Witches We Love: Tracey

Happy Wednesday, Witches!

Today we are delighted to introduce you to one of our favorite witchy babes, Tracey aka: @fourcrowsinarow. We sat down together a few months ago, when Witch Swap was just beginning and did a quick interview about her magick & life. We wanted to re-introduce her to you because she will be joining our team as a regular contributor to our blog! Many of us have come to love hearing her stories & watching her magick grow. Her voice is one we value and very much look forward to having her step forward as an important figure in our community. Without further ado, here’s what she had to tell us about herself:

Hi, I'm Tracey, an eclectic Witch from South Africa. Being a Southern Hemisphere Witch is often a bit upside down, literally, to our brothers and sisters in the North and our seasons have us celebrating a totally opposite seasonal cycle to them too. Back to frontness aside, my practice is mine, and I love it! I'm a homeschooling Mama of 3 (aged 17, 6 and 5) married to just the most beautiful soul. We are ocean creatures living in a landlocked city for now while we work on some business strength to return to our Ocean home. (All the reasons to work strong and true!)

"How I came across witchcraft"

I was a very little girl when I was first aware that I was a bit ( read: a LOT) different in my thought patterns and interests to my peers. Being a loner by choice (I got mocked and messed with a lot at school and preschool) meant that I had loads of time to read and to think.

My Maternal Grandmother was a seeker of all and any information about every life path and faith she could learn about, so that kept my mind open from an early age. It reassured me that different wasn't bad (Because that was the general feeling around me in my childhood years). I can remember sitting on the landing in her glorious old Tudor style home, with the light streaming through the leaded light windows onto her magnificent crystals, just pouring over the fascinating books she kept in a massive bookcase that ran the length of the landing. That place was a total sanctuary for me. Truly the only place I felt welcome and safe to be myself. And I can remember promising myself that I would live in a cottage in the woods, just like a tiny little version of this home of my Granny's, surrounded by my haphazard garden and veggie patch, just BEING. With my cat and dog, cauldron bubbling, candles flickering, giant book of spells on my old kitchen table....making magick.

It's all that felt normal to me. Natural. I was five. I know that because I hadn't yet begun "big school". It was many years later at the age of 16 that I found a book by Patronella Cooper called Gypsy Magic, in a thrift store down the road from my boarding house at boarding school, that I began to properly read up on the art of magick, and when my Tarot journey began, but for all the years before, I was lead by my heart and soul to connect with the earth and her bounty. Formalising my path has never been something I seek fiercely. It's still very much driven by my heart and soul, and I learn and grow as I feel drawn to. If I was to label my path.... I'd say: Eclectic. Solitary. Green. Multi-cultural in it's belief. Simple. Humble.

“What Am I currently learning about/ struggling with?"

I love to learn! And to keep my mind open to change and difference and to allow myself to evolve. In the last two years, I have done various short courses on Judaism, Christianity, Muslim, Hinduism, Kabbalism and Buddhism. I have felt that I need to understand the faith path of others better to help my children to understand them as well. I want for them to be best informed about the spiritual and life paths they are able to explore without feeling they have to fully commit to one to be "accepted" or to learn. The learning is for me as well, obviously. I cannot fully respect or form educated opinions on, what I don't understand.

I qualified as a Reiki Master last year as well, which was a wonderful journey in learning and growing. And I use daily, what I learned, to both bring both balance and energetic wellness to myself and my family. I have chosen not to work with non-family/clients with Reiki.

This year I am studying Shamanic Initiation and the Nine Healing Rites of the Munay Ki. I'm loving it! I've also begun an Art Therapy Diploma (not Kraft related, but I intend to use it in a way that is) As I have a son on the autism spectrum, and would like to use my artistic skills and teaching abilities to help him - and I - to better work through our frustrations of functioning in a world not suited to gentler souls. I am constantly trying things I haven't before. Learning is life-giving! And FUN!

“What advice would I give to someone just starting out, or to my younger self?"

This one is simple. THERE ARE NO RULES! None. This is your path. Your heart and soul need to feel joy and peace, so do what you do for you. Don't be afraid to ask other witches for guidance and advice, but take it as that, not as an edict. Find what sets your heart on fire and do that!

The only "rule" I live by is HARM NONE. And it's one that has served me well. For me, decency is everything, and I'm aware of the law of three being beyond powerful. I respect it fully. Blessed be, and thank you @witchswap for this beautiful opportunity to share.