The Sanctity Of The Craft

 With the arrival of spring for it is the time to come out of the darkness and solitude of winter and welcome in the light. Simply put its the rebirth and a renewal of mind and spirit. For me it reminds me why I love my craft so much. After months of going inward and sitting in the stillness of winter, quieting my mind and doing a lot of reflecting, it makes me grateful for the many lessons this path has taught me.

If there's one thing that someone cant ever say about me it's that I don't know my craft. All of this work is so much more to me than work. I take so much pride in my craft and my knowledge of my craft. I take pride in the time it took to develop this knowledge, I take pride in the dedication it takes to stay committed. I take pride in the fact that I so fiercely believe in something that I will fill countless yellow legal pad after legal pad with research upon research just to make sure that I know what I am talking about, just to make sure that I know I am giving it the credit that it so rightfully deserves.

I've been giving this statement a lot of thought and I've also been watching a lot of social media about witchcraft, as well as a lot of witches. I have found that authentic witchcraft is one that does not boast or share only the made up version that TV or movies tell us what we should be as witches. 

Witchcraft is quiet and understated, it is the private moments that takes us through life's hardest times and sees us through to the other side with wisdom and a better knowing of who we are. 

Wise witches will often say there are seasons to witchcraft:

*The Season of the Seeker (the beginning of your path, taking in all of the knowledge we can find)

*The Season of the Dedicant (dedicating yourself to the craft.. a certain path or tradition)

*The Season of the Sage (A place of mentoring and passing your knowledge and love for the craft on to others)

 None of these seasons will find witches who tout big black houses or over dramatic set ups with plumbs of smoke rising from their over sized tables filled with candles burning, while reading from a book of shadows replica prop and flowing white dresses while Fleetwood Mac plays in the background followed by an interlude of Amas Veritas. While only sharing aesthetic and no real knowledge. 

What you will find is witches who are imperfect and share their trials and their many many errors. Who study and read and are constantly learning, who forget sabbats and what moon cycle it is. Who cry while casting spells because life is overwhelming. While always sharing the deep rooted love and sanctity of the craft with those who ask. Witchcraft ebbs and flows, it takes a backseat and can also be a driver. We are inspired by it and sometimes fearful of it. 

Despite what we may see while on this path remember everything is simply perspective. A dollar notebook or the back of a parent teacher conference paper is all you need to write down a spell that pops into your head, you might not have all the right herbs or oils or crystals. But you DONT need them. Or maybe you feel silly saying your spells out loud because you think they need to rhyme or you just feel self conscious.  You can wear pajamas or mommy sweats, you can even hate the color black (Shocker I know).

The craft is with you no matter the materials, the craft lives inside of you. You are becoming the witch you were always meant to be. 

Once you run into anyone who tells you or tries to show you that this path is anything but messy and at times gut wrenching, while only showing you the Charmed/Practical Magic/ Fantasy version of this path please know that this version is setting you up for failure. 

Our greatest gift is our intuition...Trust yourself, release the control of what you think your practice should look like...relay on the stillness of Winter to reflect on our journey thus far, and once Spring comes clear the way for a brand new adventures that this beautiful path will bring...

Lastly always remember no two paths will ever be the same, if they were what would we have to learn from each other!! Be the authentic original you, because what you bring to the craft will be invaluable to the next generation to come!!

Many Blessings

J