Menu
  • HOME
  • ABOUT
    • About Annie Finch
    • Calendar
    • News Page
    • Blog
    • Are You a Good Witch or a Bad Witch? (FAQ)
    • How to Read Annie’s Poetry
    • Interviews
    • Support Annie on Matreon
    • Press
      • Testimonials
      • Press Photos
    • Search Site
  • BOOKS
    • Getting-Started Guide for Annie’s Books
    • The Poetry Witch Little Book of Spells
    • Spells: New and Selected Poems
    • Among the Goddesses
    • Calendars
    • Eve
    • The Encyclopedia of Scotland
    • A Poet’s Craft
    • A Poet’s Ear
    • The Body of Poetry
    • The Ghost of Meter
    • BEST BOOKS FOR POETS
    • EDITED BOOKS
  • CHOICE
    • Choice Words: Writers on Abortion
    • Among the Goddesses Epic Libretto
    • Visit Choice Words Action
    • Download Choice Words Toolkit
    • Writing Our Truth Workshop
  • POEMS
    • Note on Reading These Poems Aloud
    • Spiral of Poems
      • Brave Women’s Amulet
      • Moon for Our Daughters
      • Walk With Me
      • On Poetry and Architecture
      • “The Naming”: Memorial Poem for 9-11
      • Keys
      • A Wedding on Earth
      • Spells for the Wheel of the Year
      • Summer Solstice Chant
    • Listen
    • Collaborations
    • Translation
    • Commissions
  • COMMUNITY & TEACHING
    • Poet & Priestess Bookshop
    • Visit Poet & Priestess Community
      • The Story of Poet & Priestess Community
    • About Annie’s Teaching
      • Upcoming Classes
      • Private Consultations
      • Contact Annie About Classes
    • Best Books for Poets
    • Support Annie on Matreon
  • EVENTS
    • Upcoming Calendar
      • How to Read Annie’s Poetry: FAQ
    • Previous Events
    • Talks
    • Readings
    • Ritual Theater
  • CONNECT
    • Bookings
    • Contact Annie
    • Online Visit
    • Market/Cart
    • Support Annie on Matreon
  • SUBSCRIBE

Annie Finch

Tribes of Women

Annie with Dezi and Cara
Last year I did a very useful 9-month business training with a wonderful biz coach Britt Bolnick.  I learned a lot and am now spending a week in a kind of virtual reunion with her “tribe” of women. We’re asked to post answers to questions, which I’m planning to post here as well— and the first one is, “what did you take from your childhood, and where do you come from, and where are you now, about sisterhood and working in communities of women?”

I grew up with three older sisters, so I got a taste of what a tribe of women could be like. Sometimes when my father was away, my mother would invite a few other women over for “waffle night”; when I was older, it was the “Sisterhood of the Full Moon” with white wine and opera. Looking back, I realize my mother didn’t have many friends of her own–the women she invited tended to be her daughters’ friends, women who idolized her–but still, these gatherings taught me what matriarchal community felt like. They felt different from just being together with my friends; they encompassed women of different ages, and there was a feeling that everyone was on an equal footing—everyone was completely accepted.

In these gatherings, I learned that it’s possible to be in a community of women where everyone has each others’ back and wishes the best for each other. It was a beautiful lesson, and one that I share with the women in my online and live communities today. One of my favorite live communities is a wonderful sacred circle I am part of, a group of women that has been meeting monthly for about five years. The women in this spiritual circle have supported each other through ups and downs of all kinds.

I started my Poetry Witch business under the name American Witch with a very inclusive vision. For the first year it was a group effort involving many wonderful women vendors, crafters, designers. At one point had a couple of dozen women on my team. I was ecstatic working daily with the community, though looking back, I realize things were out of balance. As a writer, I need solitude and independence as well as community, and I had gone too far in the other direction, giving up my responsibility. Now I am working largely alone, but reaching out frequently to other women through online and live events and communities. I am trying to build the kinds of friendships my mother didn’t have, and I feel grateful to feel surrounded by beautiful loving women in my own town, in my online community, and around the world.

Sometimes Only Swinburne Will Do . . .
In the Land of Hidden People
Share this content instantly via the share buttons. Thanks for spreading the word!

Leave a Comment Categories: North: Earth & Witchy Living, South: Activism & Feminism, All

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Copyright © 2021 · SITE DESIGN BY LSC STUDIO

Copyright © 2021 · Style Theme on Genesis Framework · WordPress · Log in

Close