Review: Shadow Seer Tarot - Dark Archetypes

Shadow work is an important part of spiritual development in many magical practices. It's about looking into aspects of ourselves that are unconscious or we shy away from because we don't like them. The Shadow Seer Tarot, by Maja D’Aoust, is a new deck of cards to help us do that. 

It uses the traditional tarot format, but with dark archetypes relating to the familiar cards. For example, when I was trying out it out I drew Forlorn, the Shadow Seer version of the Star. The book that comes with the set said that everyone likes to wish upon a star, and is happy when the hopeful major arcana card appears. The flip side is relying too much on false hope, then feeling despondent if it fails. It's better to recognise that we don't know for sure what will happen in the future. We can best work towards a good outcome by being realistic.

The reading came when my moods were oscillating because I was going through a time of uncertainty. The message was helpful. Also, it wasn't a particularly nasty card to draw. I reckon most people would feel more uncomfortable if, for example, they drew the Murderer (Death) or even the Spoiled Brat (6 of Cups). This deck doesn't condone criminal activity or bad behaviour. What it does is show us that these are still part of the human experience. 

Shadow work is about recognising that many of us might feel like we want to kill someone even if we never would, or behave in a selfish way without realising it. The messages are gentle reminders to consider our needs and desires. Rather than shove them back into our subconscious or, indeed, do something terrible, we can consciously take actions that are helpful for personal and social development.

This is what publisher Inner Traditions says on its website:

 “The Shadow Seer Tarot deck and guidebook give methods to see through the blind spots of ordinary tarot readings into the heart of what is often hidden. Using Hermetic principles, Maja D’Aoust defines oppositional energies as they relate to the cards of the tarot. With the alchemical method of reconciliation through opposition, she looks deeper into the familiar meanings of the Major and Minor Arcana to give readers insight into the shadow energies at work in their lives to reveal a path toward wholeness. By inverting the archetypes and revealing their shadow side, or “darchetypes,” Maja opens portals of understanding to the bad behaviors that we often attempt to conceal, repress, or deny.”

The artwork on the cards is white line drawings on a black background, emphasising hands, faces and eyes. These are important to human communication. Maja D’Aoust writes that the art was inspired by a visionary journey to the underworld and seeing the images of hands in ancient cave paintings. Our hands are a major part of how we identify as humans, and the physical way we manipulate the material world. 

While I like the artwork, and understand the symbolism, what impressed me most were the words in the book giving  definitions of the cards and suggestions on how to work with them. I'll be continuing to use the deck for personal guidance going forwards.

You can view the Shadow Seer Tarot on Amazon as well as on Inner Traditions' website, linked to above. It is officially published in May 2026, and is available for pre-order, but I was lucky enough to see a preview copy for review.

(Please note: I earn commission from some links)

Previous related posts
https://www.badwitch.co.uk/2015/03/friday-13-solar-eclipse-death-tower-and.html
https://www.badwitch.co.uk/2026/01/art-theatre-deli-tarot-supporting.html
https://www.badwitch.co.uk/2022/11/ithell-colquhouns-taro-at-college-of.html
https://www.badwitch.co.uk/2023/02/book-excerpt-nature-of-astrology-by.html
https://www.badwitch.co.uk/2023/07/book-extract-runes-and-astrology-by.html

Every Day Magic: Ways to Help Beat the January Blues

I don't know about you, but I've been suffering quite badly from the January blues this year. The grim weather and awful world news haven't helped, as well as the fact that my beloved cat Tommy died suddenly and unexpectedly earlier this month. He was my companion in magic and I miss him a lot.

Here's a suggestion from the book Every Day Magic - A Pagan Book of Days, published by Moon Books, with some ideas for helping cheer oneself up.

Beat the January Blues: Wrap up warm, get outside and go for a walk in nature or in your local park to make the most of the daylight – even if that is just in your lunch hour. Make a donation to charity, even a very small one. In the evening, light a candle and meditate on its bright flame. 

Cuddling cats has also been shown to help lift moods. Apparently the way they purr is soothing. I'm making an extra fuss of Tommy's sister, Tuppence, who is still with us and hopefully will be for many years to come. You can see her in the photo above.

You can view the book Every Day Magic: A Pagan Book of Days on Amazon .

Please note: I earn commission from some links.

Other previous related posts
http://www.badwitch.co.uk/2025/11/books-seven-year-anniversary-for-every.html
http://www.badwitch.co.uk/2022/10/spellcraft-making-what-you-desire-come.html
http://www.badwitch.co.uk/2020/06/community-book-every-day-magic-reaches.html
http://www.badwitch.co.uk/2025/11/magic-knot-spells-for-wishes-winds-and.html
http://www.badwitch.co.uk/2025/05/witchy-craft-i-knitted-lucky-black-cat.html

Magical Craft: My 2026 Wheel of the Year Vision Board

Once again I've made my annual vision board based on the Wheel of the Year and the seasons. You can see it in the photo above.

A vision board contains images or words that represent our goals, often used for help in manifesting the things we wish for. As a Pagan witch, I find it particularly inspiring to create one based on the Wheel of the Year. All you need is paper and pencils. Last year I hand drew a circle and divided into eight sections, but this year I used the pie chart function on Word and printed out a template for myself. 

Visualise the circle and the Wheel like a round clock, so 12 midnight equates to Winter Solstice. You can put that at the top. Summer Solstice goes at the bottom, to the right put Spring Equinox, at the left put Autumn Equinox. Imbolc goes between Winter Solstice and Spring Equinox; Beltane or May Day goes between that and Summer Solstice, Lammas after Summer Solstice, and finally Samhain after Autumn Equinox. You can also indicate the spokes of the wheel with dashes. 

Once you have the basic outline, start to write words or draw pictures inside it. Last year - 2025 - I used more words, but this year I drew more pictures and coloured it in. You really don't have to be a great artist!  I know my drawings are more like those of a child, but that's okay. We all have an inner child who can help us be creative. 

