There’s a part of me that wasn’t even sure what to write about this month. I’ve been listing and discarding ideas, and some days I haven’t had the slightest plan. The thing is, I’ve struggled a lot with inspiration this month, and I noticed a pattern: I lose it when I don’t write often.
My whole personality
“Inspiration exists,” Pablo Picasso supposedly said, “but it has to find you working.” This is something I’m realizing more and more as days go by. Not only in my writing, but my practice as a Witch as well. I used to sit down, day after day after day, writing non-stop, but today I’m lucky if I can plan at all. While it is true that I started when I was 13 years old, having no responsibilities other than studying and exams in my country of origin, there’s still power in consistency.
[Pixabay]
My mental health has been deteriorating. I’m feeling lower than usual, and while I still find joy and happiness, still have fun and have nice times with those close to me, it’s easier than before to fall down the rabbit hole of depression, anxiety, stress, and insomnia.
Today for example (at the time of writing), I woke up at 3:00 AM and couldn’t sleep after that. No matter how many videos I watched, social media scrolling, reading… Nothing worked. My brain just decided that it was enough sleep, and now it’s 8:15 AM. I’m about to leave for an event, and already feel less enthusiastic about life.
Is it just because I haven’t written as before? Yes. Because I’m a writer before anything else. It’s my whole personality and identity, with some extras that make me who I am: 90% writer, 10% everything else.
A New Daily Practice
This also affects my practice as a Witch.
My dad used to say he meditated by painting. I say I meditate by writing, but it’s not only that. I write to find a connection with something higher, bigger than myself, a purpose and a passion that makes me feel alive. Writing is the first and foremost manifestation of Witchcraft for me, as far as my personal practice is concerned.
The moment I started writing this article, I also started feeling better. It made me remember a conversation I had with a then-friend years ago, when I told her I felt much better when I practiced Witchcraft. She said of course I would. “It’s part of who we are.” Today, Witchcraft and writing are the same thing for me.
In the end, I guess it shouldn’t surprise me. While I don’t write every day, I have always tried to do it as often as possible. This made me think about different ways that I could stay active, in contact with who I am as a writer, a Witch, and a person:
- Write and edit every day: Both of them. Non negotiable.
- Pull an oracle card for the day: It only makes sense that, after getting a few decks that I love, I put them to use.
- Meditate and visualize: Both with music and without it.
- Ancestral Veneration: I’ve been inconsistent, so since we’re at it, might as well include this.
I don’t know how many of these I will keep or change. The first one is a must, so I’m open to arranging the rest of it around it, and I encourage everyone who has read this far to do the same. What’s the most powerful, personal manifestation of Witchcraft in your life? What’s that that makes you feel connected? When you have the answer, make it a daily practice.
I’ll report the results in a month, and I would love to also know about yours.
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.