I recently visited the Brattleboro Retreat Tower. It is a place that holds a long history and such a presence. While it was intended to be a groundbreaking facility, and it certainly was in many respects, there are chapters in its past that range from disturbing to heartbreaking, just like all psychiatric facilities of their time. I wanted to take a moment and offer the history of the location for a few reasons. First, this hospital continues to treat patients today. There is a stigma with mental illness and I do not want to sully the good work and compassionate care that The Retreat offers today. Secondly, to overcome the horrors of the past, we must look at what was true and weed out what is false. Rumors run rampant in places like these.
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Beginnings and Endings
The last few mornings have held such a silence. Maybe it is the cool, crisp air opening the gateway to autumn. Maybe it is the fading song of the crickets beneath the awakening sun that paints the coming of the morning in its golden light. Maybe it is the peace within myself that has been holding me as I awaken to another beginning. It is after all a new day, a new month, and the preparing to begin a new season. This morning I lit my candles and incense before whispering my morning devotionals aligning myself to a new day, just like any other day. However, today is different.
Read MoreFinding Our Connection
As we juggle many obligations in our daily lives, it is also important to allow ourselves to stretch out upon the earth. There is wisdom and nurturing that can take place when we allow ourselves to unfurl like the lush, fertile green rolling hills under a blue and sunny sky.
Read MoreBetween the Darkest Depths and Sunniest Skies
Over the last few months, I have been feeling a push and a pull within me. For a time, I am offered space to feel the sun upon my face and the ocean’s spray upon my skin. Joy and excitement flow through me as long held dreams materialize before my eyes. It is like I am living a dream come true. I feel weightless and free. Everything within me rises to the surface to mingle with the sea and sky as my dreams take flight. It is beautiful and surreal all rolled into one gift that has no strings attached. As I smile with my eyes closed and face to the sun, the ocean waves consume me, dragging me down into the ocean’s dark depths. I am instantly carried down below my own waterline. Into the darkness I go; acceptance and silence my only guide.
Read MoreAn Offering to Medusa
As long as I can remember, I have been working with a variety of gods and beings. The work that I do, both publicly and personally, calls upon myth and legend to find the threads that can be woven into our modern lives. Through this work, I have been able to find the strength, wisdom, and healing I need. Over the years, I have found that these stories contain important lessons. They were significant thousands of years ago and the themes still ring true today. Honestly, I feel that they are just as important now as we are all searching for understanding between ourselves and our world. By reaching into the pages of the past, we can find the seeds of wisdom and plant them in our own lives. We can find inspiration. We can see our own pain and trauma. We can recognize common themes and begin to chart a new way forward as we break old and tired patterns. As a witch, these stories are more than whispers from a time long ago.
Read MoreLayers of Lifetimes
There are moments when we dream of far-off places and of a time that has been long forgotten. Hazy pictures within our minds are painted. They create landscapes, uncover memories, and perhaps even pieces of ourselves are revealed as the mist dissipates. The fuzzy images become clearer as we emerge from the shadows, gathering strength through understanding. For some, this is the work of our journey. This is the work of our soul. This is the work of connecting the dots between our longing and with our unexpected de-ja-vu experiences. When we take the time to listen to what our body is telling us, what our soul is craving, we can give ourselves permission to take the step forward to feed ourselves with what we need. However, this can only happen if we choose to walk into the unknown and into that strange place of liminality between today, yesterday, and tomorrow. Like frosted breath on a window pane, we touch the boundaries between ourselves and what is calling to us.
Read MoreA Need For Rest
There is a lot of noise in the world today. From the pressure to be part of the latest trend to the constant roar of buzz words on social media to the vilification of communities, books, and desire for equality and change, it seems like we are swimming against the tide. Some days it can feel like we are being swallowed by a churning mass of opposition that will not think twice about knocking us down. Other days we are bombarded with déjà vu because we have experienced the same struggles. This allows us to maneuver through the obstacles with grace.
Read MoreThe Ebb and Flow of Life
The waves roll in. The waves roll out. They come back to begin again. It is a dance that began long before the first creatures crawled out of the ancient waters to breathe upon dry land for the first time. This revolutionary act sparked a new dawn, a new way of life. These primordial creatures set us on a path that cleared the way for us today. Each tide, each breath is its own cycle. And today, just as the ancient ones breathing their first breath to spark new life, we too, must forge our own way forward, reaching the dreams of our own shoreline.
Read MoreThe Growing Sun and the Energy of Rebirth
As we continue to slough off our confining shells, what are you experiencing? What do you need? What are you ready to let go of? Sometimes we are so excited to break free from the bitter cold and seclusion of winter, we can lose track of what we wish to see in the world. With the anticipation to shed our winter layers, we forget that we are still tender and sensitive beneath them. It is important to offer ourselves gentleness and care as we rebirth ourselves into this big, wild world.
Read MoreLearning to Trust Ourselves
Learning to trust yourself is about learning who you are. Each experience helps us expand our boundary line when it is time to grow. When we cross the line of our comfort zone, we are treading into the unknown and uncomfortable. That is how we transform our routine into new life and dreams. By working with our fears and using them as fuel, we can finally break free from what holds us back.
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The Whispering Crow 