So @asksecularwitch challenged people to do a "Dabbler's Week." And like the weird, 90s eclectic Wiccan I am, I decided to take her up on it.
So here's my Dabbler's Week. Shit's gonna get weird.
Monday - Learn to Ground and center
The first and most important thing, for me at least, was learning to ground and center my energy. So many witchcraft books tell you to do this -- but for some reason skip the part where they explain how. I learned how to do it on my own, but then was taught a better way a year into my craft by another witch.
This is how I do it -- but you can do it whatever way you want:
Sit in a comfortable position -- it doesn't matter if it's on the floor or in a chair, just in a way that your legs won't cramp up or have your butt start hurting. Close your eyes and slowly inhale and exhale a few times. Count to five as you inhale, and count to five as you exhale. Feel the chair or floor you are sitting on. Feel your weight on it. Feel how it's connected to you. You are connected to what you are sitting on.
As you breathe, with every breath feel how what your sitting on is connected to the floor. Then how that floor is connected to the structure of the building you're in. Then how that building is connected to the earth. You extend yourself until you touch the soil.
Now that you're rooted, it's time to draw in energy. Like a tree takes water from its roots, pull energy from the earth through your connections. Feel the pulse from the center of the earth as it rises into your body, filling you with energy. If you want to do a spell, now would be the time.
But it's Monday, so just release the energy back to the earth.
Tuesday - Make a protective talisman
Okay, so we played with energy yesterday, now let's learn to do something with it. Make a protective talisman -- because not all witches are nice, and in my experience I can't go ten minutes without pissing off someone (or something). We're going to take an item and cast a spell make it a basic ward against negative energy and attacks. It really doesn't matter what you use -- I like small stones, feathers, other stuff -- it just should be meaningful to you and easy to have on you (rings/necklace/thing you can have in your pocket).
So, ground and center like you did on Monday, but this time (instead of dismissing it) focus the energy into your item, focus on the idea that this item will prevent negative forces from affecting its possessor. Imagine the energy as weaving itself within the space between atoms, and (for lack of a better term) visualize yourself tying that energy off in a knot.
And boom. Talisman done. You'll want to occasionally recharge it, but there you go.
Wednesday - Tell a ghost to fuck off
We know how to connect to energy. We now have a thing to protect us from unwanted energy. It's time to piss something off and see if you can handle it.
If we're going to be a witch, let's be a fuckin' witch, yo.
So go find somewhere that's haunted. Like, I know you know of a place. I can think of five different places within a five minute drive of where I live. I used to live in one of them. I'm sure you've thought about it... and if not... google? Google. There's a ghost within a mile of you, trust me. Those assholes are everywhere.
Anyway, go there (with your talisman on you) and try to find the ghost. When you think you have, tell the ghost to fuck off. Like, right to its face. Flip it off and do a little dance. If it starts throwing stuff, run away -- but call it an asshole on your way out.
Thursday - Read a bit
We've been doing a bunch of practical stuff, so maybe take a day for theory. Open up a book like Bree NicGarran's Grovedaughter Witchery. Read about some herbs and shit. Maybe crack a Cunningham if you want to look at Wicca. Maybe find a trashy new age book for laughs. Be cozy with a blanket, some tea or hot cocoa, and curl up in a comfy chair. Fall asleep in said chair.
Just be comfy for a day.
Witchcraft can be comfy.
Friday - Let's make some sigils!
Sigils are fun! They're like talismans, only you draw them yourself! Think of a pattern for your intended goal. Is it protection? Is it luck? Is it healing? Pick one and come up with a design that speaks to you -- it can be simple or complex. If you need ideas, some people use the letters in words and distort them. Some people do more elaborate stuff! I do weird things with geometric shapes! Ground and center, and then put your energy into the drawing (focusing on the sigil's intended purpose).
Maybe put up a bunch of protective sigils around your home.
You did just piss off a ghost on Wednesday.
Saturday - Seek out a fetch-deer
In my practice I use the concept of fetch-deers. These (at least how I interpret them) are extensions of your own self as represented in animal form. You don't get to choose what kind of animal they are though, they choose you. A person can have many fetch-deer (as a person can have many aspects of themself), but you only get to find out what they are by meeting them.
So let's go frickin' do that.
Find a dark, quiet, SAFE space. You are opening yourself up, and you don't want to let anything external in. This is why we started with getting some protective stuff on hand first.
Make sure you're comfortable, but do NOT lie down. You don't want to fall asleep. I like to put on some quiet music. I got my start as a witch in the 90s, so you know damned well that I first did this with Loreena McKennitt's "The Visit" in my CD player. Sit and clear your mind. Imagine you are walking down a path. See the trees, feel the dirt under your feet, and keep going until your fetch-deer joins you. It might not -- you might not be in a state to meet one -- but it's fun to try.
Try not to scream and freak out if you touch it and you can actually feel it though.
I did that the first time.
Look, it was a snake. I was not expecting a snake. Snakes scare the shit out of me.
The second time with the crow was much less stressful.
Sunday - Take a walk in the woods/a park/your neighborhood
Just... get outside if you can. Take a walk. Feel how all the energy you've been messing with all week is just kind of... everywhere. It's in the trees, it's in the concrete, it's in the people. Just exist in the world and enjoy it.
This was super hard to do but fun.
