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Speaking Of Witch S1 E5
29 Plays4 months ago
In this episode we discuss Wisconsin weirdness and folklore. We also discuss placenta magick, september astrology, and herbs & rituals for Mabon.
websites: https://www.wisconsinfrights.com/
https://thelocalmystic.com/
https://www.mabonhouse.co/
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Transcript
Podcast Introduction
00:00:03
Speaker
Welcome to Speaking of Witch podcast with your hosts, Megal, Heather, and Shay.
Living Deliciously Through Magic
00:00:12
Speaker
This is a podcast for the magically inclined, where we'll discuss how to live life deliciously through magic. Would thou like to live deliciously?
Placenta Magic Introduction
00:00:27
Speaker
On this episode, we'll talk about placenta magic.
00:00:35
Speaker
OK, so welcome, everybody, to season one, episode five of Speaking Young Lit. Episode five. Episode five. Wow. oh Amazing. Wow. I know. And I have to say, I got to throw a little reference out there for all our listeners. This is your favorite podcaster's favorite podcast. Oh, o a nice travel room reference there. Yes.
00:01:04
Speaker
and So if you know, you know, what's up. But yeah, hi guys.
Festival Experiences and Reflections
00:01:11
Speaker
How's it going? How are you guys doing? It's been up, been up to ya yeah doing good watching Lollapalooza on Hulu all weekend.
00:01:21
Speaker
on teddy swims right now it's okay i love teddy swims festival season is always fun to watch from your couch yeah i watched bonnaroo from my couch on hulu too that was fun This elder millennial enjoys the air conditioning and access to my fridge and to my bathroom. I mean, they showed for Chaperone's performance. it was It was record breaking for that early of a show. And I was just in awe at the amount of people that were there and imagining having to poop and being in the middle of that crowd. Oh my God, what torture.
00:02:06
Speaker
Yeah. The self-discipline, the self-discipline to be like, nope, but all that, all the way. I got IBS. When I go, when I have to go, I have to go. So, I mean, I used to go to festivals. I went to Bonnaroo. Yeah. um And just like, I, as I want to be able to go, but I really don't think I could handle it anymore. I'm, I think I'm too old. I've reached that stage.
00:02:33
Speaker
I went to Bonnaroo in 2018, which means I was 41. I was, wait, wait, wait, 41. I was 41. I was at a blast and I went for five days and I wanted to die by day four. I wanted to really, really, oh my God.
00:02:52
Speaker
a why yeah and of a day and I got it another day here. No, but let's do mushrooms. It's good. It's good. Let's do mushrooms. I got this.
Local Market Adventures
00:03:02
Speaker
and that will That is a strategy, right?
00:03:05
Speaker
But oh, man, good stuff. I did my times, though. I did my times when I did festivals back back in my day. I did Ospess 2004 and Summerfest here and there. You know, I wasn't ever much like the whole like festival for days person. Growing up in the alarm beds at Summerfest a lot. That was i absolutely love. Still Summerfest. I just haven't had the opportunity to go.
00:03:35
Speaker
in a long time. But you and I did something that was really special recently too. And it must be said, we went to our farmer's market here in Nina. And that was a bit of a blast. um We actually, we were going to walk, but it was hot out. It was really hot out. and And we just didn't want a chance to walk all the way up and down. My foot was bugging me.
00:04:02
Speaker
the giant bridge. Yeah, but we got a very good parking space and we did we did our the little walk that we had to do and went through and oh man, I still got the amazing candle that I got from a vendor there. Of course, it's an action. But the girl is not a crazy person. There's an action but candle that I got and I haven't burned it yet. I'm shocked you were so excited right now.
00:04:28
Speaker
I should burn it right now. It's really good. and we like chap So, oh my gosh. And I did look, she had a rose body oil that was just amazing as well. And I want to next time I go there.
00:04:45
Speaker
definitely gonna get it. Those tomatoes that I bought were delicious and lasted me an entire week coming up with all different, mostly sandwiches, tomato sandwiches. Oh nice, nice. It's a great summer treat. That was a good time. You know you're in summer if you go to the farmer's market and there's like a thriving community of people just walking around um eating hi delicious food from the food trucks and stuff. and yeah was Yeah, ours I feel like Nina's is actually really decent because it's not like super It's not Appleton busy, but it's not you know,
Sideshow Performance Arts
00:05:21
Speaker
it's got some good stuff. That's on decent decent produce and good people Yeah, so I like it. I like it there. I want to go again That was a good time was anything else up with you guys any other any other events that have happened since the last time we talked and
00:05:37
Speaker
um um I had a show up north at ah the Moto Rama car museum for their LGBTQ plus. They have themed weekends. So that weekend was the call of the wild. I always love going up there. Mistress Lola is a lovely host. I love looking at all the old cars, my all time favorite car. And i I wish I knew the name of it. But we never get to talk about the name.
00:06:06
Speaker
They always tell me about how this car would be a horrible car here in Wisconsin because it is made in Iraq and it's made for the desert. So the doors and everything are all wood on the inside of it. So it moves and fluxes so much that because of the humidity and stuff here in Wisconsin, that it's not really a ah ah good car that you would use for driving.
00:06:31
Speaker
So that's really cool. And it was a great show. I always have great events, fun time. I did my stapling act, which everybody gets surprised at, but yet loves. And then Mandy and I did our bed of nails act, which it was really great because it always shocks people because they they think it's big. And there's ways that you can do better nails. So like if you work for sets and stuff, you're like, Oh, I'm laying on nails, but I'm wearing a corset, so it's not really hurting me. Well, because Mandy and I are unhinged as we do. We are totally we are completely
00:07:19
Speaker
fair on the top. So, you know, all all the way on the nails and snap. Yes. but like yeah case t yeah And they know we have people afterwards that were coming up and they're like, really? Is this real? They put their hand out and they're like, Oh my God. We're like, yeah.
00:07:38
Speaker
her um we we're up daniels ye like grusfield
00:07:44
Speaker
Oh man for a brief time they were teaching that at Frostbite the flow arts ah yeah was out here in february andon And that was, that was such chef's kiss that they were bringing sideshow acts and walking on glass and walking on fire. I mean, it's so neat. It's so fun to do. It's also fun to learn those practices, but better nails takes a lot of time. You can't just do it in one class. There's no way that you've had, there's a constant practice that you have to do to maintain.
00:08:17
Speaker
you know well not not only that but like the nails the bed itself so like the bed of nails that we have right now is it is really only meant for laying down um it's not meant for like sitting on and so we do a couple poses where we actually sit on it um We're but getting a new bed of nails made. If people can guess, there's really not a lot of manic health there for beds and nails. There's a phic as ah physics aspect on it as well too, because um you have to use certain types of nails and stuff depending on what areas of the body that you're going to be on there, um you know right different with and how close together they are.
00:09:03
Speaker
like farther apart like ours right now is we don't do this at home she's a professional yeah i am a professional person we'll just say that i'm a professional person please so please don't do this at home Unless you are a professional as well, please don't. probably Right. ah Unless you've been instructed by somebody who's also just done professionally. I know that I was trying, I was searching for myself too, for a sword swallower instructor, mentor, um because I love the sideshow, you know, aspect of things that I wanted to start doing, introducing some things to my act, which is now ever so changing.
