Ex Penna

There are a few pieces of magic that I do often that are so much a part of my daily round that I nearly forget about them.  The Glow is one of them.

You probably already know this one but might call it something else.  There's many uses for it and whether you've done it before or no, it should definitely be in your repertoire.  It's a bit of glamour that causes you to get noticed in whatever way you desire.  It's a handy way to get help when you need it (like when your car breaks down) or to get found when you're separated from your group in a crowd.  Even if just used for fun, the Glow causes other people seek you out, pad your ego, and strike up conversations when you're lonely.



Using the Glow

Close your eyes and envision yourself in your current state.  From the center of your body, feel a warmth beginning to grow.  See this warmth as a soft orange color.  It spreads through your body like liquid, then extends past your form until you radiate light and heat like a miniature sun.  At this point you can infuse this light with the kind of response you want to get from others (like sexual attractiveness, leadership, or intelligence).

Let your light shine brighter and brighter until it encompasses a large area around you and all the people inside that radius.  When you have hit the peak, let this brilliance collapse, turning that outward flow around and rapidly drawing everything to you, like a black hole or water running down a drain.  Be inescapable!

Use this technique to bring an awareness of you as a highly magnetic individual in the people around you.

Spiritual House Cleaning


I've been a little lax lately on writing but that is only because I've been focused on an incredible opportunity that has only just come to fruition--my family and I are now homeowners!  After many years of struggle and much deliberation, after paying our dues and suffering without, we have a place in which we may be the master.  It is an indescribably wonderful feeling!  I spend hours now shifting boxes and unpacking, occasionally petting the walls--our walls--lovingly and smiling.

But whether you own or rent, share space or live alone, keeping your place cleared of harmful and restricting energy is an important part of upkeep.  So this week, in honor of my lovely home and yours, I share this page of extensive ideas for magical cleaning from rafters to foundation.

I have been in groups, attended meetings, sat in ritual with other covens, and joined the conversation online and off and you know what I've discovered?  Most of the chatter is useless.  The biggest culprits--being offended and talking about what we're not.

It's good fun to discuss the many ways that we buck trends and follow our own directives (and I do it occasionally myself) but to make this the mainstay of what you talk about when you're with other practitioners is a complete waste of time.  You have, in theory, an interesting, intense, deep, and meaningful conversation just waiting to be opened and explored with a person right in front of you who will understand what you mean.  And that person has the potential to share knowledge with you that will be an incredible revelation to you, something you will ponder for years to come or immediately work into your practice.  They might become a teacher or a student. The topics you discuss could lead to a new venture, a new group, a fresh way of thinking.

So don't you dare start talking about how the Christians stole our holidays.

Or how you yelled at a bunch of pacifist Jehovah's Witnesses last weekend.

Or contradictions in the Bible that could possibly refute the whole system.

That's not important, it's not interesting, and the whole concept of it has been played to death in nearly every corner of the magical community.  You're not defined by the list of things you're offended by.  Your practice is about what you do, not what you avoid.

If you're at a party, meeting, or event centered around magic, talk magic.  Talk about books you're reading, your field(s) of expertise, stories of magical successes and failures, trials you faced in finding your place in the community, important people you've met, places you've visited, your favorite events, plans for the future...the list is of topics that can lead to real insight is nearly endless.  Ask tons of questions, get opinions, get references, get email addresses and phone numbers for more discussion later.

You're a skilled and driven practitioner of occult arts--don't limit yourself to idle chatter.

Yoga to Boost Energy


As you know, I'm a major supporter of fitness as a means of strengthening your resolve, focus, and magical ability.  Taking care of your body is a good way to stay in touch with the physical world and your place in it.  It's something that I stress to magic workers of all kinds.

Whether you're into regular workouts or no, this week's Quick Link is a great option to use right away.  Not only is yoga generally gentle enough for all levels of fitness to partake in some way, but these postures are specifically collected for giving you instant gratification!  Who doesn't love that?  Try them out today!  Try them tomorrow, instead of a nap, when you first wake up, when you've got a mile long to-do list, before ritual, before a spell.  You will certainly find something worthwhile to tap all your new reserves of energy!

So there I sat in the front seat of my car, shoulders slumped yet every muscle tense and quivering.  I stared off blankly, looking into the rest of my evening, the rest of my week, with guilt and remorse, apologies and excuses.  The lights flashed in a chaotic display around me.  Yep, I was gonna get a ticket.

Now this may not seem like a big deal to some of you but I was in a tight jam and couldn't afford to give away any extra money.  Before you say it, yes, this was giving money away.  It was after 11:00 PM and as I was leaving my day job to start my night job, I went under a very fast yellow light at the end of a high arched bridge.  I passed under it just as it was turning red.  My ticket was over $250.00.

That's not to say that I didn't do my very best to avoid it.  As soon as I stopped, I grabbed the pentacle from around my neck and held it tight, clutching to a hope that in a few minutes everything would be fine.  I asked the Gods--nay, begged, pleaded, cried--to help me, to be kind to me, to fix this however a divine being can and I'd be so, so grateful.  By then, the cop was walking up to my car.  I tucked away my pentacle (just in case it mattered to him), dried my eyes, and tried to look casual as I rolled down the window.  I hoped the Gods were working on it.

They were not.

