Magickal 50th Birthday
And my first lucid dream
--
Wow. The big 5–0. It feels like yesterday my sister and I were six and seven years old going to the carnival to have our faces painted for 50 cents each. We’re Irish twins, meaning she’s 11 months and 19 days older than me. Right now, and for the next 18 days, we’re both 50 years old. She’ll turn 51 on the 29th. But let me just tell you how enchanting my 50th birthday was.
The week before my birthday, my sister’s gift arrived here in Nebraska. She outdid herself, for real. She sent me a fully-packed witch’s kit with Obsidian, amethyst, quartz, rose quartz, and selenite. It has 27 mini bottles of herbs and 10 bottles of oils, sage, cedar wood, a silver wand, and a beautiful chest that held it all, which now holds my tarot cards since the rest of its contents is on display on shelves in my temporary room. She also sent me a custom coffee mug that has our names on it — with me as a witch and her with devil horns.
My big brother gifted me with henna on my hands, something I’ve been wanting for a few months. My hands are 50 years old and I look at them every day, all day, while I work. I wanted to smile when I saw my hands, something I’d think is beautiful, so my brother saw to it that I got my wish.
My little brother sent me an Amazon gift card with which I ordered a set of tiny crystals in tiny bottles to match the herbs and oils my sister got me.
When I woke up in the morning, I found a “Happy Birthday” banner hanging over the kitchen table with a large bag of goodies. The first was a little coffee bar that says, “My broomstick runs on coffee.” In it was a collection of spell jars. There were two hand towels with magickal symbols, which I’d eye-spied in a JoAnn’s ad that my daughter-in-law remembered. There were also four books: The Book of Practical Witchcraft, Healing Crystals, Magical Remedies, and a moon phase coloring book with colored pencils. And to top it all off, a small microwavable cauldron.
After gifts, my son took the kids and I to IHOP for breakfast while his wife stayed home to work. But at 3:00, I got to go with them to take the littles to see their new classrooms and meet their teachers. I was so honored to be a part of it, even though it strained my leg (and my armpits!) using crutches up and down the…