00:09:45
Speaker
But it's still a ah dream of mine to actually get um somebody to teach me sword swallowing. and yeah There are a few people who teach it. I have pricing for a few and um and I would love to get like one one one in particular up to see me and like hang out because I think they would be amazing up here.
00:10:10
Speaker
Um, and I've been on some wait lists for some other people that also teach, you know, um, but it's, it's, it's a tight, it's a tight weight. And he, there's not many instructors anymore out there. They, um, they're guard, very guarded. They guard their secrets and of course they have to, because it's a, it's a task that you want to preserve and you don't want to taint it with, you know,
00:10:37
Speaker
um and thing um There is a sideshow act that is coming to Ridefest. They always play at Ridefest. I wonder if you can look through there and see if maybe one of their performers does sword swallowing because that's in Chicago. So if they're coming up this way, they're going to be here for a couple days. So that might be a way to take advantage of that too.
00:11:02
Speaker
Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. That might be interesting to see if they have classes and stuff. The person I talked to was willing to stay for a few weeks to train. Oh, wow. Awesome. Yeah. Yeah. A few weeks to train and do all the teaching, do it right. um Really get me out there and get me working on it because it's a process. It's not something that you can just be like, oh, OK, first class, second class, third class. I'm doing it. No.
00:11:30
Speaker
It's probably gonna be a while. I have such a cool friends. Yeah, it'd be fun. It'd be fun. We'll see what happens. But it's always, I'm so glad that you get to do those kinds of acts though because that's, that's amazing. And I'll get
Wisconsin's Spooky Legends
00:11:44
Speaker
there eventually. I know that I will. Even if it's just like once or twice that I do it as a performance piece, I'll be like, hats off to me. I did it. Well, you know, look at how much you started doing walking on campus. And I like, I personally would not feel I can do it.
00:12:01
Speaker
And I think all of us just have that little kind of, you know, our little weird things that we like and, you know, follow it follows through and stuff like that. I could never do sports balling. I have a horrible gag response. I'd be doing that the whole entire time. How do you feel over here? And we know that now.
00:12:32
Speaker
um I am more into like poking things in me. hi And yeah that's what she said. and even the sword itself is not like it's I think it is not it is a blunt sword yeah it's not a lot like but still there are chances that you can nick yourself as you're bringing the sword down and through your esophagus into your stomach like there are ways that you can hurt yourself if you don't do it correctly and that's why I definitely leave it to the professionals and get professionally trained when you're doing well
00:13:08
Speaker
that that a sapphageal sphincter left it sore down yeah all of them at the same time we gotta to control each one very soy I don't know what I'm talking about but anyway ah So speaking of like stuff that is spooky, cause we are kind of approaching spooky season. It's August. Yeah. Our main, our main topic for in this particular show was Wisconsin magic for chlora and myths and legends. And I actually, I gotta to be super honest. I didn't look anything up till this morning and I was like, ah what am I going to talk about?
00:13:53
Speaker
What am I going to talk about? And then I have that book. but That book is so good. So good. I'm so excited to learn from you guys because I don't know much um about I remembered I was I was like looking through and I found this really cool website called Wisconsin Fright dot com. um And they also do all of the Wisconsin horror stories and stuff like that. So but this but yeah as I was looking through, I was like, OK, what am I going to talk about? I remembered a local legend.
00:14:24
Speaker
Local legend that has been around for many many many years and her name is Kate blood. Yeah And she is a local legend out of Appleton and she is in Riverside Cemetery and but and so they have reported there's reports of like seeing blood dripping from the gravestone on a full moon night there's many many many myths and legends about cape blood and even like the story of how she came to be cape blood is kind of like convoluted and not
00:14:58
Speaker
Necessarily a straight shot from A to B like this happened and that's how she became this There's many many ah there's a mystery surrounding the entire thing. So nobody really exactly knows Some have touched the stone and felt it to be warmer than others um All drawn to the grave by the story that Cape Blood was a witch who murdered her husband and children with an axe That's one of the theories Now, while most legends have some bases and facts, however, in this, I, if you know, I'm reading from WisconsinCrites.com. Um, while most legends have some bases and facts, however, the stigma surrounding Kate Blood seems to be entirely unwarranted, and some Appleton residents have made it their mission to clear her name. So, they say that her name was Kate Marcia Kitty.
00:15:46
Speaker
Blood Miller, and she was a beloved member of the community with a tragic story. ah She was just 23 when stricken with tuberculosis and had traveled south to stay with family in a warmer climate. She soon died in Lawrence, Kansas, larence cancer then her body was brought back to a grieving community by train.
00:16:05
Speaker
So that's one story. um Then they say that that same website says that Kate succumbed to disease in 1874 and she left behind a two year old daughter. Now that's that website. I did find another website which is a post crescent which is a local newspaper here that actually talks about Cape blood as well and they have a few other theories.
00:16:24
Speaker
that they throwing out there such as like, you know, that she was she's supposed to say that she's a daughter of an influential settler. um And then they did say that um she may have killed her husband and her kids with an axe, but she, she, her husband tried to kill her. And that's why she tried to kill him. Okay, the selfar but like the kids. Yeah.
00:16:50
Speaker
Yeah. a Common story says that blood murdered her husband and children with an act for committing suicide. I'm in another version that has been passed from generation to generation. She was murdered by her husband. then So but um so she didn't die of tuberculosis done like That's the thing. That's the thing. There's many theories There's many theories so we don't really know and the thing is that people have seen like blood dripping from her grave and the the one that is most precise is that she was a witch and You know, you'd never want to be alone in that area. Although many people actually go visit her own full moon widow somes so She is in a riverside cemetery in Appleton
00:17:33
Speaker
Yeah, and the thing is, yeah that's a beautiful cemetery. You could probably collect, I mean, if you wanted to, you could probably collect some cemetery dirt from her grave. Honestly, just this past weekend, we drove past it and I told Ian, I want to go walk around in that cemetery. It's beautiful. but Yeah, there's a back way actually that you can walk through and get to the grave that doesn't involve going through the cemetery and I can totally show you that. We'll talk about that later. It's a beautiful way too.
00:18:01
Speaker
Is that through all the grottos? Yeah, through the back, through the the broken gate, which I've shot there many times because it's a broken iron gate yeah that is very spooky. So it's very spooky. So that was the Cape Blood, are the Witch of Appleton. I hope we find out more specific information because now my interest is super peaked.
00:18:26
Speaker
right i um and in our was weird Wisconsin, they do have no weird Wisconsin. Um, they do have a good write up of her in there as well. Oh, that's pretty awesome. If anybody is in Wisconsin and wants to pick up a fun build book. This book is amazing. Um, yeah, I love them. Yeah, I have a copy myself. It's a great, great book. I love Wisconsin. Wisconsin is so creepy. Not only do we Like, and this has kind of been like a ah bad way. Not only do we kind of produce the most weirdest serial killers, but if you've ever read the book like Wisconsin's death trip, anything like that talks about how in Wisconsin, weird hysterias had happened in like the 1800s, mysterious illnesses. And then the best thing is creatures.
00:19:24
Speaker
So there are so many different cryptids that are in Wisconsin, and it's crazy. It is yeah even down to the fact that in Lake Winnebago, there's a water monster. So our only way, no. If you guys look at a map of Wisconsin, okay and you see on the right middle you know, right and kind of right hand side, kind of the middle you see a lake or like a body of water. That's Lake Winnebago. Lake Winnebago is a partially manmade lake. It is also a very like algae and gross. Yes, I was trying to say nice and gross.
