A Love Letter to the Witch Who Has Lost Their Magick

a radical sabbatical post

If you choose to take up the art of magick
you have also chosen to lose it

even the most devilish and beautiful of witches 
lose their fierce
and forget the words to their most familiar spell

usually it’s in a time of great and monstrous undoing
when the unfairness of the world
uses your own heartbeat
to beat
you
down

and then magick seems to be a thing imagined
bourgeoisie and useless
small-minded and exorbitant
abandoning you
even after all your vows
spoken between the moon and midnight…

what remains is this

the ability to breath into your stillness
when electric wave upon wave demands your distraction

to know the name of leaf
and how the fire bends

and that a witch never dies
nor does their magick

my words to you,
my witch kin, 
tangled up in your fear that it’s really, truly gone
is to remember 

Magick is impermanent 
un-guaranteed
there and gone

but as the moon is always full
just hidden from our eye

you are always full
if impermanent in your perceptions

always whole

because magick
remembers
you

As I am currently off on sabbatical for three cycles of the Moon, this post was autoscheduled (you can find out more here). May these words have arrived with the magick of not quite knowing where it’ll land, but choosing to chance it anyways. Want to know when I get back? Sign-up for Magick Mail below.

I look forward to connecting with you all again upon my return.

This post was made possible through patron support.
❤︎ Thanks, friends. ❤︎

In the Garden: A Relationships Tarot Spread

This tarot spread was born of a project made possible by the generosity of my patrons. My very first goal on Patreon was to create a tarot zine that collected thirteen spreads that are based on the types of ways that I've cast cards again and again over the years. Basically, these spreads are what I would pull out if you were coming over for a bit of tarot and tea.

If you're interested in getting a copy of the zine (and all of my ebooks) check out my patreon and thanks in advance for your support! My patrons make the work of creating low-cost and free herbal and magickal resources online and in-person so much easier and more joyful. In the meantime, enjoy one of the spreads from my zine which is for relationships of all kinds.

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Growing Together is a spread for learning about ourselves in our relationships. You can use this spread in any kind of relationship where you're hoping to cultivate growth and understanding be it romantic, familial, work or friendship. For the final two cards of the spread, I recommend pulling only from the Major Arcana to help you understand the greater themes of your own individual journey as embodied in this relationship as well as that of the other person.

Side note for my polyamorous folks. If you want to read for multiple partners at once, you have a few options for making alterations to the spread. You can read cards 1 through 5 for all involved and simply add as many Journey cards as you need. Or pull multiple versions of each card for each person (i.e. a Relationship Significator card for you and Person A and another one for you and Person B). It mostly depends on how many cards at once feels like too many on the table for you to read.

Card 1 · The Relationship Significator

A card to represent the relationship. You can also choose a specific card from your deck for this spot.

Card 2 · The Recent Past

A card representing the recent past - typically 3 to 6 months - of your relationship.

Card 3 · The Recent Future

A card representing what may come - usually only within the next 3 months - of your relationship.

Card 4 · Too Much

A card which helps us to understand what there might be too much of, including what we might be focusing too much on, about our relationship.

Card 5 · Too Little

A card which helps us to understand what there might be too little of, including what we might not be paying aHen4on to enough of, about our relationship.

Card 6 · My Bigger Journey

Using only the Major Arcana pull a card to help you understand the bigger energy of your life and development that you are bringing into this current relationship.

Card 7 · Their Bigger Journey

Using only the Major Arcana pull a card to help you understand the bigger energy of the other person's life and development that they are bringing into this current relationship.

At the end of the spread, take a look at the first card again - the Relationship Significator - and read it in the context of what you've learned from the spread in addition to your initial reading of the card.

In addition to relationships with others, there’s a lot of magick to be found in learning about how we relate to ourselves. Here are a pair of spreads for connecting with your future self and your ancient self. For a bit of plant magick here’s a recipe to help connect with wisdoms of the heart and the mind.

