I am a witch.
That makes me feel different. Since that, people look at me in a diffident and curious way. Since that, I look at the other religions, especially Catholicism, in a diffident and curious way.
When I say to someone “I am a witch”, generally the first reaction is: “What?? Did you say witch??” and after a few seconds: “can you do spells?”. I have to admit that at the beginning my ego was satisfied by their interest; now, it’s annoying. Every time that someone is speaking about religion, I know that if I want to say my opinion, it will take a long time. It’s annoying when people say “Oh, that’s so so cool!”: they don’t know what they are talking about. In their mind there is still the image of a woman on a broomstick. Consequently, I’m reluctant to start a religion discussion. If I start it, I will take all the time that I need to explain what witchcraft is. That’s the only way, for me, to feel more comfortable with a person just know that I am a witch.
I have, in addition, the inverse problem: I somehow accepted, internalized the witchcraft history. That means, I feel as my personal past all that happened to the different types of “witch” present in the history, from the imposition of the Christian religion on the Celtic (and, generally, pagan) population to the persecution of the women in the Middle and Modern Age, until the current diffidence about pagans. For that, I don’t like Christians: I know it’s a prejudice, but every time that I think about Christianity, I remember burned women and current intolerance of the Pope. To be a friend with a Christian, I need to know one is open-minded. I need to know he/she will not try to convert me and he/she respects my vision.
