Category: Cat Gina Cole

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From the Forum: What is Magic?

Curated by Cat Gina Cole

The Green Egg Forum is a lively hotbed of thoughtful discourse, moderated by Cat Gina Cole. In this column, Cat shares some of the most interesting and interactive posts and threads from the forum. Want to get in on the conversation? We would love to have you! Go to: https://www.facebook.com/groups/1069823176940972/ to join.

This week in the forum I brought up the definition of magic by making the following post:

“My definition of magic is: Magic is everything you say and do, it is all energy.” That is simplified but it works for me. What is your definition of magic?”

Continue reading From the Forum: What is Magic?

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Herbalism For Your Day: Chamomile

By Cat Gina Cole

Today from my herbal journal I found one of my favorite herbs, chamomile. I love how the plant looks when it is growing: wild and bushy, pushing all its white and yellow flowers up at you. Its smell is delightful and the entire plant is just cheerful. Continue reading Herbalism For Your Day: Chamomile

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Herbalism For Your Day: Purslane & Mallow

By Cat Gina Cole

I have to admit, I am enjoying the re-discovery of my herbal journal as I write this column each week. Each time, it is like finding something new and getting excited about it all over again. Today, I rediscovered this crumpled and handwritten note. It is crumpled because back when I was doing my studies, I had the habit of throwing away my notes once they were on the computer. My husband, Mike, was very against this and would rescue them from the trash bin. He would give them back to me saying “Here you lost this, it is something you need.”  And I think he was right. Just look at the memories a crumpled bit of paper can have and the joy it evokes.
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From the Forum: Ed Fitch and Spiritual Literacy

Curated by Cat Gina Cole

The Green Egg Forum is a lively hotbed of thoughtful discourse, moderated by Cat Gina Cole. In this column, Cat shares some of the most interesting and interactive posts and threads from the forum. Want to get in on the conversation? We would love to have you! Go to: https://www.facebook.com/groups/1069823176940972/ to join.

This week in the forum we somberly and with admiration and respect acknowledge the passing of Ed Fitch. Ed Was a friend and staff member of Green Egg over many years. Here is some of his history from the Covenant of the Goddess Orange County Local Council that was shared in the forum. Continue reading From the Forum: Ed Fitch and Spiritual Literacy

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From the Forum

Curated by Cat Gina Cole

The Green Egg Forum is a lively hotbed of thoughtful discourse, moderated by Cat Gina Cole. In this column, Cat shares some of the most interesting and interactive posts and threads from the forum. Want to get in on the conversation? We would love to have you! Go to: https://www.facebook.com/groups/1069823176940972/ to join.

This week in the Forum There were two great topics, “Is Christian Witchcraft a thing?” And “What is Magic?” To get things started I gave my own simplified definition of “Magic is everything you say and do, it is all energy.” And the conversation was off! Continue reading From the Forum

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Herbalism For Your Day: Basil & Bergamot Oils

By Cat Gina Cole

This week in my herbal journal, I found a couple of oils to share with you. Since I have studied these and wrote the notes on them, I have made them and used them together in an oil for an irritable bowel or stomach with other ingredients. Sadly, I committed the sin of all herbalists and did not write down the recipe for it, but I will keep looking as it worked very well. Continue reading Herbalism For Your Day: Basil & Bergamot Oils

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From the Forum

Curated by Cat Gina Cole

The Green Egg Forum is a lively hotbed of thoughtful discourse, moderated by Cat Gina Cole. In this column, Cat shares some of the most interesting and interactive posts and threads from the forum. Want to get in on the conversation? We would love to have you! Go to: https://www.facebook.com/groups/1069823176940972/ to join.

This week in the forum we discussed what happens if you break a ritual circle and if there are any consequences to doing so. There was no shortage of great responses and it was very enlightening. Continue reading From the Forum

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Herbalism For Your Day: Plants of the Zodiac

By Cat Gina Cole

This week as I turn the page to my very disorganized herbal journal, I wrote years ago; I find Plants of the Zodiac. These are the magical spiritual uses for these herbs. Please know that this list is not a complete compendium, rather it is my study notes. The source for these notes is the book, Garden Witches Herbal by Ellen Dugan. Continue reading Herbalism For Your Day: Plants of the Zodiac

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The Cat’s Eye: Book List

By Cat Gina Cole

Many times, I have been asked to suggest books to seekers, so today I thought I would post a list for your use. Most of these books are in my library and well used by me and my students. I hope you enjoy them as much as I have. Continue reading The Cat’s Eye: Book List

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From the Forum

Curated by Cat Gina Cole

The Green Egg Forum is a lively hotbed of thoughtful discourse, moderated by Cat Gina Cole. In this column, Cat shares some of the most interesting and interactive posts and threads from the forum. Want to get in on the conversation? We would love to have you! Go to: https://www.facebook.com/groups/1069823176940972/ to join.

