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August 11 through August 17, 2025

Mercury will resume forward motion on Monday, but give it another week or two to straighten out, as electronics and communications will still hit a few glitches until it does. The Pisces Moon makes for a slow start to the week, but we can make up for lost time on Tuesday and Wednesday as the Moon charges into Aries and brings out our assertive and determined sides. The Moon will travel through Taurus on Thursday and Friday, calling for us to attend to anything we’ve neglected in our physical world, from finances to health to general clutter. A fun weekend awaits as the Moon dances through Gemini, awakening our social sides and inspiring us to get together with others to exchange ideas and share our thoughts. This is also a great time to surf the information highway for an expansion of ideas, as Mercury inspires us to reach a bit further to find what we’ve been looking for and get answers to long-pondered questions.

Weeds: 10 Magical Resources You Can Find in Your Own Backyard, by JD Walker

(Article originally published in The Llewellyn Journal.)

There is a saying in the gardening community: Grow where you're planted. It means to do your best to develop, grow, and yes, even bloom, regardless of your situation or circumstance.

I like to use this same philosophy when it comes to my spiritual and magickal work. I use store-bought things, and am very happy to have access to them. However, I want my religious tradition to be more than something I buy online or do on one of the eight Sabbats.

I want to see magick in the world around me. So, I often look for supplies right outside my door.

"But," you say, "I don’t have a yard or a garden. Where am I supposed to look for herbs?"

Right under foot, dearie.

I wrote A Witch's Guide to Wildcraft to help folks understand that they can fill a lot of their needs simply by looking at the world around them with new eyes.

Practically every residence, whether apartment complex, rental property, or house, has a yard. Take a look at that grassy expanse. You'll quickly see that it's not all grass. In the case of most dwelling spaces with an accompanying yard, it's not even mostly grass. It is, however, a wonderful shopping space for magickal supplies. For example:

1. Chickweed: This low-growing, fresh green, matting plant is called Stellaria media because of the tiny little star-like flowers it produces. It is a moon herb, good for lunar magick as well as for spells to attract or keep a lover. It can also be used in beauty spells.
2. Clover: Everyone knows clover (Trifolium repens) is a good luck herb. It is also used in magick for prosperity.
3. Onions: Wild onions (Allium canadense) are the bane of any homeowner who takes pride in his or her lawn. But witches use them for exorcism and protection.
4. Dandelion: You know you've wished on a dandelion (Taraxacum officinale) puff ball before! Children everywhere do. Blowing on the puff ball is also said to divine everything from how long you will live to the direction from which your true love will come. It is a good resource for any ritual work done to honor solar deities.
5. Violets: Violas or violets, on the other hand, can be used in workings with Venus, Aphrodite, Inanna, or any deity associated with love. I find it invaluable in mending a broken heart.
6. Grass: Even the grass that is growing in the lawn or the ornamental grasses gracing the landscape border or perennial flower beds have magickal uses. Gather what you need for protection and prosperity or use a handful to make a natural, temporary asperging wand.

Broaden your view and take in the plants that border the yard or that live in the landscape.

7. Hollies: Don't throw away those clippings from the hollies in the shrub border, even the ornamental Japanese hollies (Illex cornuta, I. crenata, etc.). They can be used for protection spells.
8. Honeysuckle: Look into that shrub border for the Japanese honeysuckle (Lonicera japonica) that has probably snuck in there. It can be used in prosperity and binding spells. With a long enough piece of vine, you can make a wreath to hang on the door or above the altar to attract that prosperity.
9. Ivy: Another common vine is ivy (Hedera). This is a witchy herb if there ever was one. It is a Saturn herb but is also considered feminine in energy. Like all vines, it can be used in binding magick. Ivy has the added benefit of being used for protection and healing.
10. Moss: Even the moss (Bryophyta) that grows along the foundation of a residence or in the shade of a tree has magickal uses. Properly dried, it is a filling for a poppet. Fairies are said to love it, so use it to dress your fairy garden.

Without leaving your immediate area, you've found supplies for everything from spell work to ritual tools. When you respectfully gather your own herbs for your workings, you are connecting with the Divine, however you perceive the Divine. You are one with the Universe. You are a self-sufficient, enterprising Pagan who can stand on your own, regardless of where you are planted.

Article originally published in The Llewellyn Journal. Copyright Llewellyn Worldwide, 2021. All rights reserved.

What does it mean if I keep having the same dream almost every night? I dream that someone is knocking on my door. It's always three knocks, and then I wake up yelling Who is it? When I wake up, it seems so real that I get up to open the door just to make sure nobody is really there. I don't know if this is related in any way, but a couple of years ago, my husband and I had been arguing, and when I was going to bed, I saw this man dressed in all black with a big hat on walk right by my bedroom door and then just disappear. He was a tall, shadowy figure, and every little hair on my body stood up. It really scared the heck out of me and still does just thinking about it.

Robin

Susyn:

Some recurring dreams can be really disconcerting, for it can feel like we are being sent some kind of message that we can't quite interpret. When this happens, the best way to alleviate these dreams and the anxiety they create is to investigate them in order to decipher their metaphysical purpose.

This dream is simple in its overall form: three knocks that wake you from a deep sleep and appear so real that you get out of bed to investigate. Hearing a knock at the door implies that your subconscious is attempting to get your attention and bring a certain aspect of your life to greater conscious awareness. This implies that there is something you need to pay attention to or some changes that need to be made. We can assume this is a positive message, as in opportunity knocking.