00:20:08
Speaker
um But there's two green algae blooms that happened there and stuff like that. And there's just because this lake is huge. And there's really no shade, nothing. It's just a big open lake. And there are deep areas um and stuff like that. But it's said that the Winnebago, I would call stories of a mapping fish who inhabited Lake Winnebago. This monster would snatch a pure elk and move. Some say that the monster was a large sturgeon who was soon killed by a horned animal.
00:20:38
Speaker
Others say if it's an abundance are still swimming around now. We have very large surgeon. Yeah, they get like so big Like it's so so huge. So these are fish that are like, uh, you know up there like they look like dinosaurs Yeah, really totally. Just amazing. um So that's kind of cool. And I also found a in in Wisconsin has a lot of different weird. yeah Okay, so not only do we have like, you know, the scary serial killers like who those types of things that we have the crypto abominable snow runs out.
00:21:19
Speaker
um in Wisconsin, that's been cited as recent as 1998. um know mean Yeah, yeah. i was around for nineteen eighty So that that's kind of neat. But there's also strange areas. If you know about Lake Michigan, then you know that it actually has a Bermuda Triangle-esque area in it.
00:21:44
Speaker
So where ships have gone down, planes have been lost, all of those types of things. What is really cool in Wisconsin is that there is a hill that is called Gravity Hill. And it's an optical illusion. Yup. Yup. It's an optical illusion where it's actually when you're going downhill, and it's you're going uphill. So, um,
00:22:10
Speaker
I found this and I was like, Oh my god, this sounds amazing. But the they think it's an optical illusion. They're not really quite sure because people actually have been in their cars. And they've done that they put it in neutral and their car. They feel like it's rolling upward. Up the hill keeps going. Yeah, it just keeps going and going and going. So I was like, Oh my god, that's awesome. So that's gonna be on one of my lists. Um,
00:22:36
Speaker
list of areas to go visit and and see. um Another really cool area is, Jay, you and I have been here, but at the Maribel Caves, the Hotel Hell. That is supposed to be, you know, it's supposed to be a true actual Wisconsin Con. And it is a true legend. It goes that one of the guests at the hotel went crazy and killed the other residents.
00:23:05
Speaker
and eventually self-unaliving. People who visit after the fact would see or hear people in the hotel. um Hotel Health gets its name from the blood-stained walls after the mass murder. Oh, man. Yeah, I've been there. I've been in the building. And it's like 10 degrees cooler in the building than even in the ruins. like The ruins are open. There's no ceiling. But it's still 10 degrees cooler inside than it is outside.
00:23:34
Speaker
it is it's it's it's an experience i i actually i i am very thankful that um i got to experience and go in it before they gated everything off like they did you did so far away and stuff oh man you can still sneak in all right so we were talking about what the fuck were you talking about
00:24:05
Speaker
No, we were talking about Marable Caves. Yeah, Marable Caves and all the spooky stuff in Wisconsin, which is just phenomenal. Just so much. I mean, I love our state. Our state is beautiful. And we get the four seasons and, you know, a lot of stuff that's grown here. I keep trying to leave, but I just keep coming back. I keep trying to leave.
00:24:31
Speaker
And then keep coming back. It's ridiculous. I left where I went to Puerto Rico and then I came back to Wisco and then I went to Arizona and then I came back to Wisco and I just, I just keep coming back. I don't know what it is about the state. We have the beauty, we got the creepy. Yeah. Beauty, creepy. We got it all. Scary. I mean, oh my God, we can. Ugh.
00:24:55
Speaker
ah west West, Wisconsin out by Eau Claire and like, you know, even even as close as Baraboo is just gorgeous. Gorgeous. They have a cryptid out in that lacrosse or out in the lacrosse area. It's like a thunderbird. It's going to be a giant bird. Some think it's like a California condor.
00:25:22
Speaker
Um, and it's supposed to go between like the blocks and stuff that are up there, but yeah, they have a cryptid up there as well too. So I, I spent a lot of time when I was a kid. I should go public library reading all this weird stuff and like everything. So like, this is a topic. I love it. You're like a hippie Matilda.
00:25:48
Speaker
Also, I also enjoy I I also enjoy horror topics and true crime and um Any horror things I used to back in the day in, Wisconsin I when I came here I was only like 20 something when I came here. But anyway We used to hit as many of the of the horror house haunted houses in the area as many as we could during Halloween season and I got some I had to see some range rain strange strange places that I never thought I was Gonna get out of alive to be honest. with I hate haunted houses
00:26:26
Speaker
Oh, man, I used to love it. And now now I'm like, now I'm like, I let the kids have their fun. I can't. I get startled every single day by someone in my house. I just I don't want to keep feeling that way. Yeah. I don't need a haunted house to feel startled. Oh, man. They're so fun. They're so fun. I just like to put myself in a position of fight or flight and be and see how I respond to be honest. And I karate shot the fuck out of some people, unfortunately. Yeah, man.
00:26:55
Speaker
but I have been known to be and I and I tell people now, you know the last few times I went I would be like warning and When I feel threatened, I lash out. So if you are gonna work with me. Yeah, so put yourself in a situation where you could harm someone. No, no. But they know. But they have an instinct. See, haunted house performers are very smart ass two people. They sense fear. They can smell it on you. And the minute they knew that I was vulnerable, they'd be on me like a motherfucking, I mean. It's rude. With the chainsaw and the thing and as, you know.
00:27:32
Speaker
and a My dog loves that. My loves that. I'm the most horrible person to go to a haunted house with because if you're in my group, I'm going to be scaring you too. like I used to work at a haunted house and I'm too well. I'm horrible.
00:27:52
Speaker
I am. ah wild Are you down? Let me kick you while you're down. on no Oh, that's scary. Well, let me show you something else. yeah but It's funny when it's not me. I love it. Yeah, yeah, yeah. It's a good time. It's always a good time. Always a good time. But now we're all at an age, too, that if we do get scared, we gotta cross our leg. Like, that that that happens.
00:28:20
Speaker
yeah yeah try not to have a heart attack oh my god i can't tell you guys you know how many times i crouched to the bathroom this week that i was like no don't do it hold it hold it we're almost there my god you're gonna make it was it was very close so many times like i don't know what's wrong with me and is it i don't know if it's because i'm drinking more water or what Um, it's annoying maybe it's because I have these these glasses of tea I don't know Maybe but oh man Some and i'm like, I don't want to have to wear a diaper i'm gonna control this shit
00:29:00
Speaker
You better get on this, motherfucker. You better get on this. I'm like having an inward battle. Kegel the fuck out of this. Work your muscles. I'm like, do I make her feel better and embarrass myself on this podcast? Or do I keep my fucking mouth shut? But I'm leaning more towards making you feel better about yourself and giving you some perspective. So we've got a corn guy. We're in Wisconsin. We've got a corn guy. He sells the best corn in the world. We've been eating it all week. I definitely shit my pants this week.
00:29:31
Speaker
Just a little bit, but it happens. So, like, I do that right now. I'm making it a little bit better about having to squeeze a little bit. And all I was doing, I like, I felt like, oh, I should probably go to the bathroom. And all, I was sitting on the couch and I was like, I should go to the bathroom. And I was just getting up from the couch and it slipped right on out. You know, sometimes when you're like, what the fuck? I'm the boss. I'm the boss, bitch. I'm the boss. Not you.
