For many people, being an effective practitioner of magic includes the ability to think outside the box. By being a creative and imaginative thinker, you can find magical uses for non-magical items. In 2008, About Pagan/Wiccan featured a weekly series in which readers were challenged to find ways of using regular household items as magical tools. For eighteen weeks, our readers came up with unconventional ways to turn regular items around the house into components in magical workings. Let's take a look at some of the mundane items that we offered, and some of the clever and creative ideas our readers had.
Fork
Lecia: My husband says that if you believe in something strong enough, it can be a talisman for you. He’s not even remotely a witch or a Pagan or any kind of magical practitioner. But he swears that he can perform exorcisms with a spoon. Well, if the ghosts, ghoulies, and demon-kind are resistant to his spoon, I may suggest a fork instead.
Angela: You could make a great wind chime, or you could break off the tines and leave them in the garden for faeries.
Mugwort: Use them as a Magical Instrument learn how to play Spoons. Find a rhythm with them - music is a Divine Tool.
Janet: Forks are great for drawing multiple spiral patterns, either in paint or sand for magical items or meditation. Most forks have 4 tines, though you can also find them with 3 tines. So those numbers can be used, too. You could, for example, make paste paper (Google it!) spirals, Xs, or other designs by dragging the fork through the paint medium. Then use the paper in your book of shadows, or as part of a ritual. You can also “draw” with the fork in a small box of sand, like those desktop Zen Garden kits. If you’re trying to lose weight, the fork could be used as a ritual focus. All in all, I’ve always thought forks are very cool and worthy of being thought magical!
Trunkuza: In a ritual that needs an athame for merely focusing purposes, one might use a fork instead! If you’re in a quick-growing coven where not everyone can afford a simple athame, or simply got hexed with forgetfulness, just raid the kitchen utensil drawers. I like the idea of using it as a talisman, though. My girlfriend has problems eating (she thinks she’s fat, when she’s skinnier than I am… which is saying something [I'm a twig]), and nothing I say to her will make her realize the problem. So maybe if I enchant the fork and affix it under her seat, she’ll be able to eat more than she currently does, and be healthier.
Anavrin: Perhaps you could have a special “blessing fork” that could be passed around at mealtimes. The person holding the fork could bless (maybe even with hand movements) the food before it is served and then choose the next person to bless the food. For instance one person may say “May this food make us happy and healthy.” That person chooses the person on their left who says, “May this food fill us with love and laughter.” And so on around the table. Or it could be more personal and specific. “May this soup help Aunt Lucy to recover quickly from her cold.”
Ryan: Just think of all the different gods and goddesses that have been pictured using a Trident, which is just a really big fork. Poseidon and Kali really come to mind. so, I'm all for using the fork as a working tool, after all us kitchen witches often use knives and spoons. I like to bend them for mental focus practice too. No they don’t bend without touching them, but using your mind you can soften the metal quite a lot. You end up with a stronger mind, and some conversation starters.