It is interesting that you always hear three knocks. In numerology, three is the number of enlightenment and associated with the planet Jupiter. Though being awakened by the sound of three knocks on a door can be startling, these dreams carry important information. When you feel anxious about these dreams, it helps to remember that good things typically come in threes.

Three can also represent a triangle, which may be why you are connecting the dream to an argument you had with your husband and the dark, shadowy figure you saw outside your bedroom door shortly after. I don't feel that these incidents are connected with the dreams you keep having, for it seems you never saw the shadowy figure again after this event. If this man was a spirit residing in your home, you would have noticed him more than once.

When we experience dreams of this nature, it is always helpful to write them down in detail. Usually, this will coax additional information to the surface. I also recommend meditating on these dreams in order to learn more. During these reflections, you can ask Spirit to reveal the deeper meaning behind these knocks, and achieve greater clarity on the messages they are trying to convey.

It could be that you are ignoring some aspect of your life or that you feel something is out of control. As you grow in understanding of the reasons for these dreams, they should subside, for once a dream has fulfilled its purpose, there is no reason for it to return.

You may also want to create a protective energetic force field around yourself. This can be done by smudging your bedroom, placing protective stones like turquoise or malachite on your nightstand or under your pillow, and asking Spirit to block these recurring dreams before you go to sleep each night.

*****

Oceania:

Dreams of door knocks, doorbells, ringing phones or hearing one's name being called are common. They tend to occur when we're stressed and something is going on that requires our attention.

When a number recurs, I assign meaning to it using tarot symbolism. Card III is the Empress or good mother, so you might consider three knocks a message to nurture, protect and preserve your precious self. Also, examine whether your relationships with your mother, your children or any others you care for are out of balance or depleting you. Now's the time to attend to your own well-being; it may even be urgent for you to do so.

I recommend you take an inventory of your life from every angle. Examine whether you are meeting your physical needs by eating well, exercising, getting enough sleep and addressing any health concerns. Check your emotional needs by acknowledging feelings and addressing situations that may be hurtful or upsetting. Check the contents of your thoughts to make sure you are giving thanks for your life and many blessings. Use your imagination to delineate and envision your personal goals.

Note whether you're making room for spirituality through positive affirmations, readings, meditation, time spent in nature or participation in a spiritual community. Take stock of your marriage, career and hobbies and whether adjustments need to be made. From a social perspective, take a moment to honor each of the important people in your life and to consider how you'd feel if they died today. Some aspect of your life needs your attention; once you discover it, your recurring dream will cease.

I don't believe the figure you perceived years ago is related to this current call to action. The ominous man dressed in black may have been a representation of the destructive energy you had just exchanged with your husband. You felt frightened and your hair stood on end because you knew the argument had not been constructive, which stirred up fear of losing your marriage. The walking figure served as a warning to avoid negativity.

These dreams are not so much warnings as encouragement to take better care of yourself. Think about something nice you could do for yourself right now. It might be as simple as giving yourself a foot massage with scented lotion, taking a bubble bath, making a cup of tea or taking yourself to lunch.

You might sing Tony Orlando's song lyrics and add to them: Knock three times on the ceiling if you want me - to take better care of myself! By writing to us, you set in motion a plan to do just that.

Astrea:

Many times in life we hear, "You will always have what you NEED, but not necessarily what you WANT." Your spirit must have needed to experience the feeling of leaving your human body, and the suggestion in the next chapter of Sylvia Brown's book was all it took to get you there.

Even though you hadn't read it yet, your SOUL recognized the title of that chapter as something it had been seeking, and your soul, knowing that you had that reference to read after your experience, got with it and out you went!

While I don't usually recommend her books, Sylvia Brown has a wide reaching and powerful effect on lots of people. A Gemini like you would be able to relate easily to her writing and put it to good use. Synchronicity - you gotta love it!

I like your description of "getting caught." That's exactly what it feels like, isn't it? One minute you're free and hovering above the room, and the next minute, ZAP! back down into your corporeal form you go!

As a little kid, I loved that "feeling of return." With practice, most of the time we can control that event, but sometimes, when our physical ears hear a distracting noise or something else occurs to knock us back into reality, back we go. With practice you will be able to control your return better.

I find it interesting that you were visiting your mother-in-law and not someone in your own genetic family. Evidently, you and your husband got married for reasons that are even deeper than love. His family's interest in "psychic stuff" will nurture your children in such matters and help them to grow into their own abilities.

You'll never have to be concerned that when your daughter visits them, she'll be discouraged from exploring her own psychic life and power. My parents encouraged me to develop my psychic senses in a time when it wasn't nice to even discuss such things in public. Heck, it's STILL not considered a great topic at the dinner table in some families!

Your kids will get to talk about it ALL and ask questions and read and study. This is going to give them such an edge in life! Talk with your husband about how you want to present this to your kiddos, so that you are united in your approach and ready to tell them their experiences are all natural and okay.

A word or two of warning: Geminis often have difficulty staying grounded in REAL LIFE. Don't get so strung out on your ASTRAL life that you neglect what you're doing here on Earth.

You are at the beginning of a long journey to learn where your power really lies. Try to be patient with this process and take your time.