Start in the space just to the right of “Winter Solstice” inside the circle. Write words and phrases, or draw images, that are inspiring and feel in tune with the energy of the start of the year. As examples, I have "rest" because that's what I like to do in January. After Imbolc I drew a heart and wrote "love" because February is the month of Valentine's Day. Other words are "adventure" and later "look within".

Move around the vision board, writing words or drawing pictures that fit with your hopes and wishes for each time of year. Carry on round until your Wheel of the Year vision board is full of things that will inspire you to achieve all you desire.

There are more ideas for seasonal crafts and magic in my Pagan Portals title Rounding the Wheel of the Year which is published by Moon Books.

You can also view Rounding the Wheel of the Year on Amazon.

(Note: I earn commission from some links)

Previous related posts
http://www.badwitch.co.uk/2025/01/magical-craft-wheel-of-year-vision-board.html
http://www.badwitch.co.uk/2025/10/rounding-year-my-book-is-two-years-old.html
http://www.badwitch.co.uk/2025/04/rounding-year-trees-are-mostly-green.html
http://www.badwitch.co.uk/2025/02/rounding-year-spring-flowers-blossom.html

The Bad Witch's 10 New Year Resolutions for 2024

Here's my list of 10 new year resolutions for 2024. As I've mentioned before, I usually make a list of several goals for the year ahead rather than a single resolution. My new list includes some things I planned for previous years but didn't do, some I want to continue, and some new things.

1. The big thing for me this year is the publication of my first novel, Erosion, a Gothic tale of friendship, dreams and the edge of a cliff. It officially comes out in April, published by Moon Books. I've already organised a signing at Treadwell's on April 6th, but my top resolution is to launch the book with at least 6 other events including with talks, readings and signings. You can see the cover in the photo. 
2. Last year I blogged about seasonal or witchy crafting every month. I really enjoyed it and I'm planning to do the same this year. 
3. Another thing I started doing in 2023 was blog about green London, showing how the city has oodles of spaces with grass, trees, plants and wildlife. I plan to visit and blog about at least 6 more in 2024.
4. Every month I'm also going to visit other places in London that are blog-worthy.
5. Something I failed to do last year but want to do this year is a ley line walk.
6. I intend to visit a historic or sacred or witchcraft-related site outside London I've not been to before 
7. I didn't get to as many in-person esoteric events as I wanted to last year, so in 2024 I'm going to make an effort to get to at least 12 things and blog about them.
8. I'm continuing my interviews with pagan authors and aim to post another dozen or more
9. I'll also continue to do some form of divination for the world at least once a month and post about it.
10. Reading is probably my favourite pastime, so expect to see at least another 12 posts from me with my thoughts about magical books I've read.

Whatever your plans, I hope 2024 offers you all the opportunities you want. Happy New Year!

Other previous related posts
http://www.badwitch.co.uk/2023/01/the-bad-witchs-10-new-year-resolutions.html
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http://www.badwitch.co.uk/2023/12/resolutions-esoteric-explorations-from.html
http://www.badwitch.co.uk/2023/12/the-high-priestess-tarot-card-for.html

(Note: I earn commission from advertisers for some links.)

Book Extract: The Healed State by Christianne Wolff

Here's an extract from a new book The Healed State by Christianne Wolff, which is a guide to well-being. The whole book is about healing mind, body, soul, relationships and the environment. This section is on forces that heal.

Another reason why nature is just so good for us is because we share the same microbiome!

Microbiome is the home of a community of microorganisms which are fungi, bacteria and viruses and live in many environments around us including water, soil and the air. These microbes also live within us mainly within our skin, vagina and gastrointestinal tract. Our body is home to trillions of these microbial cells.

We ingest about a million microbes in every gram of food and what we eat directly impacts whether our gut microbiome thrives, survives or dies. 

Your microbiome within your gut controls the storage of fat and helps with breaking down toxins and absorbing nutrients. They also replenish the gut lining, skin and replace damage and dying cells.

They also fight the bad bacteria.

Junk food, alcohol, high fatty foods, sugar, antibiotics, stress, lack of sleep and illness all detrimentally affect the health of our microbiome.

Interestingly some of your good bacteria are affected by poor sleep because they have their own time for working, some when you are asleep and some when you are awake, and run on a regular clockwork. So people who do shift work, people with insomnia or people who travel a lot and get jet lag could be affected with the health of their  microbiome.

To help replace good bacteria and improve your micro biome you can take pro-biotics in tablet form- these are particularly useful after taking antibiotics which can kill both your good and bad bacteria. 

You can also consume pro-biotic foods which can help improve digestion, reduce depression, improve skin and promote heart health. These foods contain live bacteria that stay live when we eat them.

Good forms of pro-biotic foods are...

• Kefir
• Kombucha
• Sauerkraut
• Live yogurt
• Tempeh
• Kimchi
• Miso
• Pickles

Equally foods high in fibre (most plant based foods ), particularly foods high in polyphenol compounds, help to boost the health, diversity and vitality of your microbiome. 

Polyphenols and high fibre are food for your good bacteria, this is known as pre-biotic foods and the more varied your diet is in these foods the more varied the good bacteria, because different good bacteria like different polyphenols foods. The more varied your good bacteria, the healthier your gut.

The best foods for polyphenols are 

• Raw cacao powder
• Pomegranate
• Berries
• Flaxseed
• Almonds
• Olives
• Beans
• Spinach
• Red onion
• Herbs

So a very simple way of ensuring you feed your good bacteria daily, is having plants ( vegetables, fruit, herbs, beans, nuts ) and one food high in Polyphenol food at each sitting. 

Microbiome also lives within your home and with in your pets, going to other peoples houses and being around plants and pets gives your body a good variety to chose from.

The more diverse your microbiome the better the balance - we get this balance through a varied diet and being around different plants, people and pets.

Having a diverse microbiome also helps with your immunity, blood sugar levels and appetite.

Exercise can also improve your gut microbiome and exercising outside, even better!

