Who We Are
The willow has long been a symbol of love, awareness, hope,and synchronicity. And the east, a symbol of intuition, teaching, and psychic energy. At Willows East, we celebrate intuition, interconnectedness, and peace.
I'm Gretchen, practicing Christian Pagan, and founder and creator of Willows East and the Willows East Lenormand deck. I founded Willows East in 2014, with the purpose of creating a virtual safe-haven for myself and others -- a place to explore intuition, spirituality, and psychic energy. As I met others on the same pursuit, in person and in online forums, as we shared our journeys and inspirations, Willows East soon grew into something bigger. It became a "home" of sorts for everything that I hold dear to me in this community: clairvoyant practices, meditation, Tarot readings, journaling, and a safe learning space.
We started as an Instagram page that became a Facebook group, that became a forum, that became a virtual classroom, etc. And someday I hope we grow to have a team of regular writers and intuitive readers. Thanks for joining us on this journey!
Contact: willowseast@gmail.com
What It Looks Like to be a Practicing Christian Pagan (For Me)
Where do I begin? First of all, everyone is different. Everyone practices witchcraft or paganism differently, just as everyone practices Christianity in their own way, and that's 100% OK. For example, not all witches cast spells. Not all Christians say the rosary. For me, it's mostly 4 parts: I pray, meditate, seek signs, do spell-work, read cards/runes, journal, and practice rituals, and all of these practices are connected:
- Prayer - I sit quietly, with my eyes closed, and talk to Jesus. I talk to my guides (who I believe are simply spiritual friends on the other side). I ask them for help, for signs about what I need to do next. I pray to my higher self, my subconscious, which I believe is directly connected to the spiritual realm of my guides and Jesus (some spiritualists separate these two). Early Hawaiians believed that if you could access your subconscious and "train" your subconscious brain, you were more likely to develop (healthy) habits and train your conscious brain to "work" more effectively. This is part of prayer to me as well -- spending time with my own thoughts, silently vocalizing my concerns or ideas.
- Meditation - Meditation isn't that much different from prayer time. I spend quiet time with my own thoughts. However, typically in meditation, I spend less time talking (than in prayer) and more time listening. In these meditation sessions, I sometimes "see" (like day dreaming) detailed visions, as I'm mainly clairvoyant (visual cues). Occasionally, while trying to communicate with spirit in meditation (by simply asking for protection, then requesting they come through), I'll "hear" a spirit voice (clairaudience). Though some "seers" are mainly clairaudient, this is a rare occurrence for me.
- Signs - Most people share varying thoughts about "signs". Some people believe that angels or guides are directly interfering with the earthly realm and laying out signs and symbols to guide us through our daily lives. Think: noticing a frequent number, white feathers, etc. Though I don't doubt that, I've always felt that, for me, when I notice something out of the ordinary and feel a connection, it's mostly my own subconscious at work. That doesn't mean it holds any less significance, it's just based on how I feel when I experience it. I often find 3-branch sticks in my path. And, when I do, this is a reminder to my conscious self that I need to find balance in my life. The idea is simple, but long-term, your "signs" can be really life-changing. I also pray that these signs will never be "warnings," but only positive messages of love and guidance.
- Spell-Work - I always say that, "Spells are just prayers with one foot in the earthly realm." I do a spell when I want to take prayer to the next level. For example, if I find myself really struggling to focus at work, and it's a repeat-problem, then I might do more than just say a prayer. Of course, it isn't really fair to refer to praying as "just praying." Jesus taught us that prayer is always sufficient. You don't need to do anything more. However, for me, if I take the extra time to write down my prayer, to light a candle as a reminder of my prayer, to light incense in representation of my words, to tie my written prayer and carry it with me, it's an extra reminder of why it was important to me. I think about it more often, am that much more aware, and I'm certain it makes a difference. And that's it, that's my "spell," no Hollywood sparks and flames, just setting my intentions and promising myself that I will work to make it happen.
- Card-Reading - Tarot- and Lenormand-card reading has been a significant part of this journey for me. I use them just like I use signs. I'll ask the cards, "What do I need to know for tomorrow?" and I'll look for symbolism in the cards that mean something to me -- always positive. If I notice that The Magician is holding a wand, it may be a reminder that I'm in control of my own fate, etc. It's not really about the cards at all. I could just as easily see this symbol in a vision, in a dream. I could stumble upon it carved in a tree. It's MY interpretation of the symbols that gives me a clue into my subconscious mind -- think spiritual Rorschach Test. When you turn off your conscious mind for a moment, you let your subconscious speak. It's like counseling for the soul.