00:30:01
Speaker
I always talk to my body like that's like, you think you smart? No, I'm gonna tell you tell you hold it. No, you know, but anyway, and that I always say the inside of my body is a hostile working but environment. And I think it somewhat stays in check because it knows if it doesn't, I'm gonna staple something to it. I'm gonna poke something with it. I'm just gonna pop out of joy. Like, you know, I'm and to do those things. And so it's like, Oh, shit, I better pay in tax. But no, I have like, today on the floor, I was working on the floor at the clinic. And also when I stopped and it was 3pm. And I'm like, I have not gone to the bathroom yet today. And I was like, that's concerning for me. That's concerning. Um, I should probably do that. Because I would end up like getting in my car to go home.
00:30:57
Speaker
and be like, oh god, oh no, here it all comes. Here it all comes. Oh no, that's the worst. That's the worst when you're like. I'm almost told. Oh my god, you want to die? And you're like, am I going to make it? Am I going to make it? I don't think I'm going to make it. Oh, and then you don't want to have to clean your car. And then if you're driving into the sun and you have to sneeze, I drive a six shift, OK? Oh so you need to look like when you come swimming.
00:31:25
Speaker
So I was using my pelvic floor muscles to no end. Oh my god. Oh my god. But I made it. I made it. I ran. I didn't even turn off the car. Oh wow. Just ran. Just let it roll. It'll just ran right out. I was like, I didn't even turn it off. I just put it on parking brake on. I ran out. Josh is like, are you going to turn off the car? And I'm like, nope. Got to go potty.
00:31:54
Speaker
and Not going to be myself, not doing it. I made it this far. We're going to do it. Many, many times I've gotten home and been like, OK, grab all my stuff and they try to walk in the door and be like, oh, oh, and then just start dropping stuff as I'm making my OK to the bathroom right away, like taking baby steps all the way. Yeah, it's terrifying. But I still tell my body. My body is a trip. But I tell it, I'm like, I'm the boss.
Placenta's Historical and Cultural Significance
00:32:18
Speaker
do You listen to me. I tell you what to do. And you know, and the body does weird stuff. and and speaking of weird stuff the body does, but beautiful and amazing things. Let's talk about placenta. Yeah. Talk a little bit about placentas. Okay, so last... Look at this awesome steak wave. Love it. Love it. I know. So last episode, we were talking about... What were we talking about again?
00:32:46
Speaker
We were talking about how you can turn it into into pills, I think, is what brought about the conversation. Yeah, you know but we're talking about divination and like different beliefs and stuff. So I wanted to talk about um kind of the the history of the placenta.
00:33:06
Speaker
um there's so much information out there specifically i'll be taking information from one of the books that i read to get my placenta encapsulation certification and it's called placenta the forgotten chakra by robin limb that It's got cool artwork in it as well. There's a lot of information in here. So if you are wanting ultimately to know more information than I provide today, I highly encourage this book as kind of like the more hippy-dippy side and a little bit more of the spiritual side of the placenta and the beliefs around it and what you can do. Make the most of the placenta. Definitely. Make the most of it.
00:33:51
Speaker
so The placenta ultimately goes back in the lore behind it to the creation of the earth and pretty pretty much as far back as ah we have written word and and imagery.
00:34:08
Speaker
so There's the Gorgon, which really goes back to like 560 to 550 BC. um And it says here, perhaps the image that most closely resembles our real placenta is the Gorgon. The three sisters in Greek mythology, including Medusa,
00:34:29
Speaker
who had the power to turn people into stone. The Gorgon takes the form of a bodyless head with serpents for hair, like the placenta and umbilical cord, and has been depicted with claws, tusks, snakeskin, and even angelic wings.
00:34:45
Speaker
Euripides, Athens 480-406 BC wrote that Gaia, the earth goddess, created the gorgon to protect her sons, mimicking the child protecting functions of the placenta. And for those that are going to be able to see our recording here, I can show this picture. It's basically the placenta does ultimately look like a bull big blob, and so does the gorgon a little bit here.
00:35:13
Speaker
so And it's interesting how how pagans actually, you know, consult the body and also consult other cultures like Greek mythology, you know, to determine because that's what, you know, it's interesting that we do because a lot of people, other other others don't do that. And I just and want to commend us for looking at for being open minded and willing to learn from history.
00:35:43
Speaker
It's important. Okay, so I'm gonna give you a ton of information here from this book and that this there's there's a lot but I decide went through and I like to minimize it my speaking time, just picked and chose kind of which ones I thought were the most interesting. Okay, so yeah the Egyptian god of pleasure Bess dispelled evil spirits and was depicted as an obese dwarf. His lion-like face is reminiscent of the placenta. He protected children and women in labor.
00:36:16
Speaker
and even assisted his wife Tewert with childbirth. And this is an excerpt from the birthing spell that was recited four times over the image of Bess. And it says, come down placenta, come down. I am Horus who conjures an order that she who is giving birth it becomes better than she was as if she was already delivered. Look, Hathor will lay her hand on her with an amulet of health. I am Horus who saves her.
00:36:46
Speaker
on So there's there is some more information in here about Egyptian lore around the placenta, but I did want to read this bit about totems. So we've heard of totem poles, especially like Wisconsin.
00:37:03
Speaker
other places where Native Americans were um um but there's yeah there's totems kind of all over the place um and so basically totem poles typically made from cedar trees are most often associated with the trees of life totem poles stem from a native matriarchal tradition and were hollowed out so that salt water like amniotic fluid could be poured into them. Indian clans chose animals for their totems like bears, monkeys, and birds, which they believed were born from the branches of the tree of life. There was reverence for the individual's placenta, but like a placental family line, they also revered the placentas of past generations and considered them like angels, protectors of the people. And that's a theme but that is very common throughout all of these different things I'm going to talk about is
00:37:58
Speaker
um the placenta being part of the person that's born and also being a protector of the person yeah that is born. Yeah. um Other animals depicted in placental totems include the tapir and deer for the Kunis Indians. In Southeast Asia, the white elephant holding a lotus flower with her trunk symbolizes the protector of placenta, and the in Iran, it is the horned viper. In India, the stag and the gazelle are honored as placental symbols, while the Pueblo Indians held the gopher turtle in high esteem for the scene.
00:38:40
Speaker
interesting the gopher and the turtle and we all know about the tree of life right especially i feel like as practitioners we're we've yeah and there you go the trees look like placentas Yes, definitely. So what's really cool. I didn't realize that. So that kind of does look like yeah something that I do is placenta prints for my clients. And I just had two clients that ordered placenta prints for their placentas this month. I'm very excited. But it absolutely looks like a tree. The veins, it's 100% looks very tree-like. Do you have to keep it moist? Yeah. So I actually, I use the blood to help with like my paint. Yeah.
00:39:24
Speaker
It's art, baby. It's art. Oh my god, I love that. Oh, oddity friend right here. That's beautiful. I mean, that is so awesome that you're able to offer that. My favorite thing to do is if the umbilical cord is long enough on the print, you've got the placenta, which looks like the tree of life. And then I spell out the word love.
00:39:45
Speaker
And then they keep that. It's pretty cool. But it's hard because sometimes the umbilical cord is short. So I just can make it into like a heart. OK. Oh, nice. Anyway, I digress. OK, so the tree of life. That's so cool. The roots of trees draw moisture and nutrients from the Earth's mother. And then by way of precipitation, they deliver this life-giving water back to the Earth's atmosphere, thus the miracle of rain.