The microbiome in soil is also closely related to the microbiome in your gut, and even just getting green fingers, allowing your hands to submerge into the soil has been proven to be healing for the body.

The Human Microbiome project is a huge study funded by the National Institute of Health from 2007 to 2016 and was instrumental in making a connection between the soil microbiome and the gut microbiome. The HMP discovered that  the soil and the gut contains a similar amount of active microorganisms. The health of our gut is not only about the fibre we eat but the soil those plants that contain the fibre were grown in.

Amazingly still there is also a connection between the human and ocean microbiome sharing 73% microbes. Half of the earths oxygen is produced by the microbiome of the ocean.

Christianne Wolff is an award-winning author with a passion for healing and mentoring. With over 30 years of experience, she has guided individuals worldwide through her healing retreats and online memberships.

You can find more about The Healed State here: http://thebodyrescueplan.com/healedstatebook/

Disclaimer: This is for information purposes only, it is not advice. Always seek a qualified medical professional if you are unwell.

Things That Make Me Happy - A January Challenge

To combat the January blues, at the start of the year I decided to photograph something that makes me feel happy every day for the entire month, then post the picture and a few words on Instagram. You can find me on Instagram as starzalucya. 

The way I decided to do it was, every day, recognise when I felt a spark of happiness and then photograph what prompted that, rather than just intellectually think of stuff that ought to make me happy. It's really helped me feel more up-beat in a month that has generally been pretty awful in terms of world news, as well as the fact that my central heating often fails to work despite two visits from a boiler engineer. There's also the general January nastiness of cold, grey weather. 

Few of the things i photographed are specifically witchy, because I'm an ordinary person who does ordinary stuff as well as being a witch. I enjoy reading classic crime novels as well as pagan books, for example. There's a confession! 

I thought I'd share my daily happiness words for the month so far, together with a few of the photos. There isn't room for all the photos on this post, but as I said earlier you can find them on Instagram if you want to have a look. At 4pm this afternoon, I'll be doing a Facebook Live talk on Magic for the Month: January, and sharing some other ways of making this time of year a little more magical and a little happier.

Things That Make Me Happy in January (so far)

Jan 1: The photo to the left shows my cat calendar for the month. I always enjoy turning over the page at the start of a month and seeing the new picture.

Jan 2: A special Christmas card. It arrived late, but it was a lovely surprise.

Jan 3: Enjoying the lights on my Yule tree in the evenings before Twelfth Night.

Jan 4: The Monsoon shawl my husband, John, bought me when we were on holiday in Sussex back in the before times. It is lovely and warm.

Jan 5: The mug that kicks my arse into working mode in the morning. 

Jan 6: The sun ⛅ coming out from behind the clouds on a January morning. You can see the photo I took at the top of this post.

Jan 7: Listening to classic rock on Spotify.

Jan 8: The Retelling of Old Tales by Andrew Guthrie, illustrated by Dronma. I got one of the very limited edition copies via Kickstarter, but isn't currently available outside that. It's a collection of Scottish tales from the repertoire of an old traditional storyteller, and I'm very happy to have a copy of this rare book.

Jan 9: John helping me do my accounts before the end of the tax year. Getting them finished makes me even more happy.

Jan 10: The new office chair. It's very comfortable.

Jan 11: Having a working lightbulb in my bedroom again after the old one broke a week ago. Bright lights help me overcome the January blues, and the bedroom had been pretty gloomy with just a table lamp.

Jan 12: The delivery of a fresh fruit box. Yum!

Jan 13: Reading the British Library Crime Classic Murder Underground. It's set in London, which makes me particularly happy.

Jan 14: My witch room. Tidied up the day before I give my Facebook live talk.

Jan 15: Well, I'm still to choose my happy picture for today, but Friday always makes me a little bit happy as it is the end of the working week.

We're half way through the month and I still haven't photographed my cats! I'm sure they'll make an appearance before the end of the month.

Witchy Wisdom: Practising Self Care as Winter Sets In

Late November can often be miserable, with cold weather settling in and the nights getting longer, as well as the worries and extra work brought about by the run-up to the festive season. This year will be worse than most with so much uncertainty and the probability that many of us won't get to visit our family at Yuletide. However, we can all engage in a bit of self-care to help us through the dark times.

Jane Mortimer wrote:

"I am trying hard to eat sensibly, drink lots of water and do a bit of exercise, though the weather's been too yucky for much walking and cycling. Yesterday I found myself thinking about Ganesh for no obvious reason, and I remembered I had a little brass Ganesh pendant that I bought in the 1970s and had never worn. I wondered where it might be, then it turned up in a box when I was looking for something else. I Googled Ganesh and found he is a deity for new beginnings and enterprises, so perhaps he was calling me. Anyone who's survived a head transplant is worth listening to! 

"The pendant's been Brasso'd and put on a chain and now it's polished I can see how beautiful it is. I think the fact that this happened on the day of the New Moon is significant too - a great time to start taking positive steps forward, however small. To this end, I am revisiting a book I bought early last year, the Witch's Book of Self Care, to add magick to the diet and exercise and stop it becoming a chore."

When it comes to practical and spiritual help for coping with hard times, I would also recommend the book Weathering the Storm, which I contributed to and is available for free in many places. Weathering the Storm was published earlier this year by Moon Books. It offers support to those who are isolated or vulnerable, and was written by the community of Moon Books authors and edited by Trevor Greenfield. We all offered our talents for free to try to help all who are dealing with difficult situations. 

Written in three parts, psychological, spiritual and practical, the ebook offers a range of articles, information, and inspiration. I wrote two chapters; a guided visualisation called 'Weathering the Storm', based on the book's title, and an essay entitled 'The Signs of Hope in Urban Nature'. The book has a Pagan focus, but  includes material suitable for anyone interested mind, body, spirit matters, alternative lifestyles and spiritualities. 

You can download it for free in the US, Canada, Australia and India via Amazon. It's also free on Barnes and Noble and you can read it for free via Google Books in the UK. For some reason Amazon UK and Amazon Europe listed it at £0.99 and 1 euro prices respectively, despite the publisher wanting it to be available at no charge. I also posted my guided visualisation from the book on my blog earlier this year, and you can find that here.

