Heddy M. Johannesen's Blog, page 14

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Broomsticks & Cauldrons

Merry meet all,

I have ceased my studies at the Temple of Witchcraft. I quit. I suppose one can argue that its not professional here to  post this but it’s my blog. I will write the truth. Yes I quit. Small wonder.

At first, I was so excited. I thought what a great opportunity to deepen my craft. I bought the textbook which I read ahead of time, the cd companion, a blank journal and even made a beautiful purple pencil case for the course. I studied and read and tried the exercises. I read ahead and enjoyed the book.

I met my mentor online. I thought everything was going fine. Then at the beginning of my second month, it started going downhill slowly. The TA, my mentor and even Christopher Penczak started bitching at me about my posting on the related Yahoo group page. Excuse me. I hadn’t at…

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Ancestral supper on Samhain

Broomsticks & Cauldrons

Merry meet all,

I enjoyed a magical evening last night. I celebrated Samhain beautifully with 3 amazing people and Spirit. I invited Stefan Loki Jordan, my Mom and Geoffrey (surprise guest) over for dinner. I previously baked black lentil soup, a frosted chocolate cake, pumpkin bread, pumpkin gingerbread, barmbrack bread, roasted pumpkin seeds and Halloween cookies. I decorated the table. I set the meals in nice dishes. I put out my photo of my beloved but not forgotten late grandfather on the table. I used wine glasses and set a place at the table for Spirit. I showed Mom how an ancestral supper is done. We ate in thoughtful silence. Rarely do I ever entertain so many people and so well. After that, we did tea leaves readings all for each other. We shared memories and partook of the barm brack bread ( fortune telling). I played the ancestral…

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10 Ways to Celebrate the Ancient Holiday of Samhain (AKA Halloween)

Popularly celebrated as Halloween, October 31st is the pagan holiday of Samhain (pronounced SOW-un). In addition to its role as a harvest festival, this is traditionally seen as a time when the vei…

Source: 10 Ways to Celebrate the Ancient Holiday of Samhain (AKA Halloween)

Recipes for Samhain

Merry meet all,

As Samhain draws ever near, we start preparing for the most famous night of the year. Here are some recipes to help you on your way to celebrating October 31st. The ingredients can be found in your kitchen or thrift store.

I found a stunning cauldron at an antique store. The cauldron was fired in a forge. I shall dedicate it on Samhain eve.

INCENSE

Sage, salt, mugwort, sandalwood, sunflower seeds, rosemary, rue, pumpkin seeds, cedar, mandrake, juniper, oak leaves, acorns, almond, and cinnamon. You can mix these together and empower them in a bowl. Burn this mix on hot charcoal.

CIDER

Empty one whole jug of cider in a stainless steel pot. Add 1 apple cut into small chunks, 1 cinnamon stick, 1 whole orange sliced and a pinch of nutmeg. The trick to this is to let it steep so the fruit absorbs the decadent flavor.

CANDLES*

If you make your own candles, consider adding pumpkin spice essential oil for a tangy zippy scent.

PUMPKINS

Pumpkins are not just for soups. Add the notorious pureed fruit (that you pureed in your own kitchen, right?) to gingerbread, cookies, breads and pies. Save the seeds for roasting. Mmmmmm Or paint your pumpkin teal green to show you support people with food allergies! Compost your pumpkins in your garden to add nutrients to the soil.

BREADS

Gingerbread Gingerbread was my late grandfather’s favorite recipe. I baked a loaf with a seasonal twist. Here is a recipe.

1/2 cup of white sugar
1/2 cup butter
1 egg
1 cup molasses
2 1/2 cups flour
1/2 tsp baking soda
1 tsp cinnamon
1 tsp ginger
1/2 tsp clove
1/2 tsp salt
1 cup hot water
* Optional: pumpkin puree

In a large bowl, cream together the sugar and butter. Beat in the egg and molasses mixture. Use an electric mixer. In another bowl, sift together the flour and spices. Blend into the creamed mixture. Stir in the hot water. Add the pumpkin puree and beat it all with the electric mixer well. Pour into the prepared pan. Bake at 350 degrees for one hour in the oven. Allow to cool.

POTPOURRI

Sage, salt, mugwort, sandalwood, sunflower seeds, rosemary, rue, pumpkin seeds, cedar, mandrake, juniper, oak leaves, acorns, almond, and cinnamon.Chinese lanterns miniature pumpkins and gourds add a decorative element. Mix together in an attractive dish. Store covered. Add essential oils and blend well. Open the jar to release the spicy autumnal scent.

I hope you enjoy these recipes. I wish you many Samhain blessings.

