my story & philosophy
*please see the spiritual readings astrological readings and spiritual coaching sections for info on offerings and booking*
i root my personal spiritual practice in my own ancestral lineage of italian, celtic-irish, and lithuanian peasant paganism as much as possible, as well as poor, scrappy, mixed-up nyc witchcraft tinged with catholicism (basically i reclaim the figures whose stories christianity stole and re-marketed for its own violent purposes: what up, joan of arc!). i believe reclamation of our spiritual practices is an act of resistance and that work with magic, witchcraft, and divination is radical and essential to personal and collective healing; a means to disrupt cis/hetero patriarchal, white supremacist capitalism: the origins of violent spiritual repression. as above, so below; all for one, one for all.
having grown up inside a white working class catholic family, i've had to fundamentally overhaul my relationship to spirituality throughout my life. there is a rich history of what we call "witchcraft" practiced prior to the advent of catholicism and christianity writ large, systems which appropriated and demonized femme, queer/trans, poor/working peoples', and indigenous practices as evil, legitimizing their destruction. catholicism as an institution and arm of oppressive power took and re-appropriated many rituals and practices from pre-capitalist european peasants and globally colonized people, and also destroyed many spiritual and revolutionary figures to later canonize them and misrepresent them as connected to catholicism.
spirituality doesn’t exist in a vacuum and is inextricably linked to colonialism, power imbalances/abuses, and misappropriation. i make it a point to learn about other cultural traditions and spiritualities so that i'm well-rounded and conscious in my healing work with others. i learn in order to ground my healing work in multiple traditions so context, knowledge, and respect exists and gives space to the experiences, interests, and practices of people i’m working with. to be clear, though, i would not identify as a practitioner of spiritual systems that are rooted in poc or indigenous cultures. i build this knowledge and awareness so i can connect with the guides, deities, and ancestors of the people i work with.
i’ve been in touch with energies i can’t rationally explain for as long as i can remember. since i was a kid, i’ve had elaborate, otherworldly dreams that have always seemed to transfer meaning into my waking life by way of images, messages, and visitations. growing up inside catholicism, i learned to be quiet / repressive of a lot of my experiences with voices and spirits, only to revisit these relationships later in my adolescence. my first experiences with oracles occurred when i was seven or eight through treasures of my mom’s-- she had a falling-apart oracle book called the ladies’ almanack from the 1930s that my grandpa, who worked for sanitation, found in the trash and gifted her. i also remember picking up her pamela colman smith tarot deck for the first time, sitting by our fourth-floor window and taking in the scenes from the edge-worn cards. i began reading more seriously when i was about 12, using an angel oracle deck and a ouija board. i've since studied healing modalities independently, through mentorship and coaching with other practitioners, and through classes and courses in healing arts.
in terms of spiritual work, i’ve been doing healing work for other people for over ten years. i work with archetypes, deities, spirits, and other energy forms in readings, calling them in and also making recommendations for folks on energies, figures, herbs, and plants to work with outside the reading. because spirituality and intuition are embodied and emotional, we also engage with how the messages we receive together affect physical and emotional well-being. i also teach spiritual and creative practice as an educator.
i root my personal spiritual practice in my own ancestral lineage of italian, celtic-irish, and lithuanian peasant paganism as much as possible, as well as poor, scrappy, mixed-up nyc witchcraft tinged with catholicism (basically i reclaim the figures whose stories christianity stole and re-marketed for its own violent purposes: what up, joan of arc!). i believe reclamation of our spiritual practices is an act of resistance and that work with magic, witchcraft, and divination is radical and essential to personal and collective healing; a means to disrupt cis/hetero patriarchal, white supremacist capitalism: the origins of violent spiritual repression. as above, so below; all for one, one for all.
having grown up inside a white working class catholic family, i've had to fundamentally overhaul my relationship to spirituality throughout my life. there is a rich history of what we call "witchcraft" practiced prior to the advent of catholicism and christianity writ large, systems which appropriated and demonized femme, queer/trans, poor/working peoples', and indigenous practices as evil, legitimizing their destruction. catholicism as an institution and arm of oppressive power took and re-appropriated many rituals and practices from pre-capitalist european peasants and globally colonized people, and also destroyed many spiritual and revolutionary figures to later canonize them and misrepresent them as connected to catholicism.
spirituality doesn’t exist in a vacuum and is inextricably linked to colonialism, power imbalances/abuses, and misappropriation. i make it a point to learn about other cultural traditions and spiritualities so that i'm well-rounded and conscious in my healing work with others. i learn in order to ground my healing work in multiple traditions so context, knowledge, and respect exists and gives space to the experiences, interests, and practices of people i’m working with. to be clear, though, i would not identify as a practitioner of spiritual systems that are rooted in poc or indigenous cultures. i build this knowledge and awareness so i can connect with the guides, deities, and ancestors of the people i work with.
i’ve been in touch with energies i can’t rationally explain for as long as i can remember. since i was a kid, i’ve had elaborate, otherworldly dreams that have always seemed to transfer meaning into my waking life by way of images, messages, and visitations. growing up inside catholicism, i learned to be quiet / repressive of a lot of my experiences with voices and spirits, only to revisit these relationships later in my adolescence. my first experiences with oracles occurred when i was seven or eight through treasures of my mom’s-- she had a falling-apart oracle book called the ladies’ almanack from the 1930s that my grandpa, who worked for sanitation, found in the trash and gifted her. i also remember picking up her pamela colman smith tarot deck for the first time, sitting by our fourth-floor window and taking in the scenes from the edge-worn cards. i began reading more seriously when i was about 12, using an angel oracle deck and a ouija board. i've since studied healing modalities independently, through mentorship and coaching with other practitioners, and through classes and courses in healing arts.
in terms of spiritual work, i’ve been doing healing work for other people for over ten years. i work with archetypes, deities, spirits, and other energy forms in readings, calling them in and also making recommendations for folks on energies, figures, herbs, and plants to work with outside the reading. because spirituality and intuition are embodied and emotional, we also engage with how the messages we receive together affect physical and emotional well-being. i also teach spiritual and creative practice as an educator.