Wicca is one paradigm of magic, but it is one that also has its fair share of drawbacks and controversies. One of these is a very distinct preference for Northern Hemisphere and general Eurocentricity. This can be seen in the Wheel of the Year, which is based off of a specific climate in a very specific location on the planet. It can leave some with a feeling that they are ‘left out’ of both having big magic holidays to celebrate and a community that seems to be centralized around a culture or location that is (to be frank) not actually the center of the world. 

This leads to a lot of practitioners, both new and old, looking at the same question over and over. How should they celebrate the seasons when they can’t use the Wheel of the Year or otherwise do not care to? 

Going Local and Asking Questions

This is the part where you and I are going to start asking tough questions. For example: do you actually want to celebrate the seasons, or have parties to go to? This is not to be mean, but to get at what you actually want, what will actually benefit you, and then you know how to move forward. For me, I wanted to celebrate the seasons. Parties are all well and good, but the company and free food would have to be good enough for me to show my face—and that’s a few too many variables for me to rely on. Also, who is organizing this party? If I don’t get along with the major groups in town and I don’t do the work to bring people over to my party, then what’s the point for a party person? 

Or is it that you want to feel like a ‘real’ witch and this seems like something ‘real’ witches would have a good handle on? 

Ask the hard questions. 

Now, I do love the idea of the way the Japanese take note of the seasons. Back in the day, the patterns on kimono, the hair ornaments, and the food were all heavily based on the seasons. It was considered stylish to be just a week or two ahead of the current weather. Now that, I could imagine myself doing far easier than attending…a party 12 times a year. UGH. People. Something more low-key suited me better. 

So what does the year look like here you live, and are those factors relevant to you? Are you a city witch or a celestial witch? Because a witch who has his eye on the stars is not going to care about worm movements as much as he will about what meteorological phenomenon are more common or what constellations are in view. So what do you actually care about? 

I don’t really care about mammals, at least compared to birds. I relate to birds far more, and so what the deer are doing is rather irrelevant to me in comparison to knowing when the major bird migrations happen. I also know that many species molt in September—because they need new, fluffy feathers to withstand winter. I do live in the country, and I do live in a state with a lot of agriculture. As a Stardew Witch, these are factors that are important for me to consider. 

Celebrations are what you make of them, too. It may not be a huge party, but starting last year I’ve been trying to arrange for a yearly apple picking with at least my partner. 

A Case Study: The 72 Micro Seasons

Japan is a good case study for this concept. I wrote about how traditional clothing is dictated by seasons to a huge extent. But, there are 72 documented micro seasons that make up traditional calendar. As an isolationist nation with a heavily community-centered culture (as opposed to the American individualist one) , centrality was very important. So, of course these probably wouldn’t apply to Hokkaido or Okinawa. But, this is what we’ve got for reference. Each micro-season lasts about 5 days, and has their own indicators. The weather may not adhere to these exactly (especially not with climate change) but they do offer a bit of a reference. 

I have often considered trying to make my own version of 72 micro seasons. But, that would involve multiple years of observation. For me? I don’t care about grains. I don’t grow grains. Instead, my 72 seasons would have a lot of floral references. I love to grow flowers and use them in crafts, such as syrups. I also know a rough order of flowers already: crocuses, lily of the valley, hellebores, daffodils, redbud trees, tulips, irises, peonies, lilacs, hydrangeas—and so on. The summer bit is a bit crowded—since many flowers bloom in that time. So it’s a little more blurry to me. The floral seasons end with Sunflowers, Chrysanthemums, and Dahlias. 

Is there an animal that you relate to a lot? Does it live native to your climate? If so, what is that animal doing during different parts of the year? 

Putting it Together

This is the type of project that is probably best figured out in either a Lab Notebook, or on loose paper before you start trying to adhere to it. First, figure out what type of climate you live in. Do you care about gardening? If so, then look up your growing zones—those will give you both a final frost of the spring and the first frost of the autumn. Those are crucial for gardening. If not, you need to think about what is very important to YOU. Are you a merchant who travels around to different events? Then maybe put the start of your event season and the end of that season on there. 

Not every witch is the same. So it is very unlikely that our celebrations of the year and the seasons would also be the same. So what do your seasons look like? Do you have a Spring, Summer, Autumn, and Winter, or a Dry and Rainy Season?