Any Witches Here Part 4 [Edited by MNHQ]

[speakout]

Or Wiccans. or Pagans? Or anyone who is interested in a magical path or feels some magical stirrings.

A place for support, learning, swapping ideas and magical inspiration

All welcome.

Bellecose the spiritualist church I go to is lovely, it's not SNU, so very open to all view. SNU, for me is too dogmatic and close to traditional religion.

My parents are no longer with us, so being out as a witch is now less contentious in the family. (They were very Christian - I think they would have been like yours, speakout)
I am out at work, and within the village, where I occasionally give readings or charms. I try and act like a good ambassador....

Confusion- that is the correct image of my Christmas card this year. I have posted it on this thread before. I know some of my family with throw it straight in the bin and reach for the bible though!!

Bellecose2

I agree about the word witch- I know some don't want to use that word, but for me it's about reclaiming.
Reclaiming the dark, reclaiming the sacred, reclaiming that which they tried to erase and make shameful and evil.
I am proud to use the word witch.

What does everyone think about christenings? Is anyone else not christened? I feel it makes me feel closer to mother nature or the universe the fact that I feel more connected because I wasn't.

Winterfellwonderland

Why do you think that? Hard to have an objective stance, you don't know how you would feel if you had been christened.

Like many of us I had no choice, I was baptised as a baby.
I rarely give it a thought, it hasn't stopped my magical path.
Being baptised into a religion I have little respect for under a god I don't believe in is of little significance to me.

I don't know I can't explain it. I just feel like it.

Has anyone had their kids christened? I dunno when we had kids I had a lot of stick from DH family about not christenings our kids and I think about it every so often and I dunno I'm just interested in what you lot think.

Morning all!

It’s a beautiful Autumn day here with the sun shining on red and gold Autum leaves. 🍁

Had a very busy week work wise and yesterday it ended in the most amazing (and unexpected) result. Quite literally a magical outcome. I can’t say that I consciously performed anything to produce that effect. However as I have worked away on it all for the last couple of weeks I have instinctively put a lot of thought / energy / prayers / intention (call it what you will) into the situation. And in a serendipitous series of events it all connected up yesterday.

I have put my pumpkin 🎃 out for the squirrels and walked on the wet grass in bare feet. Good to re-connect after being all up in the air yesterday.

I plan to do some pottering around plants and kitchen today - my favourite things. 😊

Winterfellwonderland

My point is how would you know otherwise?

Do you think being christened makes you feel less connected?
You may feel exactly the same if you had been christened.

Why would a christening make any difference?

Winterfellwonderland

No I didn't get my children chistened.

It's a christian ceremony and I am not a christian, so would make no sense.

I guess I wouldn't know.

@speakout. Agree totally on reclaiming the word. Maybe in time, future generations of witches won't face the same degree of prejudice.

... I've been thinking too regarding my own family and it's a little contentious I guess. One side is religious, the other atheists. The religious lot might try to drag me to a priest, but I really believe they wouldn't ridicule me as much as the other half would. The latter regard anyone with supernatural beliefs with disdain (not to their faces, but behind their backs) They would probably drag me to a psychiatrist so I'm kind of stuck between a rock and a hard place in that regard. But, I don't care that much. I've always been a secretive soul who finds refuge in her thoughts.

GeeIneverthoughtofthat

Lovely to hear of your productive week.
It's lovely to see the fruits of magical work.
Still stormy here, DD is here for the weekend but has woken up ill- tonsilitis. She is glad she is here and not in her student flat. She managed some breakfast and last I peeped in she was sleeping peacefully.
So I am making Rose scented candles, just a small batch destined for Qatar of all places. A simple day at home here. May do some Tarot later.
DD has really taken to my new deck ( she is 18, and first time using Tarot) - she has a phenomenal skill. She has been taking it with her when she visits friends homes and doing lots of readings for people.
She has a real gift.

Another witch in the making!!

Bellecose2

Atheists need to be careful not to throw out the baby with the bath water.
I am an atheist and a scientist. And also a witch.

I find no incompatibility.

Yes, I love that about you

Owls glad you love it too. It reminds me of mornings when the sun hits the dew in the fields and turns it into rainbows and the hares do their hare thing among it all.

