Those of us who have been around for a while know that Stardew Valley was very much not the first of its kind. In fact, the game was essentially a love-letter to games like Harvest Moon (before the big split) and Story of Seasons (after the split). These days, Stardew Valley is very much the face of cozy farming sim games—and one of the most recognized titles in the that genre. 

Another very popular thing in the magic world are the ‘what type of witch are you’ memes. But, I never felt that they particularly suited me. I definitely wasn’t a water or sea witch. And I wasn’t comfortable enough with space-stuff to consider myself a celestial or space witch. Green witch? No. I didn’t really know that much about herbs. And ‘Hearth Witch’ just didn’t feel like it encompassed everything. Some labels were too big, and others felt too small. But, none of them felt like they fit. 

The other day, I was marinating in my bath (which my partner calls ‘making Witch Soup) when I thought about the idea of ‘Stardew Witch’ would really fit me well. I liked gardening, and I liked crafting and finding cool things / foraging. I also loved cooking, and liked to know a lot about the people who were important to me. 

I wondered if anyone had thought of that term before—and it felt like the answer was ‘no’ after a few cursory searches. So, what would a Stardew Witch even be? 

Theme of Growth and Cultivation

I think that cultivation and growing are major components of both Stardew Valley and what I would consider to be a Stardew Witch. This doesn’t have to be cultivation in the sense of owning a farm or even growing plants. Those are great examples, but not the only thing. I also think that raising animals or pets falls under this. There is also the idea of cultivating a community and your own home. It’s a mindset of improving both yourself and the world around you. 

A lot of us seem drawn to the idea of life in a simpler time or in a simpler place. The city may have a lot to offer…but clean air and time and space to really rest and connect to the natural world are not often on that list. At the same time, there are very much places in the ‘first world’ where people don’t have access to clean water. 

So I can very much see the appeal of bringing some of this energy into our lives. In terms of my personal goals for this year, I had a lot of missteps. I thought one part of my property was full sun…but I measured that before the three giant sugar maples leafed out. It turns out they are full shade—and nearly everything I planted in that area was a super bad pick. Insert a Midwestern Ope Here. But, I got to eat the very first watermelons I grew myself this year. So we learned a lot, and we had some things that actually did go according to plan. 

I also began keeping quail—which had a huge learning curve. At the same time, it is a real delight to watch them scratch around their enclosure, dust bathing and sunbathing. I love it when the bravest handful come to say ‘hello’ to me when it’s time to feed them and when they try to rush me for their treats. 

All in all, I have learned a lot and had a lot of fun. 

The Importance of Relationships

This theme has come up a lot in this blog—especially when it comes to working with spirits. But, we also need to consider the importance of our relationship to other humans…as well as our relationship to ourselves. Do we treat our loved ones properly? Do we help them grow as well as treat them with kindness? Do we know how they like to be treated? Are we reliable people? Do we know how to treat ourselves fairly and with kindness? 

I had to go through a really rough time of personal growth where I decided I was going to stop treating myself in an abusive way. No more making promises to myself about treats and then baiting and switching. It was the same with days off. I was no longer going to promise myself rest…and then go back on that. No more ‘working’ on hobbies or my school to a point where I was actively damaging my own mental and physical health. 

Grinding until 2am in the Stardew game has its own set of consequences—and they are much worse in real life. 

Let’s Get Cozy

Rather than set a list of ‘do you do’ such and such in order to ‘determine’ if you are a Stardew Witch, I thought it would be more fun to do a ‘do you vibe’ version. Naturally, this is not an exhaustive list. If you vibe with many of the following, you very well could be a Stardew Witch!