Hedge Witch

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I Stopped Meditating

I stopped meditating for a few months.

Sometimes, when everything in your life just seems so much bigger than before, we can often set aside the so-called smaller things in order to focus and cope with the larger things.

But here’s the thing: it’s the small things that add up over time, which help us to deal with the big stuff.

From December until now, in mid-March 2026, my daily routine and ritual consisted of a short prayer to my goddess, and occasional walks when I had the time out on the heath. Over the winter holidays, when I was travelling, even this fell by the wayside until I returned home. Daily meditations went out the window because I thought I just didn’t have the time.

What I forgot was this one essential truth: we can always make time for the things that really matter in our lives.

It was the end of February, and after a long, hard day editing my latest book, Lovers and Lies (Witches of the New Forest, Book 5, coming out in April), I went upstairs to sit at the window in my disused meditation space. This seat offers me a wonderful view of the back garden and beyond, down the little valley that leads to the stream at the end of the lane that eventually flows out to the sea. My mind was a mess of worry, busy thoughts, and more.

And then I put them all down for ten brief seconds.

I watched the pine trees swaying in the breeze, and heard the blackbird singing in the evening light. And for those ten seconds, seeing the natural world just outside my window, just being, doing its own thing, I left all my mental baggage and enjoyed a moment of just existing, quietly, in that very moment.

It brought tears of relief to my eyes.

It is so difficult to describe that feeling in words. It was like I was carrying heavy luggage around in my mind and body, and I had simply set it down and taken a long, steadying breath.

And I then realised that I didn’t want to pick up those heavy bags again.

On and off, when I could, at the end of each working day, I went upstairs to look out that window and reconnect for a few minutes. Sometimes I was successful. Most of the time I was not. And then I knew that I had to do more. I had to reinstate my daily meditation practice.

And so I am. For fifteen minutes a day, to begin with, I am going to just sit and release all the thoughts that are whirring around in my brain. I want to feel that beautiful release of setting down that baggage and instead walking through life with just my carry-on. Light, easy to carry and easy to set down, this is how I want to move through the world again. We can lose sight so quickly of what really matters to us. There are so many distractions, so many so-called refuges that are anything but. For me, I know what works. And that is sitting quietly, observing all my crazy whirlwind thoughts, and then letting them go, one by one, as I set down my baggage for the day and walk into the world slightly less mentally encumbered.

Just as whenever I fly back to Canada to visit my family, I only ever take carry-on luggage. Easy to move, small and lightweight, no extra expenses. No worries about lost luggage, no waiting in the luggage area after a flight, I can just walk out of the airport and get on with my holiday. This is how I plan to move through life. It’s only the essentials that matter.

I’d like to thank that pine tree and blackbird, who reminded me of what it is that I needed to focus on in my life right now, when I had lost my way.

And I will meditate and give myself the time to remember this valuable lesson.

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More Peace and Less the Joy of Viciousness

Being a bit of a hermit living out on the far eastern edges of England and not engaging all that much online in favour of working with the land and the local people around me, I miss a lot of the intensity, drama, and other goings-on in the Pagan/Witchcraft/Heathen/Druid community. The online community is but one of many communities in which people can gather, and yet for the last decade or two seems to have taken prominence over others. Whether this is a good thing or not I am not going to judge. What I will comment on in this blog post, however, is the validity of one’s own practice, religion, or path in light of the divisiveness that communities can create, which in today’s day and age the loudest seems to be the online community.

This is nothing new. Communities are where people gather, and where people gather there will always be shit-talking. People are people. They are wonderful and loving, they are kind and compassionate, they are cruel and mean, and they are stirrers and troublemakers. There’s nothing you can really do about other people, online or off, and the only real changes you can make are to your own life, letting that be an example for others.

In a magical community, there are extra forces at work, different powers at play, and yet at the heart of it all is simple humanity. There is good and bad in the world, there are good and bad people and everything in between. We all have actions, deeds, or thoughts we regret, as well as beautiful acts of generosity and love. What we need to remember, and indeed foster, is something that I heard Maxine Sanders say in an interview with the Museum of Witchcraft back in December 2017.

