All of our stories begin,
In the very same way
Branching out from
Our family trees.

Reaching for the sky
Soaking up the sun’s
Rays, while staying
Grounded in our roots.

Growing ever-stronger,
Facing the seasons
Graceful in the breeze.
Strong during storms.

Turning over a new leaf.
Bending rather than breaking.
Refreshed after rain, and
Providing strangers with shelter.

This could be used, when a friend, family member or even a loved one. Needs a little bit of a pick up after some bad news, a break up etc. You could always reword this blessing if, it’s in fact you that needs a little pick me up.

Additionally you could while doing this ritual, write down the things you wish to either let go of, or the change you wish see in your life. Then set fire to it (safely) and send those intentions into the universe.

Personal Blessing

Earth Mother and Sky Father
I invoke you, please watch over (name).

May the warmth of the new day’s sun
Refresh their energies anew this day.

May the light of moon goddess
Restore them softly as they sleep.

May the refreshing rain cleanse
Them, washing their worries away.

May the cool wind’s breeze gently
Blow new strength into their being.

May they walk, softly through this world
Seeing it’s beauty, all their remaining days

I use these words to call on thee
This is my will.
So note it be.

(C)BobChristianpoetry

In a break from my usual posts about poetry, or what’s been going on in my life, I’ve decided to share something of an even more personal nature. As some of you are aware, I’m working on a new book with the author, Daisy Burton. This book is all about a subject very close to me… Wicca.

In this book I have shared a spell or ritual that can easily be done in the home at this time of year. So I thought I’d share my idea with you. If you’re interested you could try it yourselves, and perhaps bring a little magic and joy to your hearth and home.

Christmas Candle Ritual

Items required:
• A large candle (long-burning, church-style)
• Non-perishable food items (eg, mixed nuts)

On Christmas Eve as it begins to get dark, place the candle next to the food. Light the candle, saying:

“In the past, on this night before Christmas, the story goes that people left offerings of food and drink while lighting candles so that Mary could rest on her way to the manger.”

Carry the candle to a window that faces the road, placing it on the window sill, saying:

“We share this light with all weary travellers on this night, with all those who feel they have nothing at this blessed time. I send blessings to them as we have much to be thankful for.”

Let the candle burn until you go to bed (making sure it’s very safe).
Make a donation within your means, or (outside of pandemic times) give a last-minute invitation to someone who you think might be lonely.

On Christmas Day, add the food to the Christmas meal.

I would like to extend very happy Yuletide greetings to everyone reading this. May you and yours be happy, healthy, and warm this Yuletide, and onwards into 2022.

To those who say that suicide is for cowards, I say this:

They always ask me,
“Any history of mental illness in the family?”
Like it’s a checkbox. Like it’s a gene you can switch off
if you marry someone with better coping skills.

No.
Yes.
I mean
I’m not crying because I miss someone,
I’m not heartbroken.
I didn’t just lose my job or get dumped or forget to eat lunch.
This isn’t a bad day. This is a brain thing.
This is a chemical cocktail shaken not stirred,
this is serotonin doing the Harlem Shake in my skull,
this is don’t tell me to cheer up,
this is I can’t help it,
this is I would if I could but I can’t, so I’m stuck in this loop again.

It starts with a whisper.
Not a voice. A twitch. A misplaced fear.
It doesn’t knock. It intrudes.
It doesn’t wait for an invitation—it is the host.

And it never gets easier with age.
People think you grow out of this.
No.
You grow into it.
You get better at faking.
You get better at lying.
You get better at saying,
“I’m fine”
with a noose around your ribcage.

It is biochemical.
It is bed-bound.
It is pushing away everyone who reaches for me,
like don’t touch me, I’m radioactive,
like you’ll burn if you get too close.

My brain whispers:
You’re broken.
And I believe it.
It says:
They can’t fix you.
And I build a religion on that truth.
I can’t see other perspectives because the lens is cracked.
I carry my past like a haunted house
that charges me rent to live inside my own head.

Welcome to the carnival.
Step right up!
Ride the panic coaster!
One second I’m on top of the world,
the next I’m six feet beneath it.
Guess the weight of my emotional baggage—
winner gets a lifetime of therapy bills and half a prescription.

This isn’t dramatic.
This isn’t a cry for attention.
It’s a cry for help.
For hope.
For something better than this.

I’ve read medication labels like they were ancient spells.
Like maybe this time, the magic will work.
Maybe this time I’ll teleport out of the darkness.
Maybe this time I won’t need to explain
that this isn’t weakness.
This is survival.
This is fight or flight,
but I’ve been flying for years and I’m out of fuel.

You want to call me a coward?

No.
Cowards don’t get out of bed when the world is a monster.
Cowards don’t dance with danger
without a harness, without a net, screaming into the void
and daring it to scream back.
Cowards don’t live every day
fighting a voice that says: end it.

I am not a coward.
I am a war zone.
I am still here.

That. That is courage.

The greatest lies you
Have ever believed
Are the ones you created;
Breathing life into them.

But they are all based
In your own deep, toxic
Insecurities, manifesting
Deep within your psyche.

You’re so desperate to seek
Approval from others, that
You’re happy to destroy those
Who have always loved you.

The limit has been reached.
You’ve run out of luck
And out of love. But you
Did this all to yourself.

Your relationship with truth
Ended because you and
Deception had an illicit affair.
Friends with no real benefits.

By Bob W Christian

Forgiveness

Have you forgiven those
Who hurt and abused you?
No, never! I hear you cry.
Then they still have control.

Some people will go their whole
Lives never forgiving or letting
Go of their pain; so wrapped up
In their hatred, vengeance, anger.

Causing physical and emotional
Damage to themselves, simply
‘Cause they think that to forgive is
A sign of weakness. I’m telling you

That’s not true. It takes strength,
Wisdom, and courage to choose
A better, enlightened path in life.
Achieving this is relatively simple.

Put yourself in their position.
If their pain, experiences, thoughts
Were yours, would you act any
Differently? I doubt it, if you’re honest.

Remember, ‘Hurt people hurt people’.
The parent who wasn’t there;
The ex who broke you. Free yourself.
Forgiveness begins by letting go.

By Bob W Christian

Love Letter

I wake up to you every morning;
Plant a kiss on your forehead,
Like a letter – a daily reminder
That reads: “I’ve loved you,
From the moment I first saw
Your beautiful smile.” The smile
That left me saying to a deity that
I didn’t quite believe in, that
You’d see… I would be someone
You can believe in forever – until you
Can no longer read my words.