Back on the Broomstick: Old Witchcraft, New Path

In this episode, Laylla and Chelle sit down with Beck Ravenswood, owner of The Serpent’s Key Shoppe & Sanctuary in Hanover, Pennsylvania, before their July 22nd court hearing in the fight against Pennsylvania’s old fortune-telling law.

Yep, in Pennsylvania, a law dating back to 1861 still makes paid fortune telling, including tarot reading, a criminal offense. Beck’s case began after Hanover police visited their shop and warned them that offering tarot readings for money could lead to legal trouble. Now Beck is challenging that law in federal court, arguing that tarot reading is protected speech, spiritual practice, and a legitimate livelihood, not something that belongs under threat of arrest in the year 2026.

We talk with Beck about what happened, why this law matters beyond one shop in Hanover, and how outdated laws can still be used to target witches, readers, and spiritual workers. We also discuss Pennsylvania House Bill 1562, introduced by Rep. Greg Scott, which would repeal Title 18 Section 7104 and remove the state’s fortune-telling ban from the books.

If you want to support the effort, contact Rep. Greg Scott’s office and tell him you support HB 1562 and the repeal of Pennsylvania’s fortune-telling law. You can call his Norristown office at 484-685-3494 or his Harrisburg office at 717-772-0749. Pennsylvania listeners can also contact their own state representative and ask them to support HB 1562.

Tarot is not a crime
Sign the petition to legalize Tarot
Beck's Insta
The Serpent's Key
Rep Greg Scott
Hekate Justice Spell * Coming Soon
Beck's Spell
 Want to help? Instructions Below:

Choose an Intention and Candle Color
Red Candle: Power to the Pagans of Pennsylvania
White Candle: Banishment of Obstacles working against the PA Lawsuit to Legalize Fortune Telling
Black Candle: Protection for Witches in the World Today

Anoint in oil of your choosing and dress with any number of herbs from the list below. (or infuse a carrier oil with desired herbs use to make a Justice Oil for this ritual)

Bay Leaf, Cedar
Frankincense, Nettle
Pepper, Pine
Coltsfoot , Elm
Hickory

Light your Candle with me on July 22nd (at 10:30am if possible) to weave a web of power over the State of Pennsylvania as we continue our fight to Legalize Pennsylvania Fortune Telling.

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Back on the Broomstick
PO Box 21
Tioga, PA 16946
Email: backonthebroomstick@gmail.com
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When you first learn tarot, there are the obvious troublemakers like Death, The Tower, The Devil, and most of the suit of swords,,,,that make beginners wonder if the deck is threatening them personally. But after years of reading, teaching, and pulling cards at kitchen tables, podcast tables, and probably a few slightly chaotic coffee tables, the cards that trip you up can start to change.

In this episode, Laylla and Chelle talk about the tarot cards they personally struggle with now, and how those are different from the cards that tend to confuse or scare people when they first learn tarot.
Chelle admits that the 6s and 7s can be especially confusing in a spread, and Laylla attempts to make sense of them through the very mundane metaphor of deep cleaning a room. And Laylla confesses that she thinks The hierophant is just kind of a dick.
Grab a tarot deck, light a candle, and join us as we untangle the cards that confuse, challenge, and occasionally sass us from the table. Because sometimes the problem isn’t that a card is scary. Sometimes the problem is that it is just annoyingly deep.
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Want to send us a letter? Witchy things to review?
Our mailing address is:
Back on the Broomstick
PO Box 21
Tioga, PA 16946
Email: backonthebroomstick@gmail.com
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Back on the Broomstick Website

This week on Back on the Broomstick, we welcome Irene Glasse; a witch, author, musician, former Marine, yoga teacher, tarot reader, Pagan clergy person, and the kind of guest who  seriously makes you wonder if (and how!) she has found a few extra hours hidden between the worlds.

Irene joins us to talk about her book Foundations of Witchcraft, mystical practice, spiritwork, inclusive Heathenry, Freyja, community ritual, and what it really means to serve as Pagan clergy in the modern world. We also talk about Pagan festivals, the beautiful chaos of organizing magical people, and the very important discovery that Laylla and Chelle are basically two degrees of Kevin Bacon away from Irene.