Lady Spiderwitch )O(

 

Links of Interest:

https://creators.co/@benjaminallen/4136368

 

 

Halloween Haunts: Honoring the Dead by Heddy Johannesen

During Samhain, practice divination with the dead. The veil between the world of the living and the dead is thin. The dead like to be remembered.

Source: Halloween Haunts: Honoring the Dead by Heddy Johannesen

HWA Halloween Haunts Blog Event- Honoring the Dead

Merry meet all,

The Horror Writers Association Halloween Haunts continues its spooky trail of blog posts. Today my blog post is posted to show readers how to honor the dead. Here is the link: http://horror.org/halloween-haunts-honoring-dead-heddy-johhanesen/ I hope you enjoy reading all about it.

Samhain is coming! Are all of you excited? I am. I walked on the nature trail this morning. I heard bird songs, admired the fiery colored leaves and the brilliant blue sky. The early walk charges me with energy for the day. I was shocked at how cold it was so I didn’t walk too far. The walk will wake you up more than coffee, esp with the frost coming.

For those who want to read my blog post here, I have posted it now.

HWA Halloween Haunts 2016

Honoring the Dead

 Samhain is a time to honor those who are still in spirit. During Samhain, practice divination with the dead. The veil between the world of the living and the dead is thin. The dead like to be remembered. They continue to care about you after death. Perform prayers and leave offerings to show your devotion. Offerings could be something they loved in life such as a particular song, favorite aftershave or a rose. It tells them you remember them as they were in life and that they are loved. To honor those who have passed before you, keep a photo of them on your altar or in another special spot.

It’s not wrong to communicate with your dearly departed. It demonstrates a deep respect to honor your loved ones in this way. Seek their help in getting a job, the love of your life or prosperity. Remember to thank them for their assistance. Ask for something worthy of their time. Bear in mind they are at peace. Show you respect them by remembering they are deceased. Don’t ask for something menial like if you are going to win the lottery or when a person will call.

To communicate with them, light a white taper or votive candle and meditate. Talk to them either mentally or out loud. Think about what they loved in life and who they were. Regularly pray to them to maintain a relationship with them. Continue to be respectful and you will never be harmed. If you focus exclusively on those you love, you won’t attract any negative energies or spirits. Concentrate on the highest good as you call on your beloved deceased.

On Samhain eve, light a candle and set it at the window to guide the lost spirits. Be careful where you set the candle to avoid a fire. Watch for any auspicious signs as you continue to honor the dead. Enjoy the magic of the Samhain season.

Link of interest:

http://kron4.com/2016/10/09/new-room-found-at-winchester-mystery-house-in-san-jose/

Blessings, Lady Spiderwitch )O(

Shields of Psychic Defense

Merry meet all,

The Halloween Haunts is underway. I am so excited about this awesome spooky blog promotion event. I’m happy to announce that I won in the Horror Writers Association Cookbook Contest! I placed as a Fiendish Finalist. I guess they liked my spooky cookies recipe. 

PSYCHIC PROTECTION

October is the most ideal time to contact the dead. That said, you can if  you aren’t careful, attract the wrong spirits toward you. That is why it is important to shield yourself. A seance is fun until you realize you can’t get rid of the spirit or worse, a darker spirit. There is nothing glamorous about this. It is vitally important to be careful.

When you prepare to contact spirits or want to shield your home or what have you, sit down and meditate first. Meditation clears your mind and prepares you for the work ahead. Imagine a shield around you. A white shield or a deep blue shield will work. Imagine that it is unbreakable and strong. Believe that this shield will defend you from all harm and be for your highest good.

Once you have centered and grounded yourself, then you are prepared to begin spirit work. But never try to till you have completed the above steps. Then you are more prepared to defend your home from nasty unwelcome spirits. I remember the time I saw a what I call a Shadow Person in my home. It was only for a second but it was frightening. I thought I had shields around my home. See why I talk about the importance of shields?

SAGE TEA

I steeped sage tea in a teapot and let it to sit for a few days. Under the eye of the moon, I poured the sage tea  in a circle around the entire property outside the apartment building. Its a house broken into apartments. But that is another way of building a defensive shield. Sprinkle sat on your windowsills and doors. Smudge your home every full moon. Crystals can be programmed to shield your  home.

Continue to meditate regularly. October can be a fun month to enjoy if you know how to shield yourself and your home. I will post more here about psychic defense in future posts.

Blessed Be, Lady Spiderwitch )O(

October’s Enchantments.

