20th Anniversary as a Witch Author
I stayed in the broom closet throughout my public relations career in Orange County, California, because when I dared to let my true self out, I lost clients, accounts, and colleagues.
When attending chic work events, I parked far away, so that people getting out of their luxury cars wouldn’t see my unconventional bumper stickers or the bug-splattered windshield from my latest road trip.
Steeped in strong family ties, I would not taint the reputation of my aunt who stood at the pinnacle of the “The OC” hospitality industry. I hid my Magick, my faith, myself.
I believe most of my colleagues thought I was just a kooky Patchouli-wearing hippie. They didn’t know that I was a published author of eight books. They didn’t know I was a Witch.
One cannot live a life that is untrue to their nature and be happy.
When the time came to follow my bliss, I moved to the mountains where I could howl at the moon, hug the trees, throw pottery, and write about a dirt-worshipping kind of life.
This year, on October 5, 2020, my first book, The Wicca Cookbook: Recipes, Ritual and Lore will have its 20th anniversary.
Do you know how difficult it is to maintain interest for an ostracized, concealed religion for two decades? What do Witches cook that is different? SyFy Channel invited me to host my own cooking show called The Cauldron in 2001. While cooking, I explained that the word Witch originates from the word “wise” and “spell” literarily means to cast your word. I asked my audience; do you believe your word has power? Do you believe setting your intentions will yield results? Do you believe when you cook, your mood is an ingredient?
I do.
Two weeks after the filming, the catastrophic 9-11 event happened and our country circled the wagons around the conservative Christian Coalition. Yet, I continued to give talks and be available for Witchlings who needed guidance to find the Magick within. I buried the seeds of earth-spirituality deep in the soil and soul of their psyche and then I entered the corporate world.
Unbeknownst to me, struggling with the constraints of office life, I helped to clear the path for the new Witches just as my foremothers cleared the path for women’s rights and made it easier for me. In the past decade, the number of people who are gathering crystals and herbs, attending Moon Circles, burning candles, and making magick has grown exponentially. I have just published my ninth book, The Book of Spells: The Magick of Witchcraft.
And now, in these uncertain times, many of us have realized we cannot take anything for granted. We need nature and the fresh air of salt or pine or desert winds. We look hopefully to each turning of the seasons for what gifts they may bring. We are cooking more with fruits from our own gardens. We are pagans again, children of the earth.
While we seasoned Witches poked at the ashes, a little Witch in all of us has Awakened.