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Of Rest + Worth: Skullcap Plant Profile

The two nervines - those plants that help bring the nervous system into balance - that I use the most are Milky Oat (Avena Sativa) and Skullcap (Scutellaria lateriflora). Nervines are an essential part of my practice both in my home and in my wider community. In traditional western herbalism they are some of the most accessible and first learned plants that we encounter as students because caring for our nervous system and its vast network of experience and function is foundational to a body as whole and holy philosophy of practice.

Skullcap is always a close friend of mine and a beloved teacher, but I have found myself turning towards them with greater frequency in the past few years and especially since we all began grappling with our most recent global pandemic. They are a generous teacher and are a powerful ally in some of our most modern maladies, so I hope that the following profile on their healing gifts be a source of inspiration to you.

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Skullcap
(Scutellaria lateriflora)

Folk Names : Mad dog weed, madweed, Quaker’s hat or bonnet, blue pimpernel, helmet flower
Planet : Moon, Saturn, Mercury, Neptune, Pluto
Element : Water, Air
Moon Phase : Dark Moon, Full Moon
Zodiac Signs : Gemini, Virgo
Parts used : Leaf and flower
Habitat : Native to North America and Eurasia.
Growing conditions : Full sun with plenty of space and not overly rich soil.
Collection : Summer, before flowering.
Flavor : Bitter
Temperature : Cold
Moisture : Dry
Tissue State : Tense/Restriction, Hot/Excitation
Constituents : B vitamins, calcium, potassium, flavonoids, tannin, scutellonin, stearic acid, linoleic acid, oleic acid.

Actions : Anodyne, antibacterial, antispasmodic, astringent, anxiolytic, bitter, brain tonic, cardiotonic, diuretic, febrifuge, vasodilator, hypotensive, nervine, sedative, spinal cord tonic.

Main uses : A powerful and deeply loved nervine within traditional western herbalism, Skullcap restores strength to an overwhelmed nervous system and accompanying symptoms of muscle spasms and nerve pain all while cultivating calm. For nervousness, fear, and a sense of being overwhelmed, Skullcap stimulates the brain to produce more endorphins in the system due to the presence of scutellarin in the plant which becomes scutellarein in the body. The herb is one of my favorite brain tonics as it not only helps us to develop our pathways of mental clarity, but acts deeply on the nervous system to bring about a sense of wellness and peace. In the USA we live in a culture that glorifies overwork (more on that in a minute) and being productive so Skullcap, with its message of balance and developing awareness between what we're thinking and what we're feeling, is an herb that I turn to often in my practice.

Skullcap is an excellent ally for those who suffer from insomnia, especially when there is difficulty shutting off the busy chatter of a restless mind - Skullcap helps promote healthy sleep patterns. Herbalist Thomas Bartram notes that Skullcap is a wonderful nervine "for workaholics compelled to work long hours with resulting mental exhaustion" and I can attest to this again and again not only for myself but for many folks that I work with. (1) The wisdom of Skullcap is that as a teacher they help us to reassess what pressures are appropriate and inappropriate in our work life, helping us to return not only to a state of mental peace but dignity in work as well.

(Am I suggesting that Skullcap is an anti-capitalist ally? Yes, yes I am.)

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The herb can be used for a variety of nervous conditions and imbalances stemming from hyperactivity including ADHD, anxiety, hypertension, nervous exhaustion, hysteria, neuralgia, premenstrual tension, and the effects of withdrawal from caffeine. In general, Skullcap is a gentle ally for supporting folks grappling with addiction withdrawal as well as withdrawal symptoms from tranquilizers and antidepressants. In my experience Skullcap is also an excellent ally to turn to for social media, gaming, and the new forms of online addiction that have emerged in our modern culture. The herb can also be used in general recovery from colds and influenza as well as prolonged periods of stress.

I use it for cases of fear, including nightmares, and the herb has a balancing effect on energy and emotions, helping both pass unhindered and appropriately through the body. Indicators for Skullcap include the collapse of the ability to hide nervous tension - folks are just not able to keep from the world their fears and anxieties which only makes them more fearful and anxious. Skullcap folk have a particular gift for embodying their thoughts, dreams, and possibilities but that means they can get caught up in the abstract and struggle with being in their bodies. Daily small doses of the herb over many months can be a helpful reset and support a return to embodiment. 

