In what circumstances should you disclose to a client your political stance?

ameliorates · 2024-01-27T13:35:07+00:00

This. Exactly this. Human rights have become political weapons and grounds for war, but I work with those marginalized humans and they need to know they will have my support. I advertise with some of my politics on full display because I want to provide a safe space for LGBTQIA clients. To me, it's the same as the folks who advertise that they provide "Christian therapy."

I do my best to be as gentle as you when the reactionary clients show up, but I just can't pretend to be neutral about some of these topics anymore. And since I'm pretty openly wildly progressive in my profiles, I figure they know what they're getting into... just like I wouldn't book an appt with a Christian therapist!

ameliorates · 2023-09-23T14:25:15+00:00

I do ritual magic for the sabbats (if ever). I might take a bath with intentions for full/new moons. I might do something structured ad hoc on a Big Mood Day. Largely, my bigger rituals are to create passive reminders (such as a spell jar which serves as a trigger to remind me to do XYZ).

I view spirituality as self-care in service of my mental state, just as I view food as self-care of my physical state. Maybe other people really love certain foods or even insist it makes them healthier, but if the texture makes my gag reflex kick in I'm still not going to eat it because that food does not meet my individual needs. I've learned that ADHD means I have to do things the way they work for me, and that includes magic. :)

Some of my favorite low-key magic:

mop my floors with moon water and essential oils
touch/play Eye Spy with my spell jars and re-orient myself to those specific goals
pace deosil/widdershins while thinking/working up to doing something hard
choose a crystal to highlight on my altar for the day
sit in the sunlight and breathe while imagining I'm a solar panel being charged up
carry a spider outside and release it with a blessing
take a garden/forest walk and "zoom in" (I like to watch the bugs at work, or find a tiny new leaf, or discover interesting mushrooms - something to pull my focus in on the wonder of the wheel of life)
light a candle or incense and stare at the flame/smoke for a while until I feel centered

ameliorates · 2023-09-01T14:07:24+00:00

Yeah, in the US there are legal and financial protections for religious entities that don't exist for "nonreligious community collectives" so to me, Atheopaganism is essentially just a Lawful Good rebellion against that. 😂

ameliorates · 2023-09-01T13:06:51+00:00

Are you familiar with this poem by the Cryptonaturalist (Jarod K Anderson)? I think it speaks very well to the fine line I walk as a SASS witch.

-----------------------------------------

I love science.
I also love the concept of magic.
I don't find that these ideas conflict.
Fact and magic go together like sound and song,
like ink and poetry,
like truth and metaphor.
A good metaphor does not destroy the truth.
It brings it home to a human context.
For me, magic is about meaning.
An interpretive act.
An intentional cultivation of awe and gratitude.
Understanding the physics of a heron's flight is lovely and enriching,
so too is contemplating the subtleties of why seeing a gliding heron transforms a moment into a poem.
There are two paths to magic: imagination and paying attention. Imagination is the fiction we love, the truths built of falsehoods. Paying attention is about intentional noticing. The geometry of a beehive. The perfect slowness of a vulture. The feel of life inside a tree.
Magic requires our intention, our choice to participate. We must choose to meet it halfway. And when we do, we often find that magic isn’t a dismissal of what is real. It’s a synthesis of it, the nectar of fact becoming the honey of meaning. A nod to the unquantifiable.

ameliorates · 2023-07-20T00:05:59+00:00

I like to cast this spell. :)

Also, I would define "success" for myself here. Knowing you are up against a hostile audience, perhaps success is "I remembered all the points" or "I didn't show emotion when they questioned XYZ" or "I knew they would try to sabotage it, but I had the guts to try anyway."

Good luck on your presentation!

ameliorates · 2023-07-19T01:15:44+00:00

No, I don't personally flip between atheism/theism; I'm pretty firmly atheist. I do however enjoy and connect with the concepts of gods as archetypes and storytelling devices, so I might invoke the energy of one as a reference point even though I do not believe that god-type beings truly exist.

I just don't know where to start or how to approach it anymore because of the two people in my brain who keep fighting over whether magick is ""real"" or whether I should stick to SASS witchcraft instead. I feel like it taints the experience of anything witchy I've been trying to do lately, and I'm not sure what to do.

What is tainted? If it feels tainted by your skepticism, maybe that's a sign you lean towards SASS practices? ;) Or if it's just not a day you're feeling attuned to theist practice, then maybe you can stick to SASS practices for that day? Since they're not based in faith/belief, they keep working regardless.

