WYCKSTED BLOG

The Homestead in which Wycksted works from is an old home, my home that is made from many recycled timbers and parts. Timber materials, windows and doors in some of the rooms are over 100 years old and come from a variety of areas in New Zealand each with their own  design and energy creating a hotchpotch and a rather unique house. 

For over a third of a century this has been home to Witches, Heathens and Pagans alike. Births, life and death of loved ones, family and familiars have featured and many a ghost and spirit left to wander the land and frequent the home.

After the hot and muggy nights and days of February, March is a welcome month indeed. The start of the cooler evenings and mornings, the sound of the cicadas louder than ever and the trees constantly changing are a delight to behold. 

It has been awhile since I last posted a blog, time came and went and although I shall not go into it all now, it has been several months of chaos, madness, a friend passed away, myself a broken rib where I got run over by a sheep and another of our beloved cats passed away as well and the feeling of wanting to run away and join the circus and then realising I was already there. I am sure many of you know the feeling.

August is usually when I hibernate and take time away from the world as much as possible but having said that, I do not head for a cave and sleep throughout although the thought is very tempting.

Well July started off with a hiss and a roar only to turn into a sneezy fizzle as I received a bout of some kind of flu that proceeded to turn me into an icicle and I felt like I was frozen through my core. Many blankets, hot fires, steam baths and lots of good soup and brews I soon restored my heat source and was able to venture outdoors without several jumpers and blankets. Not fun!

It’s cold but I cannot really complain as I remember sitting in the middle of summer longing for the cold and wintery days of now. So without further ado, one must make the most of this brilliant season and all it has to offer. Fortunately firewood has been done, cut, packed and stored away like the good little squirrels we were last autumn.

I love the cold misty mornings that are now upon us and visits from Jack Frost as he leaves his magickal ice print on the lands wherever he goes. It always gives me that feeling of deep magick and mystery as the trees and back fields are covered with a swirling mist and out of it shall come a band of ancient warriors or a flock of Fae as they step through their realms and venture into ours… 

Yes it's time to throw out the old year of 2023 and bring in 2024 and although many Witches start their new year with Samhain or the Winter Solstice, this is a time when we change our calendars and also acknowledge some of the superstitions that any new year can bring. But as far as Numerology goes what does 2024 have in store for us?

There is an amazing place in Idaho, USA that we in New Zealand love and support and it is called the Idaho Black Bear Rehabilitation or IBBR. This is a place where a team of people work tirelessly to help bears in need, bears that are unwell and need medical help, they may have become lost, cubs separated from their mothers for various reasons or have been orphaned due to the mother or father being hurt or killed. or bears that are simply trying to find their way home.

Throughout my life we have always had cats and mainly black cats. As I write even now one sits above my desk on his specially widened window sill so he can watch me while I work, guarding and guiding me and ensuring I have a break when his need arises for a snack or two. Another lazes contently on the mat below me and a third is sunning himself outside no doubt dreaming of endless bowls of food, sunny days and moonlit nights.

 It's the month of July and the Wolf Moon is within our skies. A time to get outside in the bleak of winter and honour this ancient energy of the Wolf and when the Moon is in its full, don't forget the primeval howl of the wild.

How many of us enjoy housework? I know there are many out there who simply adore housework and all its connotations, but as a Leo (and I am not speaking for all Leo’s) I feel that delegation is the best way to go however there is only so much work that the Brownies and Hobgoblins can do, so I find myself having to join in and share the workload with them.