Skullcap can also be used in recovery from too much sun exposure, for indigestion with the presence of gas such as in the case of a nervous stomach, for headaches and dizziness, for fevers and colds. Irritability is a big indicator for the use of Skullcap as the plant helps us to release the build-up of frustration. There are not many traditional topical uses for Skullcap that I've come across but I do add the herb to anxiety and stress alleviating bath blends. 

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Magickal uses : Skullcap is an herb of oaths and binding contracts from business agreements to romantic unions. The herb is worn by lovers to ensure fidelity. Just as the herb is used to calm nervous conditions in the body, Skullcap can be used in rituals and spells for promoting peace and calm. During trancework, journeying, and astral projection, Skullcap helps keep the spirit secured to the body so that it is able to find its way back after the journey. The herb can also be used to help people ground in any situation, but especially post-meditation or after waking up from an intense dream or nightmare. Skullcap has an affinity for the Autumn Equinox, helping us transition from the bright half of the year to the dark half.

The Skullcap Personality : The Skullcap personality is easy to spot – they are intense, their muscles tense, and they are prone to overthinking. Often, their brow is furrowed, even when they are young children, intensely occupied in thought and their inner worlds. Energetic and quick, they can appear restless or overactive, which they sometimes are, but for Skullcap folk they are purposefully busy and often happily, if very quickly, engaged with whatever project or imaginative game they are pursuing. These are kids who enjoy problem solving in their play - whether puzzles or saving the galaxy from certain doom - but if they do tend towards more nervous energy and fears even if they appear brave and confident in their play and relationships. Skullcap folks can have a hard time feeling present in their bodies and can experience moments of disorientation whether dizzy spells or struggling to find their physical edges. They have to be very careful about frequent burnout and making sure that they take regular time off from their intense periods of thinking and doing The great gift of Skullcap folk is that they have an incredible capacity to remain focused on the theoretical, impossible, and seemingly unattainable, bringing all into the range of accessibility for themselves and their community. Skullcap helps them to access the balance necessary to help save the galaxy and also get enough rest.

Contraindications : Contraindicated during pregnancy.

Dosage : 3 – 10 drops up to 3 times daily of a 1:5 alcohol extract. 1 teaspoon of herb per cup of water. Small doses are quite effective and recommended with Skullcap.

Recipe : My Favorite Tea for Easy Evenings + Self-Care

(1) Thomas Bartram, Bartram's Encyclopedia of Herbal Medicine (London: Constable & Robinson Ltd, 1998), 394.

I’ve written about Skullcap a lot so it was about time that I shared a full profile on them. They are featured on my list of herbs and essences for empaths and highly sensitive folks and are definitely one of my favorite eclipse season herbs.

If you’re looking for more plant profiles, come this way. May your the path with the plants be a verdant, wild, and illuminating one full of viriditas.

This post was made possible through patron support.
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My Top Three Astrology Books for Absolute Beginners

There is a part of me who just wants to read and recommend books all day long. Am I the type of person who while in the process of reading a book is already writing a post in my head on how I would review and/or recommend said book? Yes, yes I am. It’s one of the ways that I synthesize information, trying to understand out where things fit in my web of knowing and learning, and figuring our whether or not a resource feels useful. I also just like imaging that I am a librarian.*

So, while I do recommend books occasionally in my newsletter and increasingly over at my patreon, I realized that recommendations for beginner-level astrology books on the blog was long overdue. So here is a list of three books that I love to help get you started on your astrology studies!

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You Were Born For This: Astrology for Radical Self-Acceptance by Chani Nicholas

I love Chani Nicholas. I love the ways that she has played a pivotal role in expanding and re-membering the world of western astrology into the vast and inclusive space that it is. If you don't already follow her and support her work please do (in fact, I think Chani might've been the first person I supported in a monthly, patron-style basis). In addition to her amazing horoscopes, she offers online courses (they are beautiful and beginner-friendly), some of my favorite playlists, and now you can watch her read charts of the likes of Janet Mock and more. (Also, her wife runs the incredible Freefrom - heck yeah to lesbian power-with couples). 

