Earthing/ No Gloves in the Garden

  As a child I was always barefoot, and about a quarter of the time dirty from head to foot. As I grew into adulthood the amount of time lessened, as did the amount of time I spent barefoot. Studies are showing Earthing to be beneficial in many ways, from reducing inflammation to aiding in cardiovascular health. While those are great reasons to get outside barefoot, let's talk about the connection to Mother Earth, and how this small act can help you along the crooked path of Paganism. 

We have all probably heard of grounding, but many may not know what it means or how to do this.  By simply standing on the Earth with nothing between you and Her you are forging a connection. Your energy is intertwined with Her energy effortlessly, but to make a bigger impact try focusing on a give and take happening. I like to use colors for this. What comes out of me can be any color I am feeling at the time, usually blues or reds, if I am unsure of why I need to ground I use brown. What color comes back to me is the usually the color I feel I am lacking and when unsure it is green. These colors are JUST colors I use to help me visualize and really have no bearing on what energies are actually coming or going. The Earth knows from your energy and vibrations what you need to have more or less of visualization just helps with you releasing that energy, as many of us are taught to bottle the or guard our energies. 

 How does this Earthing stuff have anything to do with homesteading you may be wondering right about now. Consider this, the more time we spend with our feet on the ground the more grounded we should be right? As homesteaders we our hands are literally IN the Earth, holding mounds of dirt letting it sift through our fingers, exchanging energies. As Pagan homesteaders we are adding our energies and intentions into the Earth we are working. At times it can be willing a cucumber to grow, at other times it can be working out a hard situation with our hands and sweat. We always leave our marks on our little plots of land so try hard to make it a good one. 

 * Gifts for Gia-- after each session of leaving negative energy for the Earth to transform into positive energy leave a gift. This can be as small as adding eggshells to your garden for the calcium or working your compost area. Any act that gives something back to the Earth counts. In my own practice I leave areas of my land untouched completely. No matter the size of land I am living on I do not cut, trim, or plant, on that section leaving it completely wild and untouched by human hands. I also give offerings often but by not willing the Earth to be what I want it to be in that section I am honoring Her. 

~ Moon~ 

The Back Story

   Growing up we didn't call this way of life homesteading; we called it survival. We grew a huge garden, had chickens, goats, cows, and hunted. With grocery stores miles away and most everyone being poor there was nothing trendy about it. We canned everything, had a root cellar, and we made do. 

   After transplanting to North Carolina, it was a culture shock, one I wasn't prepared for. I was in elementary school, but it was so huge the change was not missed on me. Grocery stores were everywhere, and very few had a garden. While getting takeout used to be for the rarest of occasions, here there were at least 5 restaurants within walking distance. I lived that blissfully ignorant life for around 15 years. 

  My husband and I bought our first real house in 1997, this was around the time I discovered that green peppers didn't taste like they used to. So, I bought a couple pepper plants on clearance and planted them in the corner of our tiny city lot. My poor husband thought I was crazy until I picked our first green pepper and made him taste it right there in the back yard. If you've never tasted a pepper straight from the plant, warm from the sun, they taste crisper, brighter, and have this tang to them that no store bought one can ever have! 

    Fast forward to some years later, we had lost my mama, we'd lost our home to a fire, times were tight, and we'd found ourselves on food stamps. One morning while filling out the paperwork for our renewal for assistance I said to my husband, " I don't want to do this anymore.". Now you should know, when we lost our house, we used the insurance money to buy a double wide on an acre of land.  Not long after The Witch's Way Homestead was created, and the rest is not yet history!  

   ** It's not too late to taste a homegrown pepper, warmed by the sun, and grown by your own hands and intentions! Even if you only have a tiny yard in the city, or a pot on an apartment balcony! Pepper plants not only thrive in pots they can grow for a couple years if brought inside over the winter! They like the sun and need to stay moist but not drenched.  Pro-tip: save your seeds from the peppers you buy at the grocery store by laying them out to dry on a piece of paper then plant at the appropriate for your area. After that save your seeds from your own homegrown ones the same way! 

Introduction: It's Nice to Meet you!

     Ever since I was a small child, I always felt the Magick in flowers and plants. One of my first memories of my grandmother involves the morning glories, she allowed to grow up her porch rails. She used to tell me not to touch them, they were poisonous. I loved them so much I would still touch them from time to time. Forever the rebel, she says as she drinks watered down iced coffee, wrapped in a plush Hello Kitty blanket!

*I know this is a rose, but I don't have a picture of a morning glory*

   Years later as an adult I was tasked with finding my Magickal name ( it's hard to believe that was at least 15 years ago now), the memory of those flowers and her warning came rushing back to me. I knew I could never be a morning glory, rising with the sun sounds like a torture sentence to me and not at all Magickal. I come alive around 4pm, though I do start my day long before then. The moon calls to me like Moana and the ocean, it gives me clarity and strength, unlike the sun which wilts me quickly. After many days of struggle and study, MoonFlower was born. 

  I wear many hats around here, I am Nan, Mom, wife, the Witch of the homestead all wrapped in one Magickal Being. I've been a Witch for over 25 years and a homesteader for around 15 years. After I began homesteading did, I realize the great connection between the two parts of me. So come on over I'll make up some tea, have a seat on one of the cushions I've made, and hopefully learn you a bit about working with Mother Earth, to bring you closer to the Divine within yourself as well as around you. 

-As Above, So Below-

Why Buy the Cow When You Can Get the Milk for Free...

         A few months ago, I decided I would start the journey into authorhood. I was going to write a book about what I know, being a witch and homesteading. I began writing, happy with each word ready for the next. As I wrote, I thought of others reading my words, sitting in their pj's, with a warm cup of tea, soaking up my good vibes on paper. It was exciting to say the least. After a few chapters I put the thoughts to the side as I jumped into kidding season with both feet. 

 It's funny when things slowed a bit and I was ready to resume writing I didn't like the idea so much. That isn't right it wasn't the idea I didn't like it was the fact that I didn't want others to have to pay for the information. I remember starting out all those years ago, we were broke, there was no money for a book I may have wanted no matter how helpful it could have been. Let's be honest here the odds of a library picking up a witchy homesteading book by an unknown author are very slim. To say my genre is niche is an understatement. While I am more than okay with that, I still want others to who may be interested to have the opportunity to read my words. 

  That brings me to my announcement! I will be using this forum for my 'book'. Yes, blog posts a book does not make but it's free (for me and you) and accessible to those who look! I am super exciting with this change of direction! Excited to share our world with those who come along! All are welcome here, there is a way to ask questions or get clarification if needed, I love that it feels more personal, and we're saving trees. All of these are wins in my book! 

  I am so hopeful others find us here, please feel free to share with your friends as we embark on this together! Love and Light yall!!