She stated that we need more peace and less of the joy of viciousness in our lives. That there is nothing worse that sanctimosity without the holy. These phrases have really struck a chord with me, and make me think of what so many people tell me about the online community today, and what little I have myself experienced over the last twenty years. Before we had the internet these things still occurred, and as I have already stated, people are people. But the far-reaching abundance and ease with which sanctimosity and viciousness can occur online behind a screen of anonymity is something totally new to humanity, and is indeed changing the way that we humans think and behave in the world at large. And it is something that does indeed frighten me.

The main point that I am trying to reach in a rather circumventuous (yes, I just made that word up and I like it) route is that I feel there is a real need to concern yourself less with what others are doing in their own spiritual practice/Craft/religion and to focus on your own work more. It is far easier to belittle, attack or comment on other people’s work than to take a good, hard look at your own. Looking outwards is usually always simpler than looking inwards. But understanding your own self will help you to better understand others far quicker than focusing outwards all the time, in my opinion.

I wrote a blog post at the end of last year about what your life is like when no one is watching, and I feel that ties in neatly with what I am trying to say here. Concern yourself less with what other people think, and take the time to really know and understand what it is that you think, feel, and should work towards. In a magical life and practice, this will certainly be different for every individual, based on their life circumstances such as upbringing, environment, culture and society, economic stability and a whole host of things that fit within Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs (although needs don’t necessarily form a hierarchy). If each person’s practice is unique according to each person’s life experience, then how on earth can anyone tell another that they are doing it wrong? Is this not an ego and control issue, rather than trying to further the Craft/spirituality/religion?

Let’s take Maxine’s advice to heart. Let us find the holy in our own lives, without being sanctimonious about it. Let’s leave off the joy of viciousness in favour of more peace in our own lives. Let’s focus on ourselves and our own practice, and stop comparing them and our lives to others’ on the internet or in the real life community, because we are not getting the full picture in either situation. We can be inspired by those whose words and actions lift us up, and open up new pathways of being, for sure. But living a life of comparison is an empty one.

Live your life, and work your magic as it best works for you.

Because that’s all that you really can do.

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Feel the magic…

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The Season of the Witch

The winds have changed, and the season of autumn leaves, cold nights and dew-filled, frosty mornings is upon us. Finally! After the heat of this summer, I am more than ready to don my jumpers and jeans, get on my hiking boots and head out onto the heath and in the forest without worrying about whether I’ve got enough water, sunscreen, overheating, etc. It’s time to explore!

Not that I’ve got much time myself, sigh. With Smugglers and Secrets, Book 4 of my Witches of the New Forest fiction series coming out at the end of this month, it’s all hands-on deck to get everything ready for the launch date of October 31st. In hindsight, I probably should have picked a date a few days before, but with the ghostly theme of the book, and in my own excitement about sharing Ryder’s story, I chose Samhain, Hallowe’en. So now I’ve got a book launch, and a big festival to celebrate all in one day.

I shall be in bed for the rest of that weekend. Don’t call me.

After a short week in North Wales, I returned home to find that the deer rut had begun. It is always an exciting time here on the heath and in the forest. Hearing the calls of the bucks in the growing twilight and in the full dark always gets my blood pumping. Any spare moments I can get (which will be few this month) I will be out there with my camera, as always. I already got my special boy, Aelfric, who walked right up and asked to have his photos taken. So, I did!

I’m so sad to have had to pull out of Witchfest International this year, due to medical appointments, and especially now that I’ve heard it’s the LAST EVER Witchfest International. I’ve noticed over the last five or six year the numbers of people attending have been declining rapidly, which is such a shame. But nothing lasts forever and so I urge you, if you are able, to check out this wonderful gathering with talks, workshops, stalls, and music in the evening. They even have a lovely new venue for this one, which means that the safety and security of all from any protestors will be ensured. The previous venue’s location meant that protesters to any and all Pagans could picket almost right outside the door. Well, not for this venue! So go, be your best Pagan self, and join the community in a celebration of a wonderful thing.

It’s the season of the Witch, after all!