This conversation also touches on the recent Department of Defense decision to reduce the military’s recognized religious affiliation codes from over 200 to 31, removing individual listings for many minority faiths and belief systems, including modern Pagan traditions, Wicca, Druidry, Unitarian Universalism, and atheism. As a former Marine and working Pagan religious professional, Irene brings a grounded and deeply personal perspective to why recognition, representation, and spiritual care matter.

Light a candle, grab your favorite festival mug, and join us for a conversation about witchcraft, service, community, and the sacred work of keeping the doors open for seekers of many paths.
Kindred Crow
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Glasse Witch Cottage
Foundations of Witchcraft: A Blackfeather Mystery School Training Manual
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Support the show
Want to send us a letter? Witchy things to review?
Our mailing address is:
Back on the Broomstick
PO Box 21
Tioga, PA 16946
Email: backonthebroomstick@gmail.com
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In this Midsummer daydream episode of Back on the Broomstick, Laylla and Chelle step through the veil of sleep and into the strange, symbolic, half-lit world of dream magick. Dreams have been treated as omens, messages, healing tools, and sacred journeys for thousands of years, from ancient dream temples to shamanic trance work, dream walking, and the modern practice of listening to the subconscious. But what does that mean for witches today?

The witches talk about dreams as one of the most natural forms of trance work, a liminal space where the conscious mind softens, intuition rises, and your magical brain starts speaking in symbols, emotions, ancestors, archetypes, nightmares, and the occasional absolutely unhinged sleep-brain nonsense. They explore dream interpretation, personal symbolism, lucid dreaming, dream recall, dream incubation, and how to work with nightmares as shadow work instead of treating them as failures or bad omens.

You’ll also get practical tips for remembering your dreams, protecting your dream space, setting intentions before sleep, using herbs, teas, crystals, and simple spells to support dream work, and learning how to bring wisdom back from the dream realm into waking life. So grab your dream journal, fluff your pillow, and get ready to wander the night-side of magic.
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Check out http://thewitchesmoon.com/ for your witchy altar supplies, jewelry, monthly subscription boxes and so much more! Use code BOTB10 at checkout for 10% off of Moon Market items excluding subscription boxes
Support the show
Want to send us a letter? Witchy things to review?
Our mailing address is:
Back on the Broomstick
PO Box 21
Tioga, PA 16946
Email: backonthebroomstick@gmail.com
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Back on the Broomstick Website

The sun is high, the days are long, the flowers are blooming, the herbs are going wild, and somehow your calendar has also decided to become an overgrown garden of obligations. Welcome to Litha, witches! 

In this episode of Back on the Broomstick, Laylla and Chelle celebrate the summer solstice, the longest day and shortest night of the year, by talking about what happens when all that solar energy starts to feel like a little too much. Litha is a season of fire, growth, joy, abundance, and everything blooming wild under the sun, but it can also be a time when life ramps up, the to-do list gets louder, and even your magic starts feeling like one more thing you’re supposed to keep alive.

So this year, we’re looking at Litha through the eyes of the tired witch at midsummer. How do you stay connected to your craft when you’re busy, overheated, overstimulated, broke, allergic to everything green, or just not in the mood to build an elaborate solstice altar? How do you let the sun warm you without burning you out?

We’ll share simple, practical, witchy ways to keep magic woven into your everyday life during the bright, busy rush of summer. From tiny solar rituals and sacred shade to ripening, boundaries, and tending your own light, this episode is a reminder that you do not have to do more to be magical. Sometimes the most powerful Litha spell is drinking some water, stepping into the shade, and remembering that even the sun knows when to rest.
Karen's etsy shop
Summer Magick and the Forgotten Sabbat
68: Litha Stories, Spells, & Rituals - Myth of the Oak King & Holly King
119: Midsummer Magick: Litha Lore and the Fair Folk
Got a question? Send the witches a message here!
Support the show
Want to send us a letter? Witchy things to review?
Our mailing address is:
Back on the Broomstick
PO Box 21
Tioga, PA 16946
Email: backonthebroomstick@gmail.com
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Back on the Broomstick Website