THE WITCHES' CORNER Embrace & Savor the Journey

WRITTEN BY: LADY SHAY BYGUL

Savoring - taking time to savor moments & victories. It's difficult, especially when times are rough. I've had to choose between paying for diapers or groceries. I've had to beg a landlord not to evict me. I've had figure out how to keep my lights from getting shut off.

Those are the times when it's so hard to find a speck of joy, but those are the most important times to find joy, in the nooks and crevices of your life.

This is what helps to keep your Magick alive. It fuels your soul. It helps you keep on

Embrace and savor your moments. Because you are a Magickal delight, full of power, energy, and sparkles. Even on your darkest days, never forget that your Magick is within you, not found outside of you.

P.S. If you are enjoying this magazine, would you consider buying a "coffee"? It's just $3, but it would help a lot and be very much appreciated. https://ko-fi.com/ladyshay

Love Spells Are Trash

by Faerie Godsmother

To be clear, I am not talking about manifesting love. Manifesting love is doing a spell, prayer, chant, or ritual that brings love to you. It is not about a specific person. It is about bringing someone to you who would love you and choose to be with you When manifesting love, you are allowing love to be drawn to you. You are not binding a person to you against their will. I will do manifestation spells all day long. As awesome as it would be to have Jason Momoa doting on me, I would never want to have him be with me if he wasn't into it. Manifestation spells are awesome! Love Spells are trash! Let me explain.

Over the years I’ve had many conversations with my mother about love. She and my father have been together since they were teenagers, so I figure she knows the secret of long-lasting love. They got together in high school. The way it happened is unclear, as the story changes depending on who you ask. It’s not clear as to whether my dad introduced himself to my mom by knocking a guy out for being rude to her, or whether he saw her from across the ‘soda fountain,’ and just had to talk to her. Either way, they’ve

been stuck like glue ever since But how?

When asked how to make love last, my mom often answers by saying, “Love is a choice. It’s a choice that we make every day, and sometimes several times a day.” She says that every day she wakes up and makes the decision to love my dad and vice versa. She also says that some days are more difficult than others to make that choice as she and my dad are both human and therefore fallible. I mean who goes on a 1st date and thinks, “Wow, I just cannot wait to hear this person snore in my ear every night and argue with them over whose turn it is to wash the dishes.”

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Love Spells Are Trash

by Faerie Godsmother (continued)

No one In the beginning, it’s all about figuring out the other person and seeing if you even like them. It’s about having fun on dates and enjoying the best side of the person before you get to see all of the annoying little habits that they have and showing them yours. Those of you that think you don’t have any annoying habits, you’re either in denial or you need to do a serious inventory of yourself. We all have annoying habits. Period. Anyone that chooses to love us, is choosing to accept those habits. I am also convinced that we all have our own brands of crazy.

Mine is my incessant need to always be doing something. Even while I’m trying to relax. I relax by watching TV and crocheting. I cannot… I repeat… CANNOT… sit and do nothing That is my crazy Oh, and my need to leave the house early to go everywhere John, my partner in love, life, and business, has a totally different brand of crazy. For him, it’s random nihilistic thoughts that flow ever so gracefully from the giant pit of destruction he has deemed to be his soul. These thoughts often come out first thing in the morning or just before bed. We choose to accept each other while (*ahem*) encouraging each other. Sometimes this encouragement is often wrapped up like nagging, but I digress.

Since love is a choice, it depends on free will. Free will is incredibly important to me. I will never do a love spell for a client because of my deep seeded belief in Free Will. When you do a love spell on someone you are essentially taking away their right and ability to choose to be with you. You’re tricking them into being with you. Who would want that? Besides, that wouldn’t be love. That would be obsession. No thanks!

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Love Spells Are Trash

by Faerie Godsmother (continued)

I would never want to be with someone that I had to trick into being with me I want my partner to be with me because they genuinely love me and want to be with me. I would constantly be wondering if they would profess their love to me if I had not made them drink that tea, or whatever the “love spell,” required. It would eat at me. And if they didn’t really love me, then am I preventing the both of us from finding someone that’s better suited? Perhaps being with me is making us both miss an opportunity for real love.

Also, doesn’t taking away someone’s Free Will go against the tenet of, ‘harm none, do as thou wilt?’ This is a tenet that many types of Paganism use, but it’s most famous for being a Wiccan tenet. What’s truly bizarre to me is that I find love spells all over the place Often times they’re listed directly under the tenets on websites or in the very next chapter of books on witchcraft. I’m pretty sure caging someone’s heart is harmful. It’s possessive and toxic. Again. No thanks.

Am I perfect? Abso-freaking-lutely not. Is my partner perfect? Oh Hell no. But, we did choose each other a few years ago, and every day, we still choose each other. We choose each other, even when he’s snoring and I toss and turn and nearly hurl him right off the bed. We choose each other even when my yarn ends up in his hair. We choose each other even when he’s running late. We are always choosing each other. We choose each other, even when the car breaks down, we are stuck at home and don’t have much money. We choose each other as partners in love and business because there is no one that we would rather travel with along this bumpy road called, “Life.” We choose each other because we get each other's eccentricities and there is no one better to handle our specific brands of crazy

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Love Spells Are Trash

by Faerie Godsmother (continued)

Had I done a “love spell,” on him a few years ago when we first started talking, I would never trust that he really loves me. I would never trust that he was making decisions based on what he really wanted vs what he thought I wanted. I am glad that he and I choose each other every day He is the most creative, handsome, stubborn, intelligent, musical, tough, loyal S.O.B. I’ve ever met in my life, and my heart melts every time he says, “I love you.” Every time he says it, I know that he means it because he has made the choice to do so, and that melts my cold black little heart.

Happy Anniversary Handsome.