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September Full Moon and Eclipse Magick

September and October are my favourite months of the year. Nature is winding down, the slant of afternoon sunlight is more golden, and the smell of fallen leaves drifts through the air. This September has started with rain, finally, here in the East of England. We still need much more rain, even though storms have come and gone almost every day this week. Our rivers, streams, and reservoirs are still low, and we hope that this autumn and winter they will be replenished, as last year they hadn’t been filled over the colder months as they should have been. The heat and dry weather over the last six months have taken their toll on the trees, grasses, and wildlife in the area.

And so, I welcome the rain, and the coming autumn months. I seek respite from the harsh sun, from the heat and humidity. I long for the cool breezes, for jumpers and jeans, for cold nights and the scent of woodsmoke from the cottages around me.

The full moon on Sunday, 7 September reflects this feeling. Here in Britain, the full moon will rise in a full eclipse, something which will be spectacular to see, if the skies are clear on the horizon. I hope to watch it rise from the North Sea, blood red and powerful during this harvest time. For me, this eclipsed moon and its deep red colour connects me to my ancestors and the hard work that they endured during harvest season. It is also a magickal moon, which connects me to the wise women and cunningmen of my ancestors, whose gifts have been passed down from generation to generation.

It is a moon also of manifestation: with the aid of the ancestors, allow the power of this lunar eclipse to manifest for you what it is that you have worked so hard for all year long, with the extra energy of not only the full moon’s magick, but the eclipse, blood-red energy of the ancestors who have got your back.

Attune to your power, and know that long lines of ancestors stand behind you. Those magickal people who have passed down their gifts in your bloodline will want you to succeed, to thrive. Use that energy during this moon, and be blessed.

P.S. Don’t forget, pre-order are now available on Amazon for Smugglers and Secrets, Book 4 of my fiction series, Witches of the New Forest 🙂

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June Already!?!

Is it June already???

Sorry I’ve been so quiet here on my blog site, but it’s been a crazy few months. The launch of the third book, The Witch’s Compass in my Witches of the New Forest fiction and paranormal romance series happened at the beginning of May. It went very well, and I am so thankful to everyone who has bought a copy and left a review, for this book and all the others in the series! The feedback has been amazing, and I’m so happy to create a world of magickal people, for magickal people 😊

On a sadder note, my sweet cat, Barnabus, passed away of old age just a few days later. He had already been winding down since January, and we had a feeling that it was coming. I prayed to my lady Freya that when his time came, that it would be quick and painless, and it certainly was. In the span of four days, he went from walking in the garden with me to his body shutting down completely. He died peacefully at home in my arms, loved and cherished for every single day that we had together. I am so blessed to have had this little guy in my life, and I will always, always love him. You and me forever, my little Bobo man.

Ever since that day, the neighbour’s cat from three doors down has been visiting and spending all day outside on our patio, giving us cuddles and snuggles in our period of adjustment. She has been a beautiful gift of love and comfort, and we are so happy to see her each and every day.

In the meantime, I have already begun Book 4, Smugglers and Secrets, and am over halfway through the writing process. This book comes from Ryder’s perspective, and is chock-full of adventure. I had  no idea how much would happen to her in a week, but so far it’s been crazy! There is so much that is unfurling as I write this book, that I’m sure it will be at least two, if not three books to fully tell her story. I might even have to have a word with the characters of the book, and tell them to slow it down a bit. But in all honesty, it’s not up to me – they are the ones who write the book for me! I’m just along for the ride 😉

Today we finally have rain, which is much needed. Here in the East of England we haven’t had a good rainfall for months now, and so a dark, dreary, wet day like today is a true blessing. The land is dry and cracked on the heath, my beech tree hasn’t got its large leaves, and everything is a bit stunted in growth except for the birch trees. The grass on the lawn has already been burned yellow by the sun, and our water butts have been dry for months. Thank you, global warming and climate change (yes, I am being sarcastic). Thank goodness we have mostly drought-resistant plants in the garden, living here on the edge of heathland, near to the sea.

And so I am quietly sitting here at my desk, writing away each and every day, doing marketing and promoting my work. It’s a nice life, where I am finally starting to make a living wage from my writing. It only took 11 years! But I am so enjoying writing fiction,;it really is where my passion has been since I was a young teenager, writing my first book.

