2026 Chant: Consume Less, Create More (Plus Holiday Home Cleansing Tips)

As I sit here beside my pale pink holiday tree, sipping mushroom cocoa while listening to Solfeggio frequencies, I am attempting to find words for 2025. All I can think is, "It was the best of times, it was the worst of times," in the immortal words of Charles Dickens' famous opening line from the novel A Tale of Two Cities.

While I had, arguably, the best professional year of my life, I've also witnessed countless atrocities near and far, not to mention the significant unemployment across the entertainment industry that affects so many of my friends, clients, and spouse. It's hard to celebrate personal success in such situations, yet, at the same time, I feel it's also important to recognize achievements, especially in times of adversity, because they just might be the only little glimmers of hope that can keep you going.

So, when you're reflecting on your year or contemplating the year ahead, remember to shine a light on your own glimmers of hope, and remember that no matter how hard anything is, it, too, shall pass. And hope for something even more extraordinary somewhere on the horizon.

Thus, this year, instead of making the traditional New Year's Resolutions, I invariably give up on around mid-March, I've decided to make a list of New Year's Hopes (because gods know I need my vices, hello!).

What am I hopeful for in the future, be it my own or all of humanity's?

I am hopeful that empathy, compassion, generosity, love, encouragement, and support will prevail over hatred, fear, greed, and bigotry.

I'm hopeful that a significant shift will rebalance the economy and society so that those hurting the most right now find reprieve while those causing the most imbalance face karmic justice.

I'm hopeful that truth will out, and those who have been lulled asleep will awaken.

Personally, I'm hopeful I find time to create more and consume less, even when I'm exhausted after a long day.

All I've ever really wanted was to be traditionally published, and when that suddenly happened in 2024 (after a hiccup), I've had to sit here with the thought of: what next?

Then I wrote a bunch of scripts, both feature-length and shorts, because that was always the next big dream. (I mean, I did get a degree in filmmaking from Boston College that I'm still paying off, might as well use it, amirite?)

However, I had to shelve that dream to focus on making enough money to pay all the bills while my industry spouse has struggled to find work all year. I know he's not alone in that struggle. Many are hurting, many have lost everything... I feel incredibly blessed to be in a position to carry this burden for so long, but now I'm facing burnout. Don't get me wrong, I LOVE giving readings, teaching, and so on, but even when you love something, sometimes you need a break.

So, after my last class of the 8-week series Mediumship for Witches, I took a couple of weeks off to rest, breathe, and dream it all up again...

My first goal was to clean the entire house, but then we both got sick over the holidays, so everything had to be put on pause. My first sign from the universe: relax first, clean later. OK, fine... I surrendered. Watched all of Stranger Things, played A LOT of Witcher 3 on PS5, and took lots of naps. Highly recommended! But the bills don't stop, so I can't drift in the ether forever.

That's when I forced myself to stare down all my doom piles and dismantle them. It's amazing how freeing that feels! Yes, there's some psychological processing... I've noticed over the years that the whole reason I create doom piles in the first place is that I'm subconsciously burying something I don't want to face yet.

At the bottom of one pile was the bag containing Weasel's ashes from last year, and under another was Ponyo's ashes from this past October. Other piles were related to teaching for 8 weeks straight—like you have no idea how many decks and books I had piled up everywhere. Thankfully, those are mostly packed away now!

But what it all boiled down to was a very loud message from Spirit: time to organize and purge! Ugh. But also necessary.

These piles are the physical manifestations of stuck energy—every unprocessed emotion, every unpacked event. Do I really want to carry all that baggage into the new year? Do you? (Regardless of when you define the start.)

Every time I wanted to sit down and write, I thought, "Oh, I should put away my laundry, or wash the dishes," or whatever clutter filled my vision. With everything tidy, I can get an idea and immediately execute it (in theory, there's also a heap of blocks I've had to plow through with some awesome Expand app meditations for creativity, and whatnot).

Regardless, it's not merely about cleaning your physical surroundings; it's also about clearing out the old energy that holds you back from whatever you want to accomplish.

Holiday Home Cleansing Tips:

1. Open at least one door or window.

   1. There’s this belief that if you’re cleansing a building and don’t have anything open to the outside world, then whatever negative entities or energies are hanging around won’t be able to leave. I don’t necessarily believe that because I imagine spirits, be they positive or negative, can move through walls, but it doesn’t hurt to do it, so why not just in case? Besides, a little fresh air is always uplifting, even if it's bitterly cold outside.

2. As you do the following steps, you should keep your frequency tuned to whatever lights up your soul.

   1. You could clap and laugh or dance to your favorite music as you move from one room to another. You might feel like a complete maniac, but you’ll also crack yourself up and naturally lift your spirits.

3. Use dried herbs, incense, resin, or essential oils to cleanse all thresholds (windows and doors or any other portal), dark corners, or anywhere else you feel heavy or stuck energy (well traveled spots like hallways, bathrooms, kitchens or even specific places within the room like over beds, or in front of the stove or sink), and especially anywhere you recently cleaned a "doom pile."

   

   1. I usually instinctively go in a clockwise motion three times each, but I could see a clear argument in favor of going counterclockwise. (Clockwise can mean to draw in or attract, whereas counter can mean to banish or repel.) Go with your gut.

   2. You might also feel like you need to go around certain areas more than three times. Again, go with your gut. Some spaces may need extra cleansing.