You can view Weathering the Storm on Amazon and view Witch's Book of Self Care on Amazon.

Note: If you are experiencing health problems, visit your GP.

Fun Exercises to Quickly Improve Creative Thinking

This post was written by Ashley Lipman.

Creative thinking is a very important skill to have. It lets you handle unique challenges, whether that be personally, at school, or even at the office. Without this skill, unexpected problems without a precisely laid-out solution can be challenging for people to deal with. Most of us build up our creative thinking skills throughout life thanks to school and being faced with problems to overcome over the years.

Unfortunately, this is a skill that not everyone possesses or that people wish they were better at. Without being able to think creatively, your work could suffer and you could find yourself being stuck on problems or roadblocks indefinitely.

Thankfully, there are a variety of different things you can do to actually build up this skill and improve your creative thinking. This blog post is going to go over a few that are not only helpful for improving the skill but can also be fun.

Play Board Games

While many play them for fun and fun alone, board games can also be great for the creative thinking of everyone from children to adults. These games can force you to make tough decisions, as well as come up with creative ways to win. For example, in Ticket to Ride, you can win by completing routes, building long trains, or simply sabotaging the routes of other players to keep them from racking up points.

There are countless different examples of games that allow you to play in a variety of different ways, which is great for boosting your creative thinking. In addition to traditional board games, there are also tabletop RPG games like Dungeons and Dragons or Call of Cthulhu. These games offer endless ways to be creative, from character design, to how you overcome obstacles and so many others.

Of course, make sure you have all the gear you need to play such as dice, game mats, and others. Be sure to check out some D20 Collective deals and other online sites to get everything you need.

Write 

One of the best ways to have more ideas and become a more creative thinker is to write. It doesn’t matter what you write about, simply take some time with just a notebook and a pen or pencil. Write honestly, from the heart and don’t worry about planning out ahead what you want to write about.

You could write a journal about your daily life, create a short story, or even just allow yourself a bit of time to write on anything that pops into your head. This could be potential business ideas, strategies for games, plans for the future and a range of other things. You could also tell yourself to write for a certain amount of time. This forces your creativity to run wild, and can certainly make you more skillful at thinking creatively on the fly. 

It can also be very therapeutic, while also being very fun at the same time. You can also refer back to your journal in the future and see how your creativity or writing has improved over time.

Take a Step Out of Your Comfort Zone

One of the classic tried and true exercises and methods for improving your creative thinking is stepping out of your comfort zone. Residing constantly in your comfort zone doesn’t challenge you. As a result, your ability to think creatively can be hindered. When it comes to stepping out of your comfort zone, there are a variety of things you can do.

You can learn and work on a new skill or research something in an area you are unfamiliar with. You can even just go do something that makes you a little uncomfortable and forces you to think on your feet a little more. Sure, it can be challenging, but that is part of the fun and it will certainly expand your horizons.

Taking a class or course on something you find fascinating, but new, is also a good option. Finding new and interesting classes online is easy and there are several incredible things out there you can learn quicker than you might think. Once out of your comfort zone, you will often be thinking more, which is great for creativity.

Any of the aforementioned exercises should be able to help you improve your creative thinking skills. There are several other great exercises as well, so don’t limit yourself and be sure to try out a few and see what works the best for you.

Pixabay picture references:
Top image by Fathromi Ramdlon: https://pixabay.com/photos/creative-be-creative-write-bulb-725811/
Middle image by CompLady: https://pixabay.com/photos/dice-d-d-dungeons-and-dragons-3380228/
Bottom image by StockSnap: https://pixabay.com/photos/writing-writer-notes-pen-notebook-923882/

Colm Holland on his book The Secret of The Alchemist

The Secret of The Alchemist, by Colm Holland, has the claim of being the first book to examine the real meanings buried within the bestselling The Alchemist by Paulo Coelho. In this article about his book, Colm gives an insight into the 'magic secret' and how it changed his life beyond all recognition for the better. He says he hopes others can benefit from his discovery and perform miracles.

In 1993 I was part of the team at HarperCollins that published The Alchemist by Paulo Coelho, with sales to date of over 86 million copies in 70 languages. When I met Paulo, however, he was an unknown Brazilian author, with his books only in Portuguese. At that time no one in the publishing company where I worked had predicted what a global bestseller Paulo’s book would be – until I read the manuscript before it was published.

I read his story of Santiago the shepherd boy, who follows his dream of finding treasure in the desert, and instantly knew – because of my own spiritual journey up to that moment I read the manuscript – it would be a global sensation. I persuaded my colleagues to give the book the highest level of marketing spend we could afford and the rest, as they say, is history!

When I met Paulo in person, in those early days soon after the book was released, he said he wanted to thank me with a gift, in gratitude for my passion and vision for his book. The gift was not what I expected and you can read a full account of our ‘magical’ encounter in the preface of my book.

The magic gift he gave me was to change the course of the rest of my life and ultimately led to my writing The Secret of The Alchemist, which is my account of the deep and life changing spiritual lessons I discovered – including ‘the secret’ – buried within Paulo’s novel.

The immediate effect was amazing and was manifested through two distinct miracles. On the one hand, Paulo challenged me to decide what I really wanted in life, and once I made that decision, he said it would happen! I learned very quickly to be careful what you wish for because the first obstacle to success is fear. I wanted to start my own business and yet to achieve that I had to face my fear of failure.

As I began to dig for the secret buried in The Alchemist, I unearthed a new found courage to face my fear and follow my dream and within a short space of time I founded a successful advertising agency. But the road to that new found success did not come cheap - it required a complete transformation of my inner self. On the other hand, the effect was to restart an inner spiritual journey that I had put on pause for many years and led me to begin to value the uniqueness of what I had to offer the world – I found my inner treasure.

