The Dark of the Year is a time of cleansing and purification. For the most part, if feels wonderful, exhilarating and time for it. I’ve already begun my cleansing process; I used to call it spring cleaning. The closets are being organized, the kitchen shelves are cleared, and I’m anxiously waiting on the day I can wash windows and walls.

Window Wash

Lemon-Mint Window Wash:

The lemon juice and peppermint oil in this window wash formula discourages flies and other insects from perching on your windows. It works beautifully, leaving a streak-free clean that you’ll really appreciate.

Juice of 1 lemon

2 cups club soda
½ tsp. peppermint oil

1 tsp. corn starch

Mix all the ingredients together in a small bowl, using a spoon to blend them well. Then, pour into a plastic spray bottle. Shake well before using.

Wall Wash

Eucalyptus-Mint Disinfecting Soap:

This mild soap is great fro cleaning dishes, floors, stoves, sinks, and hands. The eucalyptus and mint are disinfectants that provide a fresh, ultra-clean scent. Any areas you wash with this soap will repel insects and flies – a particularly useful thing in late summer when it seems that flies decide our homes should be theirs.

5 cups grated castile soap

½ cup baking soda
1 tsp. borax

1 tsp. eucalyptus oil
6 cups hot peppermint tea, made with 6 tbsp. fresh peppermint or 8-12 tea bags

Place the castile soap in a 3-quart stainless steel saucepan and stir in the tea. Simmer very low for 15 minutes, stirring occasionally. Add the baking soda, borax, and eucalyptus oil. Stir well to blend all ingredients.

Store in a labeled plastic jug or squirt bottle, and shake before using. Can be safely used full strength, or diluted to make the product last longer.

(Thank you Phebe Durand for the recipes!)

As I scrub, clean and sweep away the detritus of the year past, I keep in mind that this is also the time of internal purification. Elbow grease and sweat are symbolic of the effort and stamina it takes to consider clearly what needs to be let go. At New Year’s so many people make new resolutions, goals to reach in the coming year. Consciously or subconsciously, new year’s resolutions are the beginning of the cleansing tide that flows with the magnetic forces that surround the earth, of which we are a part.

With my hands arm deep in the fresh scent of the scrub water, I consider what needs to go in my life. Weight? Yea, sure a little bit. Holey socks? Um-hmm. Fears, regrets, outdated beliefs? Absolutely. These are my new years’ resolutions. To dig a little deeper and root out those things that hold me back. I am a Wytch, after all, and my magick is strong. If I can’t work on myself, that how on earth can I help anyone else?
Be always at war with your vices, at peace with your neighbors, and let each new year find you a better (wo)man.  ~Benjamin Franklin