I nearly fell off the treadmill.
I've been feeling tiny waves of strength and life returning into different parts of my brain and body, a bit like the tiniest sense of sap beginning to rise, though we are in record breaking cold, snow piled to the rooftops, generational storms raging.
And I feel somehow tied to those forces, don't you? Like they are an accurate reflection of our fury.
Sap, Storms, Bodies
In our Weavers coven we are drawing on that power — the ice hag, the Cailleach, tuning to Elen of the Ways — as we approach Brigid's day, Imbolc.
I dunno but it's all accumulating in me, moving.
So I found myself on a treadmill. I joined the municipal pool which has a small gym. I swim. I walk fast and watch the snow heap down. I am post-chemically induced menopause, osteopenic, gotta strengthen these old bones.
And something small happened, not important, except I saw a pattern into me, old as DNA. And in a weird flash of perspective, the way an aphorism you've heard a million times can suddenly hit you in the solar plexus and become a life-changing insight, I felt a surge of power and it seemed a spark for the winter I could pass along like ancient people carrying embers in hoof polypore.
I was listening to some joyful cheesy pop, and I could suddenly hear the pathways my brain was taking me down, trying to justify to an unseen jury why I liked what I liked. Trying to be enough, but getting smaller and smaller.
Meanwhile I treadmill-danced and the music lifted me and then I heard it, louder than I ever have before:
you just need to let the soft animal of your body love what it loves.
Mary Oliver again. And I laughed out loud. My unseen jury made up of imaginary and cruel ghost is fed by my belief in them, and I don't need to feed them anymore.
I don't need to tell anyone, or write ten thousand words to justify myself, or walk on my knees for miles, or ask permission.
I can keep what I love a secret that warms my heart — the fire the Brigid's priestesses kept for a thousand years — a secret reverence.
I can let whatever I love feed me, fuel my work. Let things that delight me make me bigger, more powerful. Worship at my own weird secret altars.
The internal jury in that moment was dispersed in a cloud of catchy pop and sweat and out-loud cackling to myself in a small northern gym.
Shedding, Fire, Power
In our coven, for Imbolc, we are feeling into the shedding, the coming transition from a snake year to a fucking fire horse, piling heavy old layers on and then releasing them in a shared ritual of private self-adoration.
And let's be fucking clear: we tend our fires of love and strength and power to fuel us for the work that continues to resist the chokeholds of kyriarchy, of white-supremacist, misogynist, ableist, anti-trans fascism, to come to our communities resourced for the work ahead.
Our internal shame, our cruel juries screaming not enough, the small ways we diminish ourselves in the subtle pathways of our brains don't actually support the revolution. It doesn't feel like much, but it's the fire at the heart of everything.
Love what you love. Declare your inner world sacred ground. Remember what Edgar Fabián Frías told us: Witches are self-ordained. No one needs to give you permission, not even the voices in your own head.
We tend our fires to come to our communities resourced for the work ahead.
Ancestral Memory / Brigid’s Cross
At this time of year, we make Brigid's crosses, drawn from the story of a saint with the name of an ancient goddess who tended a dying pagan king, pulling up the rushes that grew from the ground where he lay to weave a cross.
But this cross isn't the shape of the crucifix. It's balanced between four directions, and it's woven in the circle of light, left to right.
We can imagine it as a symbol of land practices — the root of the word pagan — earth spirals, old ways, magic promising to be kept, hidden in plain sight, in the heart of the Christian symbol.
And so the king dies at peace. Christian history remembers it as a moment of conversion, but if we want to, we can imagine a wave of secret power passed between the goddess and the pagan king. A woven promise of remembering.
Keeping the Fire
We can keep our magic twisted and braided at our hearts.
Notice the way the sun sets a few moments later each day.
Feel into the elemental strength of the storms that rage.
Tend our secret joy.
Know our power.
Be self-ordained.
It doesn't happen often, but when you can dissolve old structures of power and self-shaming, delight it in, let it wash over you — but this is heady stuff, so stay rooted in the present moment too.
Don't fall off the treadmill.
Coven Offerings
Connection and Care: A Circle Invitation
Some seasons leave us feeling pulled in too many directions, craving space to slow down and feel steady again. Orienting towards connection and care - in our relationships with others and with ourselves – can help bring us back to center.
This winter trauma-informed somatic healing practitioner and embodiment mentor Lise Lønsmann is gathering two small circles of women who are longing for deeper conversations in softer spaces. The circles are gentle, guided, intentional spaces where you can be gently held and supported by a warm circle of
women.