So as you can imagine, I ordered her book the moment it came out earlier this year and it was a very good investment. The focus of Chani's book is tight which is super useful to some one brand new to astrology. She walks us through the three foundational keys of your birth chart - your Sun, Moon, and Ascendant. The Sun and Moon in western astrology are traditionally known as the Luminaries and along with the Ascendant can tell you a lot about a chart. Through exploring these three keys, Chani also introduces the reader to a number of other important parts of a birth chart including the elements, houses, aspects and more, all delivered in Chani's approachable and inclusive style. What shines through with all of Chani's work is that she loves the art of astrology and loves teaching it in a way that will help folks experience the power of homecoming and radical self-acceptance that knowing our stars offers us. Chani also brings the best of feminist and queer creative thinking to her work - yes, the language is built to invite us in and make astrology feel like a friendly tool as opposed to some obscure and fatalistic art, but she always makes space for the sacred mystery inherent in the practice and learning how to move within such places.

I hope that this is one of many books and other such projects from Chani. As a tool to accompany You Were Born For This she created her own birth chart generator which is my favorite online tool for beginners just getting to know their chart (and, well, anyone really). She's already been updating it and expanding its capabilities since premiering it since last year because she is a generous star queen. So if you're looking for an easy-to-use book that will help you understand how to read the basics of the birth chart and leave you feeling empowered and starry-hearted, check out Chani's work.

You Were Born For This is for those folks who are brand new to astrology but know that there is more to their birth chart than their Sun sign and are excited to learn more.

Edit: A few months after posting this, Chani released her membership-based astrology app. It is an excellent and inspiring resource - I highly recommend it!

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Astrology for Yourself: A Workbook for Personal Transformation by Douglas Bloch and Demetra George

I was first exposed to the work of Demetra George not as an astrologer but as a feminist spirituality scholar with her book Mysteries of the Dark Moon: The Healing Power of the Dark Goddess. She is the type of author that writes with depth and reverence and research (i.e. my love language) and is well-respected as an elder within western astrology. Her expertise is in Hellenic astrology, which forms the foundation for much of western astrology, and she's revived aspects of chart reading such as bringing Goddesses (as embodied in asteroids) back into readings. Even though she's an expert able to speak fluently on a number of complex astological traditions both ancient and modern, she's co-written with Douglas Bloch one of the best astrological guides for beginners, which takes a profound level of skill as a teacher.

What I love about Astrology for Yourself is that it really is a workbook that not only helps you to understand components of your chart, but to learn to speak the story of your birth chart. It's why the book is not only helpful for teachers like myself seeking out resources to help students begin to navigate their own birth charts, but for absolute beginners who want to gaze into their birth chart and see themselves reflected back in it. Astrology for Yourself is the book for folks who like workbook style learning (i.e. where you go along filling in information about your own chart as you learn) as well as a full overview of nearly everything a beginner needs to know about their chart. And, fun fact, Demetra George is one of Chani Nicholas' teacher and it's really beautiful to see the ways that Demetra's work has informed Chani's.

Astrology for Yourself is for those folks who want to be enrolled in their first year at astrology school - this is the first year in book form.

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Chart Interpretation Handbook by Stephen Arroyo

Astrological “cookbooks” seem to be the most easily found in any metaphysical section of a book store. These are the books that list out (often short) descriptions of each sign and aspect of a birth chart. It’s where a lot of some of the worst tendencies of astrology can come out such as the harmful stereotyping of signs (Leos are drama queens! Scorpios sleep around and are sooo kinky!) and oversimplication of chart dynamics. 

