🪦 Weekly Witchy CHALLENGE - Ancestor Work

Trixie_Thojrne · February 16, 2023, 6:00pm

@Susurrus You are so fortunate to have the family Bible in your possession! I am the genealogist for a local lineage society and work with Bibles that are sometimes the only remaining proof of lineage when old documents in city halls were lost to fire or just not kept at the city level at all. It’s a real treasure!

I know you’re worried about handling it, so maybe consider transcribing it or taking clear photographs of the specific pages and uploading them to your computer to be saved digitally. Be thinking about who will inherit this gift from you. Maybe even donate it to a local historical society in the town where the majority of your ancestors lived. I promise you that people like me and distant cousins of yours will seek it out and in finding this Bible, you and your ancestors will be remembered.

Susurrus · February 16, 2023, 9:43pm

I’ll have to get it out & take some pictures for you to see some it. I’ll find the other one too. They are in a container right now. When I get to it I’ll take some pictures of the pages that have like artwork of holy sites that are fold out parts of the Bible.

I’ll grab one of my son’s to help me get it upstairs. Honestly it’s at least 6 to 8 inches thick. I know that it has been passed down to the oldest child in the family since it started, which happened to be me. I was wide eyed & wore gloves turning the pages.

Now I’m on a new mission

@Aurora_Hestia I have a DNA map too! I’ll have to sign in, it explained a lot about how my practice has evolved too! I love these kinds of rabbit holes!

Trixie_Thojrne · February 17, 2023, 2:41am

CHALLENGE ENTRY

Genealogy is my passion and one day perhaps my profession. I’ve proven many of my ancestral lines back to their sources in England, Ireland and Scotland and to the earliest days of the United States including several Mayflower and Revolutionary War ancestors. Among those is a line to my 9th great-grandmother, Sarah Vinson, who was accused of witchcraft during the Salem witch trials.

Last summer I took my daughter on an ancestral tour of the East Coast in the US. We visited historic sites and grave sites galore and I have never felt more in touch with my family history.

Beginning this journey of combining my interest in ancestry with my witchcraft is a labor of love I am so looking forward to. I have had moments while researching when I asked a particular ancestor for guidance, and got it, so I feel like my family is out there waiting for me to get in touch. I started reading a book suggested by @Jewitch in the Spells 8 Book Club July ’21, called “Badass Ancestors”. The cover alone is really compelling!

In addition to beginning the book, I have started a nightly meditation during which I set my intention to connect. I start by striking my singing bowl to cast a circle with sound . Then I
anoint a light blue candle with my saliva, so my DNA is part of the energy, and I start my meditation.

This book is a great addition to my library. I recommend it to anyone who is starting their ancestor work. It’s a compendium that gives wonderful information about genealogical research, alter creation, prayers to ancestors, crafts, cultural history, rituals and divination. I loved the way this author writes as well, just easy and relatable anecdotes and analysis throughout. Very fun, quick and insightful read!

CelestiaMoon · February 17, 2023, 11:26am

Oh dear, this one is going to be a difficult one for me! I feel a lot of pain and darkness in my close ancestry, a lot of addiction, jealousy and other compulsion… we haven’t really been in contact. Reaching beyond the Veil for my blood ancestors hasn’t felt like a good idea at all, I don’t need those low vibrations in my life. My living relatives and I haven’t been in contact either. I’m curious how far past it continues… the one thing I could think of would be to make a family tree, ask my father about his side. My mother’s passed away and I don’t really have a contact on that side anymore. Maybe once I have more money available I could go see someone who can heal family lines. This feels beyond me and my own abilities.

To me that only really tells where my body comes from though. My spiritual ancestry is different. It includes all the incarnations I’ve had so far, and all the people who have touched my soul in some way. All the books I’ve read, and where their authors got their inspiration and knowledge, all the people I’ve had deep heart to heart connections with, or just passing ones. All that energy and light I’m carrying in me. It would be very hard to catalogue! I could still try, make a rough little chart of where I’ve got the things that I feel connected to today.

