#spirit family

Earlier today, I was reminded of a convo I had with another friend/ client about vessels and bindings and it reminded me that I should make a post about it.

I forgot where I heard it but, bindings are just a means of locating where home is, in a sense. Binding to your spirit is the same as binding to a vessel. It’s not a cage or prison, but just a means to find where you or home is. Binding to spirit makes the connection stronger but some people have a hard time and prefer the physical vessel to hold during meditation and things like that. so it’s not a matter of how many you can have bound to you because, from my experience, it seems endless, but more a choice of how you want things to be done with your keep. 

Now, I speak from experience as I’m very liberal with the movements of my keep. I don’t feel the need to tell them “stay home or else” because, as part of your spirit family, they have functions to perform. 

For example, I always ask them to watch over my parents. They’re retired and walk all over the place unless they need the car for something or have to take the bus. I’d like to think that, not only are they watching over my parents, they’re watching over other people that could use their protection. So besides watching the house and my parents, there’s a library they can visit and a park. I don’t want them to feel bored or useless so they have every right to explore and discover and learn about the people in the area. Maybe even help other spirits move on.

So, while there’s a lot that can be done while you, as keeper, are home, there’s just as much they can do when you’re not and it’s like a learning experience for both of us. Trust is a two-way street and being able to have faith in them and treating them as we would like to be treated is something I feel is very important when bonding with your spirit family.

For lack of a better GIF, this incident did involve a tarot card so I went with it.

One morning, I woke up and went to go feed my cats. That was when I found a solitary tarot card on the floor about in the middle of my room. Ever since I fixed up this pouch for my deck, I’ve been keeping it close to my bed in case I felt the need to do a reading. It’s a simple burlap canvas bag, but it’s the kind of material that, once drawn closed will stay closed. 

It’s first thing in the morning. I’m bleary eyed and now paranoid that somehow my cats went on some who knows what because cat logic. Then I grabbed my pendulum and asked if my spirits did it and they said yes. I was like “how the…” Grabbed the pouch and checked. It was still fully closed. But, it was an important message I was being told so I wrote the card in my book and took in what it could best mean.

This is actually the first major moment in spirit moving things for me ever. I’m actually hoping it happens again, but of course, it will be when they have something to tell me :3

Bonding is important when you become a Spirit Keeper. And when I first started, I tried my best to interact with everyone. But, that’s hard and mentally draining because my system became routine and I just stopped altogether. Your spirits understand you’re only given so many spoons in a day, but it can be harmful to the relationship to stop everything because you can’t keep up.

After hearing about certain things going on with other fellow Keepers that are also friends, having a Bonding Journal is a good thing to start. In conjunction with having a Bonding Schedule, you can focus on one or a few on that day and it’s totally up to you and yours how you make this work. Whether it’s in teams that specialize in certain things or randomly choosing them, it’s all a matter of what you, as a collective, agree upon. If you only have, let’s say less than 10, you can just alternate days with a randomizer and see how many days they want to do their session.

Here are a few things I suggest for those that have more than 10 (I have over 400 so yeah…):

• Find out who needs more attention. Chances are, you have some that are not as strong as others so you might not know they need the attention. Keep in mind that, especially for those that have mixed Arts in their Keep, they’re not going to tell you right away, if at all. it’s important for you to check periodically for this so that no one gets left behind.
  
• Make a list of names and then randomize it. Initially, I took the names of those in need of more attention and made that a separate list from the others and randomized both. then combined the more attention with the rest. Whatever system works for you and yours, do that. Teamwork!
• Schedule in the time. whether it’s one day or one week, you should start with what they want. As time goes on, you can adjust. For me, I started right after the New Year with giving a single spirit a whole week. That got boring and it would take me years to finish so we adjusted to 3-4 spirits a day randomly chosen.
• Individual vs. Teams. Depending on how big your Keep is, you may want to work in groups or teams. Say, for instance, you have a few divination spirits. Work with those few for however long you feel you can allot.

Again, these are just suggestions and I’ve tried a few combinations. Best thing is to see what works for you. Find other suggestions and mix it up :) You’ll find the best combo and everyone can be kept happy, healthy and wise.

Note: This idea was originally brought to my attention when a friend was going through a rough patch and @chaosinpandorasbox recommended she do this so her spirits didn’t feel neglected. Remember that spirits have feelings, too, so make sure to take care of them like you would anyone else in your family.

Please acquaint yourselves with H-Mann (nickname chosen by him, don’t blame me) the Kobold. H-Mann loves to play tricks and would like to find a companion full of energy and advanced in spirit communication.

Age:~660 years, approx middle aged for his species.

Appearance:Clocking in at about 3′5″, H-Mann is tall for his species. He prefers to wear deep green and brown clothing, patched up where it has worn thin, and fairly ragged around the edges. He likes to wander around barefoot and wears a woolen hat on cooler days. He has deep dark eyes and a mischievous grin. He has a strawberry blond hair and a blond goatee beard, but beneath this has a very youthful face, almost child-like. He has ornate germanic tattoos down his arms, across his chest and up his neck. His skin is smooth but sallow, with a faint green tint in the right lighting.

Personality:H-Mann loves to play tricks. This spirit is not for you if you want everything to be in the same place you left it. This intensifies if he feels left out or forgotten. But if you keep up with your offerings and communicate as often as you can, he loves to help, too. Especially with domestic chores and DIY renovations. Somehow they seem to be closer to being finished than they were when you popped out of the room to do something else for minutes! He is easily distracted by sparkles and can sit quietly watching the light refracting through a prism against the wall for hours. He would love to go to a home that has a fireplace, or could at least set up a hearth-like altar. When he gets annoyed he will make noises at night to keep you awake, only stopping when he has been satisfied (usually apologies for hurting his feelings will suffice, along with the usual offerings). Be 100% certain you want this spirit when you apply, as he intends on spending the rest of your life with you. He is highly adventurous and would like a companion that is not afraid to try new foods, drinks, experiences etc with him tagging along, of course.

Special Preferences: H-Mann would love to help his companion with prosperity and fire magicks. He asks that the person he goes to will never attempt to take a photo of him due to cultural reasons. He prefers to communicate with oracle cards, runes and telepathy. He would rather a smaller family, no more than 6 other companions. He is not interested in any romantic liaisons outside his species.

Applications for H-Mann will be open in two weeks time, but in the mean time as with the other spirits, please ask him questions in the inbox or through our discord.

E the Bubble Spirit is a very unique creature that I stumbled upon around seven months ago now. When I met them, I knew right away the spirit was not meant to be a companion for me, and so the vetting process began.

Appearance: E is literally a pearlescent bubble approximately 8-10 inches in diameter, this size can fluctuate depending on mood.

Energy Alignment: E is light aligned, resonates with the elements of air and water, and is suitable for sensitive beginners, as they would like to form a learning relationship with their companion, teaching them about working with the above elements.

Characteristics and Needs: E is very sensitive to touch and requires a companion that will not insist on any kind of physical contact. E doesn’t tend to “burst” but will if they feel threatened, and regenerates in a new location safely away from the threat. E is agender, asexual and aromantic, preferring them/they pronouns. They are very soflty spoken, when they speak at all and prefer pendulum or water scrying as a form of communication, and prefers to meet up on the astral realm as the wind and other air currents in the physical make them uncomfortable. They are willing to teach these for the right companion. Not particularly fond of plants - the leaves are too pokey.

Applications for E will open Fri 9 Feb, and in the meantime E will be available to talk both on here and in our discord linked below

https://discord.gg/KkrtpqV