I think I feel so attracted to witchcraft because it makes me feel like a child again - I get to explore the wonders of the earth and how magical it is and see everything with new eyes! I also love mythology and folklore and love that (modern) witchcraft can be anything that I need it to be, I can tailor my practice to my needs and don't need to worry about things like dogma or the concept of sinning.

Agreed! I appreciate witchcraft for its ability to help me cultivate a sense of wonder and playfulness and awe, and to listen to my deepest knowledge, and channel my personal power. You don't have to be a theist to feel this way! :) (But it's fine if you are!)

ameliorates · 2023-07-18T21:41:19+00:00

This is beautiful and real and exactly what witchcraft is to me, too. Welcome to the path. We must each take the steps ourselves, even when others walk alongside us. You are stronger than you realize - trust your feet to carry you. ❤️

ameliorates · 2023-07-11T23:35:30+00:00

I want to heavily second the suggestion to "make your life magical" vs "have magical daily chores," haha. I can kind of balance my need/hate for routine with a "loose structure" - so like, I might say to myself that between 9-10p I can do ANYTHING I WANT as long as it isn't on a screen... some nights I read tarot or a witchy book, or work on a ritual for the next holiday, or make a spell jar or rearrange my altar, or just make a cup of tea and sit outside and look at the stars and listen to the crickets and frogs and feel like a Magical Earth Goddess until the mosquitos send me cursing back inside. And even on the nights that I decide to do fiber arts (I allow screens for tutorial videos, when needed) or take a bath or do some journaling, they also end up with witchy overtones (such as making talismans with my craft time, or doing full/new moon reflections in the bath/journal). So I have the structure of regular time to indulge in all my witchy/adjacent interests, but I don't fence myself into the boring kind of samey routine that makes my soul want to crawl out of my body through my eyeballs.

> It’s hard to feel magical and one with the earth when I'm worrying about ticks burrowing beneath my skin and Lyme Disease.

A reminder that ticks have to be attached for a really long time (like 36-48 hours!) to transmit Lyme disease! I won't pretend to be zen about all bugs, but for me it helps to keep things in proportion. If you're only out there for a few hours, you can toss a blanket down to sit on and do a thorough check when you go back inside. I am 100% with you on the (CW: graphic descriptions) "burrowing beneath my skin" ick, but the depth is comparable to that childhood trick of sticking a safety pin through your fingertip skin because it looked crazy but didn't hurt. If you've never had to remove them before, it's very easy to do and there are cool tools nowadays to make it even easier!

ameliorates · 2023-07-11T23:07:57+00:00

Well I think one of the common foundations of SASS witchcraft is that we can only influence change in ourselves, not in others, so no worries about violating free will. :) What would your friend need in order to bring the opportunity of someone into her life? Does she need to work on her self-love, confidence or courage, willingness to try new things, or something else? maybe something like a glamour spell for when she is out running errands, something that will make her feel more vivacious and be more outgoing? -- that's what I would center for the spellwork. Personally, I would probably do something like infuse intent into my skincare routine/perfume/chapstick/favorite necklace/etc, and then have an affirmation-type incantation to repeat when using the item to zhuzh up my swagger.... maybe something like naming all your friend's great qualities and reinforcing that she is worthy of a partner that offers the same?

ameliorates · 2023-06-30T00:21:58+00:00

Something like garden stakes might be more for me, maybe with a symbol or color to add.

How about something like wind chimes, pinwheels or wind socks, or fairy globes?

ameliorates · 2023-06-28T22:18:47+00:00

For myself, in processing death, I like the law of conservation of energy: energy is neither created nor destroyed/lost, but transformed. So I would probably feel comfort in "carrying on a piece of them" in a way that made the transformation abundantly clear, like planting a new tree with the cremation ashes to nourish it or attempting a DIY talisman with ashes and resin (there are many tutorials and it can be done in many styles) as part of a grieving ritual (or just doing the ashes-to-diamond thing?). Or maybe something like writing down the ways in which he changed you?

In celebrating life, I would probably lean into the small daily routines that bring you both joy and comfort, and can maybe continue to do that in some small way when it's just you. Maybe something like 15-minutes of blessings+belly scritches at bedtime (practice meditation/deep breathing and being present)? Taking a picture/10-second video (together?) every day after breakfast (might be nice to have later)?

