How to return to the craft
I’m finally looking to the future and creating posts I can link, instead of answering the same questions over and over. It’s not that I mind answering them, it’s just that I usually don’t have the energy to give you the solid answer you deserve.
I generally wouldn’t recommend picking up where you left off for two reasons:
You spent a lot of time building up to that point, jumping right in is going to be a lot. Give yourself permission to start small; slowly building back up.
Something obviously wasn’t working and led to you stopping your craft for a while. Don’t force yourself to do the same things if they don’t work!
Get a solid foundation back under your feet:
Start at the basics, even if you knew the advanced stuff. Act like a beginner again and relearn. Chances are, you’ll learn some things you missed before!
Cleanse yourself, your space, your tools.
Rebuild and strengthen your wards.
Make a list of the things that you’d like to relearn, and pick something from the list each day and spend some time building your knowledge.
Don’t compare it to your old craft. Crafts and paths are constantly shifting over time, taking a break doesn’t change this, time has passed and your craft will likely be different.
Do what excites you! Learn new things too! What drew you back into the craft? This is a great chance for a fresh start!
Drawing a blank? Here’s some ideas of things to research/relearn:
Astral travel/projection.
Deities (perhaps learn about a new pantheon!)
Herbs; remedies and magical uses.
The local world; birds, animals, plants.
Mythology (bonus: local mythology and lore).
Space; planets, constellations, moon phases, etc.
Spell writing and casting.
See also: how the mundane can influence your craft and what to research.
Some recommendations if you feel stuck/hit a block:
Browse the baby witch tag and help some beginners out. They have so much motivation and inspiration, and it’ll likely leak over to you (and you’ll reinforce some of the knowledge you forgot you had).
Buy yourself something witchy (it doesn’t have the be expensive, even just a new little candle you only burn for witchy things).
Find a friend who is also getting back into the craft, talk about your practices!
Look up some tips and tricks on overcoming art block/writer’s block and find a way to apply them.
Follow your passions. Don’t force yourself to be interested in something. Dive into what calls to you and allow yourself to follow wherever that leads you.
Know that it’s perfectly normal to hit blocks and lose motivation (it happens to me all the time at least). And it’s okay to take as many breaks/hiatuses as you need.