The two online circles are:
A Sharing and Witnessing Circle: A gentle space to slow down, speak from the heart, and practice deep listening. A circle for women longing for an anchoring practice of connection and presence. A place to gently return to yourself, while in the supportive company of others.
An Embodied Leadership Circle: A grounded space to explore your leadership from the inside out, using your body and nervous system as guides. A circle for women holding a leadership in many forms: leading a team, an organization, a project, a community – or as a visionary, trailblazer, or change maker. We tune into pace, boundaries, aliveness, and what it means to lead without leaving oneself behind.
The circles begin February 4th and 5th.
As a special offer to the Missing Witches community, you get 10 % off a circle using the discount code 10offMW. You also receive a complimentary somatic session with Lise as a gift, when joining a circle.
You can learn more and join a circle here on Lise’s website.
If you are longing for a gentle space that centers connection and care, these circles offer a steady place to explore that.
Coven Invitations
Barbara Mor’s Death Anniversary
Hosted by bat Shachar
📅 Saturday, January 24
⏰ 8:00–9:00 PM EST
A gathering in honour of Barbara Mor, primary author of The Great Cosmic Mother. We’ll share stories, reflections, questions, and memories of how her work affected, inspired, and shaped us. bat Shachar will bring stories and prompts to open the circle.
🔗 https://coven.missingwitches.com/c/new-moon-circles/barbara-mor-s-death-anniversary
Tarot Collage: The Fool & The Magician
Hosted by Alina
📅 Sunday, January 25
⏰ 2:30–4:00 PM EST
A creative, conversational tarot gathering exploring The Fool and The Magician. We’ll discuss symbolism, pop culture and musical resonances, share decks, and create personal tarot collages using any materials you like (or just imagination). Each session includes an optional reading, always welcome to remain private. This is the beginning of a potential year-long Major Arcana journey.
🔗 https://coven.missingwitches.com/c/new-moon-circles/tarot-collage
MW Coven Book Circle: Disabled Witchcraft by Kandi Zeller
Hosted by Jasmin (she/they)
📅 Sunday, January 25
⏰ 6:00–7:00 PM Atlantic (5:00–6:00 PM EST)
A book circle centred in access, care, and shared reflection. We’ll discuss Disabled Witchcraft: 90 Rituals for Limited-Spoon Practitioners.
🎥 This event will be recorded.
🔗 https://coven.missingwitches.com/c/new-moon-circles/mw-coven-book-circle-disabled-witchcraft-by-kandi-zeller
IMBOLC: Shedding & Remembering
Hosted by Risa
A ritual marking the first hints of returning light. We’ll honour Brigid, work with the shedding time, say goodbye to the Year of the Snake, and awaken the coming Fire Horse.
🔗 https://coven.missingwitches.com/c/new-moon-circles/imbolc-shedding-rising
🌑 Warp & Weft: A Weavers’ Circle 🌑
Hosted by Risa
📅 Friday, January 30
⏰ 12:00–1:00 PM EST
A live, unrecorded circle for new and long-standing Weavers alike. Bring a small object for the shared altar and arrive with an ask and an offer. What’s shared stays in the weave.
🔗 https://coven.missingwitches.com/c/weavers-circles/warp-weft-a-weavers-circle
The weather is wild out there, systems based on disruption of the Earth's balance are reaping what's been sown. Stay close to your loved ones, tend to your neighbours, and don't forget to keep your own wild flame alive. You'll need it on the other side.
BFB,
R+A
PS. If you are able, here are some coven-vouched for ways to provide direct monetary support for the many families who are being affected by ICE operations in Minnesota, via the brilliant Gaelynn Lea: Funds are a much needed thing right now, so that local residents can continue to provide support. If you live outside of the Minneapolis area (or if you can’t volunteer for other reasons), please consider donating:
Temple Israel’s Immigration Justice Fund, are having a positive, direct impact in their community. They are partnering with a local elementary school to collect funds that directly support affected families. 100% of these donations are going to services like grocery delivery, emergency rent and utility assistance, as well as legal and medical assistance. Be sure to select “Immigration Justice Fund” on the donation page.
- Temple Israel Immigration Justice Fund: https://congregationconnect.tfaforms.net/392471#/
Other friends throughout Minnesota who are currently connected to groups helping affected families have recommended these organizations.
- MN Immigrant Rights Action Committee: https://www.miracmn.com
- UNIDOS: https://unidos-mn.org
- Arrive Ministries: https://arriveministries.org
