community grounded learning, and this can be hard to find. 

The common response to a request for a teacher has been, the teacher will come when you are ready. Who doesn't hate this comment? I know I do. I'm impatient. I want it now haha. But feeling sure about yourself doesn't just come from outside recognition, but from opening up that connection to the divine that is inside you and grounding yourself in what you know and what you have accomplished. 

As they say when writing a resume, you know more than you list. Recognize your accomplishments. 

Be Well!

Talia Ravenspath

Moon Days

Self Care..

I will not be making any posts until my moon days are over..

See you folks next week!

To Listen

This past Sunday, I noticed something about myself that I have been acknowledging more and more. My ability to listen. 

There was a time, not so long ago, when my ability to listen was hampered by trauma and neglect. It really could feel like someone was sounding like Charlie Brown's mother. Even today, I can be focused on my knitting, crocheting, or even a TV show and one of my children will stand in front of me asking me something and it takes a few tries to get my attention. 

This isn't intentional, and perhaps feeds into my ADHD tendencies, but when my attention is focused, it can be like a laser.

Sunday, during Lammas, I was lucky enough to meet a druid gentleman who had come to do a blessing during our community gathering. I had a few questions I wanted to ask him, but another of my community took over the conversation and instead of feeling excluded, as I might have in my 20's or even early 30's, I sat back and listened.

It's kind of an amazing thing, the ability to listen. 

It's more than just hearing what others are saying, it's seeing how they say it and how others around them react to what they are saying. Words can create energy in a space.

So can listening.

When I do tarot card readings, I don't just listen to recipients reactions or questions, I watch their energy and listen to the unheard, or the spiritual messages that come through me like lightning that I once did not take such heed of. 

This is listening. Creating a space of safety, a space of compassion. 

And I realized, as if it was a message from the goddess herself, that my gift was to create those spaces. By listening with compassion, I can change the way someone is speaking to be calmer because of my expression, the way I hold my body and how highly vibrating my energy is. I am accepting.

This does not mean that I do not get frustrated when I have something to say and do not want to interrupt others in order to say it. I can feel ignored and interrupted. But instead of looking at it negatively, I can take a step back and see it as an opportunity to listen. Truly listen.

To observe.

This provided the opportunity for me to see this kind druid's friend who had come with him, and the kindness in his face. To notice that another friend also wanted to speak but felt left out. No one was left out purposely, but I feel like I am learning how to be inclusive in conversations by honing my listening skills.

How well do you think you listen? Do you interrupt others? Do you read their energy? Do you read their body language?

May the goddess hold you
Deep in her arms
May she comfort you
When you feel alone
May she provide sustenance
When you feel hunger
May she speak
And you hear her.

So mote it be.

Blessed Be!
Talia Ravenspath

Depression and Energy

Happy Monday! (or not) ☺

What a doozy this weekend was for me, how was it for you? Celebrating Lammas/Lughnasadh on Sunday was heavenly, if hot (and we had a few bees attacking people, unfortunately). But it was so nice to be around people that are so positive, kind and open.

But what I wanted to talk about today, in particular, was the fact of depression. 

There are so many of us that carry it around and battle it. I know that I have since I was around 8 years old, and I pray that my daughters do not feel that depression at that age and wish they were dead. Horrible feelings. 

But as I've gotten older, I've come to realize a few things. 
1) We can survive almost anything.
2) We are stronger when we realize we can survive anything.
3) It is possible to not be ruled by depression.

I'm not saying it's easy, and it can take a LOT of work. But you can go from days when you can barely get out of bed and everything sets you off to either tears or anxiety laced anger (basis is often in depression though for me), to feeling that depression rising but realizing that your energy vibration is too high for it to overcome.

Let me tell you how that works.

First of all, gemstones are your friends. Charge them during the full moon, place the intention to either drain your depression away, or to raise your energy so that you can rise above it. Because depression is kind of like quicksand, this isn't about struggling with it or fighting it. It's about accepting it as part of who you are and the scars that we have on our souls from this life and past lives. It is about feeling compassion for yourself and learning ways to keep moving, even when you feel like your feet have turned to led. And sometimes it is letting yourself sleep for a day or two and taking that time to hug that echo of the person inside that is hurting and needs that love he/she didn't get. 

I know, it sounds like a lot, but it is doable. This is something you can work on with your therapist and, in particular, it is something you can work on your own day after day.

1) Mindfulness.
This is a great tool because it keeps you from dwelling. Have you ever heard the story about how we each have two wolves inside us, one is bad and the other is good. The one that is strongest is the one we feed. So if we focus on the bad thoughts and give energy to those bad ideas, we are feeding the bad wolf. If we focus on compassion and love for that wounded part of ourselves, we feed the good wolf and break the cycle of depressive thoughts. Mindfulness does this by helping you focus on one thing. 

Breath.

A footstep at a time.

Tapping.

Simple things to draw you into the present with kindness and compassion. Literally fueling a feeling of kindness and compassion while you do this.

