I had a bittersweet relationship with July for a long time. It’s the hottest month of the year, and I have always preferred the cold; it is the vacation season, so I never had a celebration in the classroom; several of my friends were always traveling, and when my family did, it was only to the beach. I would end up sunburned, in pain, and many times I had to put up with the teasing of my classmates when I returned to class for looking like a skinned tomato. Some years ago, however, I decided to improve my relationship with this month.
I think it will be honest enough if I say that I don’t have many memories of my birthdays because they weren’t always memorable, at least not for me. Yes, I always had the affection of my family, and there were several friends present for more than one, and the last one in which I had my father with me was special in many ways. Specific memories are few, though. I don’t remember anything from last year, when I turned 25 in the middle of the pandemic.
Birthday candles lit on cupcakes [Pixabay]
Since I watched “Dead Man Dating,” the fourth episode of the first season of Charmed, though, I have always made sure to celebrate my birthday in some way. The story of that young man who did not celebrate his birthday made me see things from another point of view.
When I started my training as a reiki master, our teacher reminded us at all times that thoughts are the most basic form of energy work and that thoughts send signals to the universe. This, and the moral of the three witch sisters from the show, echoed in my mind for a long time.
Every time July 19 rolls around, I take a few minutes to myself to ponder what I have learned that particular year, what I still have to do, the goals I have achieved, and the ones I continue to work towards. Since the Covid-19 era began, which is fortunately already starting to end, I have had to reprogram many of the things I wanted to do, rethink others, until I finally finished with plans that I had never imagined. They have been dizzying changes, one after another, with little time to process each one, but they have all been for the better.
A birthday present sitting on a wooden table [Pixabay]
This is going to be a birthday full of many firsts, more than I prefer to count, but just like me, I am sure there will be many more wondering how to feel alive in the midst of so many changes, good and bad, and surrounded by bad news. My practice has always been intuitive, but there are some things that I have learned over time that I use whenever I need to regain my energy, and that I plan to do this July 19.
- Burn sandalwood incense: Every time I do therapies, spells, rituals, or just meditate, I make sure to have sandalwood nearby to disconnect from the physical world and recover the pieces of myself that I have lost along the way. Just by closing my eyes and letting myself be intoxicated by the aroma, I feel that I detach myself and that I enter another world. Not to mention when I use tarot or any other divinatory method in the meantime. The readings are much simpler, faster, I understand them on the spot, and sometimes I receive messages that have nothing to do with reading. My WiFi goes on, as I say.
- Listening to music from ten thousand years ago: I wrote an entire column about the healing power of music in my life, but my practice is literally based on music. Every energy work I do has something ringing in the background to keep me in the state I need. Many times I go to songs that I listened to a long time ago, like now, that I have songs from High School Musical, Lady Gaga, even Usher, because they are loaded with memories. I’m the worst at dancing, but the overload I feel with some songs I direct it to as many visualizations as possible, and sometimes I only enjoy it if no one is around.
- Give myself a gift: Another reason I didn’t usually enjoy my birthday is that I didn’t like many of the gifts I received. I’m an overly detailed person with very specific tastes, so giving me clothes of colors I never wear was a nightmare. For a long time, everyone realized that the best thing was either to give me industrial quantities of chocolate or to give me money directly. The first time everyone in my family did it, I ran to the bookstore and spent everything on vampire novels. I think my parents never saw me with a bigger smile before. Now I do it on my own. I take a large part of my savings, sometimes all of it, and I allow myself the luxury of fulfilling any whim that I would deny myself during any other day of the year.
- Getting lost in the streets: I’m an introverted, shy person, and I prefer a thousand times to stay at home than going out for a walk to do who knows what, but I do need to go out from time to time. I love going to new places, doing something different, letting go of the routine, and even more so when it’s my birthday. If I have an idea, I just follow the urge and enjoy the ride. It can be a long or short walk, simple or intense, as long as it is something that I know I am going to enjoy.
- Getting a stone treatment: I spent the last two weeks with a throat infection that left me almost speechless for three days and with coughing fits the following days. I have taken syrup, pills, herbal teas, and more than my weight in water to keep my throat as relaxed as possible, but my stones are never lacking. I keep learning about their properties, uses, combinations, even where I put them.
- One-Card Readings: Whether it is tarot, oracle cards, poker, or even the Baraja Española when I had it for a while, I like to draw a card or two to get quick, simple, and direct answers in times of crisis. I usually meditate for a moment with that reading, lose myself in the image, feel that I’m inside, and connect with my guides when more information is needed.
I may do all this on Monday, maybe just some of it, but I do know that I will make it an important day for myself. I hope I have helped those who are reading this to have more ideas to do the same when that special date arrives. It is somewhat difficult to do during times of pandemic, but Pagan birthdays can still be celebrated.
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