Bringing olden ways to modern days,
For Wiccans,
Witches,
Pagans,
And all who honor a nature-based path.
This is Desert Magic with Crow Moon.
Merry Meet,
And welcome once again to another episode of Desert Magic.
Coming to you from the beautiful and magical desert of southern Arizona,
My name is Crow Moon,
And I'm your host.
In the days when I taught yoga classes,
Especially when I was a substitute teacher for a class,
There was usually somewhat of a pause whenever I walked into the room and greeted everyone.
Everyone was expecting the teacher to be female.
I would typically break the ice with a humorous remark,
And we would all have a good chuckle,
And then go on with class.
Beyond that,
Not another word was said about it.
Not to me,
Anyway.
When it comes to the topic of witchcraft,
One of the reactions I received from others is typically quite similar.
Those outside the craft have a preconceived notion that I might be treading a pawn or barging into a domain that is predominantly feminine.
The other reaction,
Which is the one that most often takes place,
Is this.
You're a witch,
But you're so.
.
.
Nice.
Even now,
I sometimes have trouble processing this one.
First of all,
Let me backtrack for a moment to say that I don't normally go around broadcasting the fact that I'm Wiccan,
Or that I'm a Wiccan priest.
A witch.
I'm not ashamed of who I am,
But I don't jump to share that information,
Just as I don't come right out of the chute telling everyone that I'm a musician.
As with anything,
If sharing that information will constructively contribute to a conversation I'm having,
Then I might choose to do so.
Still,
I find it to be both perplexing and somewhat sad how it seems odd to some people that nice people practice magic.
Nowhere in the manual does it state that we have to be rude.
I'm joking,
Of course.
There are no rulebooks or catechisms in Wicca.
Many of us are,
Indeed,
Nice.
Some of us are quite nice.
Some of us are,
Shall we say,
Less outgoing than others.
There is no behavioral prerequisite for Wiccans,
Just as all members of any group don't behave exactly the same,
At least not all the time.
When the rubber hits the road,
We're all human beings,
With emotions,
Feelings,
And moods,
Just like anyone else.
Wicca does not erase a person's humanity.
It shapes the way we look at things and ourselves within our human existence.
Perhaps a more accurate reaction of surprise would be this,
Someone crossing paths with us when we're having a bad day and remarking,
You're not in a good mood,
But you're a witch.
As I've pointed out many times before,
Becoming Wiccan or a practitioner of witchcraft does not immediately and permanently make the world a perfect place for us,
Whatever the definition of perfect might be.
That said,
I would suggest that those of us who practice the craft have an abundance of reasons to be happy or nice at our disposal.
The world around us might not seem ideal at times.
We might perceive the world to be unfair or unjust.
Yet,
Even when the bad behavior of others weighs us down to the point that we feel as though we're attempting to wade through quicksand,
The world itself is still a very amazing place.
It is a container of life,
And life is wondrous.
I don't know that the preconceived notion that witches generally aren't nice will ever change,
Nor do I believe that it is the responsibility of any of us to attempt to bring that change about.
The only real damage this might be doing is that it could be prohibiting some from ever exploring the craft as a potential spiritual path for them.
This,
Also,
Is not our problem to solve.
Just as we don't have a manual,
We also do not have a recruiting division.
Sadly,
Our society seems to have gotten to a point where personal opinions seem less valid if they aren't shared.
We're not going to change that,
Either.
While we can't exist in a vacuum,
No matter how great that might sound to us at times,
Our energy is best spent when we allocate the majority of it to looking inward,
To strengthening our foundation,
To achieving balance within ourselves.
When we do this,
We can be male yoga teachers or nice witches.
Trust yourself.
Be who you are,
And don't just love,
Adore that person.
Until next time,
The crow flies from me to thee,
To send the message,
Blessed Be.
