Acting! Genius! Thank You!

My Evil Twin and I are working on a class that takes acting exercises such as pantomime, improvisation, and proper breathing and posture techniques and brings them into the realm of magic. I suppose one might wonder what acting techniques have to do with commanding and conjuring the forces or the universe.

Breath is life, it's energy. We should practice taking in the maximum amount possible. Adjusting our posture is a step. Another is stretching the muscles. There are so many muscles involved with breathing, not just the diaphragm, but also the intercostals (between the ribs), the neck muscles, your lats, and your back muscles as well. She has the singing techniques, I have the myology so we're combining forces.

The scary, yet wonderful thing about actors (the good ones) is their ability to become someone else entirely, to channel people both real or imagined. This is where you begin to see the connection between the magic and the technique: To be able to put aside your ego and let something else in, even if just on the surface with actions and dialect is the first step to channeling.

Pantomime is a much maligned art. Its value is apparent when you start to work with energy constructs, or do energy work in general: Feeling that ball of light is one thing, but to keep track of it is another. This art sharpens your awareness of your actions and the things that are part of your peripheral attention but not your main focus, like something simmering on the stove while you set the table. Your awareness is there, in part, even if the pot is not your immediate focus.

These exercises also sharpen your sense of touch: When you work to remember how something feels and examine your reaction, physically or otherwise, you might find it easier to dream consciously. I sure do.

When you energetically construct a temple or a sigil or a protective structure, or send healing, or even cast a circle, part of your awareness remains with the consctruct to power it. It could be just a fraction, but it's there, like that simmering pot. Once you lose track of it, it collapses.

No, this isn't something that has been passed down from back in the day, but these techniques help to build on what I have learned. For many, they're a comfortable, low-pressure way to practice what can be intimidating techniques. Instead of "aspecting deity" it can be much easier for someone to tune into the neutral channel. Instead of building a temple, they can pantomime the box getting smaller.

Hell, maybe they were passed down from some commedia dell'arte troupe! ha! jk. Sacred theater is an entirely different post.

Homework

I'm finishing up 3 new workshops about my Family 'Craft. I'm a collaborator. I like to work with others. I also don't know the level I'm going to be teaching to. Do there need to be pre-reqs for any of these? Well, actually only one. I've got the makings of two 101 classes and another class that I'd call 202, where you need to have some level of knowledge and practice under your belt to participate in the class, or, really to make the class worth your time.

When I read a series, I start with book number 1. If I jumped ahead I wouldn't know the characters or the history and would spend most of the time catching up. So yeah, there's a 202 class in there.

I don't want to write this one in a bubble. I think I'm going to invite a few people over, of different backgrounds and magickal abilities, and name the topic. I'll talk about the subject a bit, going through what I think are the obvious questions, but then I want the group to ask me questions. From there I can see where things go and what other material I need to include. A beta test lol!

I like interview formats more than "barf out what you know" type classes. I also like classes where you do something. Asking questions is a start, but I prefer to do, so I suppose this class will include what is now commonly known as a "pathworking" even tho I detest calling it that! I don't like the word and I'm not sure why. Perhaps it's overused? Used incorrectly?

Anyway, an evening in May, if you're in the vicinity of NJ, you might just be a beta tester. No "yes wo/men" please. I don't need people who drink the kool-aid or who are there just to be a pal and build my self-esteem with empty praise. My self-esteem is fine. I need honest folks who will challenge me. If you aren't challenged, how do you grow? Oh, that's right: You don't! lol

Speaking of challenges, I'm going to further define the parameters of my Dream Project, because some funny, funny jokers (you know who you are) started harassing me yesterday about being awake after midnight. So here they are:

It starts Monday night, April 18th, and will go for 9 nights to start. There, a dream novena! LOL After those 9 nights, I will assess my progress and move on to another set. This way I get a break if I need it, hopefully I won't but the option will be there. I don't want to put insane pressure on the whole thing because then I might just stop because I was too stressed out to sleep. That's the opposite of what I'm trying to do here.

In Saint Anthony news: I have found the missing items! Hooray! I've also figured out why he was on my mind, but that's a whole other story for a whole other post! Tune in next time; Same Witch station, same Witch channel!

Sweet Love Hangover

Eh, not quite. More like burned out from the past week. I thought I had an energetic hangover from the conference, but no, it was more from dealing with my in-laws who were about an hour away from the conference. Visiting them was the price I paid to go. I might start a conference up here just so I don't have to go down there again LOL j/k I have enough on my plate.

Like what, you ask? I'm hosting/facilitating a 202 series this Spring and Summer. I'm tired of the plethora of 101 classes out there and think more advanced classes need to be made available. Call it Grad School for Pagans. I will be bringing in speakers, teachers, experts and teaching a class or two myself. Most will be practical, some will be Italian focused, and a few will be specific to Society of Diana and required knowledge for those who wish to practice with us. There will be chakra work, advanced tarot, energy work, a full reiki series, color therapy, tarantella, communicating with Patrons and Ancestors, and lots of other fun stuff. Need some 101 to catch up? No worries, there will be a few of those too or a way to catch up, just contact me for more info once I have the series set up. I will post here and on Facebook.

So what to do for an energy hangover? Meditation. Tune into the neutral channel and let your mind rest. Dreaming is not restful- you're dreaming! Close your eyes and enjoy as much darkness and silence as possible. Also, do what you would normally do for a hangover: hydrate. Drink lots of water, take care of your physical body too. Shower to clean off your aura as well as your body. Keep the food light and sweet. Avoid heavy foods or things that grow from the ground. Choose fruit instead of veggies. The opposite is true when you're as high as a kite on energy. In that case you want salt instead of sweet, earthy instead of light. When I was flying on energy over a week ago, I ate a baked potato when I got home and it instantly grounded me. If I'd had one in the fridge I would have eaten a beet. A raw beet is the perfect food for grounding. It grows under ground, is the color of the root chakra and supports your blood with its high iron content. I've had a nice glass of apple-carrot-beet juice to come down from ritual on days when I'm juice fasting. mmmmm red earth energy drink. For this hangover? Water, pears, lemons, oranges, blueberries. Look at that, in one paragraph I've combined food magick and color therapy, two topics we'll get into this season! Can't wait!