Side note: Look, modern western astrology is associated with womxn and when anything is seen as a “woman’s thing” there is plenty of misogyny and harmful enforcement of binary boundaries to be found. Popular, mass-produced, and, I would argue, unethical astrology is ripe with it. If the art of astrology is reduced down to a new age personality test for womxn, then of course signs that are powerful and confident (hello, Leos!) or ones associated with healthy, self-expressive sexuality (hello, Scorpios!) are going to be denigrated. The examples of this are plentiful and one of the reasons I avoided studying astrology for so long. This sort of reductionism in astrology is tiresome, un-creative, and I recommend avoiding it. Astrology should be empowering so be sure to seek out the sources which help you fall in love with all that you are.

So what makes this astrology cookbook different? Stephen has used the cookbook model while maintaining a commitment to presenting astrology as a system of holistic flexibility. He’s conscious of the dynamic of cookbook style books to lead to reductionism and harm, so he’s purposeful in his choice of words and also takes time to simply and effectively communicate some key themes to chart interpretation without overwhelming the new student. It is one of those books that is easily passed around a group of friends as each of you dive into what different parts of your birth chart mean - and that’s great! Astrology should be something which brings us together rather than create these harsh divisions between different signs. 

The Chart Interpretation Handbook is for those folks who want something as accessible as Chani’s book but a bit more in-depth but not a whole introductory course to astrology that you’ll find in Astrology for Yourself. 

—

What are some of your favorite astrology books for beginners?

We are currently going through a publishing boom when it comes to astrology and I’m excited to see what other books I’ll be learning from in the years to come. My overall guideline is that if you’re reading through an astrology book and the interpretations that the author is offering makes you feel bad about yourself, uninspired or confused, pass it on and find something else. It took me years to find astrological resources that spoke to me and made me feel seen and empowered - you deserve to feel that way, too.

If you’re looking for a my recommendations for medical astrology, I’m working on an expanded list from what you’ll already find here. Keep updated on when a more extensive resource list on medical astrology is released by signing up for my newsletter.

May your stars speak to you, whispering the secret and most true names you keep etched on your heart, reflecting back the ways that you have been shaped and the wisdom that you carry.

This post was made possible through patron support.
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*Hello, librarian friends, who read the sentence above about my fantasy of being a librarian and perhaps thought, “Ha! Recommending books? That’s like number 384 on the list of things I do as a protector of public access to information, safe spaces for folks to learn about themselves and the world, managing all sorts of human rights and mental health issues, organizing rooms for dogs so that kids can read to them, cleaning books (why is this so sticky?!), feeding and educating kids, dealing with the endless wave of beauracracy trying to strip the libraries of resources all the friggin’ time. Need I go on!?” Friends, you’re the absolute, underpaid, and overworked best. May we grow a world where you have to carry less of the burden of protecting public freedoms and more of just recommending the latest and greatest queer romance novel.

The Moon Returns: A Lunar Return Tarot Spread

Last month I wrote about the magick of Lunar Returns, framing the practice of calculating and observing your monthly return of the Moon to the exact location it was in at your birth as act of rest and homecoming. As I shared in that post, I'd been wanting to write about Lunar Returns for a while, but waited until I had a bit more insight and feeling about the practice before doing so. One of the gate-openers for me to write about this particular aspect of Lunar magick was reading through Awakening Together: The Spiritual Practice of Inclusivity and Community by Larry Yang.

It is a beautiful book and one that I'm recommending more and more alongside my longstanding recommendations of books like Emergent Strategy by adrienne maree brown. While Yang is specifically speaking to the Buddhist community (and especially the one within North America that many white folks practice within), the wisdom and insights within his book are easily applicable to many spiritual communities. My own activism - both my personal roots and official trainings - have always been from a spiritual (mostly multi-faith) foundation, so I'm always looking for resources like Awakening Together. Yang's book is honest, welcoming, and encouraging while talking about difficult subjects like spiritual bypassing and what liberation for everyone actually looks like and asks of us.

Cards from The Pagan Otherworlds Tarot.

