I have been fascinated by witchcraft, forteana, the paranormal and cryptozoology (I had a subscription to the Fortean Times from about 11/12 years old onwards) for as long as I can remember (I am 44 now). There’s a bit of paranormal history in my family too, with both my mum and my grandma on my dad’s side having had encounters with Spirits on a couple of occasions. My mum was also once told by a psychic medium that she had latent psychic abilities that she should develop, but she never did as far as I’m aware. I was also one of those kids that had an imaginary friend. Mine was a pony called Poppet and he was with me for years!
Looking back, I think my journey into witchcraft started when I was about 12 or 13. I found some dream books and books on herbs in the loft at my parents house that were my mum’s. I started foraging for the herbs in the books, or finding them in our garden, and made teas, tinctures, soups and condiments, anything I could really. I once made my dad nettle soup, which was truly awful, but, bless him, he ate every drop and pretended to love it! I also persuaded my mum to buy me more herb and natural remedy books from the garden centre too.
I also had what I now realise as being an altar of sorts, from about 13/14 onwards (without actually realising what it was), which was a big shelf above my radiator, over which I painted a big Mandala on the wall with a Yin Yang symbol in the middle.
On this shelf I kept interesting stones, fossils and minerals I’d found, shells and feathers, bits of plants and dried flowers. I also burned incense, had candles and drank herbal teas, sometimes with added herbs from the garden or spices from my mums spice rack. Here I’d make wishes on candles to do well in a test, or to get that boy I liked to notice me, which were in essence my first spells. I’d also write things down on paper and burn them, which I now know is a way of manifesting your desires.
I used shufflemancy with my CDs, and my own version of bibliomancy with my books, to make decisions, long before I found out these were forms of divination. I would also have little fires at the bottom of the garden and just sit out there, watching the moon and stars whilst drinking my tea.
We didn’t have the internet at home when I was younger and the local librarian was loathed to lend me Stephen King books, let alone anything to do with witchcraft or the occult, so I had no choice but to make things up as I went along. Even at university there was limited access to the internet! It’s so much easier nowadays for people to do research, watch videos and join online groups and communities to learn about witchcraft. I wish there’d have been something like that when I was younger.
It’s only really been since my mid 30’s that I realised the things I’ve been intuitively doing since I was a young teen could be classed as witchcraft. I just didn’t realise, because these things just came naturally to me. As I’ve got older, the pull towards properly learning and researching has become stronger and our house has become more cluttered with stones, feathers, shells and dried flowers I’ve found, in addition to crystals.
Over the years I’ve read so much more into it and got so invested in the idea and history of witchcraft, that to NOT develop it was becoming impossible to resist!! So here I am! I’ve only recently started to refer to myself as a Witch, or even been comfortable in telling people about it.
However, I found a few communities for Witchcraft online and became an active member, writing blogs and articles on things I’d researched, or spells/rituals I’d developed/undertaken and hosted/co-hosted chats on crystals, nature, kitchen witchery and candle magick etc. I also found out, through helping and advising the younger or more inexperienced members of these communities, that I knew a lot more about witchcraft than I realised.
For me, the next logical step was setting up this website, and associated social media, as a way of recording what I know and have done and to help others starting out in their journeys into witchcraft
Melusina The Green Witch 