Human babies can produce “Witch’s Milk” shortly after their birth. It odd, but true, and not something to be alarmed about.

While a baby develops in the womb he/she is exposed to a lot of estrogen. Estrogen causes the Mother's breasts to swell and get ready to produce milk for the baby. The baby, being directly attached to its Mother, also has estrogen in its body. Sometimes this causes the baby's breasts to swell and after birth they can leak what looks like milk. Its just short term, gone in a couple of weeks as the estrogen leaves the baby.

Of course, in the Middle Ages, people did not understand how or why this happened. It seemed to them witches must cause this. Intending to use the milk as a particular treat for their familiars, demons, or anything else that looked a little suspicious. Some parents created baby sized rag dolls to sleep in the crib with the baby, hoping to trick the Witches.

Which makes me wonder... were these the first rag dolls? It seems possible.

Quiz - Discover your Witch Archetype I've been eclectic for a long time, no real surprise with the results. Others may like to take a look.

Eclectic Witch

You are the grand curator of magic, weaving diverse traditions into an ever-evolving personal tapestry.

Your strength is synthesis—adapting what resonates and releasing what doesn’t. You have a broad field of study and comprehension.

Options to explore

Kindred Paths: Solitary Practitioner • Integrative Mystic • Syncretic Priest/ess

Suggested Deity & Archetype Allies: Hermes • Iris • Saraswati• Plant Spirits/Silma • Household spirits • Genii Loci

Suggested Areas of Study: All areas of study • Local folklore • Spirit-of-place offerings • Pre-Wiccan craft history • Comparative myth • Personal-gnosis journaling • Cultural exchange ethics

Originally written (by me) for The Crying Clown Zine (c. 1998)

Tis the season for ghosts to haunt, vampires to suck (blood that is), werewolves to howl,and witches to fly. Or is it? Most people have put Santa and the Easter Bunny away with the broken decorations and the egg you didn't find till the next year. Yet the idea of a witch in black from head to toe, with a black cat, casting her spells with the twitch of an eyebrow is still around. I don't cast spells, I don't like to wear black but I do admit to a fondness for cats.

Oh the wonder and the power of being a witch able to whip out a spell to make your life simpler, easier and so much better... Put that idea away with dear old Santa. Wiccans do not take the powers they study that lightly. To weave your magick you have to carefully consider the many strings attached before you even begin creating neat little rhymes to conjure with.

The Wiccan Rede: If it harms none, do what you will. The Rede is the heart of Wicca, it is the theme song, the top icon on your screen and the apple of many a witchy eye. However, there are as many definitions for 'harms none' as there are Wiccan Paths. Harm none includes yourself, your neighbor who yells when you cross his lawn, the guy/ girl you desparately wish would give you more than a second glance, your pet lizard, the ant you stepped on last week and the planet you step on every day. It includes everything you can touch, see, feel, hear, smell and think. Did I leave anything out? It includes that too.

Harm none is a huge responsibility. At some point magick will infringe on free will. It is up to you to decide if it is harmful. Some Wiccans will use love spells. I see this as manipulation and that rubs my version of harms none the wrong way. Manipulation does not respect the free will and rights of another person and is harm to that person. Of course, the easiest harm none definition would be black magick. White magick: works in harmony with the life forces of the universe and harms no one. Its goals are spiritual such as self knowledge, and for the good of all such as healing. Black magick is: causing change (in reality or in consciousness) for the purpose of causing either physical or non-physical harm to yourself or others, and is done consciously or unconsciously.

Every action causes a reaction, a pull on the strings attached. This is the basis of the 'threefold law'. Simply put, everything you do (negative or positive) will come back to you times three. This is all wrapped up in karma and other strings upon strings upon strings upon strings. Keep things simple with your own version of 'harms none'. Judge carefully what strings you are pulling and tangling in the magick you choose to weave.

Black is almost considered a witch uniform but no where in any 'rule book' does it say Witches, Wiccans or any Pagans must wear black or be forever black balled, black listed or have their names blackened. (I just couldn't resist). True black is a mystical colour but the wearer won't suddenly have magickal powers or secret knowledge. Power and knowledge can be gained through study and work. As for the cat thing... I'm training him to be my familiar, of course!

Happy Halloween/ Merry Samhain!

Originally written (by me) for The Crying Clown Zine (c. 1998)

Just picture yourself, in mid ritual, suddenly your Book of Shadows falls to the floor with an unpleasant sounding thud. Silly you, you forgot your altar!

The Wiccan/ Pagan altar is not just for eating your breakfast on anymore. Also, those looking forward to virgin sacrifices are in for a disappointment. But, look on the bright side, now you don't have to save yourself for that big moment on the stone slab, just go out and have fun!

So, what should you know about constructing your very own altar? Start with all natural ingredients and assemble them inside a circle. Those are the basics. Your altar can be outdoors for all the little bugs and squirrels to see or it can be inside and easily pushed under your bed for those with parents who like to make room inspections still. An altar can even be made on your desk at work. Just use some creativity and no one will suspect you have brought Pagan influences to concrete jungle.

The altar itself can have a circular base or square, depending on how natural you want to go with it. Outdoors, a fire can substitute for an altar. Make sure you are prepared to safely extinguish it before you leave. Face your altar in a direction of power, generally that's north, the direction associated with Earth. Some Wiccan use east and west, the direction the sun rises and sets. Lastly, everything on your altar is positioned in a pattern. The arrangement is very individual and can be kept track of in your Book of Shadows. (The Book of Shadows is a book or some other form of note keeping Wiccan use for their exploration and discoveries along their path of learning.)

Just raring to go and get Medieval, I mean creative? To dedicate your altar to the Goddess and God, something you can choose to do. Set up put the tools dedicated to the Goddess (pentacle, cup, bell, crystal, cauldron and others) on the left side of the altar. The tools dedicated to the God (athame, censer, white handled knife, etc) are placed on the right side. In the middle of the altar, you please yourself; at least that is how I see it.

If you don't follow the 'standard' altar plan with God and Goddess on either ends you can fill those areas of your altar with things to represent the elements: Earth, Air, Water and Fire. The idea is to stick to natural ingredients but you can do a lot with those. A natural altar contains assorted leaves, stones, drawings/ pictures, candles, seashells, feathers, flowers/ herbs, a glass of water, your pet guppy, tissues (handy if you have a cold) and a pirate's treasure map (assuming you can find one). Keep in mind the elements. The feather and leaves can represent Air. The candle and maybe some burnt offerings from breakfast can represent Fire. Water is easy with seashells or a glass of water. Earth can be represented by the stones or leaves (think compost, just don't put it on your altar unless you are ready for the smell).

The altar is the physical centre of a ritual. Its a place of power and magick. To think it is mostly a flat surface to work at is a mistake. Some of your energy and magick will remain in your altar after each ritual. You will be bringing a lot from yourself to the ritual and your altar. Because of this, your altar must have special meaning to you. Use your own sense of style, things that are important, have meaning to you, and design your altar to suit yourself and your needs.