The Changeover Jun 2026

The new you is slower. You no longer rush to fill silence with noise. The new you is lighter. You have dropped the weight of other people's expectations. The new you is fiercer. You have seen the bottom of the well and discovered you can still breathe down there. The new you is kinder. Not the performative, people-pleasing kindness of before. A real, scarred, radical kindness that knows exactly how much it hurts to be human.

The title, The Changeover , works on multiple levels. Literally, it refers to the magical ritual Laura undergoes. Metaphorically, it represents puberty and the loss of innocence. Mahy draws distinct parallels between the magic of the witch world and the changes of the human body. The rituals involve blood, pain, and transformation—mirroring the physical transition into womanhood. Laura’s initiation is a harrowing process, suggesting that gaining power (adulthood) is not a gentle evolution, but a violent, necessary shedding of the old self. The Changeover

Refinement: Adjusting the new state until it feels like home. The new you is slower

It happens the first time you realize your parents cannot fix a problem. It happens when you hold a younger sibling and feel the weight of protection. It happens when you look in the mirror and no longer see a child, but a stranger capable of darkness and love in equal measure. You have dropped the weight of other people's expectations