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Book Review – The Magic of Butterflies and Moths by Steve Andrews
Book Review The Magic of Butterflies and Moths Written by Steve Andrews Publisher: Moon Books 72 Pages Release Date: March 1, 2023 In The Magic of Butterflies and Moths, Steve Andrews muses about the wonders of a collection of winged wonders found in England, and their “seemingly magical” transformation from “a tiny egg into a caterpillar, then into a chrysalis, and finally emerging as a beautiful butterfly [or moth].” It’s a handbook with information about twenty species, describing their characteristics, habits, habitats, and lore. It is not a book about magick involving these insects as spirit guides, their uses in spells or rituals having to do…
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Interview: How Happiness and Foraging Intertwine for “The Wildwood Way” Author Cliff Seruntine
“I wanted to inspire people to re-conceptualize happiness,” Cliff Seruntine said about writing The Wildwood Way: Spiritual Growth in the Heart of Nature. First published in 2015, the book was re-released last year. “I’m a psychotherapist by profession, and I’ve a lot of education in psychology. I’ve been enamored with the concept of happiness ever since my earliest undergraduate days,” he said in a telephone interview in late March as snow fell on his homestead in the wilds of Nova Scotia. “There is a fairly esoteric field called happiness science. It is a well-established branch of science. Very few people know it exists or how serious it is, but every…
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Good God!
Meet: Prometheus Prometheus is the Greek god of fire, intellect, and champion of mankind. He and Epimetheus, brothers and both Titans, were tasked with creating man. “Prometheus shaped man out of mud, and Athena breathed life into his clay figure,” according to greekmythology.com. The Olympians banished most of Prometheus’ family to Tartarus, leading Prometheus to love man more than the twelve Olympians – so much so that he tricked Zeus who had demanded man sacrifice a portion of all foods to the gods. The story is told that Prometheus wrapped bones in fat, and hid the best meats inside a hide. By choosing the bones, Zeus had to…
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Book Review – The Wildwood Way: Spiritual Growth in the Heart of Nature by Cliff Seruntine
Book Review The Wildwood Way: Spiritual Growth in the Heart of Nature Written by Cliff Seruntine Publisher: Crossed Crow Books 432 Pages Release Date: November 15, 2022 (Previously published in 2015 by Llewellyn Publications) “In the green, there is room for mystery and enchantment, and there are moments when the amazing can and will happen,” Cliff Seruntine wrote in The Wildwood Way: Spiritual Growth in the Heart of Nature. Part adventure, part instruction manual, part spiritual experiences, and part old tales that get across messages for today, he takes readers on a magical and spiritual journey deep into the forest, imparting knowledge required to venture there safely.…
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SpellCrafting: Spells for Witches
SpellCrafting: Starting Beltane Fires Merry meet! This issue’s WitchCrafting column has ideas for making fire starters. If you’d like to take it one step further, you can craft them as a spell. Beltane themes such as burning away that which no longer serves your highest good and greatest joy, planting seeds, and nurturing goals can be incorporated when making fire starters. For instance, toilet paper tubes stuffed with dryer lint can be decorated with Beltane colors (green, soft pink, blue, yellow, red, brown), pictures of flowers in bloom, or a sigil made for a specific intention. On it you can write what you are ready to release, what you desire…
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Good God!
Meet the Gods: Adonis One of the gods associated with Beltane is Adonis, the Greek god of beauty, desire, fertility and renewal. He was born a human, but Zeus later turned him into a god at the request of Aphrodite. Therefore Adonis became known as the god of rebirth, but he is also associated with fertility and vegetation. The most popular belief is that Adonis is the son of Theias, the king of Syria, and his daughter, Myrrha (or Smyrna). According to World History Encyclopedia, the king boasted his daughter was more beautiful than Aphrodite, the goddess of beauty and love. When Aphrodite heard this, she became angry, and “used…
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Book Review – Hagitude: Reimagining the Second Half of Life by Sharon Black
Book Review Hagitude: Reimagining the Second Half of Life Written by Sharon Black Illustrated by Natalie Eslick Publisher: New World Library 320 Pages Release Date: November 29, 2022 In our society, old is more likely equated to deterioration and illness than to gifted and wise. By design, elderhood ends in death, making both unpleasant topics for many people. Thankfully, Sharon Blackie is not one of them. Sharing her own life journey in “Hagitude: Reimagining the Second Half of Life,” www.hagitude.org, she explores women’s transformation beginning with perimenopause, through the “hot-flashed fury” of menopause, and crossing the threshold to crone. “Our old women are the dark heart…
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Book Review – Spells for Living Well: A Witch’s Guide for Manifesting Change, Well-Being, and Wonder by Phyllis Curott
Book Review Spells for Living Well: A Witch’s Guide for Manifesting Change, Well-Being, and Wonder Written by Phyllis Curott Publisher: Hay House 286 Pages Release Date: October 25, 2022 Phyllis Curott is among my favorite witch authors, and I was happy to add “Spells for Living Well” to my collection. The spells, charms, and conjurations in the book are curated from her personal Grimoires, teachings, and “wisdom gathered over a divinely magical lifetime.” Some are old, some are new; some are very involved, others are simple; some will manifest over time, others will bring results swiftly – sometimes in unexpected ways. Spells include candle magic, mojo…
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WitchCrafting: Crafts for Witches
Crafts for Witches: Fire Starters Merry meet. Beltane is one of the fire festivals. The word Beltane translates roughly to “bright fire” and in Celtic tradition, the most important ritual was the sacred community bonfire lit at sunset the evening before. (Celtic days went from sundown to sundown.) Festivities focused on casting off winter’s darkness and celebrating the start of summer. It’s also a time of celebrating fertility You can start your fire with items you likely already have on hand. Perhaps the easiest and least expensive fire starters are made by filling cardboard toilet paper tubes with loosely packed dryer lint. Use two or three to start a fire.…
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Witch Hunt
There are witches all around us. You can find them anywhere… The Witch on Wheels has been documenting her findings. Meet Kelsey Jean It’s always special to meet mothers and daughters who are both witches. Kelsey Jean is the daughter of Barbara King, who was featured here two years ago. Although I am based out of New Hampshire, and had been in her hometown several times, it was in Florida at the Skoolie Fest that I met her. As a self-identified “new witch,” she is a firm believer in dabbling in everything. Her grimoire contains information on sigil work and color associations to astrology and chakras. Calling magic…
