My name is River aka The Grief Witch. I am a grief ritualist, mother, survivor, and community organizer. Sign up for my newsletter for community grief circles and subscribe to my substack The Grief Witch and Mother Wounds for my writing.
My learning lineage includes the teachings of Sobonfu and Malidoma Somé - mentorship training with Francis Weller - mentorship with Marisa Withey Byrne - and mentorship with Laurence Cole and Thérèse Charvet. I am also an ongoing student at the Irish Pagan School.
My soul lineage includes Brighid, the Irish goddess of keening, fire, holy wells, and poetry - sunflowers - bees - deer - wolves - cats - caves - lightning & rain - rivers & lakes - roses - revolutionaries - Sinead O'Connor - children - the death of my mother - taking care of my grandmother for six years - the plants & animals that held me in my backyard the summer I was grieving my mother.
My work is driven by two core beliefs: that our community work and presence can only be as deep and tender as we meet ourselves— and as Francis Weller says, whatever happens next— collectively or personally — will depend on how we meet our grief, how we reconnect with our souls, and the soul of the dreaming earth 🌿
