Ashley & Mariyah

Ashley (28)

Mariyah (19)

Seattle, Washington

Practical Magic

Like the sisters in the romantic comedy, Practical Magic, both Ashley and Mariyah were raised in a household that celebrated magic in all its forms. But with gifts and powers comes scrutiny, ridicule and a history of persecution. There is a common misconception that spells, rituals, incantations, or witchcraft is coded language for evil, satanic, devil-worshipping. Simply spend several minutes with sisters Ashley and Mariyah, however, and you might be surprised with just how inaccurate that is! While they acknowledge that many people do look at them in an odd way when they reveal their interests in ritualism and spells, their beliefs and practices are grounded deeply in the light and the positive, passed down to them by their mother and grandmother before her. They both identify as witches, yes, but their inspirations come from the whimsical beauty of mother earth and its nature, not Rosemary’s Baby and its darkness.

Many of the sister’s early experiences, both together and separately, have led them to where they are today, both spiritually but also as sisters. From an early age, Ashley has acted as a second mother to Mariyah, who is ten years younger than her older sister. Part of this is because the sisters’ brother is challenged with extremely low-functioning autism, forcing their mother to devote 99% of her day to taking care of him. Ashley’s devotion to looking after her sister led their mother to start calling Ashley “Lil Mama,” and her overprotectiveness continued all the way to Mariyah entering high school, which was the beginning of a shift in the way the sisters related to each other. They went from “sister mother”/“sister daughter” to best friends. Ashley had always wanted a sibling to be best friends with so once they solidified the evolution of their relationship, they never turned back, and remain best friends to this day.

Their relationship goes above and beyond what one might think of a normal, everyday sister relationship. They have absolutely no boundaries – they change in front of each other, pee in front of each other… the only boundary is Mariyah’s unwillingness to let Ashley pop her zits. But Ashley is trying to overturn that rule. Ryan, Ashley’s boyfriend, expresses jealousy over their close-knit relationship: he doesn’t understand why they must spend so much time together, while Ashley doesn’t understand what the big deal is. They’re sisters! Plus, there’s a whole other side to their relationship that he - and very, very few people - ever see for themselves. Their ritualistic side.

Ashley and Mariyah both found their inner-witch at an early age, and for years practiced in secret, neither telling the other – or anyone – about that side of their life. However, eventually it spilled out, and they were both shocked by how similar their experiences were. While Ashley’s mothering of her sister took their relationship to a level few people encounter, their shared interest and passion for the spiritually supernatural has elevated the intimacy of their lives together. The sisters will regularly participate in shared rituals, including offering gifts to the spirits, meditating on love and light, ritual dance and song in front of mirrors and candlelight. They take midnight walks in the forest to find a place they call “The Clearing,” a circular space surrounded entirely by trees where they practice their craft. This area is a cherished place of theirs, especially considering they are in nature, an element so prominent in their practice.

While Ashley’s boyfriend, Ryan, doesn’t entirely understand the sister’s dedication to their practice, Mariyah’s boyfriend, Star, not only gets it, but joins along as much as he can. Star, who’s actual birth name is Spencer, loves the craft, which is one of the traits that endeared him to Ashley the most. This was uncommon for any of Mariyah’s previous boyfriends, and she is relieved that they get along. After all, Mariyah has broken up with multiple boyfriends because they didn’t pass the Ashley approval test. Star participates and has his own relationship to “The Three Realms.” They have been dating for about a year and a half, and don’t seem to be slowing down any time soon. Ryan and Ashley have been dating for seven years and he has three kids from another woman. Ryan identifies as Lutheran so he doesn’t always see eye to eye with Ashley. It’s unclear if Ryan and Ashley will get married, but after seven years together, the question of where the relationship is going still stands. 

Both Ashley and Mariyah try to center the notion of healing, both physically and mentally, into all facets of their lives, including what they do for a living. Mariyah is about to finish training to become a massage therapist, while Ashley is creating an online workshop called “Absolving You Obstacles” which is, in her words, “a mixture of shadow and inner child work, combined with the science behind meditation and the laws of attraction.” Tasked with helping her mother raise her brother introduced her to the world of behavior therapy, which she continued to hone and perfect. It is important to the sisters that they live their lives fully engulfed in the light and beauty of helping others align their inner spirit, while doing everything they can to ensure that they do the same for themselves. The sisters have big plans together for the future, including the development of a spiritual retreat, with them running the show. They feel that they have molded all of their personal experiences into an exciting and inspiring participatory happening.

Ashley and Mariyah embody the light and beauty of nature and offer a unique and alternative version to the “witches” we are all so used to seeing portrayed in movies and television. The idea that their craft is an anti-Christian practice is debunked quickly because of Ryan’s religious beliefs. Ashley wouldn’t ever consider dating a Christian if she was against religion. The sisters are the definition of duality – as individuals, they are almost opposites personality-wise. But when together, they are harmoniously synced… and they can’t imagine a world – both this, the next, or otherwise – where that will ever change.