00:40:10
Speaker
At the same time, trees transpose carbon dioxide into life-sustaining oxygen. By rain and by air, the trees also purify the environment. We see this relationship mirrored in the placenta of all higher mammals. Placentas are a joint venture between mother and child.
00:40:31
Speaker
It is these exact functions of delivering nutrients, moisture, and oxygen that sustain life on Earth as well as life in the womb. So they are very much connected. There's parts of this that go on to explain how the placenta is very connected to the Earth, the creation story.
00:40:51
Speaker
um and and again protect the baby it provides baby with all the oxygen that it needs definitely it's such an important home um that's cool we it's like an egg it kind of well so there are placenta do you know what the the yolk is
00:41:16
Speaker
the yolk is essentially that's like the amniotic fluid and that's like part of the placenta. You can sometimes see in the eggs that you crack. It's really weird, but I of course find that fascinating. You can sometimes see the placenta if you see like a little bit of red in there.
00:41:31
Speaker
Oh, interesting. Yeah, there it is. It's part of it. Yeah, okay. um Okay, so you've all seen this symbol before. It's, yes, it's the medical, the medical symbols makes together. yeah Yeah, yeah, we use it a prescriptions and stuff, the wand of Hippocrates, the Caduceus symbol of medical science, also known as the heraldic staff belonging to Hermes, the Greek guardian of health.
00:41:56
Speaker
and also as the wand of Mercury, messenger of the ancient Roman gods, is what we recognize internationally as the universal symbol of doctors and healers. And so for those of you listening, it's that symbol that has like a staff with wings on the top and then two snakes wrapped around the bottom and the staff. It is composed, oh, I got ahead of myself. It is composed of two snakes wound around a central wand. The symbol is derived from the umbilical cord,
00:42:22
Speaker
which has three vessels, two arteries wound around a central vein. Both the symbol and the umbilical cord, it was modeled after, it can be considered angels of healing, expression of unity, peace, and fertility.
00:42:37
Speaker
So I'm just gonna kind of summarize. So I have so much more I was gonna read, but still, this is already taking so long. So basically common themes for the placenta. Most people bury would bury them. That's a super common theme. Now, where you bury them may differ on the gender of the child born and also depend on what you want your child to grow up to be. So there was,
00:43:06
Speaker
oh let me try to find it it's another the yeah the placenta is where i mean you would want you would think right that you would want your baby to get as many nutrients as they possibly can um from you and that includes after the birth because i know they're gonna try and and you know of course the breast produces milk and that milk also contains all of the Maynoacids and any kind of like hormones that would help the baby in growth in its first few months if not years of life And also like and I'm not very well versed on this, but I heard that there's like Proteins and stuff that help the baby fight off disease Yeah, so essentially it is a filter. It is the thing that the that gives the baby all the oxygen nutrients
00:43:58
Speaker
yeah that and And it also filters things out. um Obviously, it can't filter everything out. So that's why you know if you're drinking and you're smoking while you're pregnant, that can still ultimately affect the baby if you're you know using harmful drugs. But it is a really great filter as far as like disease as well. So if you get sick while you're pregnant, you don't have to worry about the baby. And there's even then...
00:44:27
Speaker
the body knows. I had a friend who unfortunately had cancer and happened to get pregnant with twins at the same time and everyone was okay. Like should you obviously she wasn't doing chemo while she was pregnant um but the babies you know were protected but so I was just looking and I can't find the exact area that it was but there was a ah group of people that would vary their placenta or the umbilical cord um in certain places, depending upon what they wanted their child to be when they grew up. So if they wanted their child to be a scholar, they might actually take it and bury it um in the lawn of a college or You know, something really kind of crazy like that. Or if they wanted their child to be a doctor, they might bury it near a hospital. That's another spell right there. ah Right. It's definitely like manifestation for real. Yeah.
00:45:25
Speaker
ah so um Yeah, i mean I definitely recommend this book. Oh, here's here's a about placenta vessels. In Germany pottery vessels dating from the 16th to the 19th centuries AD were found by a scientist from the University of Tübingen. The pots were buried in groups, sometimes up to 50 together.
00:45:47
Speaker
and traces of human placenta were found inside. Local folklore of that time in Germany suggested that to bury a baby's placenta in such a pot would ensure the health and well-being of the child. Oh here we have in Tibet the placenta is saved until an astrologer indicates the first auspicious day for the father or other close relatives to bury it. It may be buried anywhere as long as no animals can dig it up.
00:46:17
Speaker
The placenta is wrapped in clean cloth and buried deep in the ground. Often the children of the family assist. The burial place is not marked, but the process of burying it symbolizes respect for the placenta, which nourished the baby in the womb. The umbilical cord is kept in a safe place in the house for about a year. The mother uses the cord to heal thrush in the baby's mouth by tipping it in milk, tea, or water and rubbing it over the sore. I'm telling you, look at that.
00:46:47
Speaker
Amazing. so Look at that. It's pretty cool. It goes, you know, it goes back forever. And another really common theme in the history of it is that it was colonization that stopped or prevented ah and and Western medicine that often prevented these things from happening. and yeah you know when hospitals and hospital birth became more the norm for a long time like they weren't giving you your placenta back or even giving you the option and then there was also a study that was done that ultimately found out that there was
00:47:24
Speaker
hospitals on the East Coast, I think this was back in the sixties, I think it said that we're taking the placentas and selling them to France, to companies in France for beauty products because of the benefits, um, specifically like when it comes to skincare and health. Well, there's stem cells in there. I mean, that's like with the stem cells in the umbilical cord. And as well, I'm sure there's some in the placenta. I'm not really versed on that.
00:47:49
Speaker
um But I mean, you're going to have those benefits on there and especially on your like open skin on your top dermis and stuff, that's going to repair that. But oh my, I didn't realize that was happening. And I didn't get that option to have my mold. According to my research, it's not any mold, but it was happening for a long time. So yeah, you know, really getting back to your history and your roots and you can kind of if you're really interested in it, you're going to find something having to do with childbirth.
00:48:19
Speaker
and how it was done and and childbirth traditions and right up to and including things with the placenta of it. And we know that most witches were also doulas, midwives for many many many many many years. Or at least doulas, the midwives were plain that You know, we're told that they were witches for what they were doing, which is just like helping women survive. Exactly, exactly. Absolutely. yeah And inherently also political. but Oh, definitely. I mean, is um it's um that's one of the main reasons I have gone into this is
00:48:59
Speaker
I'm very much a feminist. And with everything going on in our country, I was thinking, what what can I do? I was going to protest. I saw you at a protest one time. I don't know if you remember that, Shay. Me? Do you remember running into me at a protest?
00:49:16
Speaker
I introduced myself to you and I was like, oh my gosh, are you Calypso Fire Witch?
Empowering Childbirth and Rituals
00:49:20
Speaker
i I follow you on Instagram. I think it was the first time we ever met in person, but you might not remember. It's totally funny. But anyway, I was going to pro- I was probably set with Roe v. Wade being overturned. I was Like, what can I do? Because I was, by then I was already studying being a doula and I just was like, this is what I can do. Like, and that's what helped me come up with my business name, which is Empowered You Birthing Service, because if I can help birthing people,
00:49:49
Speaker
know their options and yeah know their rights and know what's going to happen to their bodies and help them get through it and find their power and to regain their bodily autonomy that they may have lost. That's very important to me.