Most importantly, I discovered that alchemy is all about transformation toward true empowerment and it draws upon the greatest power of all to convert seemingly insurmountable obstacles into life changing experiences.

Our chances of successfully living our lives with true fulfilment are often hampered by any number of obstacles - visible and invisible. My best example of overcoming an obstacle to my living life to the full – and believe me there are plenty to choose from – is when I discovered my inner child in the cupboard of my unconscious. When I was a toddler, I had a real-life Harry Potter experience of spending time locked in an under stairs cupboard. The consequence was an angry and frustrated inner boy who was controlling my thoughts and emotions as an adult. His power was
so great that he had my life set on a path of self-destruction.

By using the process outlined in the ancient wisdom of alchemy, as interpreted by Carl Jung – another devoted alchemist – I found a way to give voice to the inner boy and give him the attention and love he had been denied. Slowly and gently I experienced a healing of the pain he had encountered and finally – instead of being an obstacle to my emotional progress he became my greatest asset. It’s that boy who became the writer I am today.

My greatest weakness became my most treasured strength. This is the power of spiritual alchemy and it is within reach of anyone looking for greater power and control over their thoughts, emotions and their life - and it requires one very special ingredient: the power of unconditional love. This is the experience of with the power of unconditional love – that surrounds me and is within me – leading me on to fulfil my dreams. This can be your experience too and to assist you in unearthing and believing again in your dreams I have made this blessing for everyone who reads my book:

“As you read The Secret of The Alchemist, I have asked the magical power of Love to give you everything you need to be the alchemist in your world.” Colm Holland.

You can view The Secret of The Alchemist on Amazon.

New Year Resolutions: Looking Back at my 2019 Plans

This is the time of year I think about resolutions I made 12 months ago. I enjoy looking back at my blog posts and remembering things I've done as well as considering whether I've achieved what I intended. Instead of making just one resolution each year, I like to write a list of at least 10 things I want to do. The idea is that with a lot of goals there's a good chance of getting at least some of them done. Here's the list of what I hoped to do in 2019 and how well I succeeded:

1. Create a candle labyrinth.
Despite this being on my list for several years running, I didn't find the time or opportunity to do this in 2019. Maybe one year...

2. Completing and passing my MA course in Literary London.
This was the biggy - and I passed with merit. I thoroughly enjoyed it. It was hard work, and probably one of the reasons I didn't find time to do the first resolution on my list. The picture above right shows the Painted Ceiling in Greenwich, at the Old Royal Naval College, which also houses Greenwich University, where I studied.

3. Visit some new London places connected with paganism, magic or witchcraft.
I went on a guided walk in search of the Hidden Goddesses of London. Although I was familiar with most of the places on the route, I was introduced to a new sculpture of a revealed riverbed near an ancient holy well associated with Brigid. I also enjoyed sitting by Pamela Colman Smith's Fireplace, a new addition at Treadwell's Bookshop, before running workshops there. In July I visited the new Moon Garden at Charlton House, which was created for the summer's Moon Festival. All of these things were new magical experiences.

4. Visit at least one big pagan event in or near London.
In May I went to Pagan Pride London, in June I attended the Magickal Women Conference, in October I went to the Mind Body Soul Experience and in November I went to the Haunted Landscape, Nameless Arte and Witchfest International. The picture at the top show the Pagan Pride parade through the streets of London.

5. Blog about exhibitions  in London that includes items relating to magic or witchcraft.
The British Museum's Assyria exhibition included a display of tablets relating to magic, the Underdog Gallery had pictures inspired by tarot, the Horniman had items relating to folklore and magic in Lore of the Land and I also went to Smoke and Mirrors at the Wellcome Collection

6. Do a psychogeography walk in London and blog about it. 
I half achieved this. In July, I went on a psychogeography walk with Caroline Wise, who co-edited The Secret Lore of London. We used the London Lore Tarot as a guide and started at the British Museum by John Dee's mirror, because we felt that represented the first numbered card in the Major Arcana - the Magician - and was a central location. We drew a card there to tell us where to go next - it was Temple. I haven't blogged about this walk until now. Caroline and I had intended it to be the first in a series, and I was going to blog about the whole thing at the end. However, I got busy writing my MA dissertation and then Caroline was busy, so the idea got put to one side. I did later visit the location that represents the Fool in the London Lore Tarot - The Parkland Spriggan - and I blogged about it. One of my goals for 2020 will be to complete the London Lore Tarot psychogeography project.

7. Blog about the Gods and Goddesses of London - at least one post a month.
In January I looked back at my previous posts on Gods and Goddesses of London and also wrote about Brigid. Here's what I covered after that:
February: Eros and Anteros
March: Isis
April: Gods and Goddesses of Southwark
May: Trivia and Cloacina
June: The Gods and Goddesses on the Painted Ceiling in Greenwich
July: Mars Camulos - Guardian of the Thames
August: Diana of Greenwich Park
September: Small Statuettes of Roman Gods and Goddesses in the British Museum and Neptune from the Secret Rivers exhibition
October: Hermaphrodite and Ardhanarishvara
November: Blake's Zoas and the Four-Fold City
December: Britannia and the Temple to Winter

8. Write guided visualisations for every festival in the Wheel of the Year.

Here's the completed list:
An Imbolc Visualisation: Waking up for Spring
Guided Visualisation for the Equinox: The See-Saw
Guided Visualisation for Beltane Eve: The Path to Love
Summer Solstice Visualisation: The Sun Temple
Lammas Guided Visualisation: The Wise Woman's Cottage
Guided Visualisation for Autumn Equinox: The Autumn Garden
Guided Visualisation for Samhain: Visitor from the Past
Guided Visualisation for Winter Solstice Eve: Past, Present and Future

9. At least once a month do a divination with a tarot or oracle deck I've not used for a while.
Here's my list of readings for each month of the year:
January: Callanish from the Sacred Sites Oracle
February: Nine of Cups from the Lover's Path Tarot
March: Two of Wands from the Fairytale Tarot
April: The Drunken Fool from the Fool's Wisdom Oracle
May: Justice from the Wildwood Tarot and Eight of Beetles from the Victorian Steampunk Tarot
June: The Tower Ravens (Eight of Cups) from the London Lore Tarot
July: Truth from the Shaman's Oracle
August: Oak from the Magic of Nature Oracle
September: Hear the Ancient Ones from the Messenger Oracle
October: Dantalion from the Fallen Angel Oracle and the King and Queen of Pentacles from the Wicca Moon Tarot
November: The Peeler (Knight of Pentacles) from the Sherlock Holmes Tarot
December: Nine of Swords from the Byzantine Tarot

10. Declutter my witch room.
I've made a start on this, although I haven't blogged about it before now. I sold a few things that were worth selling, filled a box with other items I didn't need and gave them away to friends, then went through a pile of papers and put a lot into the recycling. More decluttering needs doing, but it is a start. I'd say that's half a success.

