The Beginning-Wind

As a young child, I remember calling the wind. On a still day, I could whip up a nice strong gust across my face.
As a young witch, I could summon the wind. It was often warm and made me feel rich and secure.
As a teacher, I am finding out that magical muscles atrophy, just like physical ones. Years of disuse and I find myself as weak as a beginner.


On February 15, 2008, a friend, who I will call AK, and I took on an Elemental challenge. Initially, this sounded difficult but doable. I was truly looking forward to it.
We set ourselves tasks involving the elements, High Magic tasks, a bit beyond what even magically inclined people normally bother with. Many witches, in this day when witches gain in number, stop at the bare basics and forget that true magic involves mastery of the forces of the natural world.
Our first task-to call forth the wind, not just call it, but also to ask it to bring us a feather. Hmmm...Sound ambitious? I think so. My friend AK said that we didn't want to be at all ambiguous. Okay.
So at nearly midnight, on a crisp, clear February night, we set out to undertake our first big task. The stars blazed overhead making it easy to tell the four directions from the sky overhead. We cast a Circle, called the winds and issued our command. We offered gifts to the wind, in exchange for its compliance. Nothing. Not a single breathe of wind stirred our Circle. Our robes and hair hung loose, unteased by the Air.
A failure? Not really. Looking up in defeat revealed a success of sorts. Not a star in sight, the nearly full moon was completely obscured by clouds. Did we call the wind? Was our Circle so strong that it blocked the wind from reaching us? It is difficult to say.
Calling it a failure, since we failed to accomplish our actual challenge, we headed home, featherless.


The next day left us sore and fatigued. An almost flu-like ache that included muscles I didn't know I had. Maybe it had worked! I certainly felt drained of excess energy and vital energy as well.
Perhaps we should have built up slowly to such an arrogant undertaking.

February 19, 2008
I waited until Tuesday. By then I felt fully recovered. I went to the same area waited a few minutes to check for a breeze. Nothing. It was still and calm. Without casting a Circle, I called the wind. A soft breeze, strong enough to rustle the branches of trees and river grasses. At this point, I was ready to take the smallest puff of air. Success!! I called it a success and went home.

Thursday, February 21, 2008
I decided I needed a sign from the World that this was even possible. My belief in my own abilities was still a bit shaky. I asked for a feather. Not necessarily from the wind, just a feather. Ha!! Success again! Can I call it that? The feather was small, smaller than my pinky nail and white and soft as down.

Friday, February 22, 2008
I tried a small exercise at home. One small success and three small failures. Hmmm...
I managed to change the direction of incense smoke from straight up to south. I couldn't do any other direction. I started to make it move east but it only blew that way for a second before drifting up again.

Saturday, February 23
I think I can truly call this success without lying to myself. I waited ten minutes on a calm, wind-free day. When I called the wind, I got a real gust. Several, one after the other. As I walked home, The wind got stronger and stronger. I found a feather blowing across the rocks on my way home. This challenge will be mine and I can call myself a Master of at least one Element. I give myself a few more weeks.

I am unsure about how AK's studying goes. She still seems motivated to do this so I think she will get there.

I hope to post an ongoing account of our successes and our, hopefully limited, failures.