00:50:07
Speaker
It's nice we have to empower, like you said, empower ourselves within the community to have people who can provide that for us and not necessarily, you know, doctors because doctors sometimes are bought and paid for by many. It's interesting, especially as a lactation counselor and finding that I recommend IBCLCs often, which are international board certified lactation consultants. They have medical training where I do not and it's I always have to tell my clients I recommend finding one that doesn't necessarily work in the hospital because sometimes their hands are tied by hospital policy and how much they can do and how much time they can offer. Where if you find one that doesn't work in a hospital they have a little bit more freedom on how they run their own business and how they practice and they can spend the time to really give you the care that you deserve.
00:51:00
Speaker
All right, nicely done. All right, good, very good. Yeah. Oh, that's awesome. Thank you so much for providing that. There was so much more I thought I was going to have time for, but I don't want to bore everyone. It could be a whole episode. It was really good. It was very, very, very interesting. All that you can do. I shouldn't have put you on the spot, and if you don't have the answer, that's fine. But the name of the book is the forgotten chakra, or like that's part of it. Placenta, the forgotten chakra by Robin Lim.
00:51:28
Speaker
So I- And it does talk about the sacral chakra very much. Yeah, so that's what I was gonna ask. I was gonna ask on, was it like an addition to the sacral chakra or is it one on its own? Like, is it something that manifests from it? Because your root chakra or your sacral chakra is just right there above that root chakra, but that's your chakra of like passion and love and stuff.
00:51:57
Speaker
and your protection. Oxytocin is a huge part of childbirth and also right creating baby. And so, I mean, yes, I would say the sacral chakra having to do with love, the love hormone. Oxytocin is such a huge part of it.
00:52:16
Speaker
Yeah, so it really it talks it talks about that in here as well gives like the different chakras and the chakra maps and um what they stand for. But, and then also talks about
00:52:35
Speaker
um like it gives the apara swan maybe you know these better than i do because you're a yogi swad histhana sensation the unconscious vitality base of the spinal cord sacral plexus of nerves and spleen orange safety apathy um but yeah it goes in to talk about the importance of aligning your chakras in um childbirth as well and I also took that that Reiki childbirth that's why I missed out on your guys's cool hike in the woods um and that talked all about the importance of aligning your chakras and aligning your body as well and yeah I could I could spend episodes and episodes talking about this and meditation is a part of life and should be throughout all the stages of life 100 yeah I mean there's women that do um
00:53:26
Speaker
hypnobabies and hypnobirthing. So there is a difference, but both of them ultimately utilize meditation and manifestation and affirmations.
00:53:41
Speaker
Okay, nice. And really like getting motivated and keep you on task. Yeah, very cool. That's awesome. you Another thing Yeah, I know. Thank you for honestly, for providing I mean, it's such a magical thing to so if you're a witch and you're having a baby do something with your placenta included in your magical workings. I've been I think I am going to do this. When I start doing my own placental encapsulation right now I'm doing it through an agency. I kind of follow what they would prefer but
00:54:17
Speaker
when I start doing the encapsulation and prints and stuff on my own. Excuse me, I'm getting a little stuffy. I, as a candle maker, see a very open opportunity to be able to help with placental rituals. The book talks a lot about where where people would bury their placentas. They would plant a fruit tree in that area and how that they would were able to watch that fruit tree thrive. And then again, you know, be benefiting from the energy of the placenta by harvesting the fruit and enjoying the fruit.
Symbolism of Harvest Moon and Mabon
00:54:51
Speaker
Yeah, but being able to like do a ritual during your burial of the placenta as you're returning it to earth and including a candle that has different herbs that relates to different things as well. I definitely want to do that and provide that. Amazing. Yeah, if you need photography services during that time to record that and document that. Love that. How about you girl?
00:55:18
Speaker
And i so in regards to what's happening with the world and astrologically By the time this particular podcast episode will come out It's gonna be right around the corner from the full moon, which will be like hopefully September 17th. Well, no, the full moon is gonna be September 17th, hopefully. This is the 17th and 18th, I believe. Yeah, yeah. And I was actually looking into that full moon because that's like the full harvest moon. Yeah, it is. And then it's also called about something about like horn. It's a super moon, as well. Full moon, the full moon. And like Heather said, a super moon. So that means that it's closest on that
00:55:58
Speaker
orbital access, you know, because it's not like a perfect circle. um So in September is usually a supermoon. So yeah, it'll be the second one of four that they're gonna be this year. Yeah, there's a second one of four that we'll have. So yeah, it's gonna be nice. um Do understand that. Let's see, I did look up some information on it because it was really interesting to me.
00:56:21
Speaker
Now there's no for rising near sunset or setting near sunrise providing extended hours of bright moonlight. This was historically used for farmers gathering their produce. The moon may also have a distinct four-inch tint. So that's nice if you're looking to do some spell work.
00:56:40
Speaker
or some cool photography. Maybe some orange color, yeah, things, if you're looking, depending on your intention. But it's going to be orange. I saw that this would be a good time if you're doing any full moon rituals to rest and also reflect on the past year and how you've grown as a person from last autumn to now. Oh, nice. Nice.
00:57:10
Speaker
how affect all of the seasons, thinking of the planting, the growing, the nurturing, and then now we're harvesting. And like you're looking back at it, you're looking to see that growth, you're looking to see what things weren't, what things didn't work, putting yourself in perspective, doing and that with yourself. You know, and then it's absolutely
00:57:39
Speaker
And it's the time also to just start setting up for the upcoming season as well. Starting to get things stuff for the quote unquote dark times or the hibernation times, whatever. times Depending on where you are in the world is right now. Yeah, we are in the Northern Hemisphere. Depending on where you are in the world.
00:58:01
Speaker
I do have some notes on that. It does say that the harvest moon symbolizes hum hope and abundance. they would Farmers would work tirelessly during the day and then continue their labor under the light of the moon, maximizing their harvest before winter's arrival. So this full moon served as a reminder of the interconnectedness between humans and nature.
00:58:20
Speaker
Highlighting the cyclical nature of life and the importance of honoring the earth's bounty and that I will put Everything that I read off of like this you each earth side do I will put it down in the in the description Below the podcast, but this is from the local mystic comm which is it's got really cool little articles about information like that. So So that was really cool. And yeah again because we are about to hit winter. We're about to go dormant We're about to really you know, see it well the end of the cycle. Yeah. Um, so we're looking back, we're really reflecting on what's happened and how we've grown and stuff like that. And now for your plants and stuff for around this time, it's going to be your black eyed Susan's and your golden rods, which both of them have healing properties as well as like nurturing and soothing as well. Cause if you think about it, working your hands and stuff, if you're putting that literal sense in it, ah golden rod's gonna help that through that skin.
00:59:19
Speaker
um and these scrapes, things like that, making little tinctures, poems, all that good stuff. Delicious. Yeah. Tinctures are good for you. I went and found, I have the Lou Ellens, which is date book from back in 2021 that I found on my shelf. And I use this to kind of read up on the full moons every once in a while and remind myself They have, this is by Blake Octavian Blair. It's talking about another name for this moon being the vine, moon, vine, V-I-N-E. The month of vine brings us well into harvest season and the time of Maybone, which we'll talk about in a moment as well.
