Chloe, 16, may practise witchcraft but she wants everyone to know, she's nothing like Hermoine Granger.
"I've been a witch since I was young because my grandfather is the High Priest of the Wiccan community which is a pretty huge deal. Wicca is witchcraft when practised as a religion and it's about worshipping the divine (a female Goddess and a male God). Witchcraft is not what everyone thinks it is. For over 7000 years it's been associated with evil or bad magic but it's actually all about peace, nature and positive energy.
We do new moon rituals, empowering rituals, healing work and a lot of other good things. Just recently we did a ritual for my friend's grandfather who has cancer. We went to a space near my grandfather's house which is marked out for rituals. There's a large circle of stones with a fire drum in the middle and candles in each corner to represent north, south, east and west. We sing chants and send out our positive energy. I have a beautiful burgundy robe with a hood that I wear, mainly to keep me warm, but you don't have to wear anything special if you don't want to. It was such an amazing night because I experienced something we call enlightenment. It's basically this overwhelming feeling of power and I had to lie down on the grass afterwards just to calm down. It was really intense.
We also do new moon rituals once a month where we thank the Gods for everything and ask them for guidance and help. You can also send prayers to people in need. Once we did it for a baby who was sick with cancer and a white owl flew over which means the Gods were answering us.
My grandfather also has a temple in his house where you can go to meditate, focus on your breathing and step "out of your body". It's a black painted room with candles and incense in it. He's also built harps and lots of other things to do with witchcraft.
It's not like we sit around and do spells though - it's more about positive energy and thinking. There's a witchcraft code that says you're forbidden from doing anything which manipulates another human being but people still think we're all a bunch of Harry Potter types. Some people at school are a bit sceptical about it when I tell them but my friends are really understanding. Some of them have even come to rituals with me!
I wish people wouldn't judge something they know nothing about. Witchcraft is very complex and it's hard to explain unless you know all the ins and outs. My grandfather's partner has just recently written a book called Forbidden Magic which is about a young girl finding her pathway as a Wiccan which will hopefully help people understand what witchcraft really is. I love being a witch and I'll continue to do it when I’m older, I just hope more people open up to it and get to experience the amazing things witchcraft can bring."
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