Speakout aeons before I used the W word to describe myself, other people called me it when they asked me for help, even in the simplest things like suggesting coconut oil for psoriasis, lavender oil to aid sleep etc. I think most people are just conditioned to accept the ordinary way of doing things and are happy with that until it doesn't work, then they see everything outside their own parameters as so out there it must be brought about by harnessing unimaginable things that are outside their conditioning and knowledge-base.

New Agey stuff then opened a gap in that rigidity of thinking for some because it was all light and fluffy so they felt able to connect to that, but there was and is still a very dualistic principle to it.

Nowadays, things seem to be more relaxed on the surface but maybe I'm getting more rigid in my own thinking as I'll still follow To Know, To Will To Dare because it's comfortable for me to do so.

I tend to get a box of xmas cards from Aldi and send those to the majority of people on my list, then I buy Solstice cards for my Pagan friends.

Bellecose2

XX

Speakout lovely to hear your DD is learning tarot. My DS1 has a Wiccan friend and on Halloween they all lit candles and set intentions for the year ahead. I was so proud when he told me 

Sadly I have to be quite selective about who I tell what I'm doing. My DP is supportive, my DS2 is cynical but not openly hostile, but I know my DS1, who is away at university, would be horrified and think I'd taken leave of my senses. He has no truck with 'woo'.

My sister can't get enough though!

It gladdens me to see those who have support around them, but also saddens me to see that some of us have to keep our craft and path secret.

I have family member who will openly lie in front of me to hide what I do.

I have noticed a lot more people being open about witchy stuff recently - either that or this thread has opened my eyes!

Friends with lavender at the back door and tarot decks in black velvet. People wishing each other a Blessed Samhain on Facebook. A lady who recommended thyme tea to me for a bad cough.

I have to laugh at myself really - I went to a fairly mainstream relaxation event that a friend saw and booked. All I knew was that it would involve some yoga and a bit of “me” time etc. When they announced the programme on arrival, It included time sitting outside soaking up the sun (like the ritual you suggested @speakout when energy was low), collecting things and making smudge sticks!

Yes it could be a coincidence and more a case of overlap with new age type stuff - but the witch balls and the prints / pictures on the walls made me think otherwise!

I was baptised as a baby. Obviously I had no say in the matter and I wish it hadn’t happened but nothing I can do to change that. When I fully embraced the pagan path I did a little ritual to get rid of the bible and prayer books etc I was given as a baby.

Neither of my children were baptised. I don’t think my mother in law ever forgave me. She was wont to tell me regularly that she lay awake at night worrying that something would happen to them whilst unchristened. It didn’t work!

I agree that people are now more open about embracing non mainstream beliefs. I was quite surprised by a post on a friends timeline this week. I had no idea that she was even pagan friendly never mind practising.

Regarding seeing witchy things in everyday life, I had a moment the other day. I live in an area with a high proportion of conservatively religious (to one degree or another) people. Someone, not from here, had parked outside my house, on the back of their car they had a sticker saying, "Powered by witchcraft". Which may just have been their own little joke, but it gave me a laugh for my own reasons. 😊

I've only knowingly met one practising pagan, a lovely guy I used to work with was a druid. I wish I'd been able to speak more openly with him about what it entailed, but I was quite young at the time and felt like he might think I was prying.

Hope everyone is having a good weekend.

I have never been christened- my parents were but they weren't religious themselves. I suppose my mum may describe herself as agnostic- my dad I'm not sure. I know my mum really enjoys looking at the books on witchcraft and paganism I have recently bought, and I think its quite drawn to it herself. We had a lovely day when we went to Glastonbury together. I'm lucky that on the whole my family would be pretty supportive of this path I'm on. My children weren't christened either.

speakout I know before you have mentioned you have never encouraged your children to follow your path and left them to go their own way, which to be honest I believe is the right way to do things. I will admit though, it has crossed my mind to get my children really involved in it all, raise them as a pair of little pagans, as I know their 'D'F would not like it one bit! I will resist the urge though, no matter how satisfying the thought of annoying my ex is! They do love my crystals though, and when I was adding oil to my oil burner, my DD who is 6 asked me if we could make a potion!