Merry meet!
Thank you once again to all those who joined in for last week’s Weekly Witchy Challenge - Waxing Moon Magick 
After admiring a distant heavenly presence above, it’s time to look down - this week, we’re appreciating the beauty of the planet beneath our feet 
The theme for this challenge honors Earth Day and is…
Rock Magick 
Using the free and bountiful resources of the Earth
Rocks, pebbles, boulders, and stones - each one a thing of beauty and power! 
While witches are known for loving crystals, gems, and other beautiful polished stones, crystals often cost a pretty penny and come from far away. But you don’t need to spend money or ship things from afar to tap into the vast power of the Earth - you have plenty of options right outside your front door
This challenge encourages you to look around and appreciate the things you can find. Celebrating the Earth doesn’t have to cost a penny - everything you need for some rocking Earth magick is provided to you, for free, as a gift from nature 
By using local rocks and stones, you not only save money and time - they also offer a window into the local habitat you call home. Using local stones can help connect you to local nature spirits, deities, and wildlife 
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This week’s challenge is all about the magick of rocks and stones - how you choose to take on this theme is up to you!
So are you ready? Because it’s…
CHALLENGE TIME!
Picture from Canva
STEP 1 : Find Your Stone
The best place to begin with this challenge is by finding your champion - it’s time to meet a new rock buddy!
Whether you find one while out in the garden, on a walk in the woods, on the side of a road, etc, look for an interesting rock that calls to you. It’s not a perfectly polished crystal, so don’t feel pressured to judge based on appearance. Choose any rock you feel drawn to.
If you cannot find a new rock that you feel called to, feel free to use a rock or crystal that you already have at home.
STEP 2 : Rockin’ Spells
Once you have your chosen rock, stone, pebble, or crystal - it’s time to use it in your magick! There are few suggestions below, but as always, how you choose to take on this theme is up to you.
Not sure where to begin? To help you get started, here are a few inspirational ideas and suggestions of how to use your rock in magick.
In celebration of Earth Day, consider putting your new rock to good use in some spells or meditations that honor our planet!
Additional inspiration can be found in the coven’s challenge entries shared in the Land Beneath Our Feet: Mountain Magick Challenge
and the Earth-Friendly Witchcraft Challenge
Resting in the Arms of Earth Mother Meditation
Connecting with the Earth: Spiritual Grounding
Prayer for Healing Mother Earth
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Channeling the Element Earth
In addition to the name of our home planet, Earth is also one of the five magickal elements. Consider invoking Earth or doing some elemental magick with your rock this week. You might cast specifically for Earth, or use your rock as one part in spellwork that combines all of the elements.
Additional resources and inspiration can be found in the coven’s challenge entries shared in the Earth Element Challenge
Elemental Spirits & 4 Directions of Magick
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Crafting with Rocks 
Stones come in all shapes, sizes, and styles making them an excellent ingredient to include in your magickal crafts, no matter the size of your magickal vessel. Consider adding the pure natural energy of a stone to your spell jars, bags, and pouches.
Crafting Spell Jars & Spell Bags
How to Make Your Own Spell Jar
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Special Stones 
Every stone is special in its own way, and each stone will have its own magickal correspondences. Look for colors, shapes, patterns, and other unique features that you make a stone particularly useful for certain intentions or types of magick.
Color Magick & Magickal Color Meanings
Intuition Test: Sensing Color Through Stones
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… And More! 
The suggestions above are just a few ideas to help kickstart your creativity- if you feel called to explore rock magick in another way, you are welcome to do so!
As always, all witches are encouraged to embrace their own unique practice with how they explore the challenge theme 
STEP 2 : Share Your Experience 
Click here for a note about challenge inclusivity
Everyone is welcome to join the challenge by practicing magick in line with the current theme. For lurkers and those who don’t feel comfortable sharing, it is absolutely okay to follow along with the challenge but keep your entry personal. Feel free to join in spirit and do what feels most comfortable for you!
That being said, please know that if you would like to receive a prize and a public shout-out, it is required that you share your experience.
Getting Your Credit 
In order for your entry to be counted, all you have to do is write/share about your experience and label it as your challenge entry. There is a lot of chatting here (which is awesome- chatting and discussion are very welcome!) so please clearly write that it is your entry so I know to count it! 
Where Should I Share My Entry? 
Click here to learn where to share your challenge entry
You are welcome to post it right here- just click “reply” 
to this post and write your experience in the text box that pops up!
Alternatively, you could create a new post in the forum (this is good for when you have a lot to share and/or would like to discuss aspects of your entry not related to the current theme)
Note : If you do choose to create a new thread, please add the “challenge-entry” tag and/or add a hyperlink back to this post so that it can be easily found- thank you! 
Deadline 
This challenge will close in 6 DAYS
To join in, please share your experience by:
Tuesday, April 23 at 7:00 AM EDT (Eastern US Time)
2024-04-23T11:00:00Z
(Note that the time zone is ET- if you don’t see your time displayed above, you can use this time zone calculator to check for your time zone!)
Prizes 
For their efforts, all participants will receive a special shout-out and a small prize!
Acknowledgments will be given in a Props and Presents Post that will appear in the forums on Tuesday.
After the challenge closes, you are still very welcome to post but please be aware that no additional prizes will be given. This discussion will remain open for about a week after the challenge finishes.
A warm reminder that the challenges are designed to be very open- everyone is encouraged to participate in a way that honors and reflects their unique practice 
If you have any doubts about if something is acceptable to post or say, please double-check with the Forum FAQ and/or reach out to your friendly Moderator Team.
And for those new to challenges- welcome! 
Know that the goal of these activities is to help you further diversify and strengthen your abilities and to bring together the Spells8 forum family to inspire and support one another in creative ways 
On Tuesday I got off of work after the 15 hour day. I took the dog out and we were on the driveway. My driveway is rocks. While he was sniffing my tires, I look down and saw this little black rock and beside it was a red rock. (Sleep deprivation does weird stuff to my brain). I brought the rocks in and washed them and wrapped them in a paper towel. I have an app on my phone and was going to look them up later. Fast forward 2 days. I was in the kitchen packing my lunch and hubby picked up this random paper towel off the table and one of the two rocks fell out. Hubby “Why is there a rock in a paper towel”? Me " Did you find it, there should be two"? Hubby “Yes I only dropped one, the other one is still in the paper towel”. Me “Good”. End of the conversation". I would not have thought twice of that conversation if it weren’t for the weekly challenge! 
To everyone who has shared their stone buddies, rock magick, and earth wisdom so far, thank you so much for sharing with the coven 
using stones.