We learn a lot by reading and experiencing our homeland, the one where we grew up, the one that is full of memories, that invades our own memory. However, going to a new world, new experiences, a culture as different from our own as its people are – that also nourishes one’s practice. I say this properly because I feel like I’ve grown as a Witch since I came to the United States.
A Multicultural World
While I was in Venezuela, my practice was based mostly on divination and healing, as well as connecting with my guides, my teachers, and other beings with whom I worked. I had the opportunity to follow a ritual structure, keep track of what I did and learned. However, things have changed here in the United States.
Not having a stable life, discovering a world full of both challenges and learning, not to mention a language that I was forced to perfect to survive, meant that rituals and spells took a break. It’s difficult, almost impossible, to focus on one thing in particular when there are a thousand other things to do.
A traveler with a suitcase heading down a road at twilight. [Pixabay, TheDigitalWay]
As I have adapted my pace of life, and still do every few months, my magical practice has changed, my approach has changed, and the techniques I use have evolved (plus I have some new ones). For me, it’s important to honor the land where I am, and for this reason I cannot be left alone with what I learned in Venezuela and about it.
I come from a multicultural world, Syrian traditions combined with Venezuelan folklore, Syrian along with Latin rhythms, aromas, food. In my house one can hear the music of Ricardo Arjona, Chayanne, Marco Antonio Solís was heard, but also Fares Karam, Nancy Ajram, Fairuz, Hakim, and now Imagine Dragons, One Republic, Justin Bieber, even English names like Ed Sheeran, Adele, and Coldplay.
I did not want to be one of those immigrants who inadvertently look back, and therefore make themselves unable to adapt to their new environment. I have met people who have helped me better assimilate all these changes, although some I have had to carry on my own. Although it has been a difficult process, full of challenges, and many tears in between, I have grown as a person, as a writer, and as a Witch.
Practices of an Immigrant Witch
My practice has changed as I needed it to adapt. There are structures that I simply can’t use anymore, elements that I can’t include, and protocols that I have to alter. For a long time, I was forced to change and develop simpler, more practical, and versatile techniques. These are some of them:
- The $2 bill: One of the first things I learned was that if someone gives you a $2 bill, you should always keep it in your wallet and not use it, so you never run out of money. I have done it, I have received it, I have given it, and even when I’m going through a bad time, the amount I need always arrives.
- Tearing bills: Like the previous one, this one has to do with money, and is influenced by my Wiccan past. When I pay the bills and they give me a printed bill, I tear it up, saying “May the money I saw go, come back three times three to me.” Then I throw the pieces in the trash.
- Lighting candles: With limited resources, I have used white candles, second hand candles, birthday candles, and any others I can find. I have had no problems, and they all seem to work fine as long as – well, they work fine, period.
- Offerings of water: This is the simplest of all and, I’m sure, the one that allowed me to be safe when the bus I was on was shot at. When I go out into the street, I try to have a bottle of water with me and offer part of it to the earth for the gods, my teachers, guides, ancestors, and other spirits with whom I work.
Lanterns lit on the shoreline [LTapsaH, Pixabay]
- Support for foundations and locals: For me it doesn’t make sense to respect spirits if I don’t respect the living. Also, there are so many people who have helped me that I can’t help but help others, because I know what it feels like, how much a helping hand is needed, and that’s why I try to buy from local stores instead of big franchises, together with with making donations and serving as a volunteer in foundations, support groups, and attending social calls when I have the opportunity.
- Visualize instead of verbalize: Sometimes I don’t have time to write down my desires, to write a spell or an affirmation, so I just put on my headphones, select a song or track that goes according to my intention, and visualize the result with as much clarity as I can.
- Hours and numerology: Some time ago I noticed that a friend took screenshots of the cell phone screen when they struck 11:11 in the morning and at night, and shared it on his public profile. When I asked him, he told me that he did it for wishes, which always came true. I started doing the same, although without following the protocol I learned from my family, both at 11:11 and at midnight, and I’ve been seeing results for a while now.
Editor’s note: TWH would love to hear about our readers’ own practical magical techniques. Share them with us in this column’s Reddit thread!
The Wild Hunt is not responsible for links to external content.
To join a conversation on this post:
Visit our The Wild Hunt subreddit! Point your favorite browser to https://www.reddit.com/r/The_Wild_Hunt_News/, then click “JOIN”. Make sure to click the bell, too, to be notified of new articles posted to our subreddit.