You know , over the last couple of weeks' on various media, I've seen a lot of " How do you come out as a witch?" Type posts. I thought this was a rather interesting topic. Whilst my "Coming out of the cauldron" page explains how my journey to the craft started; I never really wrote how I really publicized my craft to friends, family and work colleagues. Well today whilst chatting with one such colleague (who's sitting behind me right now (shh don't tell my manager I'm blogging at work 😉) I rather casually mentioned I was a witch and now am wondering how I got to this stage. So I thought I'd write something short and sweet in the next few minutes before my shift ends.
I guess the answer to how to "come out" as a witch is to just start opening up a little bit more. I started by openly collecting crystals and having the occasional book on meditation, candles and having them in view of my peers. I wear witchy jewelry so I started wearing that daily in public eye sight. And if a conversation came up... lets say Halloween, I would chip into facts about my belief's culture like " Did you know Halloween , aka Hallows eve...was originally a part of Samhain celebrations?" or whilst watching magical films I would point things out like " ah but the they prefer to be called the fair folk or the gentry" little tid-bits like that. I slowly integrated my secret witch life into my 'normal one' until all that left was my life. I guess i basically just made my interests known in a really boring way.
Now I appreciate that some readers are now thinking about " how do I tell someone though" possibly thinking about a family member with specific beliefs against the craft. I want to say this one thing to you now. A lack of education on the topic leads to fear and then hate. And the simple question is, if your asked about your beliefs, feel free to say yours is a bit different, but don't condemn their own by expressing yours as if it's the only way- that's how arguments start. For example I got asked " do you not believe in God?" once. I simply responded with something like " It's not that I don't, I just prefer to believe there is something, some call this god, others give it different names, multiple forms, some believe this is not one individual, or even any sentient force. But it's not my place to give it a label of some kind. So I acknowledge the feminine, neutral and masculine elements of this something; which may or may not be God as written or Gods in the stories we read. It's a very flexible way of seeing things and allows me to understand my peers and their beliefs a lot better. And I'd rather increase my understanding and knowledge, because that will make me a better person."
So if your worried about saying " I'm a witch" well here's a question for you. Why do you need to use that word? What is it about those words that hold something for you? Because at the end of the day it's just a word.
Let's remove the word and break down witchy stuff so it sounds like a regular hobby. " I have an interest in herbology and how the history of medicinal and cultural practices link to them" that's literally indicating your use of herbs, rituals and healing you use them for.
" I'm interested in the long tied history of the condemnation of innocent women and men" granted a little vague, but throw in a few historical facts about witchcraft ( there's a lot of persecution across the globe so it doesn't even have to be from your own country)
" I have an interest in mythology and learning about my peers' cultures and beliefs so that I understand them" Mythology is just religion and stories that the majority of people have put to the side- not forgotten but not wholeheartedly believed in. So if your personal spiritual beliefs would class as mythology to others- claim that term for yourself.
" I like crystals because they're pretty and they bring me joy; and candles light up the room and make the world feel special" Ok crystals can be described as an interest in geology, jewelry making or just because it's pretty... and candles can just sort of be signed off by most people as a normal house hold item... but you get the point.
You're not hiding your self by using different ways of description, your not being dishonest by separating the elements of witchcraft into what we would define as "Normal" labelling. Your just providing information in a way that certain types of people will grasp better and accept. Witchcraft is just a craft and encompasses the mundane... the normal. Magic is in the 'normal' things we do and and ' normal' is in the magic we do- both one and the same and different but not ( sorry if that causes a headache- the two are just two sides of a coin).
There are multiple ways to view something and if someone doesn't like looking through one viewpoint because they're uncomfortable, show them the same thing from a viewpoint of comfort. Yes it would be nice to suddenly go up to a random person and go "I'M A WITCH" and have them shrug their shoulders like it's completely average- and it can feel like an effort. But society associates the word witch with the out of the ordinary, it's unique, different. And acceptance often comes from the boring, the known, the ordinary. With the term Witch, Pagan and many other terms being associated wrongly with negative outcomes and evil, it's up to our community to show the truth in a way which our peers understand.
It doesn't change anything by using the boring, 'normal' terminology - nor does it devalue your practice ( and if your feel it does you should ask yourself why that is). Your still you, you still have your hobbies, your interests and your craft, and your beliefs are still safely within you. And granted your not saying "I'm a witch" but you are showing you are one and sharing yourself with someone. Which promotes their understanding of you, remains honest and allows you to be who you are without hiding.
I have no idea if this is helpful in any shape or form or even if it makes sense. But I hope it has helped promote some deeper thinking on how you can open yourself up to non witches- especially if they're the condemning type.
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