Ostara · February 17, 2023, 11:48am

Most of you know that I’m a closet witch. A few months ago I discovered that my brother is a closet witch. We both hid it so well that we didn’t know about each other. Lol! Anyway, he met a witch and when they were introduced she knew that he was a witch. She told him that he came from a long line of powerful witches. He and I have been trying to figure out which of our ancestors were witches. I don’t think we are going to have much luck with this because they were probably closet witches. It seems to run in the family.

BryWisteria · February 17, 2023, 2:00pm

Well, I’d say it’s a very exciting rabbit hole to fall into You have a lot of passion for your genealogy, Siofra, and I have no doubt that you’ll continue to discover amazing things about your heritage and family past! I’m cheering for you- keep on enjoying your research!

Sometimes distance can be filled with knowledge- I’m so happy to hear that you were able to bridge the gap and connect with your heritage, Aurora! And wow, it sounds like you found quite the treasure trove of discoveries- from European witches to seeresses (that is quite a word haha) and all of the magick those things entail, you found a lot of interesting things to connect with! I’m both proud and happy for you, Aurora- I know you were a bit hesitant about this theme, but you overcame the challenge wonderfully. Great job!

This sounds like not only a fun family and bonding trip, but a fantastic way to connect with your ancestors and heritage from the region. What a fun idea! I can really tell that genealogy is a big passion of yours, Trixie- if you are considering it, I think it could be a very enjoyable and rewarding career path for you!

Thank you for bringing the book back too- it’s a perfect one to add in for this week’s theme. I’m happy to hear you enjoyed it so much! Thank you so much for sharing your thoughts, work, and recommendation about ancestors- this was a pleasure to read!

If reaching beyond the veil to contact your blood ties feels like a bad idea, I would definitely say to put the idea into the “not for me” category and leave it peacefully be.

On the other hand, it sounds like you have a truly amazing and very positive bond with your spiritual ancestry- what an amazing thing to explore! We truly are blessed by all those who have aided and helped us on our journeys, and I think that path of ancestry is a wonderful way to approach and honor ancestor work. Thank you so much for sharing this, Celestia- may your spiritual ancestors continue to grant you light, love, and many blessings!

What a great discovery! It sounds like you are both very good at protecting yourselves haha. I’m glad things came into the light and you were able to connect as fellow witches- how exciting! Hopefully with the two of you working together you’ll be able to find some fellow witchy ancestors, despite your family’s talents with secrecy and protection Good luck and blessed be!

Aurora_Hestia · February 17, 2023, 5:50pm

I did! I was grateful I had the forum to share it with because my husband and daughter are not nearly as excited by this type of information And thank you so much! I appreciate your kind words

That’s so cool that you discovered that at least! Even if the hanging out in the broom closet runs in the family, that’s wonderful that you can share it with your brother

I love your thoughts on this. It’s SO true and speaks to me so much as there’s also a lot of darkness with my close ancestry. Nothing that I’d really like to dig into and encourage more of in my life!

This sounds like such an amazing way to learn more about your ancestry! I bet that was a wonderful trip! And that book cover is beautiful

Me too! It was really interesting to see how our ancestry plays a part in our practice and our interests.

Garnet · February 18, 2023, 1:08am

Weekly Witchy Challenge - Ancestor work
Challenge entry - Garnet
Although I choose not to deal with those who have passed through the veil, I can present a copy of an ancestor who was tried as a witch.

ELIZABETH PERIMENT CLAWSON was my 9x great-grandmother.
I only found out about this a few years ago, apparently, she was my family’s dirty little secret.
How’s that for heritage?
Garnet

MeganB · February 18, 2023, 3:04am

Okay, so I had one direction I wanted to take this in but I decided to do something different because I don’t have the mental energy for the other thing So rather than focus on what I can’t do - and the ancestors that I have to dig really deep for information on - I’m going to figure out what sort of celebrities and famous people I have in my family tree I’m grabbing screenshots and will write some of the information out. This is from FamilySearch.org in my mom’s account – after you plug in your family tree and stuff! I think my mom has ours connected with Ancestry.com, I’m not sure. The information on where these people fall is going to be off by one generation because this is my mom’s account, but it’s still cool!

Also, some of these screenshots will have things crossed out. These are names in my family tree, for privacy reasons.

So, here it goes!