I know they weren't because I wouldn't have either.  I acted like a baby.  I begged for mommy and daddy to come outside and make the mean neighbor kid go away.  The gods aren't interested in us that way and they don't want us humiliating ourselves.  They don't care about our whims--and this, sadly, was a complete whim--anymore than we care about those of strangers.  They watch us for fun, they walk among us to learn and to teach, but they interact with us on a personal basis for their own purposes and not ours.  Unless you have become a pet favorite of a god or goddess, you are no more special than any other voice crying their name.  If, like me, you were extra whiny about it, prepare to be a lot less special.

So the gods didn't help me.  They didn't even look up from their ambrosia.  There I sat, sad and sorrowful, wishing for a miracle that wasn't going to come.  And why should it?  I was pathetic!  They might pity me, sure, but most likely they were disgusted.

And you know what happened?  That cop threw the book at me.  He got some notion in his head that I was the bust that would make him Sergent and took me out of my car, searched it, searched my purse, and was about to pat me down until I refused (remember, ladies, females can't get the pat down from male cops).  Just about then, another cruiser stopped by to check things out.  Now there were two cars--with all lights ablaze--and four cops looking me over like I was a mafia kingpin.  I was four months pregnant at the time.

They rolled up the tube of lipstick in my purse and flipped through my notebook.  They opened the positive pregnancy test that I still carried around with me.  I started to feel very exposed.  Then my boss drove by and I could see his wide eyes as we recognized each other.  The cops found nothing and I was horribly late to work where I then had to explain to my boss what happened and why he shouldn't count this against me.  This was a terrible night.



Okay, so we all have bad times.  We all have experiences that were going to be horrible no matter what we did or said, but that doesn't mean that some well-placed magic can't still help.  Had I been prepared and not frozen with worry, I would have seen an opportunity to use the right kinds of magic in the right places to soften the blow that was being dealt to me.  Had I stopped whimpering and offered something real, maybe the gods would have taken an interest.

All this happened when I had just turned 20, so I suppose I shouldn't be too hard on myself.  But it took me years to realize that what really stood in my way was the desperation I felt in the situation.  I don't like cops already and getting pulled over sends me into the closest thing I've ever come to panic attacks.  I was grasping at straws when I called on my patron deities.  Thing is, though, that they don't like being your straws.  They, like mortals, want to be treated respectfully.  They do things for you because they want to, not because you're so pitiful they feel sorry for your blubbering mess.  If you want something, you better use an extra large dose of respect and decorum--and that includes presents.  The gods enjoy promised gifts and if you know the kinds of things they like best, you're definitely going to get noticed.  Make a bargain with them.  Be kind and persuasive; be enticing, but be strong.  Show them that you are a business partner as well as your other roles as student, worshipper, disciple, and--occasionally--groupie.

Had I had the wherewithal to do things right, this is how I would've turned the whole night around:

1. Brief, straightforward prayer to my patrons with a promise of an offering if they help

2. Brief prayer to a god/dess, ancestor, or spirit who is specifically linked with my problem

3.  Spoken charm to Retain the Right

4. (As soon as the cop's face is in view) A mental push on him to recognize me as the kind of person deserving a second chance (exceedingly good, noble, or sexy--your choice)

5. (Before speaking) Charm to be eloquent

If I had done all that, I might not now be able to recall that night with such sickening clarity.  Sure, this all may seem trivial to some but giving up that money (and the insurance money paid out because it was a 3 point offense) was a very big deal at that time.  Even to this day, tossing away $250 for any reason would be insanity and I can't think of a soul who can afford it.

The point is that being prepared will save you from panic and panic is the kind of things that absolutely kills magic.  The Gods won't touch it, the spirits see the weakness and won't obey, that great flow that usually surges up through you when you cast will only trickle--if it even comes at all.

Maybe you've mistook this plant for another more famous summertime yellow flower, St. John's Wort.  Maybe you were sad that it wasn't a magical, mystical herb.  Well, you were wrong, sister!

Celandine is one of my very favorite herbs for one simple reason--it gives you get up and go!  I've never seen any spell component more inspiring to the uninspired, more energising to the lethargic, more steadfast to the worn out souls who just don't think they can go any further.

Make an infused oil from Celandine and use it to dress a candle that has been carved with your name and the aspect of your life that needs a boost.  Give it some power, let it burn, and then watch out!  You'll be amazed at how you suddenly have the energy and interest to get all those items scratched off your to-do list.  Just remember not to fight it or question it; this is exactly what you wanted--and needed!

Printable Book of Shadows Pages


Sooo, I'm doing a lot of printables lately, but it's only to show that you can find good information and have nice things without spending a lot of money.  I'm a firm believer that it's quite possible to have a rich magical life without going too far into the commercial aspect of witchcraft.  I've known witches who brag about their room full of purchased items they barely know how to use and shelves of books they've never read, but I've alo known many who stocked up on cheap, flimsy things at the Dollar Store and considered themselves brilliant.  Both are terrible ideas.

It's true that shopping for nice gear is fun.  I like to scout the shops as much as anyone else, but the possession of those items isn't enough to really make you feel it.  I would rather be out in the woods, digging roots and scrubbing the dirt from old bones than flipping through online shops and adding pretty things to my virtual shopping cart.  I believe that the connection is what makes your magic come alive.