Hey Occulties,
Long time, no see. I’ve been posting on several other platorms, and sadly ignoring the blog.
But, in my travels, I’ve come across a few things, and I”d like to speak about that quickly.
Magic is a skill. It is a LEARNED SKILL. This is why, even if I offer you a set of instructions, you might not be able to successfully do the working.
When I was a very young child, my mother took me to see a ballet performance. I could not have been much over 4, and remember seeing how effortless the dancers made it look, and being so sure that I could fly through the air so gracefully without any real training.
Anyone who personally knows me would tell you that I’m rather clumsy. That has been the case for my entire incarnation in it’s current form. So, I learned quickly as a child that I could not effortlessly be a graceful ballet dancer, nor did some years of classes really help much either, though it did give me an appreciation that ballet was quite an athletic feat. You could learn all about it and never be all that good at it.
What I did excel at naturally was art. I even went to school for it and became even better. And what that taught me was that frequent practice can make most people much better, but again, it is an innate skill. You can become…”competent.” I had a few professors who’s art was certainly hitting the right levels of balance and color, but who still created what I might best rate as rather dull and not really worthy of being art. It was a good rendering…but they fell short of the goal of the artist which is to capture some part of your attention and emotion, I guess….so this showed me even more strongly that if we become “skilled,” it does not guarantee that we become expert or adept at the skill.
Magic is a skill. Someone posting a meme that tells you to light a white candle on a spot of blood from your thumb is in no way helping you become an expert, and may be discouraging you if it is over simplified and lacks the instructions.
And yet “where do I get a spell for x” is a question I constantly see, where the person has next to zero practice at spell casting, and they want to have thorough instructions and be able to find all the ingredients in their spice cabinet. You know that is great for developing your skills, and I like that part of it, but if you’re lazy and just want to “sort of” make an effort, what I have learned through years of practice is that this is exactly what you’ll get back for results. Low effort blah results. So, try to take on something that challenges you a bit, try to get real ingredients…or perhaps leave a skilled-task to those with skill (as in hire an expert) if you’re just gonna half-ass it.
It’s perfectly fine to half-ass things sometimes. I do. I certainly know how to fix a bad step in my home, but I”ll hire someone. I could get online and figure out how to swap out that light fixture, but I’d prefer to hire someone. I do most of my own gardening (because I so enjoy it, actually), but I”ll hire someone to do the spring clean up. Why? I’m not an expert in any of these things, and I’m sure someone could do it much better than me. Just because the instructions exist it doesn’t mean I can do it well. Just because I enjoy doing it (gardening) doesn’t make me a pro at it. Sometimes, I want to learn to do it myself and do it well, other times I just want to leave it to someone else.
So it’s OK if that’s how you feel about spells.
Maybe you want to learn to be an expert. Maybe you try your hand at it and you realize it’s not for you. Maybe you’re somewhere in between. BUT, just don’t get broken-hearted that a meme or a short reel on getting your ex back did not immediately bring results! Magic works when you put in the work…and it’s a lot of practice and study to get really good at it. Asking for another easy looking spell and then getting frustrated when you get half-assed results means you either don’t have the dedication to become an expert, or….you’re wrongly thinking you can half ass it and still get expert results (nope, like any other skill, it doesn’t work that way.)
Nextly, with Tim Curry and Dolly Parton passing away in the last week, I do get how miserable and downbeat many of us are. Ever since Saturn went retrograde, it just feels like one thing after another. I am sorry if you’re going through more personal turmoil. Many friends and loved ones have also experienced loss in their families and traumatic life changes. I am offering a free group roadopening service for September 25, 2026. Please contact me here, and I will add you in. The aim is to clear blockages to create prosperity and blessings. It is just a tea light service, but it’s free. I think we all could use some happiness in our lives right now.
Alright spell article coming up soon – cuz like I said, I want everyone to want to learn! BUT, I also needed to remind everyone that magic is a skill, and you’re not going to be an overnight expert.
~Cat
Cat’s Rants: Confessions of an Occult Mastermind 