I reckon that means I achieved 8 out of 10, which is the same number as the previous year. Now I need to work on my list of resolutions for 2020...

Previous lists of resolutions:
http://www.badwitch.co.uk/2019/01/the-bad-witchs-10-new-years-resolutions.html
http://www.badwitch.co.uk/2018/12/new-year-resolutions-looking-back-at-my.html
http://www.badwitch.co.uk/2018/01/the-bad-witchs-10-new-years-resolutions.html
http://www.badwitch.co.uk/2017/12/new-year-resolutions-looking-back-at-my.html
http://www.badwitch.co.uk/2017/01/the-bad-witchs-10-new-years-resolutions.html
http://www.badwitch.co.uk/2016/12/death-taxes-and-new-year-resolutions.html
http://www.badwitch.co.uk/2016/01/the-bad-witchs-10-new-years-resolutions.html

Ten Self-Care Tips from the Mind Body Soul Experience

Many of us have very busy lives. Some of us spend so much time looking after other people - whether they are children or other family members - that we can forget to care for ourselves. The Mind Body Soul Experience, which is at the Alexandra Palace on 18, 19 and 20 October in conjunction with the OM Yoga Show, is offering these tips for self care, plus details of how the activities and therapies at the event could help:

1. Find ways to relax, by having a massage or listening to soothing music. This can all be done in the Therapy and Experience Zone.
2. Look for new things to do and find something different to enjoy. At the Mind Body Soul Experience, you could try out new experiences, such as bellydance for meditation, how to tune into angels, and how to make delicious and simple plant-based snacks. 
3. Eating healthily is a key way to care for yourself. Learn to cook a range of healthy, vegan foods in the Food for the Soul Kitchen. 
4. Get enough sleep. There are so many benefits to a restful night’s sleep offers – to start, it helps you to think more clearly, reduces stress and helps you to maintain a healthy weight. 
5. Keep a journal – write down your thoughts and worries, and anything else that comes to mind. 
6. Read a book about your favourite hobby or genre. Reading has many benefits – developing critical thinking skills, improving focus and concentration, it brings better writing skills and helps alleviate stress, plus so much more. 
7. Make your weekend about you! Do what you want to do, and not what others would have you spending precious time on. 
8. Schedule time for yourself. We all tend to pack out our calendars with meetings, conference calls and deadlines, but make sure you schedule in some me-time. 
9. Try meditation - this can help balance your mind for the busy day ahead. You can learn to meditate, or try new techniques, at the Mind Body Soul Experience throughout the weekend, and take these skills home with you. 
10. Finally, remind yourself that you are fabulous and amazing. Don’t let jobs and deadlines get you down – always remind yourself how great you truly are!

The Mind Body Soul Experience is on 18, 19 and 20 October 2019 at Alexandra Palace, London, N22 7AY. Opening times are Friday 11am to 6pm, Saturday 10am to 6pm, Sunday 10am to 5pm.
Online admission is adults £12, concessions £10. On the door, adults pay £15, concessions pay £12
Register for a free show guide at https://london.mbsevents.co.uk/

Motivation: Five Ways to Boost Your Confidence Daily

Here are some tips from motivation speaker Wendy Smith on how to boost your confidence:

Modern life sees us surrounded by beauty – Instagram filters, Love Island bombshells and picture-perfect celebrities. The result? Our confidence can be knocked. Whether it is body confidence, confidence in our ability or the confidence to be ourselves each and every one of us faces their own struggle.

However, there are some simple daily activities you can do to help you feel good. Wendy Smith, neuro trainer, sports coach and motivational speaker, says: “Anyone has the ability within them to change their thinking and therefore change their reality. If you want to be confident you can – it’s all a matter of how you speak to yourself and the actions you take.”

Here are five daily activities you could try to boost your confidence:

1. Get up and show up
Stop hitting the snooze button! Get up and decide how you want your day to play out. From the moment you open your eyes choose which thoughts are going to run your day. You have around 60,000 thoughts a day influencing your emotions and behaviours. Spend a few minutes jotting down your beliefs about yourself each morning then decide if they are really true. Whatever you think, you are never wrong so if you want to feel confident you should think confident.

2. Choose your colours wisely
Wear something you love! Clothes and colours have the power to make us feel confident. Have you got that particular outfit that makes you feel on top form? If not, find a colour specialist who can look at your skin tone and wardrobe and help you find the colours that make you feel great. Colours are powerful, they can drain the life out of us or empower us.

3. Take a long hard look in the mirror
There is no ‘perfect’, don’t believe the filters and the Photoshop. Instead of looking in the mirror and being critical of yourself wondering why you aren’t skinny enough, toned enough, tall enough, short enough etc, stop worrying about what you think you should be and see what you love about you. Every day pick three things that you love. Are you a great dancer, the best friend, an awesome lover, have the best legs or beautiful eyes? Start looking and noticing the beauty of you and notice how doing this everyday adds to your confidence.

