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Sharing Wicca with Your Child

    TThe best way to share wicca with your child is to truly respect his or her wish not to share it, should your child so choose. One of the premiere wisdoms of wicca is to respect each person's spiritual path, though it may not be our own. If you're pushy, your child will sense it and feel much the way you might feel if an evangelist pressed you. Children as old as high-school age are driven by the need to conform. Those of us who perhaps have always been a little more willing to stand out, may find this difficult to accept!           Nonetheless, accept it we must. Be comforted by the knowledge that as children grow into adolescents, they are increasingly seeking their own true identity and will someday be willing to entertain more "alternative" notions.
     Fortunately, we have on our side an incipient mystique fostered by programs like "Charmed" and "Sabrina" that confer a certain quirky coolness!

So, if your child expresses a genuine interest, by all means,
seize the opportunity.

    How to share it with your child will depend largely on your child's age. Young children up to ten are extremely concrete in the way they think about things. Give them something they can put their hands on. Let them beat on a drum or ring a bell. Show them a picture or statue of the goddess, or antlers to explain the god.
     For teen-agers, there are a number of excellent books written specifically for their age group --just turn them loose and see if it strikes a chord.
     There are also many ways to share your wiccan sensibilities that say nothing about wicca. Take your kids on a hike in the autumn. Gather seeds and display them at home. Pick up a book on identifying wild plants, and take them for a walk in a meadow. (My daughter still remembers all the plants long after I've forgotten them. That's ok. I just use her as an encyclopedia!)
     Take them out on the porch as a storm gathers, and invite them to make up stories. Read them the Greek myths in children's versions. (Kids love them.)
     Instead of bundling them up to get them out of your hair, go out on a snowy day and share the poetry of ice and crystal with them. Even more than toys and technology, time with you is one of the things they most desire in the world. If you're sharing something you both enjoy, it will be always be a good time.

When Your Child Is a Wiccan, Too.

My daughter and I became wiccans independent of each other, at just about the same time. Kismet! It's been terrific because it gives us something extra to share. I've run into at least one other mom and daughter who were wiccans, too.
Most covens don't regularly allow children children under eighteen into the inner circle, even if their parents participate. I think this practice is wise, because adult religious experience can be scary, overwhelming, and downright incomprehensible to a child! Also, children's energy can be chaotic and undirected in circle. How far the coven will go to accomdate children usually depends on the personalities of its members. Personally, I always enjoyed teaching Sunday school, and I'm pretty much the same, as a witch. Some denominations are now offering the program of "Spiral Scouts" who teach the wiccan ways to children. Way cool!
When your "child" is a young adult, particpating in coven can be a liberating experience for her. In circle, she is your peer. Best of all, it's good practice for you, as a parent, in respecting her autonomy.

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