How to Be a Witch

It feels like I haven’t written about magick and mystery for a while. I started this blog with the intention of promoting my debut novel (featuring vampires, witches and werewolves) and then the blog turned into a chronicle of motherhood and magic. It reflects me. Today I will reflect on me as a witch and lightworker.

What does a witch look like?

If you think about witches, what do you see? I used to see the fictional stereotype: a woman who stands by a cauldron making potions, flies on a broomstick and casts spells using her wand. I believe we have Shakespeare to thank for this. The reality is quite different. Being a witch can mean many things, but it is quite simply a person who feels affinity with Nature, who recognises that there is something more in the world, something that can be felt but not seen. A witch could be a person who works well with animals, who cares for the land, who tries to balance the need for technology and traditional ways of living.

Can I be a witch?

Yes, you can. Witchcraft is about working with something that makes sense to the individual, something that feels natural. For me that is energy healing, although being a reiki practitioner doesn’t automatically make me a witch. It means I recognise energy as a separate entity and as something essential to humans and non-humans. Other witches might use creative cooking for their outlet, or specialise in herbs, divination, alchemy, or any number of practices. I tend to dabble in different subjects when they attract my attention. For example, I am a Tarot card reader but now I don’t feel the need to read Tarot regularly. I work with the cards when I feel drawn to them, or when I feel them calling my attention.

Intuitive witchcraft and knowing how you feel

I consider myself to be an empath, which is both a blessing and a curse. It means I know people on a deeper level, and I feel emotions to the extreme. My reiki self-healing work has helped ease the burden and has shown me how to separate my feelings from those of people around me. It is important not to get overwhelmed with other people when you are an empath. It can be physically draining and can leave you feeling exhausted, especially if you live in close contact with an energy vampire. That is a person who always seems to need help, or who stumbles from one drama to another, and who you feel inexplicably drawn to try and save. Believe me when I say that they cannot all be saved, and indeed they don’t want to be. I have learned to limit my contact with energy vampires, and to put up my own shields when I feel the pull of someone else’s needy, consuming personality.