January Update: Classes, Our Book, New Items

We have quietly been working on a big project: we’re writing a book! It is going to be an amalgam of our personal spiritual practices with everything from domestic magic to spiritworking, from polytheism to ritual costuming and quite a bit in between. As we work on it, we will be publishing each section as its own ‘article’ so to speak for purchase. They will be available for immediate digital PDF download, but we may also do some limited edition hand-bound and blockprinted booklets as well. Isáine is attempting to create linoblock carvings for each book section, and we want to do inked prints and have them available separate from the booklets as well. We are just finishing up the section on Shapeshifting and getting it ready for sale.

In preparation for the release of our shapeshifting article (and all the others to come) we will be doing a string of posts here and on our Facebook page on the topic. There will be short stories, articles or links to other posts/authors on the topic,  personal recounting and of course Q&A and opportunities to share your own stories for anyone who cares to.  Shapeshifting, though a bit more advanced of a practice, is also going to be one of the first classes that we offer.

We decided near the end of 2014 to start offering one-on-one mentoring and classes as we are able after the New Year. Now that it is now 2015, it is time to get the ball rolling! We are still working on class outlines, setting up online programs/recordings, and arranging spots for teaching in-person locally (Swansboro/Jacksonville, NC), but in the meantime we are available for short one-on-one mentoring sessions on various topics, listed below. If you are seeking information or guidance regarding a topic not listed, please contact us and we will see what we can do to help! There are others we know who may be of help when we aren’t. Message us on Facebook or better yet, e-mail us at: thetwistedtree.shoppe@gmail.com

—–>>To read more about our classes please see our new Page (under “Classes & Gatherings”).

[[ As we finalize class details we will post scheduling there, updates on our blog feed and Facebook page, and in our newsletter. To be sure to not miss any upcoming classes please subscribe to our MailChimp Newsletter here: https://www.facebook.com/TheTwistedTree.Shoppe/app_100265896690345 ]]

** We are also going to start doing short recordings and posting them on Youtube and our blog (here) covering various topics, Q&A/FAQs (send us yours!), how-to’s and crafts, etc. so keep an eye out for those! **

[[ One-on-One Mentoring Sessions ]]

• Cost~ We ask for a donation of $15-$35/hour, whatever you can afford and feel that our time, knowledge, and service are worth … We accept Cash or Paypal
• Topics~ Women’s Mysteries, Sacred Beekeeping & Path of the Melissae, Domestic/Hearth Magic, Protection Magic, Basic Energy Work, Spiritworking & Bioregional Animism, Working with Deities/Polytheism, Involving Kids in Practice, Altered States of Consciousness, Sacred Birthkeeping, Shapeshifting, How To: Magical Healing…

[[ Upcoming Classes: Online ]]

• Cost~ Classes/Videos will range from Free to $25, but we always welcome donations
• Current Topics~ Protection Magic + Shapeshifting + Altered States + Herbal Medicine Making + Bioregional Animism: Working with Spirits of Place + Intro to the Path of the Bee + Domestic/Hearth Magic…

[[ Upcoming Classes: Local ]]

• Cost~ Classes will range from $10-$35/person to cover the cost of any supplies, and we always welcome donations. We may occasionally offer a free class, and hold drawings to win a free class!
• Current Topics~ Protection Magic + Shapeshifting + Altered States + Herbal Medicine Making + Bioregional Animism: Working with Spirits of Place + Intro to the Path of the Bee + Domestic/Hearth Magic…

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And last but not least, we have new items in the shop! Be sure to check them out before they’re gone– limited quantities on most. Custom orders are always welcome! [[ Use Coupon Code: NewYr2015 during checkout for free shipping! ]] *Domestic purchases only, valid through January 20, 2015*

 

Involving Kids

Catechism For A Witch’s Child

by J.L. Stanley

When they ask to see your gods
your book of prayers
show them lines
drawn delicately with veins
on the underside of a bird’s wing
tell them you believe
in giant sycamores mottled
and stark against a winter sky
and in nights so frozen
stars crack open spilling streams
of molten ice to earth
and tell them how you drank
the holy wine of honeysuckle
on a warm spring day
and of the softness
of your mother
who never taught you
death was life’s reward
but who believed in the earth
and the sun
and a million, million light years
of being.

This post is long overdue, but being a parent– life often gets in the way of things like blogging. This post was spurred by a few things, namely seeing some other pagans/witches discussing whether or not prepubescent children should be involved in magic and ritual, or even exposed to it at all; and also just based on my own experiences with our toddling son.

In regards to the former, it actually stunned me quite a bit to see people discouraging others from involving children, or even exposing them, to their religious/spiritual/magical practices. But I think that this stance is based in the fact that many of us who consider ourselves pagan and/or witches were raised Christian. Many of us (I could comfortably say most of us) were raised from infancy in the faith of our parents, who in most cases vehemently pressed such beliefs upon us and forbade us (directly or indirectly) from studying and/or practicing other religions. And for many of us, the shift from Christianity (or similar monotheistic, patriarchal, majority-religion) to paganism and/or witchcraft was a rough one. Some of us were lucky and had parents who supported us in our journey (I was not one of those lucky ones, quite the opposite). But the majority of us have been imprinted with this natural tendency to shy away from the idea of ‘teaching’ (read: forcing) a religious or spiritual practice on our children. And I understand this, but I don’t agree with it.

