I’m in the woods in north central California right now, upstairs in my father’s cabin. It’s hot AF but I’m wearing long sleeves because I don’t want my father to see my new tattoos.
My father hates tattoos. If he saw them, the worst that would happen would be that he’d make a comment about how he much he hates them, but I also worry that he and his wife might be a little afraid of me.
Stephen Miller, Trump’s evil strategist, has been all over FOX News (yes, we see a lot of FOX up at the cabin) saying that radical leftists want the downfall of America and that they all mutilate themselves and are ‘weird-looking’.
I’m not sure what he means by that but I imagine tattoos are involved.
If my father hates my tattoos and thinks I’m a scary weirdo, nothing much would happen. Still, I guess the discomfort of my knowing it must trump the discomfort of wearing long sleeves in a hot cabin since that’s what I’m doing.
I mention all this to you because Leo season begins today. I’ve been working on the Leo Season Witch Guide all week, so I’ve been thinking about courage and authenticity. I’ve been thinking about how we generate the courage to live as we believe.
All the political accounts I follow say that these are times that require courage. Sometimes it feels easier to face a line of militarized cops at a protest than it does to face the disapproval of our parents.
I think that’s because we usually come into political consciousness as we enter adulthood, but it’s our child selves who worry about what our parents or schoolmates think.
So often, in my 1-on-1 work, I see my clients struggling to overcome similar fears. We want to speak out, we want to make changes in our own lives and in the world, but we’re afraid of ‘what the neighbors will think’.
One part of me thinks that fear of disapproval is a result of white supremacy culture. After all, people and ecologies are facing unimaginable horrors right now. Who cares if the church ladies don’t like your hair dye?
But I also think that fear of community disapproval is a phenomena all social animals face: even the fiercest dog could be shamed by their pack.
Ultimately, when it comes to courage, what’s most important is that we ask ourselves if it’s worth the risk. And, what is the likely outcome if we don’t take that risk?
Fast forward a year from now, and hiding my tattoos from my elderly father is probably a good choice. He and I only have so many opportunities left to cultivate happy memories together.
But if I’m unwilling to risk his disapproval by writing the books I want to write, then it changes the whole outcome of my life.
If we, collectively, aren’t willing to take the risk of standing up for ecological justice now, there may be no one to do it in the future.
Our ritual practices here at Mystery Cult are designed to help us understand what’s worth our courage, not just intellectually, but on an embodied level.
Embodied transformation takes practice. It has to be lived, in our bodies and our imaginations, to fully take root.
In the Leo Season Witch Guide I share with you below, the theme for the month is courage. It’s full of ritual suggestions to help you find your voice.
What would YOU do if you weren’t afraid to try? May Leo season guide you to the answer.
*Note that Yearly subscribers will also receive access to our recent Pagan Prayer workshop, about how to cultivate intimate relation with the numinous through magical speech.
This month’s Leo Season Witch Guide offers…
… rituals and inspiration to help you cultivate courage and authenticity.
In the Leo Season Witch Guide, you get…
A Lúnasa Lion’s Gate ritual guide for cultivating courage
Journal Prompts for the season
A tarot guide
Altar suggestions
Herb and Stone guide
A daily prayer practice for energy and confidence
and more!
The Leo Season Witch Guide is available to all members of Mystery Cult – a gathering space where we practice ritual, seasonal magic, spiritual ecology, and collective care together.