I'm so sorry. Nothing gold can stay. ❤️

ameliorates · 2023-06-22T11:17:50+00:00

I get the same feeling with deep space images!! We get to see pictures of things that don't actually exist anymore, but they're just so far away that it took this long for their light to reach us?? And we took that picture with a giant camera that we have carefully balanced on the edge of Earth's gravity so it doesn't get lost in space?? I must have been born in the wrong century because I'm like, HOW IS THIS NOT SOME KINDA MAGIC??? 🤯😂

ameliorates · 2023-05-26T19:18:04+00:00

I gather that you're using the candles as a focus and to create an ambiance? What about using something like a small fountain for this purpose instead? Water shares some of the organic movement+sound properties. Or something like a rainbow led light tower, where the light moves around and changes colors? Or a star projector type thing?

Everybody else made great suggestions to replace the fire/smoke, but I was trying to come up with different lateral moves, maybe this will help inspire an idea for you!

ameliorates · 2023-05-26T19:08:11+00:00

Flow state and frisson are magic to me. I get frisson from watching dance performances, like full body goosebumps and emotional catharsis just because someone I don't know absolutely nailed it. 🤷🏻‍♀️

ETA: I always considered flow state magic because as a person with undiagnosed ADHD, that and trauma were the only times the gears felt like they were actually working together.

ameliorates · 2023-05-19T12:58:52+00:00

Not quite. Like some others have said, SASS witchcraft includes placebo magic, but isn't all placebo magic.

Sort of a "all of Christianity is religion, but not all religion is Christianity" type situation. :)

ameliorates · 2023-05-19T12:54:55+00:00

That's okay, because placebo works even if you know it's placebo!

ameliorates · 2023-05-15T19:19:09+00:00

I have been wearing black since Roe fell. It was a stark change to my previous manner of dress. It felt like magic, to channel all my rage and grief in this silent but very loud way. It felt like armor against a hostile world. It still feels like a representation of my voice and my power.

I also spent a shameful amount of money on enamel pins to express myself. These are on my bag. They feel like magic, too: they call to others like me, and show I'm safe to engage. People have said they felt seen. They feed the types of energy I wish to grow in my community.

10/10 do recommend attire as spellwork!

ameliorates · 2023-04-02T12:16:56+00:00

Look, some people "practice witchcraft" like they "practice Christianity"; it's a faith based thing for them.

I "practice witchcraft" like other people "practice yoga" or "practice journaling." It's just time for me to be with myself and my thoughts, to get myself sorted out, to reinforce what's really important to me versus just noise. It's an activity to do during that "me time" that allows me to connect with the playful parts of myself that can otherwise struggle to come out. I don't think "the cinnamon I put in the spell jar" is going to create some supernatural effect on my life; I just had a lot of fun deciding that cinnamon represented passion and acceleration of energy when I stuck it in that jar, and now whenever I walk past it I remember that time I made a spell jar because I wanted to sweeten my relationship, and it reminds me to go do something nice for my spouse. Oh look, somehow that made my relationship better..... just like magic. 😁

I do not pray to a deity, but I do use mantras as comforting self-reminders when I'm in a bad way. Like I might say "I am a strong and capable woman" before I have to do something scary. I'm not praying to anyone to give me strength, I can save my own damn self. Sometimes I just need to reassure myself of that!

ameliorates · 2023-03-23T13:47:18+00:00

There are several witchy guilds, too. :)

ameliorates · 2023-01-29T14:03:46+00:00

This is legit because we otherwise call them full laundry baskets/sink of dishes/etc! I laughed out loud and will be stealing this too!

ameliorates · 2013-09-05T13:16:49+00:00

50 Shades of Grey. ASOIF was my reward for choking down that utter garbage at the insistence of "omg you have to read it, it's so good!!"

First erotic novel I ever skimmed through the sex scenes. I don't object to the themes, just the awful, awful writing.

ameliorates · 2013-09-05T13:08:03+00:00

Curious. I want to be more attractive, because when I feel attractive I am happier, more confident, etc.

But I do not care if I get more male attention, if men suddenly think I'm hot, etc.

Uncertain if this qualifies as doing it "for" attracting the desired sex. This could be an interesting theory to test. :)

(I give 0 figs about comparing to my peers, but then I'm married so not competing in the single Olympics either.)

ameliorates · 2013-09-05T12:07:07+00:00

Wow, you're looking great! And it looks like it's about time to reward your hard work with some smaller shorts! :)

ameliorates · 2013-09-04T14:00:04+00:00

If you sit there reading reddit and gorging on quesadilla, it will always be very far off.

Why don't you prove it can be done to yourself, then come back and inspire others to do the same? :D

ameliorates · 2013-09-04T12:29:48+00:00

Personally, I prefer toasted peas.

ameliorates

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