The forum does not disappoint when it comes to having a variety of topics. This week’s topics include getting your solar eclipse t-shirts as Oberon Zell is quite excited to see yet another solar eclipse, a publisher offering a discount on books for Valentine’s Day, WitchCon coming up, a new Asatru Temple that was built and even a couple of videos from Witchcraft masters like Lauri Cabot and Oberon Zell. As is typical, the dialogue on these topics was as varied as the topics themselves. Let’s take a look. Continue reading From the Forum

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Herbalism For Your Day: Angelica

By Cat Gina Cole

Today as I open my journal from 2014, I find angelica. What I find interesting about this herb is it has so many lookalikes. Pretty much the entire family of umbelliferae are lookalikes for angelica. The family includes about 460 genera and 4,250 species. Continue reading Herbalism For Your Day: Angelica

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Herbalism For Your Day: The Brew

By Cat Gina Cole

Today as I open my journal, I find an entry that is dated 4/26/13 and it reads, “For two months now, I have been taking “’The Brew’ (A herbal blend I made). Dose is 2tsp herbal blend to a large cup of water and steeped for ten minutes. I have lost five pounds and note it is not wise to make the brew too strong because the senna in the mix will make your bowels loose quickly and the gotu kola will sedate you at higher concentrated doses.” Continue reading Herbalism For Your Day: The Brew

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The Cat’s Eye: The Quickening and Imbolc

By Cat Gina Cole

When I was young, my grandmother called what I now know as Imbolc the “Quickening,” It was not specific to a particular date but always occurred in February. We knew the quickening had arrived when Grandma would stop whatever she was doing, listen for a moment and say, “The quickening is here, do you feel it?” Sometimes, it would happen in the garden, sometimes not, but she could feel it. It was a noticeable shift in the energy of the earth and the plants that she could feel. What is the quickening you ask? Well, it is when the earth has warmed up just enough to trigger plants to shift from putting out roots to pushing out shoots.

Continue reading The Cat’s Eye: The Quickening and Imbolc

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From the Forum

Curated by Cat Gina Cole

The Green Egg Forum is a lively hotbed of thoughtful discourse, moderated by Cat Gina Cole. In this column, Cat shares some of the most interesting and interactive posts and threads from the forum. Want to get in on the conversation? We would love to have you! Go to: https://www.facebook.com/groups/1069823176940972/ to join.

This week in the forum I asked, what does a closed or private group on FB mean to you? OR what is the reason we make a group private or closed? I asked this because I saw some content from a group shared on another platform. I wanted to see how the members perceived the privacy of social media groups. The responses provided great insight. Continue reading From the Forum

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Herbalism For Your Day: Blackberry

As I did my research into herbs in 2011, I remember thinking how interesting it was that so many of the things we have around all the time were so useful. Mostly, we either think of blackberry as a jam or a nasty bother but it is actually a very beneficial medicinal plant. Blackberry is high in tannins which are very helpful and known as antioxidants but if taken in extremely high doses, it can be linked with cancer. This fact is true of many of the herbs and plants we use to heal and we mostly avoid extremely high doses and concentration for long periods of time. Continue reading Herbalism For Your Day: Blackberry

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From the Forum

Curated by Cat Gina Cole

The Green Egg Forum is a lively hotbed of thoughtful discourse, moderated by Cat Gina Cole. In this column, Cat shares some of the most interesting and interactive posts and threads from the forum. Want to get in on the conversation? We would love to have you! Go to: https://www.facebook.com/groups/1069823176940972/ to join.

This week in the forum there has been a wide variety of things discussed. From money and ethics, a new book release, a bit of poetry, and even murder. Let’s take a look at how all this unfolds. Continue reading From the Forum

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Herbalism For Your Day: Aromatherapy

By Cat Gina Cole

Today in my journal as I turn the page, I find Magical Aroma Therapy and it begins with “Frankincense.” The first thing I wrote down is that frankincense heightened participants’ spiritual involvement in rites and has the word “euphoric” followed by a question mark. As it turns out, it can be euphoric as it contains the compound incensole acetate but for it to be effective one would have to use a very high concentration. Yet it is said the Greek philosopher Pythagoras used frankincense to enable him to prophesize.

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The Cat’s Eye: What Is Witchcraft, Magic, Psychism, and Paganism?

By Cat Gina Cole

What is Witchcraft?

That is a question that continues to be hotly debated on social media. There is a lot of “Who gets to decide that and why?” type of questions that come with it. The answer also depends on culture, pantheon, and personal beliefs. So, you may be asking why attempt to answer such a question? Well, as a teacher, and practicing Witch for over 50 years, I am in about 40-50 “witch” groups on social media and I see many looking for direction and firm answers, so I will attempt to provide some clarity. Continue reading The Cat’s Eye: What Is Witchcraft, Magic, Psychism, and Paganism?

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From The Forum

Curated by Cat Gina Cole

The Green Egg Forum is a lively hotbed of thoughtful discourse, moderated by Cat Gina Cole. In this column, Cat shares some of the most interesting and interactive posts and threads from the forum. Want to get in on the conversation? We would love to have you! Go to: https://www.facebook.com/groups/1069823176940972/ to join.

Money & Ethics

This week in the forum there was a great discussion about money and ethics, that began with this question, “I am a victim of my own ethics. I have a hard time paying what I consider a high fee, meaning over what I myself would charge for such an event. I may very badly want to attend but as of yet, have not been able to break this ethic, and pay the fee even if I have the money it is just a hard no. I imagine the solution to my dilemma lies in my shadow work, but in the meantime what is an ethical poor Pagan to do when as a provider or a customer we have ethics that are conflicting that sometimes can hold us back? And I ask, where are you and your ethics on this issue?”

 

The responses varied and were very enlightening.

Continue reading From The Forum

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Herbalism For Your Day: Datura

Greetings herbalists, today from my journal dated 2010, we have Datura as promised. Please remember the #1 rule of herbalism, DO YOUR OWN RESEARCH! The articles and information I share in this column are from my journey and my research and not to be taken as gospel. I have learned so much about herbs since my journey began and datura is not an herb to be trifled with. It is widely regarded as unsafe, yet it does have its uses.

Continue reading Herbalism For Your Day: Datura