Good afternoon folks, I hope the day is treating you well. Today, I’m here to talk a little bit about a subject I get a LOT of questions: “is it appropriate to hide one’s witchiness?”
For some, that answer is a definite yes. For others, the answer is less clear. Let’s get into the whys and wherefores behind this so you can make a well-informed decision about how you present these other facets of yourself to the world.
For one, before we talk of anything else, let’s first acknowledge the importance of our inner voice. If you’re in a situation where you feel strongly that it is not appropriate to “out” yourself, don’t. Listen to that inner dialogue, especially if you are fairly well developed on your path, as there’s a reason that this inner voice is telling you to keep quiet. There’s an element of “pearls before swine” in this, as well as one of practicality: your spirits probably know more than you do. If they’re warning you about something, it’s probably a good idea to listen!
I had one such social engagement in recent memory, in fact. I met a new group of friends at a local Pagan Pride festival, and from day one I had this voice in the back of my head telling me not to say anything about my role or practices. Weird, right? I’d met them at a PPD thing, so one’d think that this would be a safe space...
Two years later, it became super obvious why I’d gotten that warning, and as expected, the person my spirits pegged as a problem child turned out to be exactly that. She was the leader of said group, and ended up being incredibly dramatic about all things spiritual. I was SO glad I listened, as had I been super upfront about my practices, I probably wouldn’t have made the connections I did - I’d not have been given the chance. In that instance, listening to my spirits directly improved my social experiences to follow, and it did so for a long enough time that I now have some very close friends who are just as witchy as I am. #worthit
If your livelihood or safety depends on your silence, embrace that silence. Keep quiet and keep to yourself while you slowly restructure your life in such a way that you can come out of the broom closet. It might be less awesome than being loud and proud about your practices, but there are parts of the world where that can get you killed just as quickly as being anything other than heteronormative. It’s an ugly truth, to be sure, but there are times where others will use your difference from the perceived norm to alienate and deride you.
If you’ve got colleagues on your social media who might take issue with it, it may be best to setup privacy settings so that they can only see certain facets of your life. That may be your happy medium & middle-of-the-road that works for you.
Likewise, if you do have the social supports and communal structure necessary to allow you to be safely witchy, GO FOR IT! Recognize what is in your life, good and bad, and own everything that makes you quintessentially You so that you can live your truth. While doing so, be aware that there are times where others will judge you for what you do, and recognize that this judgement is on them, not on you...their ignorance is likely at fault, and all beings come to meaningful Truths in their own time. You don’t necessarily have to take it upon yourself to enlighten them. ;)
Enjoy these morsels and sit with this a while. Some part of this applies to each and every one of us.
Blessings,
-Chris
For some, that answer is a definite yes. For others, the answer is less clear. Let’s get into the whys and wherefores behind this so you can make a well-informed decision about how you present these other facets of yourself to the world.
For one, before we talk of anything else, let’s first acknowledge the importance of our inner voice. If you’re in a situation where you feel strongly that it is not appropriate to “out” yourself, don’t. Listen to that inner dialogue, especially if you are fairly well developed on your path, as there’s a reason that this inner voice is telling you to keep quiet. There’s an element of “pearls before swine” in this, as well as one of practicality: your spirits probably know more than you do. If they’re warning you about something, it’s probably a good idea to listen!
I had one such social engagement in recent memory, in fact. I met a new group of friends at a local Pagan Pride festival, and from day one I had this voice in the back of my head telling me not to say anything about my role or practices. Weird, right? I’d met them at a PPD thing, so one’d think that this would be a safe space...
Two years later, it became super obvious why I’d gotten that warning, and as expected, the person my spirits pegged as a problem child turned out to be exactly that. She was the leader of said group, and ended up being incredibly dramatic about all things spiritual. I was SO glad I listened, as had I been super upfront about my practices, I probably wouldn’t have made the connections I did - I’d not have been given the chance. In that instance, listening to my spirits directly improved my social experiences to follow, and it did so for a long enough time that I now have some very close friends who are just as witchy as I am. #worthit
If your livelihood or safety depends on your silence, embrace that silence. Keep quiet and keep to yourself while you slowly restructure your life in such a way that you can come out of the broom closet. It might be less awesome than being loud and proud about your practices, but there are parts of the world where that can get you killed just as quickly as being anything other than heteronormative. It’s an ugly truth, to be sure, but there are times where others will use your difference from the perceived norm to alienate and deride you.
If you’ve got colleagues on your social media who might take issue with it, it may be best to setup privacy settings so that they can only see certain facets of your life. That may be your happy medium & middle-of-the-road that works for you.
Likewise, if you do have the social supports and communal structure necessary to allow you to be safely witchy, GO FOR IT! Recognize what is in your life, good and bad, and own everything that makes you quintessentially You so that you can live your truth. While doing so, be aware that there are times where others will judge you for what you do, and recognize that this judgement is on them, not on you...their ignorance is likely at fault, and all beings come to meaningful Truths in their own time. You don’t necessarily have to take it upon yourself to enlighten them. ;)
Enjoy these morsels and sit with this a while. Some part of this applies to each and every one of us.
Blessings,
-Chris