There is a difference between raising a child surrounded by your faith(s)/practices and involving them in it and encouraging their spiritual growth– wherever that may lead them, and telling your children that they must follow these set beliefs, are required to participate in these certain practices, and are discouraged from/forbidden from learning about, studying, or practicing any other beliefs. And this doesn’t just apply to Paganism vs. Christianity. It can also apply to various Paths within Paganism… yes I am talking to those of you who may practice a “white-light, harm none” path whose children may grow up to practice Luciferian Witchcraft, or Voodoo (and vice versa). We should treat our children the way we wish our parents had treated us: raise them in a healthy, open-minded household, and encourage them to learn about other spiritual and religious practices and support them if they decide to follow some such path.

Our son helping me smudge some new items from the thrift store.

We are raising our son to have a healthy respect and deep reverence for the earth and its inhabitants, to be aware of and connected to the cycles of the world around us and our part in the web of life, to know that magic and spirits are real and encourage his own psychic abilities, etc. We involve him in ritual and magical practice whenever we can– and he is only going on three. He loves to help, and even if he doesn’t quite understand why we’re doing something, or what something means, he can understand some things to an extent, and is being exposed from an early age. When he talks to something that is ‘invisible’ to mama or daddy, or points at things flying about while daddy is meditating with the Owl spirit, we pay attention and listen and encourage him. We don’t tell him nothing is there, or he is making it up. When the dark scares him, we ask why. We don’t say there’s nothing there, just because we can’t see it. When I smudge new items, or give offerings to the Spirits, he helps me. There are so many ways to involve small children in ritual and daily practice. Especially if you yourself can blend the mundane and the sacred, your children are already programmed to be this way. The possibilities are endless. Children can help with their own altar, can learn meditation at a very young age, they can help with smudging (being careful of embers of course) and offerings, they can be taught old folk tales and rhymes (this is common in Waldorf-style education) for everything from greeting the sun to baking bread to talking about the moon or Autumn. You can teach them about the seasons and where their food comes from– and to give thanks for it– from a very small age. Pray over your food with your children, in your own way. Mealtime prayers aren’t just for Christians, and praying over food and water blesses it for your consumption and can be a chance to give thanks. Take your children outside every chance you get, let them touch trees and put their toes in the ocean. If they suddenly want to say hi to a tree in a parkinglot, encourage them. They can sense that spirit, and want to connect with it.
Learn from your children, follow their lead.

My son giving offerings to the Spirits at the Spring Equinox.

This Patheos blogpost has some good information on ‘planning’ (or rather, the lack thereof) of ritual with small children, of following their lead, and ritualizing everyday activities. As children get older, of course they can be actively involved even more. And I feel like this should be normal, and their curiosity and skills cultivated. Children are always learning, and learn by example. Try and surround yourself with other pagan families, and celebrate together! Take your kids on forest-walks together, teach them about mushrooms and trees and meditation. Do pagan-y crafts and child-friendly rituals. Older children can be given roles in ritual. And as they get older, they will grow more curious, and you can teach them about other religions past and present, different, spiritual practices, etc. Take your children to events and gatherings! We just took our son with us to the Central NC Pagan Pride and he did wonderfully, and there were other small children there as well. (However if we go next year to vend and teach, he might stay home with grandma.) There are tons of resources out there and stories/blogs about pagan families and involving children in practice, and don’t be afraid to share yours!

We’d love to hear about how you involve your children in your magical practice, leave a comment below or send us an e-mail. We’re also looking for contributions to the Pagan Parenting column of our newsletter [provide us your e-mail to be added to the mailing list!], and have an on-going blog post compiling pagan homeschooling and pagan parenting resources, here.

In the Dark of the Night

Originally posted over at Midnight’s blog, Storms & Spirits, December 14, 2012. 

I stand relaxed, swaying slightly, moving to my own inner rhythm. Slowly I stretch my senses, exchanging one sight for another as I close my eyes and let my other senses paint an image for me. More important than that I feel what is around me. I feel the faint sparks of energy, of life in the tree. I bow to it, fluid, formal, a gesture of respect.. I whisper to it. Lay my hand on it, long-fingered dark-skinned hand against rough bark. For a moment I feel the connection, I am part of something beautiful. ( I honestly cannot say more than that.. I have tried and nothing suffices. So since I can’t explain it well I will just say that it’s beautiful. ) I hear a pulse deeper, stronger than my own. Then I am myself again. Myself with something more, some faint lingering of the pairing, some residual connection. At the edge of my mind, another consciousness; the tree no longer so soundly asleep. Faint feelings of curiosity and other emotions, more and less than human rub against my mind. Herbed smoke wafts up from the coals, tongues of it wrapping around us with vaporous fingers. I reach down grabbing my bowl and with deliberate care empty the contents around the tree.  Circling again I bend low and touch the roots that stand above the ground. Words form in the back of my throat. Liquid, they flow from me. At last I sit amidst the roots and earth, herbed smoke and fallen leaves, and I laugh, long and clear.