00:59:56
Speaker
in the Wheel of the Year. The Vine Moon is about harvest and abundance, so common theme there. It is time to celebrate both the gifts the Earth brings us as well as those things we are harvesting from the hard work we've accomplished in our lives.
01:00:11
Speaker
No matter how simple, we all have something to be thankful for. Vine also is associated with and often refers to grapes. I know my grapevine is going crazy out there. Yay! And blackberries. Grapevines are especially known for growing in any direction. They are presented the opportunity to using the resources available for support.
01:00:31
Speaker
Perhaps our potential is not unlike that of the grape. And we can learn a lesson from the grape to use our available support network during our efforts for growth. This harvest time, pour yourself a chalice of wine or sparkling grape juice in honor of the grape and the vine moon. Step into the moonlight and speak a toast and gratitude for all you have to harvest and all the support that was available to you along the way. And I thought that was quite beautiful.
01:00:59
Speaker
That's beautiful. I love it. Thank you so much for sharing that. That's amazing. And yeah, so that'll be the 17th of September and then the 22nd. Like you said, it'll be the week, the week right after Mabon takes place. Yeah. And I found some information on that. This is from Mabonhouse.co.
01:01:18
Speaker
It's the last celebration of Wheel of the Year, making the autumn equinox celebrated each year around September 21st. It's a time when the day and night are perfectly balanced as the years shift from the warmth of summer to the cooler embrace of autumn. It invites us to reflect on balance, gratitude, and the abundance of the harvest.
01:01:36
Speaker
So for those following a nature-based spiritual path, Mabon is the meaningful time to connect with the cycles of nature and other the fruits of our labor. So again, the whole theme again Even Maimon, even the full moon that's so close to it, it's all about reflecting, looking back, really rejoicing the fruits of your labor, what you have accomplished so far. and So I don't tend to i don't tend to celebrate um the season,
01:02:10
Speaker
what do they call? Um, the season changes, I guess. Oh, the pagan holidays. The pagan, the pagan. so but Yeah, that's sad. thing i Thank you. Um, I don't, like, I don't look up. Okay. What do I have to do for each individual one? Although I asked him some recipes and Heather, I'm sure you've seen tons of recipes that are just amazing to make.
01:02:33
Speaker
in those holidays and that would be something fun I would like to try but I don't observe it like going in to my to my altar and like sitting down on my altar and I don't do anything special for them I just acknowledge them and I go okay so you know if there's any magic I want to perform I probably would get ready for it but there's nothing ever that I go oh my gosh every year I have to celebrate yeah and yeah I think I felt like I had to when I was just starting out and learning and then it just like dawned on me like this is not an organized religion this is not an un organized religion like this is my own practice and like as someone that grew up and ah in a religious cult I mean it's like a constant thing of like trying to rewire my brain right and yeah I feel like I've done I've done an amazing job but it still gets you sometimes we're like it's like oh the guilt hits of oh I didn't do anything for the Sabbath but
01:03:29
Speaker
I didn't have to, and I don't have to feel guilty about that. But if it's something that you are into, it can know I think as a kitchen witch, it can be really fun to cook different things at different times for those reasons. If that's something you're into, herbs that are associated, and how do you mabo maven however you pronounce it?
01:03:52
Speaker
I'm not sure. um Hazel corn, aspen, acorns, oak springs, autumn leaves, wheat stalks, cypress, cones, pine cones, harvest gleaning. So those are things that you can either um like decorate your house with or decorate your altar with.
01:04:08
Speaker
um Symbols for this are grains, corn, apples, pomegranates, pinecones, acorns, and ivy. Wine made from seasonal produce. I know that cherry wine is a really big deal in Door County, especially this time of year. And as fall approaches, a lot of people will travel up to Door County specifically. Places in squish-tion? Dis-squish-tion? I don't know. There is cherry wine, so it's made a little bit different then.
01:04:34
Speaker
oh um Symbols, because this is a time of balance, it's the autumn equinox. um Symbols, black and white, the yin-yang symbol, scales, the blackbird, owl, and the eagle. And then if you're looking to decorate your altar, you can decorate it in reds, orange, browns, and gold. You can bring in acorns, thistles, ferns, grains, honeysuckle, merry gold you're talking about.
01:04:59
Speaker
People who do that are just like me. A candle or like a pumpkin lantern. I mean, obviously next month, October is a little bit more pumpkin-y, right? Yeah, I like oranges. And then there's also this apple ritual that I've done before that I kind of wanted to share.
01:05:18
Speaker
Um, because apples are, it's a big time for, you know, apple all apple pies are the best man. So there's this really nice ritual. Um,
01:05:32
Speaker
for for me bone okay so your supplies you have your altar your candle and apple okay uh candle must be unused apple must be locally glu grown okay when i say must i don't necessarily mean must right it's your own practice this is just a suggestion yeah but you can go to the store and pick up an apple that's okay So you are to first light your harvest candle, face the altar, and hold the apple in both hands. Close your eyes and concentrate on the apple and say something along these lines. Apple, symbol of healing and love. I know you are a gift from those above. At the time of Maybone, you are so dear. I give thanks for you as a symbol of this time of year.
01:06:22
Speaker
earth air water spirit and apple has a five-pointed star hidden within it. I give thanks to the god and goddess. I give thanks to the fertile the soil and the land they bless. I give thanks for this apple and all that it could be. Love, healing, fertility, or health.
01:06:40
Speaker
It can bring to me, may the next turn of the wheel ring true renewal and rebirth as the wheel turns and life comes back anew." So I think even in my practice, this is is coming directly from my Book of Shadows, but this was written a long time ago.
01:06:56
Speaker
And I think my practice has grown to a place where I'm not really focused on like the god or the goddess. I'm more focused on the universe as a whole. i have a very And, and like earth. And i I see earth as a very feminine thing. yeah So where I think my language, you know, would change a little bit since I wrote this.
01:07:17
Speaker
So obviously you can make it your own. And then you're just thinking about being grateful for the food you're receiving, honoring the universe. And then you place the apple on your altar and blow out the candles. And then the next day, take the apple and place it somewhere outside in nature as an offering back to the earth.
01:07:38
Speaker
absolutely and you know i think it has to be said that even though i personally don't do extend extenuance extenuance i don't offer rituals right i don't offer rituals right for necessarily for those occasions there there's something to be said about actually going celebrating the flow of the cycle like how it goes through and changing with it that when you get into the rhythm of it and you get into the flow of it it has to be very like very rewarding and fulfilling to go through those changes and be like, okay, now it's autumn. I got to change stuff on my altar and make it this way and make it this way. I mean, that is amazing. And that has to be refreshing, right? For you too, as you do it. It kind of refreshes your altar, refreshes you, kind of keeps you in the cycle, keeps you in the flow of nature and the flow of
Seasonal Challenges and Remedies
01:08:31
Speaker
the seasons.
01:08:31
Speaker
And when I know one else ah is when my altar has been ignored, and when my altar is not ignored, then I know I feel like I'm healthy mentally. Yeah, yeah, physical aspect of it too. So I don't celebrate the status like I don't do actual rituals, I could i could not write a book of shadows to save my life. If I go downstairs in my bookshelf, I probably have 20 of them that have like one page written It's not something that I have because I go when I have the change of the season. It's more of checking in with myself pretty much on what everything means. Like, you know, I am now looking back at my growth and seeing where I need to adjust and stuff, getting things ready for, you know, the upcoming seasons or the upcoming dark times. Cause we know, especially in Wisconsin, all of us suffer from that seasonal depression, but you know, in some form and stuff like that.
