There’s always been something a little bit different about me.  I’ve known it since I was a kid.  Early on, there was a seeminly odd lack of spiritual fulfillment.  Going to Mass with my family was sort of like having dinner and leaving the table still kind of hungry.  Additionally, there were things about myself that I didn’t understand.  Why do I feel different from everyone else? Why do I have dreams that come true?  How is it I know the outcome of a situation before it happens?  Why can I always know what other people were feeling or thinking, even when they tried to hide it?  Why is it that, when I concentrate a little, I seem to make things happen?  What is my purpose??

I felt myself being pulled toward the path that I am traveling long before I stepped foot upon it  Once I did, I started to research, and things became clearer.  I found a coven.  I dove into my first degree studies and began to understand the nature of dreams, manifestation, energy work, and honed my spellwriting skills.  In short, I did the work necessary to become a properly functioning and focused witch.

In the interim between 1st and 2nd degree studies, however, I found that something was still lacking.  I had enough knowledge and experience to sense there was something below the surface…something I had yet to learn about myself.  Even after all that work, many of my childhood questions remaind unanswered.  It appeared I had a little further to go until my “Walking the Path” could become more like a stroll than an uphill hike.

Between Samhain and now, I’ve been getting flashes of where it is my personal power lies and what I am going to need to do in order to tap into that just-below-the-surface energy… and it’s not going to be easy.  (Heck, it might not even be popular.)  It is, however, my path and I must own it.  The journey of a thousand miles begins with one step.  So, I am lacing up my trainers, setting my pedometer, and heading out.

I think that we, as pagans, get so excited once we find the path, that we often forget to walk it.  While it is quite alright to take a breath once in a while and enjoy just being on the path, what isn’t okay is to stand there and pick your nose and let dust gather on your altar.  You absolutely must DO something.

Don’t misconstrue my use of "do".  Not everyone is going to have some crazy “Charmed”-like latent ability that they need to harness and utilize to serve the Goddess and the greater Good.  You don’t have to be empathic to be caring; and you don’t have to physically see visions of the Goddess to write a beautiful ritual in celebration of Her.

The same holds true for one’s path.  We often call it “THE Path” when it is in actuality “YOUR Path”.  Everyone’s is slightly different.  What is important is understanding the particular path you are on.  Maybe you aren't destined to hike the Incan Trail.  If your path is a 1 ½ mile loop around the local park, cool.  The same way not everyone is going to have weird latent abilities, not everyone is meant to be a High Priest or Priestess.  (Not that one precludes the other.)  Perhaps you are meant to be a solitary.  Or, perhaps your path is that of a 1st Degree Priest(ess).  Nothing is to say that you ever need to join a group or seek another degree of initiation.  

To sum up, once you have officially decided to be a witch, you should take a 4 Pillars approach to the path:

Know:  what your path is and the strengths and weakness you possess to help or hinder your progression.
Will:  yourself to walk your path (i.e. “do something”) DAILY.
Dare:  to explore each turn of your path and clear every hurdle.
Keep Silent: the personal stuff that is between you and the Goddess.  --Even if you are on similar paths as another, we all tread at different paces.  Careful not to spoil the ending for people who haven’t seen the movie yet.  Besides, no one likes an evangelical pagan.

So, here is my challenge for every Witch/Heathen/Shaman/What-have-you out there:  If you are going to be what you say you are, BE it.  Embody it.  Work at it.  Every day, so something that reminds you who and what you are and why you are on your path--don't be afraid to re-evaluate these things and change as necessary.  Practice the skills you have learned and work on gaining new ones that interest you.  Give thanks to the Lord and Lady because, without them, you wouldn't be.  (Not just a witch, anything.  At all.)  And most importantly, walk your path with an open heart and mind and with open eyes.  If you tread blindly, you will miss the pitfalls that may trip you and the avenues that may bring you to new possibilities.

Pánta eteléutêsan

*~Delphy~*