Posted on Examiner.com / Sept. 5 2013
With the Mabon season upon us, what better time to initiate little Witchlings into the art of Kitchen Witchery. Fruits and vegetables are being harvested; many a Kitchen Witch is busy canning and preserving. Teaching Witchlings about the season of thanksgiving and gratitude comes easily and naturally within the garden and kitchen. The heart and hearth of our homes.
For the Kitchen Witch lucky enough to have the space for a garden, you've probably already been busy harvesting your own bounty. For those who aren't so lucky there may be friends or family that do, or a trip to a local farm or farmers market will stock your kitchens with the local harvest. Be sure to bring the Witchlings along; showing them exactly where all of our food comes from. Explaining the time and effort that each gardener and farmer takes to produce all of the items we enjoy each day. From the sweetest of apples to the juiciest of plums and berries, the wheat that is ground to make our breads and all of the vegetables we use each day.
This can be a magickal time for you and your little ones, your grandchildren, your nieces or nephews. It's a time of thanksgiving and recognizing the things that we are all most grateful for. So, to begin...
I believe there is a craft project brewing. Go to the craft or hobby store and stock up on fabric paint and blank aprons. Design your own with paint, iron on designs, gems or embroidery. Sponge paint colorful fall leaf designs or pumpkins, make hand-print turkeys with colorful feathers. The possibilities are endless. This can be the start of your Kitchen Witchlings initiation into the world of Witchy Cooking so make it as memorable as you can.
Every good Kitchen Witch needs their wand. If you are good with wood carving or burning, design a special wooden spoon for your Kitchen Witchling to use. If you aren't handy with a wood burner, you can always purchase one in advance. Woodewytch Woodburning, based in Australia, has a beautiful array of Wiccan kitchen spoons in addition to amazing hand-crafted items for decoration and alters. If time is short, you can also fashion a large wooden spoon with a decorative handle of stones, crystals or beads glued around the end. So once the aprons and wands are ready to go, the Cooking Witchery can commence.
Planning the magick. Have a specific recipe in mind and make sure you'll have enough time to be relaxed and take your time. This is so much more than just a kitchen. For the Kitchen Witch the stove is an alter and the room a ritual space. Every creation made for friends and loved ones a magickal act. So prepare your space as you would for any other ritual.
And the ritual begins. As you prepare your ingredients, explain what each herb and spice is for. Its mundane and magickal use. What each fruit, vegetable and grain represent. Stir and mix your creation in a clockwise or deosil direction, concentrating on your intention for this recipe. Maybe you have special chants you wish to share. If your Witchlings have a Book of Shadows or journal, have them record the recipe and magickal instructions. If they are still too young, maybe you will choose to start it for them and they can take over the writings once they are older. If this time becomes a regular family tradition they will have completed magickal cookbooks by the time they are ready to leave home; ready to pass on to the next generation.
Enjoy the fruits of your labor. Have your Witchlings pay close attention to their feelings as they eat as well as the reactions and conversations of any others sharing the meal. Have them write any observations they make in their BOS or journals.
Even if we cannot commit to instructing our Witchlings for each meal (most of us having to live in the ever hectic hustle and bustle of everyday life), try to do this once a week or even once a month. It may take some extra time at first, but very soon you'll have a confident Kitchen Witchling. And I don't know of many who would scoff at having an extra pair of hands in the kitchen.
As summer falls behind us, the days becoming shorter and shorter, we watch the colors change and look back at all we've accomplished over the past year and all we still wish to complete before the winter months blow in. The mistakes we've made are hopefully lessons learned, the successes cherished. We enter this season with reflection and gratitude. Did we truly connect with the ones we love, did we stand strong through our individual challenges, did we learn, did we teach? Start the season with your eyes wide open to all of the magick and joy there is to be had and shared. If you have been struggling with a way to open up your world to those you love, use your gifts of Kitchen Witchery to introduce your Witchlings into your world. May the blessings of the season bring each and every one of you love, joy and many warm memories.
Posted on Examiner.com / Sept. 5, 2013
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