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Writing

Things I’m working on instead of writing at the moment

Ashleigh NicSidhe

For the curious, this is a large part of the genealogy website rebuild that I’m doing for the next week or so. I typically use Family Tree Maker 2019 for my main research; along with the applications for MyHeritage and Legacy 8 (I’m several versions behind on this one, but it was free at the time), for use with other websites, and merge those into the FTM program, clean them up, and keep going from there.)

Periodically, I export the data from FTM so that I can upload it to my genealogy website at LookingBackwards.net, so that other family members can see it, comment on it, and use it themselves, should they so desire. It had been more than a few years since the last complete overhaul of the site, and while I had begun an update late last year, it hadn’t been finished because I got sick at the beginning of the year, and just haven’t been able to focus on if, with everything else that I was attempting to do.

At present, I’ve got the current version of TNG installed, and mostly configured, and the initial family data (mine) input. I’m working on cleaning up my FTM database so that it’s safe to export and upload – cleaning up stray sources, locations, and unrelated people, getting rid of duplicates, etc., – stuff that really doesn’t need to be there. Then I run taht file through a converter to make sure that it’s in the proper format for TNG to properly use, and upload it to the website, and then we will be ready to open back up.

*** This procedure will delete ALL data including people, families, sources, repositories, media and branches in a tree. It must be used with extreme caution and only after taking a full backup as you will need to restore an item *** Why would you need to CLEAR a tree? If you maintain your genealogy data […]

Source: Clearing & Rebuilding A TNG Tree – ONS Analytics

Inward clockwise spiral beneath the Anglo-Saxon 'ash' rune (ᚫ), representing descent into the Otherworld and spiritual thresholds (spiral), combined with the ash tree's symbolism of rootedness, ancestral connection, and liminal authority (rune). The spiral represents the Sidhe raths or fairy mounds. Combined it is a representation of "Ash McSidhe,

Ash NicSidhe

Ash NicSidhe has been a voice in the Pagan and Traditional Witchcraft community for over fifty years, writing under this name and its evolving magical lineage. Her work explores Witchcraft, folklore, Tarot, and the esoteric arts, weaving scholarly insight with lived ritual experience and initiatory tradition. As Elder High Priestess of Nemed Cuculatii, she continues to serve as a guardian of the old ways and a trickster of the spiral path. Her writing has appeared in The Witches’ Almanac, The Crystal Well, and other Pagan publications back into the 1970s. She has also contributed to books including The Small-Town Pagan's Survival Guide, Reflections in Diana’s Mirror: A Devotional for the Queen of Heaven, Which Witch is Which, and more.

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Photograph of Anne Frank. Above it: GERMANY OF 1943 IS BEING REPEATED IN usa OFF 2025 Below it "Terrible things are happening outside. Poor helpless people are being dragged out of the homes. Families are torn apart. Men, women, and children are separated. Children come home from school to find that their parent have disappeared." - Diary of Anne Frank January 13, 1943. Image credit Jeffrurr.bsky.social
Writing

Another Month, Another Post

Towards the end of March, the characters related to the *Good Bones* saga began talking to me—no, lecturing me. More specifically, Brooke Morningstar’s grandparents, Anastazia and Józef, both Holocaust survivors, sat me down one evening and began telling me their harrowing story. From Auschwitz-Birkenau, to their struggle for survival and eventual reunion in Prague, their journey is one of resilience and love. Not to mention their history has some parallels to current events today.

Ashleigh NicSidhe
Eddy BERTHIER from The Hague, Netherlands, CC0, via Wikimedia Commons
Writing

Beyond the Shadow: Reclaiming the Hidden Light Within

In the realm of Carl Jung’s psychology, shadow work has become a popular term, often conjuring images of exploring one’s darker impulses and repressed flaws. It’s a practice of looking within, facing those aspects of ourselves we’d rather deny—our anger, jealousy, or selfishness. While this journey is undoubtedly transformative, there’s another, equally vital side to the shadow that often goes unnoticed. What if, instead of only confronting what we fear in ourselves, we also asked: What good have we buried in the shadow?

Ashleigh NicSidhe