4. Commute the right way
What do you do on the way to work – social media, listening to the news, reading a paper? Is it a habit that will generate confidence within you? If not change it! Create a morning track list to motivate you into the state you want to be in. Choose music that makes you feel really good. Music is a great state changer, choose the songs that make you want to get up and dance, stand tall and smile wide. What songs put a spring in your step? These are your morning playlist!

5. Spend some time imagining the most confident you
Our mind does not recognise the difference between imagined reality and the here and now, so the more you see yourself as a confident person, walking tall, smiling, having fun, the more your mind will create this with your body. Confidence is something we create on the inside, you cannot buy it from a shop. Imagine yourself confident and true confidence will follow.

For more information on feeling confident and happy visit https://wendysmith.me.uk

The picture shows Wendy Smith. After overcoming a high-speed motorbike accident in her youth which caused severe spinal injury, cardiac arrest and years of rehabilitation Wendy went on to compete for Great Britain in the 2005 Paralympics. Now she spends her time giving motivational talks and offering 1:1 coaching.

Lammas Visualisation: The Wise Woman's Cottage

It is Lammas Eve. Lammas is the festival of the first fruits of the harvest, at the time of year the grain crops are brought in. It can traditionally be celebrated by baking your own bread or making a corn dolly. However, if you don't have the necessary skills, ingredients or inclination for cooking or crafting, here's a guided visualisation you can do to honour this festival in the wheel of the year.

Lammas Guided Visualisation: The Wise Woman's Cottage

Find somewhere safe, where you will not be disturbed. Sit comfortably and close your eyes. Take three deep breaths in and out and relax, then visualise the following in your mind's eye:

Visualise that you are in a baker's shop, in a small village in the countryside. It is Lammas, at the start of August, when the fields are ripe and the crops being brought in. You have been asked to deliver a basket of freshly baked bread to an old woman who lives on her own in a cottage on edge of the village, beyond the first field.

Taking the basket, you walk out of the door of the baker's shop and into the village street, It is a hot, dry, sunny day. Your journey takes you first along a street of old cottages, with gardens full of flowers.

At the end of the street there is a fence with a stile and beyond that a field that is golden with ripe grain. You cross the stile and enter the field. A path leads around the edge of the grain field. You see poppies and other wild flower and herbs growing in the borders. Beyond that you see that the grain crop is being harvested under the hot, August sun.

You watch the ripe grain being cut down in neat rows as you walk along the path. Crows circle in the sky above, and perhaps you catch a glimpse of other birds or animals. In the distance is the farmer steadily harvesting the crops, absorbed in his work. Observe what is happening as you slowly walk along the path. What do you see?

At the far end of the field is an old hedge, and after a while your reach it. In the hedge is a gate. This gate leads into the old woman's garden behind her cottage. Open the gate and walk into the garden, carefully closing the gate again behind you.

The garden at first seems overgrown, with tall trees at the sides, shrubs and bushes and tall plants, it offers cool, dappled shade from the August sun. You make your way further into the garden and see flowers growing everywhere. It is full of bright colours. You see bees going from flower to flower, you hear birds singing and notice the sign of other wildlife too.

You then see the old woman. She is harvesting berries and putting them into a basket. You go up to her and greet her. She smiles and greets you in reply. Then she invites you in to her cottage. She opens the door and you follow her inside. Look around, what do you see there?

The old woman invites you to sit at her table and put down the basket of bread, then she offers you tea. She prepares the tea using leaves in an earthenware teapot, and brings out a jar of fresh jam she has made from berries from her own garden, with butter and milk that she tells you is from a neighbour's farm.

You join her for tea. The fresh bread and the jam and other produce are delicious. You talk with her as you enjoy your tea together. What do you talk about?

When you have finished your cup of tea, she asks if you would like her to divine your future or answer a question, by reading the patterns in the leaves at the bottom of the cup. If you do, let her see the cup.

She turns it three times clockwise and then holds it to the sunlight that streams through the cottage window. Then she answers your question and gives you an idea of what the future might possibly hold for you. If you want, she can show you the patterns in the leaves and how she has interpreted them too.

Then it is time for you to leave. You say goodbye and stand and stand up, picking up the empty bread basket. As you are about to go, the old woman presses a final gift into your hands. You look at it and thank her, then put the gift into the basket and wave goodbye as you go out of the cottage door.

You walk back through her garden, through the gate in the hedge, along the path at the edge of the field and over the stile into the village. You walk back along the street and return the basket to the bakery shop, where you began your journey. But you may keep the gift that the old woman gave you, and you remember the things she told you.

When you are ready Shake your arms and legs and open your eyes to the real world.

I always recommend having something to eat and drink after doing a guided visualisation, or any ritual or magical work, as it can help you ground properly. After this visualisation, you could have a harvest feast - or just some fresh bread and jam and a cup of tea. You could even have a go at tea-leaf reading too.


You can find more guided visualisations in my book Pagan Portals - Guided Visualisations.

Social Media Contributing to Mental Health Problems

Earlier this week I a lost a friend on social media after a disagreement, which I believe was based more on a misunderstanding than anything else. I think one problem with social media is that it is simply more impersonal than a face-to-face chat, and there is more chance of a misunderstanding when you can't see people's faces as they talk or hear their tone of voice.

While I was sad to lose a friend, a new study has found that a fifth of adults in Britain who have used social media in the past 12 months have experienced mental health issues directly as a result of using it.

The research, which was carried out by well-being brand Soul Analyse, and polled online by YouGov in June 2019, looked at the impact social media is having on people's mental health. Just over 2,000 British adults - 937 men and 1,067 women - were asked about their social media behaviour, and feelings surrounding it.

The study revealed that 20 per cent of adults feel depressed or anxious when using social media platforms. When looking at different age ranges, the results indicate younger people are more at risk of being negatively affected. More than three in ten 18-24-year-olds said they felt anxious or depressed when using social platforms, and more than half said that social media makes them more likely to notice their flaws.

I suspect the survey was concentrating more on social media that involves a lot of selfies, rather than simple text-only chats, as the survey found a correlation between those who use image filters and those who experience mental health issues. Of the people who said they felt anxious or depressed, 34 per cent of those said they filter photos of themselves. When looking at people who use image filters when posting photos of themselves, just 15 per cent stated they felt empowered when using social media.