   3. I like to use lavender because it grows easily in my backyard, so it's free and sustainable, but use whatever you have easy access to, such as eucalyptus, juniper, cedar, pine, or whatever grows in your area. You don't have to use sage or palo santo, but make sure to research what's safe to burn indoors and inhale, and whether it has cleansing properties.

4. If you have a besom or broom, you can tap each wall with the handle end and declare it your own space, while chanting things like: “This is my space. I claim it. No negative energy or entities are allowed here. Only positive energies and entities are allowed.”

   

   1. Or no evil entities or whatever label you wish. The point here is more the intent than the specific words, but it helps to vocalize your intent to keep you focused.

   2. I typically start in the East, move South, West, North, then close in the East, but go with your gut or as your tradition practices.

5. After you feel as though you have successfully cleansed your home, now you can fill it with scents that attract positive energy, prosperity, excellent health, or whatever you want.

   

   1. Much the same as with your cleansing herbs or resins, use what grows locally or works best for you and your practice.

   2. I tend to use rose water, but many use Florida water or other floral scents (homemade or store-bought). Cinnamon is another commonly used scent across many traditions.

   3. The trick here is to use something that smells flowery and uplifting to attract positive entities and repel negative ones.

   4. You can fill mini mist spray bottles and perfume bottles with your liquid of choice and spritz as needed.

6. For when you’re feeling a bit EXTRA (so, like, me every day lol), there are a few more steps you can take:

   1. One is to put some selenite in the farthest spot of your home in each direction. I also like to place a few black tourmalines in well-traveled rooms to transmute negative energy into positive energy; rose quartz in bedrooms for gentle, soothing energy; amethyst and lapis in the office to boost psychic abilities and communication, respectively; and fluorite in the living room to promote clarity and mental sharpness.

   2. You can call on the Archangels, especially Michael, to act as a bouncer and keep out any negative entities. (Or your Spirit Guides, Deities, Ancestors, House Spirits, etc.)

   3. You can create or recharge your wards. (If I don't already have a blog post on wards, I'll write one eventually.)

   4. You can ring Bells, use Singing Bowls, bang Tuning Forks or Drums, and/or similar instruments throughout your home to bathe it in positive attracting/negative repelling sounds.

   5. With a black Sharpie or other marker, draw eyes on cloves of garlic or buy Evil Eye charms and leave one in each room or wherever you feel you need extra protection.

   6. You can also hang dry herbs in certain rooms to promote their aspects, like rosemary in an office for good memory and mental clarity, lavender in a bedroom to promote peace and calm, cinnamon in the kitchen or living room for prosperity and protection, orange blossom for energy, and lemon peel for aura cleansing, etc. Again, go with your gut, what you can source locally (bonus if it's free and sustainable, using the "One in Ten Rule" [harvest one plant from 10] or taking less than 20%), and/or what your personal tradition uses. But I do find that aromatherapy really works like a mind hack. (I'm using an energy mix right now to get myself to finish writing this because I've had so many spells to do over the past few days, I'm exhausted lol!)

Up Next:

I was also going to do a little recap of 2025, with some highlights, but it's getting late on a rainy Friday night. I have a fully booked weekend of readings and spells, so I think I'll sign off for now and share a quick list of upcoming events (I'll send a newsletter soon with more details if you're interested).

First up, please vote for my book in this contest: https://consciouslifeexpo.com/book-awards/

• You have until January 31st to vote.

• One vote per person.

• My book is called 30 Real Signs from the Afterlife.

Thank you!!!

The contest is for the Conscious Life Expo, where I'll be offering a free lecture and workshop titled "Meet Your Spirit Guides" on February 21 at 9 pm. I'll be available directly after the lecture to sign books and chat. You can also find me at a vendor table all weekend, sharing space with some fantastic artists and readers (I'll post more about them later!). For more info, visit my affiliate link here: https://consciouslifeexpo.com/?ref=zmvjmdc

I also have several other events in the works, one of which is the highly anticipated Mediumship for Witches 3, which will include classes at the Green Man with deep dives on channeling, astral projection, remote viewing, and the business side of mediumship, from giving readings to ethics and promoting yourself, plus a retreat at a haunted inn where we'll practice hands-on house cleansing techniques, paranormal investigations, and practice seances.

For those of you in my Mentorship Program, we'll resume one-on-ones this month, and group sessions will follow soon.

Also, those of you who have reached Level Two Reiki/Energy Healing will be invited to join me on a private retreat for Level Three at the previously mentioned haunted location. (Yes, I'll schedule a bonus ghost hunt and seance for you!) Details soon!

Lastly, I recently got a bill from SoundCloud and realized I had to decide: keep paying for it, or let it go. Money is tight right now, but I've been waiting to relaunch the Circle Cast for over a year (got waylaid by a particular unfortunate election and just dropped the ball entirely).

And I miss it. I never did it for money or gains, just for the sheer fun of talking about stuff I enjoy with people I love.

So, I'm bringing it back in small installments, starting with a series on paranormal investigations with Cheryl called: Phantom Frequencies.

That's it for now, happy new year! I'm off to decompress and prepare for my big weekend of readings and spells.

Talk soon!

Love from rainy LA,

Mel

1.2.2026

PS: I posted this, then saw the news. Suffice to say, but:

PPS: Graphic design created using my own photos, Procreate, Adobe stock photos, Adobe Express illustrations, and clip art.