Princess Diana

Charles Darwin

I always think it’s interesting to go back and see who I’m related to in history, even in such a small way. What’s funny - actually, there are two things that are funny while looking at this. The first thing that’s funny to me is that @Susurrus and I are both related to Henry David Thoreau.

I remember being a kid, well maybe a young teen, and finding a slip of paper that was almost transparent that had one of his quotes typed out on it. Ever since then, I have always loved it and it has been my favorite quote. Honestly, I think it was a slip of paper that belonged in a card or something, obviously something for decoration. The quote is this:

It’s not what you look at that matters, it’s what you see.

I have tried to live by that quote ever since I saw it. It’s a good reminder for me, too, that sometimes what looks to be the truth isn’t actually what’s happening.

The second thing that’s funny to me about looking at these people I’m distantly related to is that I remember when Princess Diana died. I remember being so heartbroken, so sad, yet I had no idea who she really was. I knew she was a princess, of course, but I didn’t know much other than that. Yet I can remember mourning her as if I knew her.

Anyway, I think this is as good a reminder as any that sometimes our ancestors can be the celebrities and important people in the world that did a lot of good (and a lot of bad, of course). You don’t need to be blood related to anyone to be an ancestor, either!

christina4 · February 18, 2023, 6:46am

For this challenge, I found out more about my last name. I used the site that @mary25 shared and this is what I found out:

But as for the Italian side, i have photos of my grandparents, John and Janet Morano. He’s straight Italian and shes straight Irish. This is on my mothers side.

EDIT- I don’t have my full biological ancestry on here because I dont know much besides the nationality.

Susurrus · February 18, 2023, 12:33pm

@MeganB well, now I have more names to go look for I’ve been going through my trees & updating them because, well, it’s been a while since I really looked at them & realized there was more that I could add to my father’s side Ireland’s records are so fun to go through I would love to see if I am related to Princess Diana… I know that I am a direct ancestor to King John I of England…

I’m also related to Princess Diana & my husband has an in-law relationship with her.

So maybe I have some others! Back to those rabbit holes

@christina4 I love the pictures & a lot of times you can start with just your parents’ names & build from there. That’s actually how I started… I put in my parents’ & grandparents’ names one time & now my tree has over 8,000 people in it then when I added it to the world tree… it just took off. I had to do the same thing with my husband. He is French Canadian & Irish… but all we had to go on was his mom & dad plus one set of grandparents. I’m using a free trial right now in ancestry and then importing what I find into the Geni World Tree.

Susurrus · February 18, 2023, 12:56pm

So here’s my relationship to Helen Keller: (I also have an in-law relationship with her on my mother’s side, but that came through when I was checking another name )

Then Edgar Allan Poe:

I also have a blood relationship to Marilyn Monroe:

Then I did Charles Darwin:

I also have an in-law relationship with him on my mother’s side.

& in the process found Dr. Robert Waring Darwin:

Robert Waring Darwin FRS was an English medical doctor, who today is best known as the father of the naturalist Charles Darwin. He was a member of the influential Darwin-Wedgwood family.

Darwin was born in Lichfield, the son of Erasmus Darwin and his first wife, Mary Howard. He was named after his uncle, Robert Waring Darwin of Elston (1724–1816), a bachelor. His mother died in 1770 and Mary Parker, the governess hired to look after him, became his father’s mistress and bore Erasmus two illegitimate daughters.

In 1783 Darwin began his studies of medicine at the University of Edinburgh, where he apparently took lodgings with the chemistry professor Joseph Black. His father then sent him to Leiden University in the Netherlands for a few months, and he took his MD there on 26 February 1785. His Leyden dissertation was impressive and was published in the Philosophical Transactions, but his father may have assisted him in this. In Edinburgh, Robert Darwin studied under several leading scholars, including John Walker. He was elected a Fellow of the Royal Society on 21 February 1788.
From his profile on Geni World Tree - Dr Robert Darwin profile