Part of why Yang's work inspired my post on Lunar Returns was because writing about astrology (and herbalism and magick) is my small attempt to expand the language in which we talk about our experience of self and the world beyond the limiting words and concepts so many of us were given. And that our revolutions need the tools of protest and agitation as well as the tools of softening and homecoming. I'm not proposing that protest and softening are on opposite ends of some arbitrary activism spectrum, but that it can be very easy, especially in our increasingly visual age, to value public works over instead of alongside private work. The energies of protests can burn quick and hot and we need that forge and fire to spark change. We also need the cooling and adaptable lunar energy which reflects to us the truth of change and our very real need to turn in before we strut out again. To value the ebb as much as we love the flow.

I'm so encouraged and humbled and in love with the work of so many activists and organizers, in all their myriad forms, that I'm basically trying to write love letter after letter to all of you, focusing on the wisdom of tending to your tenderness. Because tenderness is a fertile land for our hope. 

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From left to right: Marshmallow Marseille; Slow Holler Tarot; Thea’s Tarot

So here is another lunar-oriented love letter for all of you that is tied into the magick of Lunar Returns but can also be used for the Moon cycle in general. The Moon Returns tarot spread helps us to connect with the energies of our Lunar Return (or the monthly cycle of the Moon in general) illuminating where we might find places to rest and places to extend our energies. If you’re wanting to read this spread for your Lunar Return, be sure to read my tutorial first.

The Moon Returns is a simple three card spread that is meant to be cast monthly, helping us to both find deep meaning and honor the swift passage of the monthly Lunar Return or Moon cycle. There are plenty of ways to read the cards and practice divination in general, but eventually we are faced with developing the skill of interpreting time, its passage, and influence on us through our chosen divinatory medium. When working with Lunar Returns and the cycle of the Moon we learn to practice the infinite of our consciousness - its revelation, growth, decay, and renewal - within the embrace of the finite. In interpreting time and the weight of interpretation of each card within a Moon-centered spread we can explore how to hold meaning with an open hand passing through eddies of time rather than trying to hold the waters of wisdom in a closed fist. I guess what I’m trying to say is allow space for whatever comes through in the following spread to be both profound and passing.

Card 1 · The Moon Returns, I Return

This card illuminates some of the messages from the House that the Moon will be returning to. So, if your Lunar Return is happening in the Second House, this card might highlight issues of your emotional wellbeing as it is tied into your financial and material security and access. In other words, this card helps us to understand the overarching themes of our Lunar Return (or monthly Moon cycle if you're not reading for your Lunar Return). Since I also pay attention to the House of Cancer in a Lunar Returns I might pull two cards here - one to represent that House of the Lunar Return and another to represent the House of Cancer.

There are two alternative approaches to this card if you are not using this spread with your Lunar Return and just the monthly Moon cycle. You can choose to have this card represent the sign of the New or Full Moon. Another approach is If you have a bit of astrological know-how you can choose for this card to represent the House that the New or Full Moon will be in. 

Card 2 · The Moon Ebbs, I Ebb

This card helps us to see where we might need to pull back, pause or rest your energies during your Lunar Return (or Moon cycle in general). If a particularly challenging card shows up here it might be highlighting areas of your life that need extra love and care that you've been ignoring or pushing aside (we all do this, don't worry, be kind to yourself). A challenging card here can also help us to understand a place of stagnation we might be in from another perspective including seeking out additional community support and resources to help you manage a deep pause.

Card 3 · The Moon Flows, I Flow

This card helps us see where you might extend, stretch outward or fill out your energies during your Lunar Return (or Moon cycle in general). If a particularly challenging card shows up here it might be highlighting areas of your life that you've been overextending yourself for too long - which is easy to do with so many of us living unsupported in overproductive cultures. Challenging cards showing up here can also warn of burnout and the need to examine beyond this lunar cycle where you are extending your energies too far beyond what is sustainable for you.

Looking for more lunar inspiration? There are Moon spells, a tutorial on shadow work and the Lunar Mansions, Moon-inspired teas, and a whole year of New Moon healing magick. I am a decidedly Moon-oriented Witch and I'm happy to provide plenty of resources to connect with the sacred Moon in all sorts of ways.

This post was made possible through patron support.
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