01:09:30
Speaker
So taking that time and saying, okay, this is what I do in it. And I like following it with the seasons because it's just that physical reminder, right? Right. The physical reminder. And what's really neat too, is like during this time as well, foods such as mugwort are really used to help enhance those foods. You can use mugwort for, you know, any of your astral, projectile or special type of needs.
01:09:56
Speaker
a Please, if you don't know on how to use it, please talk to somebody about it um before going and diving in and making sure that you know what you're, yeah um, any type of play notes with any type of, um, you know, is used for that self reflection for that exploration of yourself. And a lot of people kind of miss that sometimes because you use it to enhance your dreams or to help you get to sleep, to get that dream.
01:10:27
Speaker
But if you think about it, that's your subconscious talking to you. And you're looking more into that. So there's that self reflection and everything like that. I love other that you shared about the apple. Because that's, um, if I do a physical practice thing, I'll times of years I do it with fruits. So summertime, I'll do it with a citrus, fall time, I'll do it with some type of fall as well. I do pomegranate into the winter.
01:10:56
Speaker
So I do pomegranate in winter. Around Samhain is when I bring pomegranate into play. Yeah, see i don't do yeah I do pomegranate in the winter. um But but like this time is like those squashes, those apples, ah those types of things. And then um winter is when I do like the pomegranate. Which makes sense.
01:11:25
Speaker
kind of interesting, it's kind of interesting. I like that. So I like um that you shared that with us. Thank you. First, when I have some stuff I can share too. and Yeah. Yeah, you can definitely. I like having the ritual of the Sabbats or Sabbats, but but I'm also lazy and tired and don't always keep up with them. So that's okay. Like I do that as well. Like I cannot like have law and order when it comes. I can't have somebody tell me what to do it, let alone telling me how to practice my belief. There's a little bit of a rebellion part of it. I can't do that. um So I'll do my own things and it could be just me walking somewhere and then all of a sudden
01:12:21
Speaker
I grabbed something, maybe I write something on something, maybe I light something on fire, like, burnett I don't know, it's just in that moment. um So it can wait every year. This time of year, something I consistently do and have stuck to is right before school starts, end of the summer, around the autumn equinox. And I have this planned actually for tomorrow, I'll be doing this, is making garlic honey to prepare for cold and flu season. Firesider is something that's also, this is a time to get started on that, to prepare for the long winter, especially here in Wisconsin.
01:13:00
Speaker
So, as a kitchen witch, I think those are the things that I do more consistently, cooking certain things at different times of the year, usually to promote health for my family. I do that as well, yeah. Like I'll start getting elderberries and stuff like that. There's actually an elderberry bush that's over by the pool area, down there by the river, so I'm trying to figure out how to get down there.
01:13:24
Speaker
but so i can heaven I have enough in my in my yard in my bush and stuff. But like, this is just a little bit more for I would love to go on this exploration with you, especially considering how often we are at the pool. Yeah, it's literally like it's right when you're going over that walk bridge, like right before the pool. And I'll see you, you're on the right hand side, you look down, it's right there on the left.
01:13:49
Speaker
Um, there's a grapevine that's growing kind of over it, but the problem is it's, it I'm like, Oh, I could just get in there from the river, but it's all marshy. And it's a tall, tall, elderberry tree. Like it's big. And so I'm like, Oh my God. I'm like, Josh looked at me and he goes,
01:14:06
Speaker
Yeah, I'll hold your hand or your ankles so you can go down there. That's on the bridge. It's right there. like like I can look at them and go, oh my god. I can literally, like if somebody just hold my ankles, I can just start getting them because it's so tall. It's like so big. but yeah there's a So getting stuff to make elderberry syrup and things. um I have some garlic honey already going.
01:14:35
Speaker
So I'll have that, some but same thing with like the fire cider. I also start prepping all of my sabs and stuff like that. So I start getting all of that stuff because I'll have a newer um hemp and and things like that start making some oils.
Cultural Traditions and Puerto Rico
01:14:52
Speaker
That's cool.
01:14:53
Speaker
because the Tainos never they celebrate the change but we never we never really had very much of a change in Puerto Rico except for like hurricane season oh man and and ah you know and like rains and stuff like that nothing much about snow or you know So, um, so I haven't really researched all of the things that they believe that the season changes, but that would be a good topic. Well, they're on the, they're on the opposite side of the, the, aren't they, they're in the Southern hemisphere. Yes. Am I correct on that? think so yeah Yeah. They're in the equator. So they're not quite in the Southern hemisphere.
01:15:30
Speaker
No, not quite. No, they're right in the middle. Yeah. So they're the same as Costa Rica or the same as, for example, the other side of the world, Bali's the same line in the same way. That would be. Yeah, that would be interesting to see what like the difference. Yeah. Great. Yeah.
01:15:50
Speaker
How they acknowledge it is why it's another reason why I was like I didn't grow up ever, you know Celebrating the changes like that because what do we go everything look this? Yeah, yeah, yeah pretty much it got a little chilly during the winter season ah winter loosely But it was like in the mountains it go down to like 62 gorgeous like and you'd have to wear like a nice little sweater you know to keep you toasty but we did do a lot of rituals in themselves of celebrating that particular change um that was that's when we get like super musical we're very musical folk and we would set would like
01:16:32
Speaker
hit other people's place at like 3 a.m and wake them up with music and be like okay we're here to eat all your food it's close to christmas don't you love us give us all your food we're singing to you okay bye we gotta go to the next house are you coming you coming okay let's go and then they would take you to the next house whoever they else they wanted to wake up at three o'clock in the morning so interesting traditions like that so those are fun but But yeah, I would like eventually to talk more about the traditions of like, I guess, of the island living and how I grew up um in some of these topics that we discuss. It was really cool to talk about the Wisconsin magic folklore stuff because I also want to know where I live, you know, and it's really cool. Like some of the stories that are here in Moscow are just, I mean,
01:17:23
Speaker
It's the coolest date, mom. Yup. It's pretty gnarly. Yup. I will say. I don't like the drinking culture. That's the only thing that I am like, no, thank you. But other than that, pretty phenomenal place to live. So it'd be it'll be nice in the future if I could kind of introduce some of the um of the things that we used to do, or I used to do, I guess, as a child growing up in the middle of the jungle down in the tropics. I'd love to hear that.
01:17:51
Speaker
yeah know it's cool yeah let's recall Okay, well, thank you everybody for joining us again on this wonderful episode yes thank you yeah wonderful we have a great time um Again this one's gonna be dropping in September so keep an eye out for that um we're we're doing really well and getting these out and hopefully at a say hopefully with with much hope at a decent time time frame for you guys but i think i like the way they're going they're going really well very naturally organically happy fifth episode yay thank you so much for being with us we appreciate you and we'll see you on the next one
01:18:35
Speaker
yeah
01:18:42
Speaker
Thank you so much for joining us today, and we'll hope that you'll join us next time. Remember that these are actually dropping once a month, so stay tuned on our social media channels for the date of the next drop. We hope you tune in next time to continue living life deliciously through magic. Bye!