If you don't mind my asking and I'm sorry if you get this sort of question a lot, how did y'all become aware of/able to see the Good Neighbors around you? I think we share our the land with handful of Neighbors, but I'm mostly relying on my intuition and haven't successfully been able to identify who's there, just that there is someone out there, much less develop two-way communication. Do you have any advice?
This is a bit of a difficult question to answer, so I’m sorry in advance, anon. I don’t remember a time I couldn’t see them. Oh, I remember times when they were scarce, sure. Some people have “the sight” as children and never have it trampled down. I spent a few years trampling it myself, not wanting to see anything anymore, but I cultivated it again.
So let’s talk about cultivating it, because I think it helps no matter your situation. I want to be clear: nobody is extra special for being “born with it,” and in all likelihood we all are, then have it discouraged by disbelieving adults. But nobody is a super special witch for hanging on to that skill into adulthood. Don’t let anybody tell you that they’re better for seeing what you’re not seeing. (I see that kind of thing a lot in magic circles, so I just want to encourage you.)
First and foremost I recommend looking. Sounds kind of simple, and it is. That’s what I did as a child: I went into nature and I looked. Learn some faerie lore, learn what kinds of things they frequent, learn some local legends. Then find those places and just… look. Wait and look. Leave little offerings and look. Announce the offering is for the fey, and perhaps leave. Just keep coming back and doing it, staying longer each time. To find small fey, find small things, and give small things. The fey of the twisted root in the yard, the fey of the little pile of stones by the stream. Bring them fruits and flowers and acorns and the gifts a child gives.
You can attract beneficial fey with a cultivated offering place near your home, outside. When I was a child, I built them grand halls out of garden carnations bent over each other, with carpets of moss and tables and seats of pebbles, and a stick for a maypole. I brought them berries and any herbs that smelled nice. “Cultivating” a relationship with them–that’s a good word for it, since I did it by literally tending a garden spot I designed for them. Of course, at the time I thought all faeries were the tiny ones with pretty wings, and those are the ones I got. (Good thing, too, since I was only a child.)
When it comes to cultivating a relationship with them, consistency is key. Repeat your offerings, repeat your locations, keep saying nice things. If someone showed up at your house with a present and asking to see you, you might wait to see how many times they come back and if their intentions are benign before opening the door. You might soften towards them if, when they come, they do a little yard work, and don’t ask for anything in return.
For some spirits of the land, it would also be helpful to bring them offerings and share in a ritual meal with them. (I’m bringing up Red Meals a lot lately; it must be the time of year.) Communing with them and honoring them will help them understand that you are a person 1) open to seeing them and 2) who is polite and willing to “speak their language.” If you have well-known types of local spirits, looking up specialized offerings for them will help please them. A ritual meal can be a powerful tool, but could also lead to spirit initiation, which can be a frightening thing. It’s unlikely, but it’s possible. Just do it to honor and connect and, uh, don’t ask them to, like, rearrange your soul.
If you are more into ceremonial magic and grimoire tradition magic, you can create and consecrate a copy of the Fourth Pentacle of the Sun from the Greater Key of Solomon, which will help you in that spirits will more easily be seen. The kind you can see, though, is not very well under your control.
I must warn however that with your home, you ought to consider putting up protections against fey, if no other kind of ward, just in case somebody wants to follow you in. Even well-meaning fey have a different idea of goodness and helpfulness than we do, and many times a spirit trying to be friendly can be an unintentional menace.
When you begin seeing them, it will be strange. It might start with a feeling, and your eyes might focus in a general area, and you just know there’s something there and for some reason you can’t find it. Like it’s constantly out of focus. It might develop into seeing things moving, flits in the corner of your vision, or seeing “invisible” disturbances in changing shapes. Sounds might come to you in sudden strange words spoken in your ear. The spirits might take the form of animals watching you. If a wild animal nearby is interested in you and watching, it could be related to spirit activity. (I can’t believe I have to say this, but it’s Tumblr so I have to: please look up warning signs of rabies in wild animals and don’t ever touch them. A lack of wariness in animals, especially ones that approach, can be one sign of an active rabies infection. Also be wary of vector species such as foxes and raccoons. Tune in tomorrow for another episode of, “Incredible or Infectious”!)
As you develop the sight, your mind’s eye will understand certain things about their appearance that your eyes don’t. It’s difficult to describe, but it’s very clear when you experience it. If you are very lucky, you will someday have a full visual on one of the Folk. Audible messages, I find, are easier.
So, start small, both with your actions and in the type of spirit you’re looking for. Believe me, you can work with “more important” spirits later, but you need to “learn the language” and get the training wheels on when it comes to how they communicate and what tricks might be played. Otherwise, it might be a bad day when you meet some grand underground king.
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