I grew up Mormon and although I still hold great respect for that faith, one of the issues I started having with the church around the time I hit puberty was this weird social pressure that somehow in order to be a real Mormon woman you must be into crafting, a whiz in the kitchen and want nothing more in life than to serve your family. The reason I’ve been thinking about this lately is that contemporary witchcraft is similar. There is a huge emphasis on real witches being crafty and herb-growing and cake-baking and barefoot-in-the-grass-loving. But what about those of us who couldn’t handcraft a decent wand if our magical abilities depended on it--whose cakes always fall--whose homes are rarely tidy--who connect being barefoot in the grass with a good way to get hookworm and not much else? How odd I should fall from one faith tradition demanding this kind of domesticity in order to be holy, to another that almost seems to demand this kind of domesticity in order to be spiritually potent.
Where is the Book of Shadows for the un-crafty witch?
Perhaps I should start one where I could say things like, “Drawing prosperity is just as easily achieved through writing your desire in green ink, inwardly spiraling, as it is through masticating homegrown patchouli with a mortar and pestle you sculpted and fired in your own kiln.”
Or, “Communion with nature can just as easily be achieved by sitting outside at night in a comfy chair on your patio, looking up, studying the constellations and talking to the Gods as it can by running naked through a meadow on Midsummer’s Day.”
Or, “Supporting your local growers by frequenting a farmer’s market honors the land just as growing your own produce would.”
Let me add here how deep my admiration is for those witches who are naturally crafty and connected with the outdoors. I can’t even begin to tell you how awed I am by their gifts. I just wish there were more celebration of and resources for those of us who possess altogether different gifts, yet are no less magical for it.
Or, “Communion with nature can just as easily be achieved by sitting outside at night in a comfy chair on your patio, looking up, studying the constellations and talking to the Gods as it can by running naked through a meadow on Midsummer’s Day.”
Or, “Supporting your local growers by frequenting a farmer’s market honors the land just as growing your own produce would.”
Let me add here how deep my admiration is for those witches who are naturally crafty and connected with the outdoors. I can’t even begin to tell you how awed I am by their gifts. I just wish there were more celebration of and resources for those of us who possess altogether different gifts, yet are no less magical for it.
Blessed by the Mystery,
-M. Ashley
Oh I am right there with you. I am not the barefoot in the grass kind of witch. For one, I HAVE no grass in my yard, just dirt and some weeds posing as grass, and being barefooted outside is just begging to get some nettles or ringworm or ticks *shudders*
ReplyDeleteI dabble in crafty stuff, but it is for my own amusement. I can make a mean yeast rolls, but cakes fall flat and cupcakes are rocks.
My husband grows a garden, I look at a plant and it dies in front of my eyes lol.
I, too, wish there were more celebration for those of us who have skills in other areas!
you don't have to be crafty. . . there are plenty of subjects to focus on other than making things: divination, astrology, folk lore, shamanism to name a few.
ReplyDeleteI was told by my oath mother when I hesitated to put myself out there with my wares that: "not everyone has the penchant for crafting and since you do and you are good at it, your services would be welcome as opposed to flooding the market"
So go ahead and write that uncrafty witch book. It would most certainly be welcome! Your services as an uncrafty witch are needed and welcome!
Bella--So glad to know I am not alone in the plant-frightening department. My fiance is like your hubby in that he has the green thumb in the family whereas plants take one look at me, sprout legs and run screaming in the opposite direction. I think you're feeling as I am--not that one way of witching is better than another, just wishing that more ways than one were better represented.
ReplyDeleteMrs. Oddly--I have seen a bit of what you have put out there and I am so glad your oath mother encouraged you to do it. You have fabulous gifts. Thank you so much for the encouragement. I had no idea when I first wrote this post, but a BoS for the chronically un-crafty may actually be a viable project after all.