I hope that wherever you are in the world, that you are enjoying the summer, or winter for my antipodean friends, and that nature’s blessing is upon you.

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Intuitively Wild Podcast

I was on the Intuitively Wild Podcast, and you can have a listen here!

https://embed.podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/healing-our-relationships-with-nature-technology/id1705090935?i=1000702830922

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How to Follow The Old Ways

I recently wrote an article for Llewellyn’s online journal, and it also serves as a little intro to my book that just came out last week! Here’s the link:

https://www.llewellyn.com/journal/article/3236

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The Aesthetics of Our Traditions

It had been a busy couple of weeks. I finally finished the manuscript for the third book in my new fiction series, Witches of the New Forest. I also had another book published with Llewellyn Worldwide released on Saturday, which quickly hit the top of the charts in its category. I was absolutely thrilled, but I also needed some downtime.

I went to my special reading/relaxation room (our spare room is a devoted, sacred space) and rearranged my altar. I do so every few weeks, to match both my mood and my needs, and what I see reflected around me in nature. After I had settled down, I meditated for a while just to reset myself and find my centre. And then I opened my eyes.

I was instantly struck by the beauty and wonder of my spiritual path, of my religion. There on my altar, the candles flickering, the statues of my deities gathered round, the plants, stones, and tools of my Craft were laid out before me. The aesthetics of its hit me like a ton of bricks. And it was then that I realized the huge importance of aesthetics in both Witchcraft and Druidry, and how it shouldn’t be dismissed so easily.

Because too often we can dismiss these things as superficiality. “It’s all just surface, and the real stuff, the real work is what matters most.” But right then and there, I got it.

I got it.

It was what drew me to Witchcraft and Druidry in the first place. The tools, the beauty of the natural world, the images of deity, the rocks, stones, and crystals collected on my journeys, the sight of a plant sprouting new leaves, the flicker of a candle flame, the scent of the oil burner, the music gently playing in the background: I understood the importance of these things on a visceral level.

Because we need beauty in our lives. We need joy, and wonder, and creativity. We need that which makes our hearts sing, in order to continue this journey through life.

Many of us in the Western world are still under the influence of Protestant Christianity. Buddhists have their temples and incense, Roman Catholics have their mass and cathedrals, First Nations peoples have their art and their ceremonies. But the austerity found in many sects of Protestantism has been passed down through generation upon generation here in Britian and also throughout North America. The churches are stripped down to bare essentials, the incense is gone, the choirs are absent. The beauty of the rituals is harder to see with the naked eye, and stripping away all of that, I believe, has led us towards a reunification and a deep longing to reconnect with beauty and aesthetics. Much as I adore the beauty and simplicity of the functional Shaker style, my heart still years for more. More ceremony, more ritual, more pageantry.

We can get just as much out of these things as we can in one to one communication with our deities, the spirits, the land, or whatever it is that we work with and have deep relationship. While my own tradition still favours simplicity in all things, I can still appreciate the robed rituals, the poetic words chanted under the full moon, the drift of the incense smoke on the wind. These are the things that first caught my eye when I was seeking a religious and spiritual path that resonated with my soul. These are the things that still draw me back, time and again.

We are visual creatures; we cannot deny that. We see in colour. We need to indulge in that sense sometimes, to make our hearts sing once again. We need to feel the rich textures, to taste the indulgent flavours, to hear the sweet music, to smell the scents that fill us with passion.

There is nothing wrong with enjoying a ritual simply because it was visually stunning. What our eyes see, also goes to our hearts. Those memories will carry us through hard times. They will bring us back when we’ve lost our way. They will connect us to like-minded people. The aesthetics of our Craft and our tradition are not just surface value: they are essential.

Does that mean that every ritual has to be filled with these things? Of course not. We do what we can, when we can, and however we can. But in our hearts, we carry the feeling of those beautiful rituals into every other ritual that we do, that sense of wonderment and enchantment when we were truly moved in a previous experience. Although not every ritual will have that same result, we still have that within us, and can still seek it out, in both ritual and in our lives.

It’s not shallow to love the aesthetics of our tradition. It’s a part of our heritage, and instead, we should celebrate it, in all its various forms.