I checked and couldn't find anything about this. Is there a good crystal, gem, or stone that I can use to help me focus on grounding?

Thanks!

The black stones are great for grounding...black tourmaline, jet, smokey quartz, etc.  I like to use amethyst myself as it is a wonderful all-purpose stone.

Thanks SeaMonster, now I just need to save up a little bit of money or do an awesome arts and crafts project to help  

You know, if you don't have a bunch of cash to buy stones with...Goddess knows these New Age stores charge an arm and a leg for a "rock"...grounding is great with any stone that you pick up outside.  Find a nice, smooth one that will fit into your hand.  I found a pretty jasper once that I still use for grounding.  River stones are great for this!

I wasn't really going to go out and pay for gems or stones at one of those stores lol they overcharge by like 10000%  

One of my friends goes gem mining frequently, you get to keep whatever you mine and I'm pretty sure it's year-round. You just have to pay for admission.

Ooh, how fun!  I would love to do that!    The only "gem mining" I've done is when I've gone out on a "royal rockhunt" to the playground with my students.  They truly enjoy it, but I always end up with a truckload of rocks to take back to the playground for next year's students.

Haha that actually sounds like a ton of fun too though! With the exception of carrying 10 tons of rocks   Isn't it amazing the things we do for kids?

My friend actually found an emerald the size of her thumb while gem mining at this place. A lot of times people overlook what they can make themselves or find in the best store in the world (the Earth!) and they pay waaaaayyyy too much for the best of things.
Off topic: Yesterday I made a tarot card bag, a Goddess statue and Pagan prayer beads (all for about $30 and 2 hours of work). I still need to paint the statue, make a God statue, and I bought a woodburning pen to make a pentacle for my altar. All of the materials cost about $60, I've been looking around lately at similar items online and in total I probably would have spent over $150! Not too mention I think making things is better than just buying them (although somethings just need to be bought).

I agree!  When we create our own tools, we put our own power into them which makes them "ours".  (Thus, not much good for anyone else...heh, heh!)  I try always to think of how our ancestors lived.  They didn't have "stores" and internet supplies.  They literally created everything by hand, and they had a different way of looking at things than we do today.  So much of the sacred has gone out of our everyday lives, and we need to bring it back.   Unfortunately, the way our stress-laden society goes, we have become more consumer than producer, and most people can no longer produce.  I am also a victim of my society.  I don't do a lot of cooking, I have a tough time sitting down to "sew that button back on" and I find very little time outside of work to do much more than recover from work...lol.

I completely agree, we have lost a lot of our past. I am a perfectionist in every sense of the word. When I'm making something, especially something Witchy, I acknowledge the fact that even though I try to be perfect I am not just like everything around me  . This helps me realize that even when my stitches are uneven or my lines aren't straight it's okay. The Gods and Goddesses know that I am imperfect and I think they appreciate the hard work that I put into my project. I also believe that imperfections are a sign of reality and make a project more desirable (at least to me! lol).

Even with "mundane" tasks I try to make them magickal. I believe being a Witch means that I should try to incorporate magick into everyday life and tasks. It's not all about the hype and the rituals and the feasts (even though those are great!) it's about seeing the magick and beauty in everything.

The Native Americans (at least the ones in the NorthWest, that I know of) would think that way as well.  When they were creating their gorgeous beaded works, they'd put thousands of beads into these very intricate patterns, but they would always make sure that they placed an unusual bead in a place where it didn't belong as a reminder that real life is imperfect.  That has always fascinated me.

I can remeber as a kid we used to walk around and pick up rocks. Each one felt different. Now, we rarely even go outside, unless it's running form point ! to point B, and back again.

Long nights were spent making things we needed to live life, now long nights are spent worrying about how we are going to make enough $$$$ to make it thru life. Suzie needed a dress for the dance, Mom, and Suzie, sewed it, now Suzie MUST have that $1500 dress with complete ensemble or she will just die!!!!  

Your items sound awesome Lina. I know out of my wands, all are handmade by one person or another, the one that holds the most power for me, is the one I made, next up is one handcarved by an old friend that I added a touch of me to, followed by one I have yet added my touch to.

If we want a severe run of population thinning, take away modern convienences!!!!

I went gem hunting once in the Ozarks.  Now I wish I had kept all those beautiful rocks and gems we found.     I left behind a bag of beautiful stones when I moved out on my own 2 or 3 years ago.  Oh, well.    

SM, that is an interesting fact about the Native Americans.  That stuck out to me for some reason and will go with me thru the day.  Hmmmm  

Seamonster, I've heard of Native Americans altering hand made objects, but there is another group (I can't remember which group right now!) that believes that if you make something perfectly it holds more attraction to other and it is more likely to get stolen by person or the devil.

Novia, I totally agree! I am 21 and I look around at my peers and wonder if they ever stop and think about the convienences that they have and appreciate them as opposed to take them for granted. I also wonder if they ever think about the ancestors... sometimes it seems that kids my age only think of themselves and never stop to think about anything else.   And I agree about the population thinning, with the way life is right now some days I want to live in a commune where everything we have we've made.

Amyethstone, I have only been gem mining once and I did try panning for gold in California when I was 12 (it didn't turn out well). You can always go mining again if you can find somewhere nearby. If not then what about gems and stones from your area?

so...petrified wood will help ya with that grounding...
amethyst good for communication on this plane as well as between planes.

Thanks. I didn't know that petrified wood could be used for grounding.

What do you guys think about hematite?