Midnight is the hinge of the night, the moment the day turns upon its heel, and what turns then may be taught to turn for good. Work alone, behind a shut door, with only the one candle burning.
This is a rite for the deep estrangement, the one who has set their back to home and sworn never to look upon it again. You will not force their feet; you will loosen the vow, soften the set jaw, and turn the inward face by slow degrees until the memory of home no longer stings but calls. It asks a steady will and a clean heart, for you work against a hardened purpose.
The Working
- Just before midnight, lay a full circle of salt wide enough to sit within, leaving no gap in its ring.
- Set a single candle at the northern edge, facing the way the estranged one has gone, and light frankincense or myrrh at your right hand.
- As the hour turns, ring the bell three times to open the working, and hold the loved one’s face clearly in your mind.
- Draw the candle slowly around the inside of the circle, from north toward you, as though leading a reluctant traveler home by the hand.
- Speak the incantation once for each quarter you pass, letting the smoke wrap the words and carry them out.
- Return the candle to the north, ring the bell three times to close, and let the flame gutter out on its own within the ring.
- Sweep the salt outward toward the door, sending the working along their road.
The Incantation
Turned-away and hardened one,
by the hinge of turning night,
let the vow you swore come undone,
let the far door catch your sight.
Bell to soften, smoke to sway,
flame to lead the stubborn heart,
turn, and turn, and turn this way,
home is not so far apart.
Speak of it to no one, and keep the guttered wax until the estranged one first says a kind word toward home.