Stephanie Dunleavy, co-founder of Soul Analyse, said: "With the invasion of filters, the pictures we see online are not representative of reality and it can be difficult to distinguish between what's real and what's not. This is no doubt causing body image issues, especially among young people.

She added: "The research shows that people are turning to filters to change the way they look but instead of fixing the problem, this is just going to give them more unrealistic standards to live up to. I believe the answer lies in changing the way we feel about ourselves through self-acceptance, rather than changing the way our body looks."

I think this is also true on pagan social media groups. I've recently noticed a few posts by people saying they felt that they didn't look pagan enough. That is, of course, silly, as anyone can be a pagan. A few groups have spotted the trend and tried to counter that by inviting people to share selfies showing that pagans can be any age, any ethnicity and any gender. They can wear any clothing they like and have a body of any shape or size. Being pagan is about what you believe, not how you look.

Time Spent Online
When looking at how much time people dedicate to social media, there is a link between time spent online and happiness. Of the people who spend six to ten hours a week viewing other people’s content online, 41 per cent reported being happy, compared to 33 per cent of those who spend 11-15 hours and 30 per cent of those who spend 16-20 hours.

From my own experiences, I know I am happier overall when I take a break from social media. A couple of years ago I made an effort to cut back my time on social media, and instead spend my breaks using a meditative colouring in book. I really noticed a difference in my stress levels and I probably ought to go back to doing that.

When analysing different social media channels, the survey found that SnapChat is the biggest culprit for negatively affecting the way people feel about themselves. More than a third of respondents who use the multimedia messaging app say they feel less confident as a result of using social media. Instagram was not far behind with 28 per cent, Twitter 24 per cent, whereas Facebook was 21 per cent.

Dunleavy said: "The survey results provide a snapshot view of how harmful social media can be. We have to acknowledge the fact that these hugely popular platforms are potentially very damaging to people's mental health."

But what do you think?  Do leave a comment.

Links and previous related posts
https://soulanalyse.com/
http://www.badwitch.co.uk/2017/09/pagan-eye-my-attempt-at-colouring.html
http://www.badwitch.co.uk/2012/11/spell-talisman-to-help-recover-stolen.html
http://www.badwitch.co.uk/2017/06/not-much-of-blog-today-just-cat-picture.html

Review: 78 Degrees of Wisdom: A Tarot Journey

If you are only going to buy one book about the tarot, Seventy-Eight Degrees of Wisdom would be a good choice. It is a classic -full of detail about the cards' history and the meanings ascribed to them through mythology, psychology and esoteric traditions. It also offers a great introduction to common tarot spreads.

But, there is a better choice - the new edition of the book, which came out this month.

Peter Turner, associate publisher at Red Wheel/Weiser, emailed me to say: "It hard to believe but it’s nearly 40 years ago that Seventy-Eight Degrees of Wisdom was first published. To celebrate we’re publishing a new edition in March with a new preface and cover."

Although I am maxed out with a huge reading list from the MA literature course I'm currently doing, I couldn't turn down the chance to review this updated version of the book with new material by author Rachel Pollack.

What I particularly like about Seventy-Eight Degrees of Wisdom is the depth of information it goes into about each card. As well as showing how tarot can be used for divinatory readings, it offers a huge amount of wisdom about the cards as showing a symbolic journey of personal development and spiritual enlightenment, using examples from various magical and religious traditions, and from post-Jungian psychology.

Rachel Pollack's message is positive, showing how even difficult life experiences offer potential for transformation, insight and growth. Yet she never shies away from tackling difficult or controversial issues - we each have our own devils to face and towers to destroy.

On its website, Red Wheel/Weiser says:

When it was first published nearly 40-years-ago, Seventy-Eight Degrees of Wisdom was an instant classic and inspired generations of tarot students. Often referred to as the “bible of tarot books” it has now helped to launch the “tarot renaissance” we’re seeing today. Drawing on mythology and esoteric traditions and delving deeply into the symbolism and ideas of each card, the book offers a modern psychological interpretation of the tarot archetypes rather than a system of esoteric symbolism.

You can view Seventy-Eight Degrees of Wisdom on Amazon.

Links and previous related posts
http://redwheelweiser.com/
http://www.badwitch.co.uk/2014/09/are-some-tarot-decks-more-genuine-than.html
http://www.badwitch.co.uk/2015/10/london-tarot-fools-journey-and-folklore.html
http://www.badwitch.co.uk/2007/12/birthday-cards.html
http://www.badwitch.co.uk/2018/09/the-bad-witch-goes-back-to-school.html

Washing Machine Woes and First World Problems

This is the inside of my washing machine. It might look shiny, but it isn't working. It stopped working on January 2. The earliest an engineer could get here was Wednesday just gone - January 9th. He was here for just 4 minutes and ordered a new part - which won't be available until next Wednesday.

So, having had a week without laundry already, I put my mound of dirty clothes into a large bag and took it to my local launderette. I hadn't used a public launderette for many years and I was expecting the experience to be awful - but I was very pleasantly surprised.

The launderette was clean and tidy, the manager was on hand to explain what to do, and my washing was fresh and dry in about an hour. But what really pleasantly surprised me was that the launderette was a great hub of local life. People were chatting and gossipping in a friendly way and were very welcoming to me, even though I was a newcomer to the laundry social scene.

The cost for using the washer, spinner and dryer was just £6. I also found time to pop to the supermarket over the road and pick up a few groceries. It honestly made me wonder whether it was worthwhile getting my washing machine fixed at all - I think I might save money overall by using the local launderette as well as make new friends.

When I first posted about my washing machine woes on Facebook, a friend who is in India laughed at me for complaining about my first world problems. He was right to do so. My issue is hardly a problem in the great scheme of things. I'm probably going to go back to the launderette with my sheets and towels this weekend - I'm almost looking forward to it.