Nixi · February 18, 2023, 2:14pm

CHALLENGE ENTRY
This was an interesting one for me. I almost didn’t do it. I knew I’d have to blast my way through it because today is supposed to be the first day of my “The outside world doesn’t exist Staycation” and it didn’t really seem like a topic I could do much with.
I didn’t have much family to begin with and I don’t have pictures or possessions but for I item that belonged to my Paternal Grandmother. As I’m typing this I realize that I do have pictures of her and her second husband.
I’ve been researching lineage for a couple of years and have hit a wall. I had a starting point on both sides, Mayflower on one side and a prominent family name with history on the other, and didn’t find out much I didn’t know.
I suspect “witch blood” on one side and did find some interesting family names along the way. Something my Maternal Grandmother said when I told her about buying a set of Tarot cards on the family vacation we had just come back from. My uncle liked planning vacations and always picked “Interesting places”. That year we went to Salem, Massachusetts.
I don’t remember exactly what she said and my mother cut her off because she thought she was about to be scolded for letting me buy them but I think it might have been just the opposite. Tiny whisps of memories and the way her house felt, the house was built by her family in the 1800’s, make me really want to ask her questions.
I’d never thought of trying to contact her until this challenge. When my mind goes into “Let the research begin” mode I am all consumed.
Right off I learned there are different ‘Clairs’, I had no idea, and that some of the things I can do that I know nothing about are covered by 3 of them. Okay now I really want to talk to my grandmother. It’s funny, I don’t have a single picture of her but when I think of her I can see her hair. I have never seen hair that color anywhere.
I am now researching how to talk to spirits. I already have a healthy respect for taking precautions from a story my mother told me about her and her friends when they were in their 20’s deciding that they were going to try to talk to someone, anyone. Yes she really is that -what’s the word I’m looking for- all she ever told me was it went very wrong and to never do it unless I knew what I was doing.
I started researching precautions, did a bit of a quick look research before returning to how to prepare. I haven’t gotten far into even that part yet so it will probably be a while but I’m sure that at some point I will get as far as I can research on my own and I’ll be in here asking if there is anyone who can tell me where to go next.
This was a very intense one and I am so glad that I didn’t just throw my hands up and say “There’s nothing I can do with this one”

CelestiaMoon · February 18, 2023, 2:36pm

This matches my feelings too, I still don’t know much about her but something about her strongly resonates with me on a soul level, something that goes beyond words and stories…

Kasandra · February 18, 2023, 4:54pm

Challenge Entry

Unfortunately, there isn’t much information on Pre-Christian Scotland. The Picts, Scotland’s earliest known inhabitants, had no written language and what we do know of them comes from Roman and Christian sources, which are heavily biased. Pict actually comes from the Latin word, Picti, which means “painted person”. They were once divided into many clans belonging to many confederations. But they were united into two powerful kingdoms (whose names I can’t remember). It is theorized that the Picts’ religion was similar to Celtic Polytheism. Whether or not they worshipped deities similar to Brigid or The Morrígan is something I haven’t able to find in the research I’ve done. Images of bears have been found, though. This piece of knowledge made me want rewatch Disney/Pixar’s Brave. I learned something interesting about Artio, the Celtic Bear Goddess, and Artemis, Greek Goddess of The Moon and The Hunt, who was sometimes associated with bears. In Ancient Greece, there was a ceremony where girls would wear bearskins and then take them off as a symbolic shedding of their girlhood and transition to womanhood.

Phoenix_Fire · February 18, 2023, 5:26pm

**challenge entry **
So because ive been really getting into my lenormand and kipper learning the grand tableau has been a big thingvon my mind in divination lately. But obviously cards arent just about prediction but can also be communication with spirits and deities.
Ive been gavimg a go at grand tableu for the month ahead but i had a thought and after seeing tarot tableau used for deity work that i might give it a go with each member of my clan. To respect gende of deity i will need to adjust how i use main character cards for those who are female deities. Normally if ask about someone a partner or friend or something like that the person asking is the gendered card they are and the partner or friend would be the orher card ie if i was asking bout me Nd a female friend id be the female card and she would be the male card, if she was the one asking the question sje would be female card and id be the male card. ( this lenormand) but to respect the deity even if im the one askibg the deity the question if they are a female deity i will use the femalr card to represent them and me the male card. If they are a male deity they will be relresented may man card and me female card.
I was trying to think how to do it, but maybe as its first time trying this, maybe i can ask something about how i can work on or strengthen my relationship with that deity over the coming month? Or what did they feel i needed to know or wjat guidance theu may have but then i think its in this particular case more to connect to deity through thr cards and ( though single and not looking so i dont normally look into relationships between partner cards maybe can look at my relationship with that deity by how the cards far in relation to eacj othef. Maybe question could ve general and ask each one seperayely each with own grand tableau. Maybe i ask specific question to each deity. Maybe i ask how to strengthen or areas may need to work on relationshio with them and things important to them? Not sure how will do it yet, maube ill try different ways to see how goes but Definatly want to give it a go. And also even by reflecting on a grand tableau done with a deity and studying the cards and how fell and message and the relationship between me and that deity, im engaging and connecting with them just by that action and process.

