Hello, I am Morgana. Some in the pagan community might also know or remember me as Maeve, and I still use that name as well. My birth name is Sarah Isaacs. I was born and raised in the craft; both of my parents are pagan. My father grew up in a dogmatic Christian religion when he was young, but as he got into his adolescence he had questions the bishops couldn’t answer, so he went out in search of answers. He read a staggering amount of books in search of his path, and I have come to find that reading books is an unavoidable part of completing the great work. Eventually he found and joined Earth Haven coven; the magistrate of this coven went on to create the metaphysical shop known as Crone's Hollow, which has become a wonderful resource for the community. Eventually my father's studies took him on a path that diverged from Earth Haven; they focused primarily on Earth-based magic – but my father was interested in ceremonial magic as well, and he wanted to blend them. He was told that this simply is not done, and that to attempt it was heresy. I think he and I both know now that when someone tells you that you're committing heresy... you're probably on the right track. He created his own coven and called it 'Sunwise' - and while I turned the wheel with Sunwise I learned the beauty and complexity of writing and performing ritual, working with the deities of the Egyptian and Greek pantheons, and learned ceremonial magic as well as how to connect those concepts through sympathetic magic to the earth and to ourselves. He joined the OTO, and I attended many rituals side by side with OTO members, learning various rituals and techniques of ceremonial magic from a variety of practicioners. I also got a close view of what it looks like to run a coven, as I lived at the covenstead. I saw the time, effort, energy, and thought it takes to produce a ritual and maintain energetic coherence in a group.  

My mother throughout her life has been a solitary kitchen/herbal/hedge/forest witch...she showed me what it is like to exist outside of a coven community, to walk my own personal path, and how to develop my own senses and abilities to work with energy, and with the earth. She taught me about herbs and plants and animals, that they are all animate individuals in their own right who deserve respect and love. I learned to talk (and listen!) to plants, rocks, animals, to ask permission and to exchange rather than simply take - I learned that the world around me is an extension of myself. These days my mother has come out of her solitary cave to join Hazelwood for it's rituals. She is a priestess of Hecate, and has brought so much numinous wisdom to our rituals I cannot accurately state my gratitude and awe.  

When my father’s coven disbanded I spent years dormant or in solitary practice, as my mother had taught me. Years later, an old friend reached out inviting me to join a group they were forming. I turned the wheel for 7 years with Wrensgate Coven, learning an eclectic Celtic practice based on Keltrian druidism, learning their rituals and lore, working with the Oghams and the deities of Celtic, Norse and Germanic pantheons. I learned and grew immensely during this time, and I am grateful for the time I spent with them. Shortly after my time with that group came to a close, my father passed away unexpectedly. At that time I was already grieving the deaths of my grandmother, uncle, stepmother, my marriage and house, as well as the spiritual group that had been my family for 7 years, and the death of my father was the stick that broke my camel's back. I fell into grief and despair, and then 6 months later the world fell into the chaos of a global pandemic which lead me to taking a break from earning my bachelor's degree. I spent the pandemic going inward, because I had nowhere left to go – the powers that be had cornered me – so I began the long and arduous task of feeling my feelings, digging into the grief, and meeting myself under the despair and disrepair.

Over time I began to see very clearly that so many of my life experiences had taught and prepared me to be a priestess; one who performs rites and rituals, and serves the spiritual needs of a community. I realized that it was now my turn to share all I’ve learned; to eschew dogma and to help others find the divine spark and connection within themselves that I had found. So in 2019 after my father's death I hosted a Samhain ritual for the first time, and called it Hazelwood - a name that has been sacred to me since I was a child. So it was that Hazelwood was born and grew into a group of close friends - chosen family - who produced beautiful rituals together both private and public for four years. It is my hope that Hazelwood continues to grow into something that is far greater than me - magic created by the community, for the community. Through this I continue to follow my call serve the community in deep and meaningful ways.