I did my first cleansing when I was 12. My grandmother's neighbor from across the street had lived in her house for around 8 years, and it was starting to drain on her. There was a group of children, either spirits or aspects, that had taken up residence at some point in her house. She would hear the baby wale at night, and the cries of other children as well. She had gotten to the point where she was ready to move out when she came to my grandmother.
Now, my grandmother is a kitchen witch. Great for potions and tinctures, not so great for actual spells. So she brought me to her house and called her neighbor over to explain the situation. Sue (name changed for privacy) assured me that she was a good christian woman, but had been plagued by spirits in her home. She had asked the priest for her church to do a blessing, but it hadn't helped at all. Sue didn't know I was a witch, when she told me about all of this. She had an idea of what my grandmother was (not many in south phoenix know how to make a tincture) but nothing concrete. But still, she had accepted the idea of my grandmother being 'blessed with powers', so I figured I was safe in offering to help. After all, that was why my grandmother had brought me there.
I was 12. Born a witch (as my whole family has turned out to be) and able to harness the powers individual to me. I'm not very gifted in the way of cleansing without proper ingredients. But I had my smudge stick, I had water, and I had salt. More than that, I felt compelled to help this woman. My grandmother and personal feelings aside, it was a building of energy inside my core. And a nudge on the shoulder saying 'go do THIS' in my mind. This is called being guided. My own guide, in this case, was the mother goddess.
So I went to the home across the street and entered the empty house. Upon entering, my mind's eye saw images of children running from somebody in the kitchen. This was odd for me, because I have always seen with my physical eyes. Sometimes to the point where I'll hold a pleasant conversation with a person, only to have my husband ask who I'm talking to.
What I experienced upon entering this house, I call an 'imprint'. It is energy of an emotion so strong, or an occurrence happening repeatedly, that a bit of that person, a bit of their energy, leaves their body and becomes 'stuck' in the physical plane. I find that this is most often the case with haunted houses. It can manifest as a sound, or a person, or a voice. But it is always on repeat. It is always the same thing happening over again.
The house, after I got past the imprint, also held the souls of the children, unfortunately. This was the first, and only time I guided a spirit 'into the light'.
Now, my grandmother is a kitchen witch. Great for potions and tinctures, not so great for actual spells. So she brought me to her house and called her neighbor over to explain the situation. Sue (name changed for privacy) assured me that she was a good christian woman, but had been plagued by spirits in her home. She had asked the priest for her church to do a blessing, but it hadn't helped at all. Sue didn't know I was a witch, when she told me about all of this. She had an idea of what my grandmother was (not many in south phoenix know how to make a tincture) but nothing concrete. But still, she had accepted the idea of my grandmother being 'blessed with powers', so I figured I was safe in offering to help. After all, that was why my grandmother had brought me there.
I was 12. Born a witch (as my whole family has turned out to be) and able to harness the powers individual to me. I'm not very gifted in the way of cleansing without proper ingredients. But I had my smudge stick, I had water, and I had salt. More than that, I felt compelled to help this woman. My grandmother and personal feelings aside, it was a building of energy inside my core. And a nudge on the shoulder saying 'go do THIS' in my mind. This is called being guided. My own guide, in this case, was the mother goddess.
So I went to the home across the street and entered the empty house. Upon entering, my mind's eye saw images of children running from somebody in the kitchen. This was odd for me, because I have always seen with my physical eyes. Sometimes to the point where I'll hold a pleasant conversation with a person, only to have my husband ask who I'm talking to.
What I experienced upon entering this house, I call an 'imprint'. It is energy of an emotion so strong, or an occurrence happening repeatedly, that a bit of that person, a bit of their energy, leaves their body and becomes 'stuck' in the physical plane. I find that this is most often the case with haunted houses. It can manifest as a sound, or a person, or a voice. But it is always on repeat. It is always the same thing happening over again.
The house, after I got past the imprint, also held the souls of the children, unfortunately. This was the first, and only time I guided a spirit 'into the light'.