I had an idea about also trying a grand tableau to connect to spirits at work. Alot going on at work and i wonder how they feel about all that. Maybe having better jnderstandings of the grand tableau and reading the cards i might habe a better time understanding the message than last time i tried that. Alot of changes etc going on at work at the moment and alot of… lets just stuff. Its intense and i wonder if its affecting the spirits as much as it is the living or physical people. So maybe this is a good opportunity to check in to see how they are going as well.

I think both connecting with members of clan ( deities) individually and the spirits at work using the grand tableau as a medium for communicatiion and seems to ve fitting for this challenge. Maybe some good can come of my learnings even if perhaps here is less predictive of shats to come and checking in to see where we are at and maybe if anything need or can do for each of those communicate with.

Amaris_Bane · February 18, 2023, 5:43pm

@MeganB, Now I have a new site to play with! I have 28 POTUS, somehow 16 Mayflower passengers, 8 authors, Buffalo Bill, the Brownings (Browning Firearms), and Wright brothers in my lineage.

I spent some time clicking back in history of the relatives that are in FamilySearch. Some has done a lot of work as there are ancestors back to 780 BC! Some notable names:

Aeschylus of Athens: the father of tragedy
Marcus Junius Brutus L’Ancien de Rome (yes, that Brutus!)
Cesar Titus Flavius Vespasianus Augustus, aka Emperor Vespasian
Octavia Thurina Minor “The Younger”, the elder sister of the first Roman emperor Augustus
Nero Claudius Drusus Germanicus, the great-grandfather of emperor Nero
Marcus Antonius, grandfather to Mark Antony

Jeannie1 · February 18, 2023, 10:04pm

Soifra Strega
I am happy for you that you were able to find your lineage. It is fascinating to me. I would like to learn how to dig that far into my lineage. Do you have any suggestions? Food for thought? I think I have a book that might help! maybe I have some peoples that are connected down my heritage I don’t know about!
I have 8 brothers and sisters out there and many people I don’t know about!
So this would be very interesting! Thanks for sharing as always your such are so helpful!
Jeannie

Artemisia · February 19, 2023, 12:13am

Hmmmm well this one may stump me. I’ll explore some ideas over the next couple of days as I don’t want to not complete a challenge. It is for sure out of my wheelhouse but the one thing I have learned since doing these challenges is that exploring different areas broadens my practice and knowledge even if it isn’t something I have or will use routinely.

Susurrus · February 19, 2023, 1:16am

I started on Ancestry.com, I feel like it’s the easiest one to start on using just my parents & grandparents names. The more you know about them, birthdays, marriage dates, their childrens names, your aunts & uncles… you’ll start getting hints. I uploaded that tree to MyHeritage.com when I got to about 5000 people. Once I got to close to 8000 I had uploaded that tree to the Geni
World tree, those numbers were combined with my husbands family & it just completely expanded way further back than I could have gotten without hiring a professional.

I had my first DNA test done on Ancestry. Then MyHeritage & also had my father’s & daughter’s DNA tests done on MyHeritage. I had my full sequence test done for GeniWorld & another one done on Living DNA.

I’ve been working on my genealogy things since… the early 2000s when my grandmother was still alive. She was the only grandparent I knew & I never had the chance to meet either of my grandfathers. I did know my great grandfather, but he passed away when I was 12, so before I could ask much genealogy based. He only spoke Italian & I was the only great grandchild that could talk to him.

I asked my birth mother & father & grandmother a lot of questions though.

For my husband, I just went off of what he knew. His father died when he was 12 & after my second SI joint fusion, his mother stopped communicating with us.

Any books or documents that you may have relating to your family are great for information too & will help.