Emma's Blog

While browsing through Amazon, a daily occurrence personally, I saw a recommendation that piqued my interest. It was for a book entitled Weed Witch: The Essential Guide to Cannabis for Magic and Wellness . When considering ingredients for spells and potions, I typically think about rosemary and other household herbs but never cannabis. The preview for the book showed pages explaining the different ways cannabis can be consumed including bongs, joints, and edibles. It also explains how your reaction to cannabis can be different based on your astrological sign. I am a Leo which the book explains means I have a big personality so calming cannabis would be the best. An example of a spell featured in the book is called "Pesto Chango" which uses basil leaves and cannabis-infused olive oil to bring money and good fortune to the caster.  What is the connection between witchcraft and cannabis? I set out to find out just that.  One of the goals of witchcraft is being able to enter a tr...

As a Child Development major, I frequently discuss the concept of generational trauma concerning childhood experiences. Adverse Childhood Experiences, commonly known as ACES are instances of trauma, abuse, or neglect in childhood that create toxic stress in the brains of children. These experiences typically happen at the hands of parents or caregivers. ACES become generational trauma when parents treat their children the same way their parents treated them or people fall into cyclical patterns of addiction and neglect as past family members. ACES are incredibly common with half of all children in the United States having at least one and 91% of the foster care system having one by the age of 6 (Indiana Univeristy Health, 2020). The only way to break out of generational trauma is to identify traumas and treat them as early as possible.   Graphic Depictions of Different ACES Today This made me think of Dorothy Good and the many other children impacted by the Salem Witch Trial. ...

Since we began discussing the Salem Witch Trials after spring break, I have been interested in the most recent happens around Salem and how the women are being memorialized. I stumbled upon an article about how in 2022, the very last woman accused in Salem, Elizabeth Johnson Jr., was officially pardoned. Why did it take 329 years for Elizabeth to be pardoned after being wrongly accused?  Tour Group in Salem, MA Elizabeth Johnson Jr. was convinced and sentenced to death but was never executed before the hysteria ended. Governor William Phips threw out her punishment as the magnitude of the misjustices in Salem were revealed. It has been more than three centuries since the Salem Witch Trials and every suspect, including Johnson's mother, was cleared. Because Johnson never had children, she had no ancestors to act on her behalf and push the government to pardon her so her case still stood. That is until an 8th-grade class petitioned for her pardon.        ...

While conducting research for Melina and I's presentation on Harry Potter , I stumbled across a video on WitchTok about how a portrait of Anne Boleyn can be seen hanging in the hallway of Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone , the first book in the series. The TikTok user, historywithhenrietta, says that her portrait is included because she was accused of witchcraft and that is what led to her execution. My interest was peaked and I began research into why she was accused and if this was even true.  Anne Boleyn was born in Kent to one of the most powerful men in England, Sir Thomas Boleyn, and entered the Court of Queen Claude of France in 1515. At that time, it was well known that Anne's sister Mary was involved in an affair with King Henry VIII but that ended when Anne's quick wit, unusual beauty, and intelligence caught the attention of the King.  Anne was labeled a witch who seduced the King and was later executed on charges of adultery. Anne Boleyn  Like with the ...

After reading Colleen's blog post regarding allegations of witchcraft made against Taylor Swift, I dove into articles about more celebrities who have experienced similar allegations. Some names like Stevie Nicks were unsurprising, purely based on the kinds of music they create. Stevie Nicks sings songs about crystal visions and cats, typically while wearing black flowy clothing. One of Fleetwood Mac's most famous songs "Silver Springs" even features the lyric "Time cast a spell on you, but you won't forget me".  One case I did find surprising however was the criminal case brought against Beyoncé involving alleged witchcraft.  Kimberly Thompson, one of Beyoncé's former drummers, asked the courts for a restraining order against Beyoncé because she was involved in "dark magic" and "magic spells of sexual molestation". While the specific type of witchcraft is never mentioned, Thompson accused Beyoncé of using witchcraft to control her...

This week, I took a different approach from my previous blog post. I visited the TCU library's juvenile section to explore the witchy books they had on their shelves. To my surprise, I found 143 children's books that dealt with witches, which seemed like a lot for our small children's department. After browsing a few pages of results, I settled on checking out a book called "Excuse me... Are you a Witch?" "Excuse me... Are you a Witch?" is a story about a black cat named Herbert who is lonely and has very few friends. One day, while at the public library, Herbert finds an "Encyclopedia of Witches" and learns that witches love to have black cats as pets.  He then sets out to find a witch. However, when he asks people in town if they are witches, they react negatively. The townspeople either run away because they believe black cats bring bad luck, laugh at him, or scold him for being rude for wrongly assuming they were witches.  Eventually, Herbe...