2) Energy-work. 
This is another great tool that allows us to learn to manipulate the energy in our body. We can learn to do reiki self healing sessions and the positive regard we continue to have for ourselves is something that is nothing but good when it comes to depression. A simple way of doing a quick Reiki session is as follows:

Breathing slow and deep, make sure your feet are flat on the floor and your hands are on either knee/leg and relaxed. 

Starting from the top of your head, you are going to visualize (with the intent to heal yourself and be kind to yourself) a white light coming down and washing over the top of your head. Slowly it comes down, inch by inch. This is the light of the universe that is a healing light. It is simply going to go down each of your chakras and provide loving healing to wherever it needs to go. So keep visualizing this white light as it comes down over your third eye, between your eyes just above your eyebrows. Perhaps it turns purple when it reaches this point.

As it continues to go down, remember to be kind and love any emotions that come up. Don't worry about thoughts, just lovingly let them go, no matter how often they come up. 

The light will continue to come down over your face and down your throat where it may turn blue. Allow it to continue, loving yourself, hugging yourself as it goes over your heart chakra and turns green, than your solar plexus just above your navel it will turn yellow. Than orange below your naval and finally red at the base of your spine and lower. 

This is something you can do every day. You don't have to visualize these colors, and if you just feel connected to the light going down that is perfect as well. 

The training that you do with these two exercises can break the hold that depression has on you. Perhaps you will never be cured, I know that I am not, especially around my moon days. But you can learn to love yourself unconditionally, and when you do that you can learn to love others unconditionally as well.

You don't have to do them every day, I don't always manage too, though I do try. But just every other day can make such a big difference. 

You are not alone in your depression. 
May your brón (sadness) be lifted 
And your soul's energy be raised
For we are not meant to suffer
But to evolve and to love.

Blessed Be
So Mote It Be.

Be Well!
Talia Ravenspath

Merry Lughnasadh!

Blessed Lughnasadh to you! The harvest time has begun and what a harvest it will be. Lugh is the god of the harvest, but he holds a wonderful place in my heart as the god of crafts. And his consort Rosmerta, the goddess of healing and prosperity calls out to me. 

Do you hear her? Her voice echos with Lugh's in support of our endeavours and our ideas. No wonder I wanted to do more than make bread, but to make homemade butter as well!

Lugh calls to me constantly in my crafting, as I always have either a crochet hook or knitting needles in my hand. I am grateful to him for his continued patronage, and I acknowledge his prescence in my life over the past 25 years with gratefulness as the crafts have given me peace.

He has also inspired me of late to make necklaces with hagstones. Hagstones are amazing stones that naturally have a hole in them due to water flow/dripping. I also added dragons blood jasper, lapis lazuli and hematite. The hagstones were charged with full moon energy and the intent of healing and protection set the morning after.

I cannot stop wearing mine, seriously! I can feel the higher vibration in them!

Suggestions I have for this holiday? 

Craft something! 

Even if you are just drawing something (doodle), do it and enjoy it.

Write a bit of poetry! 

Bake some whole wheat bread, make some butter (let me know how yours comes out ☺).

Between now and the Fall Equinox is a good time to work on bringing in some plans and some feelers, let them come to fruition. All that hard work that you have been doing has completely paid off, it really has. But right now, the harvest also means hard work, and sweaty work with cursing and wiping sweat off your brow. 

To wrap up this post is my tarot reading for this holiday. My three card pull is about the three things I need to focus on.

The nine of Pentacles is about enjoying the harvest and the prosperity that I have earned. Spend it with family and really be present in the world so you can enjoy your family.

The four of Chalices is a card of waiting, perhaps the stability that I have been wanting to have is here but cannot come without help from another, either friends or family. I need to rely on someone from outside myself to help me keep my stability and to not turn my back on that person or people.

The Ace of Wands has to do with spiritual enlightenment and being at one with my intuition. This is something that is a strong part of my life now, I am not perfect, but I am better able to listen to my intuition and my spiritual life is finally at one with my inner life. There is a flourishing that is happening there, and I am grateful for it.

Enjoy this Sabbat and keep your chin up through this Mercury Retrograde. Remember that it is all about communication, so if you keep the lines of communication open, you will be fine.

Blessed Be!
Talia Ravenspath

My Friday Ceremony And Children

Friday was the full moon and I wanted to call the four corners of the earth, raise my circle, put intention into the air.. And my children wanted to be in the circle too haha.

My daughters are 6 and 10 and when I finished getting all set up I told them "In or out of the circle, but once I set the circle you are staying put if you're in." And they both were happy as clams to stay in my little circle I made. 

I called the guardians and made the circle, and they giggled throughout it. Part of it was because they have never been there with me when I did a circle and besides blessing my new hagstones, necklaces and recharging everything on my altar from a hagstone to my selenite globe, I didn't have a huge ceremony planned. And I usually don't.

The first thing I noticed is that they were distracting, because they were giggling. I stuttered a little on calling the corners and they giggled. Instead of getting mad, I let the joyful energy they were filled with rise into the circle I was creating and become a part of the ceremony. I smiled and laughed too. 

