Thirteen Days from Departure to Witch City

I must say I feel a little like Dorothy heading to the Emerald City. But instead of meeting the Wizard, planning to set up shop in this most splendid of cities in the whole of Oz. Then we will be part of the magickal world of fantasy and the fantastic that is part of the image of Witch City. After all, a city where Witches are the rule must be the best place to be in the whole world. That is the fairytale dream I am wishing for.

Alas, I know that this is more fantasy than reality. The truth is that Salem is a small town, dependent in part on the Boston economy as well as a healthy US economy that drives tourism. That the increased Witch population is directly tied into the tourist industry, and without it, this town would be no better for Wiccans, Witches and other people than any other town. Witch City is so named, not because of the Witches having a strong healthy community, but because it encourages tourism and the promotion of the civil rights atrocity known as the Salem Witch Trials as a major attraction. It's really that simple.

Salem is discussed often in terms of a future Wiccan/Witch Mecca. A place where we can be free to practice and not worry about discrimination, find like minded souls to share our innermost secrets, a place to hang out on vacations and even find a job to earn a living. It is the place where we should have centers to worship at, places to attend rituals, and places to talk and discuss a world created by magickal forces. This is certainly the dream, and yet it is only at the very beginnings of fulfilling even the smallest part of this dream. In fact, Salem today falls very short of this desired image, and it is more often than not, a small town with only a limited number of things to do.

So, like Dorothy in Oz, I am traveling to the Witch City, only to learn that the magic has to built within and then reflected to the world at large. That we have the skills and traits that we bashfully deny, unwittingly downplay, and often discount within ourselves, are really are hidden strengths that we possess in abundance. Whether we are looking for a heart as a Tinman, Courage of a Lion, intelligence locked in an overstuffed and underrated mind, or the magic of a witch, we discover we have to find it in ourselves, before we can find it out in the world. Like the axiom, so within, so without becomes the truth in our personal lives, in reality as well as fantasy, and especially true in Witch City. So, even by traveling to Salem, we like Dorothy and her Ruby slippers, learn that we carry all the Mecca we need on our bodies, and within our hearts.

So as I pull my head away from the thoughts of the fantastic, to the mundane activities I must attend in this move, I can't but help think about Dorothy and the Emerald City, and my hope that we too can have a little bit of a fairytale in our lives.