Never Apologize For Burning Too Brightly Or Collapsing Into Yourself Every Night. That Is How Galaxies

Never apologize for burning too brightly or collapsing into yourself every night. That is how galaxies are made.

Tyler Kent White (via quotemadness)

These are David Tennant's two brain cells.

hi! in your faq you say it's important to be able to distinguish good resources from bad ones when researching witchcraft, i was wondering if you could elaborate on this? i want to learn about witchcraft but i have no idea where to start reading

Hiya, friend! This is a really great question! The more you read and research, the easier it’ll be to distinguish a decent source from a not-so-good source. Here are some tips on how to determine if a source on witchcraft is worth your time:

Step 1: Research the author

There are certain authors that are known for being historically inaccurate, racist, or otherwise unhelpful/bad. Before buying or reading a book, google the author and see what pops up. If someone has a bunch of negative reviews, you might want to steer clear from that source.

Step 2: Research the source

Sometimes, good authors can produce bad work. If you’re reading a book from a commonly recommended author, check out the book’s Goodreads page or see what other members of the witchcraft community are saying about it.

Step 3: Cross-reference sources

If, when reading a book, you see something mentioned that you haven’t heard before or seems fishy, see if you can find another source that either agrees or disagrees with whatever was stated. If a book makes claims that you can’t find stated anywhere else, or if the other sources that also state it seem equally bad, the rest of the material might be suspect.

Step 4: Read as if you’re a skeptic

Skepticism is important in witchcraft! It’s important to never blindly accept everything that you read. Just because something is stated in an authoritative tone doesn’t make it true. So, when reading, pretend that you don’t believe in witchcraft. I’ve had genuine skeptics attend my classes at work say “you know, I don’t believe in this stuff, but I can understand the logic behind why someone might believe in it.” If you read something and think that it sounds silly, impossible, or otherwise wrong, trust your gut. If you can’t understand how someone came to a particular conclusion, it’s probably lacking something.

Overall, it’s important to remember that no book on witchcraft or magic is 100% perfect, even if it’s hailed by the community as one of the “best” books. So, don’t be afraid to read broadly, even if the community says the book has a couple minor things wrong with it. When you’re just starting out, it’s totally fine to read whatever’s available to you and make notes on what stands out to you. If certain things ring true, see if other sources state similar things. Learning a good source from a bad source takes time and experience; once you’ve read a few not-so-good books, you’ll be able to spot them from a mile away.

Forgotten By History

Female firefighters at Pearl Harbor (1941).

Donna Tobias - the first woman to graduate from the US Navy’s Deep Sea Diving School in 1975.

Brave women of the Red Cross hitting the beach at Normandy.

Dottie Kamenshek was called the best player in women’s baseball and was once recruited to play for a men’s professional team.

Kate Warne - Private Detective. Born in New York City, almost nothing is known of her prior to 1856 when, as a young widow, she answered an employment advertisement placed by Alan Pinkerton. She was one of four new agents the Pinkerton Detective Agency hired that year and proved to be a natural, taking to undercover work easily. She had taken part in embezzlement and railroad security cases when in 1861 the Pinkertons developed the first lead about an anti-Lincoln conspiracy.

Catherine Leroy, female photographer in Vietnam.

The three women pictured in this incredible photograph from 1885 – Anandibai Joshi of India, Keiko Okami of Japan, and Sabat Islambouli of Syria – each became the first licensed female doctors in their respective countries. The three were students at the Women’s Medical College of Pennsylvania; one of the only places in the world at the time where women could study medicine.

Female Samurai Warrior - Onno-Bugeisha - Female warrior belonging to the Japanese upper class. Many women engaged in battle, commonly alongside samurai men. They were members of the bushi (samurai) class in feudal Japan and were trained in the use of weapons to protect their household, family, and honour in times of war.

One of the most feared of all London street gangs from the late 1880’s was a group of female toughs known as the Clockwork Oranges. They woulde later inspire Anthony burgess’ most notorious novel. Their main Rivals were the All-female “the Forty Elephants” gang.

Maureen Dunlop de Popp, Pioneering female pilot who flew Spitfires during Second World War. She joined the Air Transport Auxiliary (ATA) in 1942 and became one of a small group of female pilots who were trained to fly 38 types of aircraft.

In 1967, Kathrine Switzer was the first woman to run the Boston marathon. After realizing that a woman was running, race organizer Jock Semple went after Switzer shouting, “Get the hell out of my race and give me those numbers.” However, Switzer’s boyfriend and other male runners provided a protective shield during the entire marathon. The photographs taken of the incident made world headlines, and Kathrine later won the NYC marathon with a time of 3:07:29.