Coffee With A Closeted Witch

So when a Wiccan in a coven is given that ultimatum by a spouse, and Katie’s story is not unique, they are being asked to give up both their religion and their family-by-choice all in one shot. It takes away their entire emotional and spiritual support network. Katie fought for her marriage with an attempt at joint counseling, then she fought for her faith in court, now she is reduced to just fighting daily to keep her child. Could she have taken a chance that the judge would be open-minded enough to view her religion as “real” and benign? Sure, but the risk was too great. She gave in.  Katie left the coven and she no no longer goes to festivals or meets with other Pagans. She prays alone, in secret. Her husband was, and continues to, pushing hard for full custody to save his little girl from the evil inside her mother.

Since I’m not from the area and therefore low risk, I’m now sitting down with her to have a cup of chai and exchange news. We catch up on each others lives, kids, and careers. Within moments we are laughing and talking as fast as we can. The emotional turmoil of her divorce had hit her hard and threatened to stall a very promising career, but now it seems to be taking off again.

The 20 minutes we could both squeeze in to meet goes too fast. She has to get to work and I have to get back to the conference. As we both realize it’s time to go we fall silent, smiles sliding off our faces. Tears form in her eyes and I hug her as tight as I can. “Be strong, this isn’t forever. Things can change,” I whisper into her ear. “I know, but this is so hard and I’m all alone,” she whispers. I pull back so I can look into her eyes and I say this as firmly as I can, “You are not alone. The Gods are always with you. No one can take Them away and no one can control what’s in your heart and mind. Your coven prays for you at every Circle. You are not alone.”

Katie pulls herself together and tries to smile back. A quick last hug and she is off, briefcase in hand, tasteful heels clicking on the floor. I stare after her for a moment thinking what a shitty, cruel world this can be.