{"id":277,"date":"2016-12-29T21:49:02","date_gmt":"2016-12-30T05:49:02","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/admin.patheos.com\/blogs\/tempest\/?p=277"},"modified":"2016-12-29T23:10:46","modified_gmt":"2016-12-30T07:10:46","slug":"manifest-birches","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/tempest\/2016\/12\/manifest-birches.html","title":{"rendered":"Manifest Birches"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<\/head>

\"Collage
Collage by the author, photo of Tempest by Carrie Meyer<\/em><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/p>

Here we are, about to traverse the invisible line into the New Year. \u00a0I\u2019m not one for resolutions, but I\u2019m all for making shit happen. \u00a0So to round out the year, I figured I\u2019d share with you one of my evolving mantras.<\/p>\n

I\u2019ve always had a fascination with the word \u201cmanifest.\u201d \u00a0Of course, my first introduction to it was via a grade school history class. \u00a0There, it was coupled with \u201cdestiny\u201d \u2013 which sounded amazing and dreamy, but in actual application and historic use, quite horrifying. \u00a0But divorced from that baggage, manifest could\u00a0be used as an adjective meaning \u201cclear or obvious to the eye or mind.\u201d \u00a0Or as a verb, it means to display, show, or demonstrate, to make known. \u00a0Then there\u2019s the noun version \u2013 manifestation! \u00a0It says a lot of about the subjects that I read that the noun evokes the heyday of Spiritualism, magick, and various occult flavors.<\/p>\n

About 10 years ago or so, I picked up the phrase \u201cManifest bitches\u201d \u2013 which could be used as both \u201cManifest bitches\u201d and \u201cManifest, bitches.\u201d (Behold, the almighty comma!) \u201cBitch\u201d of course being a word of much depth and interpretation. \u00a0It can be a noun, verb, or adjective. \u00a0It can be used to empower, take, or claim power. (It\u2019s also just a letter away from \u201cwitch.\u201d) Most often, I meant it as a way to say \u201clet us who have the power and will, make shit happen.\u201d<\/p>\n

Somewhere down the line, I think around the time I moved to the (real) Jersey shore, bitches became beaches. \u00a0I lived right by the water, and I have a lifelong affinity for the Atlantic ocean and its beaches<\/a>. Also, not everyone embraces \u201cbitch\u201d the same way, and I often had younger people in my workshops. \u00a0(I do try and watch my language. I watch it enough to see it go right out the window\u2026)<\/em><\/p>\n

And then, it became beeches. As in the tree. \u00a0And having read My Side of the Mountain<\/em> more times than it has pages, the beech tree has some romantic connotations for me.<\/p>\n

Then I thought about making a meme for it. \u00a0Here\u2019s where I realized: most people don\u2019t have any idea of what a beech tree looks like<\/strong>. \u00a0They\u2019re not very distinctive or ubiquitous. \u00a0But you know what kind of tree is recognized by a large percentage of the population? Birch trees. \u00a0With their distinctive bark, they\u2019ve graced many a 1970\u2019s wall mural and hidden many a Bev Doolittle horse amongst them.<\/p>\n

\"manifest-birches-iz6ya9\"There\u2019s a lot of symbolism to be found in birch trees. \u00a0They are considered to be a pioneer species, often being the first trees to claim\u00a0open ground following forest fires and other disasters (man-made or otherwise). The trees tend to grow in groups and clusters, looking like a family \u2013or an army. \u00a0Birches are known to be resilient against harsh conditions. \u00a0Hence, they often symbolize growth, adaptability, advantage, flexibility, renewal, stability, and family.<\/p>\n

Also \u201cbirch\u201d is pretty darn close to \u201cbitch.\u201d Win-win!<\/strong><\/p>\n

So all of that leads us to \u201cManifest birches.\u201d \u00a0Those of us who are willing to bring forth the future, let us take root. \u00a0Let us grow quickly, in a stable and resilient fashion. Let us foster solidarity and be the change that is made visible, despite what destruction we perceive. \u00a0Let\u2019s plant some freaking trees.<\/p>\n

Manifest birches y\u2019all.<\/p>\n<\/body><\/html>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Here we are, about to traverse the invisible line into the New Year. \u00a0I\u2019m not one for resolutions, but I\u2019m all for making shit happen. \u00a0So to round out the year, I figured I\u2019d share with you one of my evolving mantras. I\u2019ve always had a fascination with the word \u201cmanifest.\u201d \u00a0Of course, my first […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2676,"featured_media":279,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[15,12,13],"tags":[52,152,101,26,7,4],"class_list":["post-277","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-metaphysics","category-modernpractice","category-myth-and-folklore","tag-magick","tag-manifest-birches","tag-p-word","tag-pagan","tag-witch","tag-witchcraft"],"yoast_head":"\nManifest Birches<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Here we are, about to traverse the invisible line into the New Year. 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