Merry meet all,

I have started my studies with the W1 2016 Temple of Witchcraft year one course. I’m getting excited. I have the course syllabus, my first lesson, and two notebooks for journaling. I’ve created a file folder on my desktop for files, which is filling up, and a special section in my email for emails from the staff at the Temple of Witchcraft. I’ve read the entire book The Inner Temple of Witchcraft, which I need to reread for my memory’s sake, and I even sewed myself a pencil case. I have to printout the pages because  I read better that way. I bought a witchy pen and a purple scented highlighter. I am ready to go!

I have also finished my besom! This morning I had the pleasure of spraying the gold colored straw a beautiful wickedly cool purple color. I love the way it looks. See the picture above. It’s amazing that a piece of driftwood from the beach, twine, a disassembled broom, and a nail could make a broom as cool as my Faeryn but it did. Yes the broom has an elfin name- Faeryn. I added the bead talisman after I painted it. 

The other good news is that the Horror Writers Association launches the Halloween Haunts blog event for 2016 starting tomorrow! I am all excited for this event. I love October. It is a love song, a morbid poem, a forbidden fruit. It is all that and more. Much more. I shall promote the event more here as time goes on. My post is on October 11th. Stay tuned for more posts on this!

In other good news, the Black Moon shines in the skies tonight. I did a cleansing ritual then I performed my intention ritual for the Temple of Witchcraft. Tonight is the second new moon of the month. The energy is strong tonight and I am enjoying it. I’m munching on roasted pumpkin seeds. Mmmm!! Next to me, my familiar Penny the cat snuggles us and snoozes. She is so cute. I am seated in a different chair because I wouldn’t dream of disturbing her. It should be my chair but I think that’s up for debate.

Blessings to all, Lady Spiderwitch )O(

Psychic Protection 101

Merry meet all,

In Halifax where I live, there’s a famous restaurant I really like. The reason why its famous is because it is apparently supposed to be haunted. The employees have experienced unusual occurrences there. I dined at the restaurant myself and was sure it was haunted. Certain parts of the restaurant seemed more haunted than others. The energy in the wine cellar buzzed. The private dining room was full of ghosts. I felt the ghosts’ presences as I ascended the steps to the second floor.

I’ve wanted to create a psychic protection booklet for some time now. Then it occurred to me that I could write it here. That is a great idea-and a great way for me to get my thoughts in order.

So now the next focus of my future blog posts will be about that. People  need to know more about this. I googled so many of peoples experiences with the paranormal and have noticed they had one thing in common. There wasn’t enough psychic protection knowledge or awareness. Granted, not all of the occurrences may have been true. Yet I know that if more awareness of this is made, people will have happier lives. Quite often, it can be a case of a person’s imagination run wild or a dream. Even dreams can affect how you see the world.

How can a person be expected to protect themselves or have awareness if you don’t know anything about psychic protection. I have been there and experienced odd things when I had no knowledge of what to do. How I wished I did. Now several years later, I have learned a great deal. I still haven’t mastered it but I have come a long way.

I want to help people know more about psychic protection, including how to protect yourself from negative people, how to overcome negativity, and how to protect yourself from negative encounters with spirits/ ghosts. etc.

Shall keep you posted

Blessings, Lady Spiderwitch )O(

Halloween Haunts 2016

Merry meet all,

From October 1 through to October 31 the Horror Writers Association is hosting an online event to celebrate the season of Halloween and help connect horror writers with horror readers. Most HWA members will participate in this eerie blog event. The blog posts, giveaways and book excerpts will be posted. This also helps raise the profile of the HWA, and gives the members the much needed exposure for their writing.

The blog event was a big success last year and they hope to make it a success again this year. If you want to contribute to the blog, and you are an active fearless member, you can send a blog post here and find the specific submission guidelines here: https://horrorwritersassociation.submittable.com/submit/64037. You can read past posts here on this web address: (http://horror.org/2015/10/).

I enjoy the blog event Halloween Haunts. I participated last year and I was quite proud to. I wrote about performing an ancestral supper and this year I wrote about honoring our beloved dead with a small photo and candle. I honor Samhain in October and like that I can write about Samhain to show readers the wonder of the thousand year old traditional Sabbat.

I encourage you all to see what the Halloween Haunts blog event is all about in October. I shall be promoting the event here on my blog and my other social media outlets. There is also an events page for Halloween Haunts at this address: https://www.facebook.com/events/547494652114305/. Celebrate thirty one days of Halloween blog events, excerpts and book giveaways from some of today’s best horror writers (yes, me too). Updates on the event will be posted on the event page on Faecbook regularly.

Enjoy some frightful reads during the magical month of October! Pen your own horror stories. You never know, you may be the next Mary Shelley!!!

Blessed Be, Lady Spiderwitch )O(