I just finished reading Z Budpest’s experience of her Croning.  It brought a new admiration and respect for women entering into this third stage of life.  I know that middle-age was quite a surprise to me.  You hear so many negative things about aging, especially about women aging, no one ever tells you how liberating it is.  You feel as though you have finally ‘arrived’, which sounds strange but is so true.  You have a better definition in your own head of who you are, what you want from life, what you expect from those around you, and where you are going next.

 Middle-age fills you with a renewed sense of purpose, and more importantly, a renewed sense of yourself.  Questions that have lingered in your mind are answered and new paths and adventures are opened to you.

 When your time comes…embrace your middle-age and the Crone within you!  She may very well turn out to be the most beautiful part of yourself.

 Cleansing
  As we come to the end of 2009 and prepare to begin a new year, we think about New Year’s resolutions, starting over with clean slates, and cleansing—cleansing our living space, clearing it of negative energy, bothersome entities, and other paranormal debris that creates its own kind of clutter.

 There are many ways of cleansing a space, some as simple as lighting a white candle and burning incense.  This is not a new concept, and through the centuries the ancients have come up with numerous ways to clear a living space of negative energy:

 Asperging, cleansing by sprinkling water, is a practice still used by the Catholic Church today.  Make a strong infusion by pouring boiling water over peony roots.  Use a sprig of rosemary to dip in the water and sprinkle about a room or rooms.  This same method can be used with mint as a substitute for peony.

 Use a broom to sweep the floors, preferably from east to west.  Burn the debris and throw the ashes outdoors.  Finish up with a magical floor wash by adding a sprig of rosemary to your water.

 Create Blessing Oil by adding frankincense and rosemary to olive oil or jojoba oil.  Dress a blue and white candle with this oil, which means to rub the oil on the candle, and burn to purify the atmosphere.

 Smudging, cleansing by using smoke to clear an area, has long been used by Native Americans.  Light a sage smudge stick and walk slowly from room to room, dispersing the smoke.  To clear a space of negative energy from a broken relationship, and to make way for a new love, burn dried rose petals and coriander.

 You can also cleanse a space through sound.  This is one reason bells are incorporated in churches; they are powerful space cleansers.  Ring bells whenever you feel your space needs cleansing.  You can hang bells or wind chimes in a breezy spot so that this type of cleansing becomes ongoing.

 Botanicals don’t have to be burned to cleanse.  Quarter an onion and place one piece in each of the four corners of a room.  Replace and refresh as needed.  Hang a bundle of rosemary and sage above the windows and doors to prevent negative energy from entering.

 Crystals and stones can also be used to cleanse and purify your living space.  Place amethyst stones in room corners to absorb negative energy.  When they begin to look dull, wash them under running water and return them to their place.  Other stones that can be used for this purpose are clear quartz crystal and malachite.

 You may feel a difference in the atmosphere of your home after a cleansing.  And it’s nice to know you’ll begin a new year in a clean space.

 Happy New Year.

The four elements…Earth, Air, Fire, Water. 

These elements are used by the Witch in her practice of magick. They correspond to the four compass points and are invoked to guard her sacred space during ritual, providing protection from negative energy and malevolent entities. They represent the elemental beings of gnomes, sylphs, salamanders, and undines; and they represent the energies associated with each.  They have particular correspondences connected to color, magickal intention, the planets, days of the week and timing when it comes to spell crafting.  They are as old as time, as infinite as the universe, and I’d like to introduce you to each one…

 Earth is all the treasures buried deep within the soul. It is the material things you long for and were told you shouldn’t have. It is the security of that which is solid and immovable, and it is “manifestation” into the real world of touch and taste and smell and sight.

 Air is the soft breeze on your face that makes you feel touched and not touched. It is thought brought alive and moved through space and time by the Divine. Air is the part of your mind that is clear and sharp and focused and ever changing, never still and never content, but always swept up within another breeze and moved along on the current of time.

 Fire is that physical passion so burning that it can consume. It is enthusiasm so powerful that it is what drives you to succeed. Fire is that fiery will that doesn’t allow you to give up in the face of adversity. It is what draws lovers together across insurmountable odds and provokes the passion that fights endlessly for justice.

 Water is the mist of yesterday and today and tomorrow all wrapped up into one magical moment. Water is dreams and visions and questing endlessly to know the unknown. It is divination– searching for answers and listening to the universe for its response. It is the mystical and the elusive.  It slips through your fingers leaving you wet and cold and shivering, knowing that you have been touched by the Divine.

I answered the following questions as part of an interview:

Are you willing to step outside all perceived boxes?

I’ve been stepping outside of boxes, perceived or not, since I was twelve years old.

Do you ever wonder if “this is it”?

No, I don’t wonder “if this is it” because I already know that there is much more below the surface. The physical life that we view from this plane on Earth is only the tip of the iceberg. Other realities, other planes of existence, surround us; most people are simply unaware.

Listen to your inner self…What does it really wish it could be doing?

I’ve listened to my inner self for over fifty years. After a certain age you raise your head a moment from your daily endeavors and you suddenly realize: “Voila’!! I have arrived!”

Have you ever felt like you were supposed to be doing more with your life?

At certain stages, but then, somehow, you gravitate to those things you should be/wanna be/could be doing, and sometimes you get there through incredibly round-a-bout ways. ‘Everything happens for a reason’, so the old cliche goes.

Have you ever yearned to use your natural talents to contribute to the world?

Absolutely…That’s why I became a professional tarot reader; that’s why I built my website; that’s why I became a Pagan activist; that’s why I became a Reiki practitioner.

Do you ever feel like you are wasting time on things that aren’t important to you?

Every wife & mother of a large family feels like that, if not daily, then every once in a while– usually when she’s cleaning off the kitchen counter for the tenth time in a day, folding someone elses’ socks, or scrubbing the toilet bowl. But even those small mundane chores of life are part of what makes us who we are.

Do you desire to serve others in a bigger way but don’t know how?

I’m learning how, have been now for years, and although new doors are opening all the time for this opportunity, there are still other pathways and possibilities to explore.

To some people, witchcraft conjures up expectations of a genie in a bottle…wishes will be granted, wealth and beauty attained, enemies punished, and new loves found.  Witchcraft can accomplish these things, although not instantaneously and often in ways you don’t expect.

 Today, let’s look at “Beauty”…to be beautiful is the desire of most people, as is shown by the big business of plastic surgery and the cosmetics industries.  But how did our ancestors go about attaining beauty?  Those wise women of the distant past who had only themselves to rely on for creating the products and methods they would use…

 “Morning Dew”

 It is said that by going out early in the morning, on that first May day, and bathing your face in the shimmering dew, you will achieve the appearance of youth and beauty.  I believe the magick of morning dew works not only on May Day, but throughout the year as well.  I use to do this as a child, long before I ever heard the legend.  Decades later, I still swear by the tingling sensation of those sparkling diamonds of moisture.

 “Rosemary”

 This common and popular herb has many uses and is a standard in most witches’ cupboards.  The ability to enhance “Youth & Beauty” is only a small part of Rosemary’s allure, but it is a popular one.

 Fill a glass jar with water, sprinkle in a large pinch or two of dried Rosemary, and let this steep for a couple of days.  (You can then pour this through a sieve to remove the Rosemary.)  Refrigerate it and use it as an astringent for your face.  Wet a cotton ball and bathe your face in the chilled dark water, reeking of the pungent odor of this wonderful herb.

 Let the magick and energy of Rosemary work for you to create glowing skin and a more youthful appearance.
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Lady Amythyst Raine
The Witch’s Corner
ladyamythyst.webs.com