That is one of the things about life. You can get mad at what is happening, because it isn't exactly what you expected, or you can accept it as it is and just go with it. This kind of go with the flow (that can take practice, BELIEVE ME) is one of those things that can prevent flair ups of anxiety. Seriously. :)

Blessed Be and have a wonderful week!
Talia Ravenspath

Full Moon, Lunar Eclipse and Mercury Retrograde! Oh My!

Oh Mercury, you trickster.

So many people are worried about the mercury retrograde that is starting TODAY. But relax, it's okay! Don't stress about it and create a situation where you are going to self-sabotage yourself with anxiety over it. 

With the full moon tomorrow night and the mercury retrograde, all I have to say is to just work on your meditation and mindfulness. It is so easy to mess up communication, which is one of the main things that mercury stands for. So work on mindfully being truthful and openly communicative without being brash or harsh (Leo hanging out right now). 

Things to do?

Charge those crystals! Especially get out those gemstones that are helpful in aiding communication, like Amazonite, Lapis Lazuli, Sodalite (my favorite), or Turquoise and after charging them sit with them Saturday morning and program them to specifically help you get through this time period.

The full moon with the lunar eclipse makes it a particularly charged full moon, a super moon. So the charge will be wonderful. Just stay positive!

Meditate. Make sure you are being mindful of your breath. Your steps, your level of compassion for yourself and others. Because creating a level of kind regard for yourself helps you fight the demons of depression and anxiety.

How?

Because depression is worrying or dwelling on the past and anxiety is worrying and stressing about the future. Neither of which you control. Meditation brings you to the present. To the breath, to the life inside you.

So if you are worrying about the Mercury Retrograde, and I now a lot of you are, please don't! Just relax and use the gifts the universe is handing you. Something is always going to be throwing off your vibe, but the mercury retrograde is all about perception, it's not really going backward, we just see it as going backwards. 

Be like the Hanging Man (or the Oak King in my deck), let go of old perceptions and habits.

Today's three card reading was on the three things I need to focus on during the Mercury Retrograde. The first card is The Wild Hunt, or the Tower. As a major arcane card I believe that some things that I believed were true will collapse under pressure (and I believe this may be a continuing thing). This card is not scary because sometimes we build our beliefs of something on false facts or poor communication and they will inevitably collapse.

The second card is the Three of Chalices, which stands for creativity and strength in community and friendship. I need to make sure I stay focused on the friendships and community to keep my head on straight.

The third card is the Seven of Chalices, which is a card of choices and a pause in contemplation. With the mercury in retrograde, this is a good card to remind me to meditate and be thoughtful in my choices and actions.

Stop stressing about the Mercury Retrograde!!

Be well and keep your chin up.
Talia Ravenspath

All the Witch Crafties

When this blog says, the "Craft of", I meant it haha. I make lotion, make shampoo bars, knit, crochet, dye yarn and you will see some of it on here, especially things that are witchy related. And almost anything you see is available for either special order (if you want a special color) or straight purchase from the link on the side of this blog that will take you straight to my etsy shop.

Some things in life take you a round about way, and I started crocheting at 13 and knitting at 23. Than I started to dye yarn a few years ago and make lotion and shampoo bars this year. Growth is good and Danu and Lugh definitely enjoy poking at my crafty side to keep learning more.

Pagan Inconsistencies For The Win

Do you know what had driven me a little batty during my early years of study? I have been practicing and studying for 25 years and the one thing that all pagans can seem to agree on, is that we can't always agree on things HAHA. 

For Example:

From one tradition to another, the elemental correspondence to the directions change, the point labeling of the pentagram (besides Spirit being up at the top) changes. This is just an example of the fact that if you follow just an eclectic view of paganism or wicca (not that I'm knocking that at all), it can be very confusing, especially at first.

Go google directions and their pagan correspondences and see what images come up. I'll wait (haha). Here are a few that I found:

Than go google pentacle meanings and see what images come up:

Are you confused yet?

Is this a problem long-term? Depends on how malleable your mind is and how willing you are to think outside the box. If you are the type A kind of person that needs the answer, perhaps eclectic Wiccanism isn't for you and you should stick to a specific tradition.

  But perhaps what matters more than having the direction or point correct, is having your intent and mindset correct.

  When you call the guardians of the watchtowers of Fire, no matter which direction makes sense to you, do you feel the warmth of the fire barely contained? 

When you call the guardians of the watchtowers of the Earth, do you feel it's slowness and energy that it transforms as quickly as you ground with gratefulness? 

There are always going to be these little inconsistencies because we are all human and this type of thing just makes sense to us. One website even made up a little a suggestion of turning the elements and directions towards poetry: (LINK)

Air	The cold wind blows
Water	The warm nurturing waters flow
Fire	The warm light of the fire rises
Earth	The Great Mother Earth rises

I love this! And that is why, for me, the sun is Fire, so will always rise in the East; the ocean lies South of me, so there is Water; Earth is as far as the eye can see, as well as mountains and forests, is in the West; and the Air blows cold down from the North.

Ground it in your reality so A) you can remember it and B) it makes sense to you and your world.

But most of all, don't sweat the small stuff.

Blessed Be and have a wonderful day!

Talia Ravenspath