get in loser, we're shifting timelines
spooky season, quantum leaps, and a little voice note from me to you
Re: the message above, I wrote this a few weeks back, and kept attempting to mold it into the shape of a missive, and it just… didn’t feel right. So here it is, something I’ve been wanting to try out on this newsletter—a little voice note from me to you.
Hi lovelies,
I think the time has come for me to admit it. I’m one of those people. You know the ones—the people who wait for spooky season to roll around again what feels like mere moments after All Hallows’ Eve (and Samhain and Day of the Dead if you celebrate) come to an end. Okay, so this isn’t actually news to anyone, but something I love to pronounce, fairly regularly, and with gusto.
I also teased it in this newsletter, where I talked about the magic of surprise—and there are so many things that are strange and surprising about October, aren’t there?
But listen, because it needs to be said: I’m not that into pumpkin spice. I do like the scent, and I am undoubtedly a big fan of gourds and everything they represent (why did my brain fully just go, “I like big gourds and I cannot lie”? why, Kimia, why?), but I could pass on the drink itself. I mean, come on, it’s overly sweet and overly hyped. Then again, if you were to place a medium pumpkin spice latte with oat milk into my hand at this very moment… it’s not like I can refuse to imbibe.
I will absolutely complain that it’s basic, though.
Anyway, back to my autumnal accolades: “Such are the autumn people,” Ray Bradbury said of them. Those wielders of witchy ways, those purveyors of all things spooky! And I have plenty more to say on that topic, but for now I’ll refer to them, to us, as such: Every year, we are the ones who wait for the moment, the change in the air—both physical and spiritual—that exact shift in sensation, season, and frequency, when we can finally sense it.
That October feeling. It’s coming. It’s nearly here.
Last year, I did this little photoshoot out in the woods in the Presidio, where I lived all throughout 2020. Something witchy this way comes, indeed. I’d been planning this concept, within the confines of my mind at least, for some time; I wanted the timing, the location, the photographer, the looks, the ✨vibe✨ to be just right.
And it ended up being one of the most magical things I’ve manifested for myself—down to all those very details. It became photographic evidence, a representation of my desire to encapsulate what I feel for both my spiritual practice and journey, and for the special and potent time when the space between realms wavers and grows thin. Yes, we’ve heard that before, but it bears repeating.
And my love for the darkly delicious allure of Libra and Scorpio season, of course.
I wrote,
My intention is to continue allowing the magic of October to inspire and move me forward—to propel me away from the people and circumstances of my life that are no longer serving my highest good, or aligning me with the self that feels my most powerful. If the things that end up needing to be left behind surprise me, then so be it. I’m no longer impeding my own growth by holding on too tightly to any one thing, no matter how painful it may be at times to release.
But I also want to talk about quantum shifting/leaping/jumping. Without going into the science behind the theory of quantum mechanics—as fun as that would be!—what I’m referring to here is the act of changing realities, of stepping into higher timelines for the purposes of spiritual growth.
It’s a concept that had already made a home for itself inside the cultural zeitgeist (as anyone who’s familiar with manifestation and the Universal Laws will tell you, yes, but fans of Marvel’s Multiverse can, too), one that essentially exploded when Covid hit and we all collectively decided that we were in the darkest timeline. Not to mention so many of us, on a collective level, then began turning to spirituality, witchery, and woo woo1 for answers, or chose to deepen our practices. Myself included.
It was a revival, a revelation in more ways than one, and a Tower moment. Multiple societal Tower moments, really.
If we accept the theory that there are countless timelines, we can accept that there is a version of us in one or more of those infinite timelines, or alternate dimensions, or realities that already has the very thing(s) we desire.
And we can choose to take a leap, jump, shift, or sideways sidle into one of those already-existing timelines, and align with that version of ourselves. Right?2
Something I’ve learned in my more recent experiences with shifting timelines is that, simply put, it’s about more than one instantaneous leap at a time—the way it’s traditionally been spoken about in the spiritual community.
I find that visualizing myself as the version of me who has what she desires is the easy part. I’ve always liked to think of myself an imaginative person, as most writers do. I can effusively envision each reality, can journal it all out every morning, do all kinds of scripting—really and thoroughly illustrate it within my mind’s eye and on the page. And I’m great at the affirmations-so-positive-they’re-almost-aggressive, too! (Sometimes the inside of my head is a fun place.)
I see me with my storied and successful writing career; my sprawling bohemian bungalow-style home (with a spacious backyard, which is something I don’t currently have) in a place just close enough to town that it’s comfortable for the human things, like groceries and Wi-Fi, but also near enough to the forest that my heart is happy; my loving and healthy partnership—no spellwork necessary.3
It’s in the embodying of that version of my Self, though, where I hit the occasional snag. If you’re not familiar, the way it works is such: The ability not only to jump into, but stay in the timeline with which you wish to align, requires equal parts imagination (those on or familiar with #ManifestationTok might refer to it as “being delusional” 😉) and aligned action.
And continued aligned action, along with changed thought patterns and belief systems, and everything else that goes with fully embodying the version of yourself who lives and breathes and thrives in said reality.
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In other words, believe it, and only then will you see it. “Fake it till you make it” and then some. It’s just that sometimes you’re “faking it” for a little longer than expected, because guess what? You’ve also got to sift through all your subconscious patterning—the beliefs you’ve had for so long you don’t even consciously know they’re there—before you can arrive to your desired timeline.
So how can we find ourselves—in both the beingness of our present Selves, and in the versions who are thriving, right fucking now, in the gorgeous and abundant timelines we so wholeheartedly desire and deserve to align with?
Mmm, therein lies the paradox of manifestation… but also the way forward. With intention. With acceptance. And maybe, just maybe, giving ourselves a little grace.
Tell me, how are you choosing to step into higher timelines—and making moves to stay aligned with them? And are you a spooky-season-starts-early kind of person, too? Feel free to respond directly to this email to let me know what you think, or drop a comment below! Thanks for engaging with me to help this newsletter grow ❤️
xx
Kimia
I am obviously using this term with a positive connotation here, and I’ve been determined to continue reclaiming it for a hot minute now.
Need a more thorough breakdown? May I invite you to watch the film Everything, Everywhere, All at Once. Okay, so it’s not exactly a comprehensive breakdown of quantum leap theory, but it goes there, and it’s every bit as fan-fucking-tastic as they say.
So this requires story time. We’ll have to save it for another newsletter, but I will say that I didn’t do it on purpose, because hi, consent is a thing, in witchcraft and literally everywhere else. And I will also say that it did indeed have spicy, hilarious, and entirely Unforeseen Consequences.