Why I Decided to Come Out
I decided to come out of the broom closet a few months ago. Well, I take that back; a few of my closest friends already knew, the ones I'd known since first grade. This is actually the first time I told my...FAMILY! (dramatic suspenseful orchestra music!)
What I Said and Did
First, I told my mom. At first, I thought she took it well. She bore no resemblance to Carrie's mom (Thank God and Goddess!). Then, I decided to tell my Grandma. Of all the people, I expected her to be the most understanding. She's really spiritual, but not in an overly-Christian way. She taught me all about Indian beliefs and spirit guides and witches and stuff when I was a little kid. When I told her, though, she told me never to tell anyone, that people would think I killed someone. Those were her EXACT words! I couldn't believe it! About a week later, I told my mom what my Grandma had said. It turned out, my mom hadn't even taken me seriously! She thinks that this is a phase I'll grow out of. She told me to listen to my grandma and keep it a secret; that my grandma had done tons of research and knew more about my religion than I did. I may be young, and I might not know every tiny detail of paganism in-and--out, but I know, that this is real. Nothing's ever felt so real in my life! This is who I am. I'd never felt sadder than I had when I found out that the two people I trusted more than anyone in my life had reacted that way. They'd always said they would support my opinions, no matter what, but when push came to shove, this happened. And you know what? My grandma was wrong. I've told all of my friends, even ones I'm not really close to, and they weren't screaming in terror, calling out for a priest to bless me. Not even my overly-Christian friend. I haven't spoken to my family about this since, but I'm quickly approaching my 3-year anniversary of being pagan. And proud.
Advice
- Make sure that you are serious about what you're doing before you tell people that might be against it, whether it be pagan, Wicca, or the Craft. My mom didn't know that I'd already been a pagan for two years before I told her. Maybe she would have reacted differently if she'd known that.
What I'd Do Differently
I would have told my mom more about it, to try and show her I was serious. And I would have told my grandma that people already know, that in this day and age, people don't usually burn people at the stake, even in small towns of 1,000 people like mine.