- Journaling - I write all of this down, as much as I can. I journal about my card-readings, and I keep notes about visions, etc., so I can see my own spiritual journey and log repeat-feelings, etc. This helps me guide my prayers and self-work.
- Rituals - Rituals are just repeat prayers or repeat spell work. I tell myself every day that I'm worth it. I meditate every day. I pray every day. If I want to make something a habit, I try to do it every day for a week, then 2 weeks, and so on -- something as simple as keeping a planner or simple diary can become a powerful ritual that simply gives you time to focus, to be alone with your thoughts, to celebrate you at the very core of your being.
My Spiritual History
I was brought up in a Christian family, but my beliefs fall somewhere in-between Christianity and Paganism. My very first understanding of "God" was in a holy-spirit sense, the essence of each living thing, an energy that was both male and female. As a child, I innocently understood God to be as more of a traditional Pagan sense of spirit, and one based in the beauty of nature around us. I still go back to that very first feeling of what God meant to me and trust it to be true.
And, before my family regularly attended church, my father taught me about the very basic teachings of Jesus. As a result, I have a very simple view about Christianity that doesn't quite fit into any one box. I have a fierce love for the Jesus I learned about in Western Civilizations class, but an inherent distrust in how his story was told and translated.
When I began having spiritual experiences as a young child and on into adulthood, Christianity couldn't entirely answer all my questions, and I began a long journey into the world of spirituality and paganism.
Since then, it has always felt like I've returned to where I'm supposed to be. In prayer and ritual, my body remembers. My hands move over the candles, my sage, my oils without conscious awareness. Even if my mind suffers from distractions, my hands don't forget.
-My first spiritual experience was when I was 5-years-old. My mom worked in a haunted dress shop, an old house in our hometown. She had to do some work upstairs in a storage room. I refused to go in there, because it didn’t feel right. I decided to play in the hallway then moved to the stairs. I had the sensation that I was falling through the stairs and screamed for my mom. She came to get me, and we went downstairs for the rest of the day. I didn’t know at the time, but when I was older, she told me that a little girl had fallen through the stairs and died during construction on the house. Things went missing all the time. She lost her scissors and later found them resting on the top of a window frame that she couldn’t reach without a ladder, etc.
-We stayed at a haunted camp during the summers. I was about 10-years-old when I heard footsteps come down the hallway in the middle of the night, heard someone walk into my room and felt someone put their hand on my shoulder. I thought it was my mom but, when I rolled over, no one was there.
-My father has worked for more than 20 years as a prison guard in a converted psychiatric center from the early 1900s. He can be skeptical like me, and he's clearly a level-headed guy but has come home with more real ghost stories than I can get into here (and some good, old-fashioned prank ones, too!).
-I lost a pregnancy about 2 years ago and heard a voice promise me that I would have another child. It was a man, and he said that he would show me signs in the form of rainbows until I had my baby. There was a rainbow over our house almost every day for the rest of the summer (I have lots of pictures!) and, the following year, a rainbow over the hospital (a sun dog, I think it’s called) in the middle of winter on the morning I took my daughter home from the hospital. I also turned to my faith during this time (after some cursing at God) and found grief to be such a beautiful healing process for me.
-I had a handful of paranormal experiences while pregnant with my daughter and feel that she is very empathic. I also had extremely vivid dreams during the pregnancy and after she was born – very symbolic and with seemingly specific numbers, colors, etc. I’m sure some of those dreams were due to hormones, but many of the messages were very specific and later validated.
-I started meditation exercises in the fall and have been amazed with the information I feel I’ve received, but I still doubt it all the time. Even with the experiences listed above, I can still be such a skeptic! I do think a healthy dose of skepticism is good, but I think it sometimes keeps me from moving forward with my meditation exercises.
-I feel I’ve been in touch with at least one spirit guide, Amelie – again, an experience I doubt so much, even though I feel it’s right. Once I started meditating, I felt like the outpouring of information was overwhelming and have held back with that communication a little. I’ve also (just this week) started working with a pendulum and redesigning this dream diary blog. And, what I know for certain is that, this entire journey is fun, it makes me happy, and it seems to complete a part of my life that I’ve been missing!
