Advanced Practitioners

So I have been around and reading forums and lurking on chat and I am wondering if there are any advanced practitioners of not only magical practice but _life_ experience?

Not to disparage any of you on this site who ''starting studying magic at 4/5/6/7/13/ years of age.'' Or to cast any doubts upon your ability as a practitioner.

However, being WELL out of my 20s, I was wondering if there were anyone on this site who is also WELL out of their 20s, with children and partner(s) who have been practicing 20 years or more. I'm wondering if these long time practitioners have struggled with wiccan politics, loss of and reconnection with faith, IRL group dynamics, and spells centered around more serious issues like taxes, sick children, mental health. Coming from a very strict traditional Wiccan background and having been a part of covens run by persons under 20 years of age, I was just looking to connect with those who are a bit older.

I am also interested to know if anyone on this site talks about energetic working as it connects to a practitioners affects on others especially in a coven setting. I have had a few conversations with others and it seems my view on this topic and the general feed back I have gotten here are extremely different. I was wondering if this is a by product of being an online group or because those teachings aren't happening or the view I have is too narrow a focus.

If you do not want to respond in forum, please feel free to email me. Thanks!

i am 22 yaers of age and have bin in my craft for just about five yaers i can tell you thise ys and no to most not all of your questoins . i will pm you to be more detailed thow

Still looking......

Just off-the-cuff... there's brysing, rilke, kts, silver vixen, ladygry... not sure of their age. But they maybe able to help.

Most of the time in chat if you simply asked about energy work someone will answer.
Not to mention direct magic is often taught in covens at least in the basic forms.

As for older members, there are a few, but they aren't normally very "talkative".

I have dealt with taxes, sick children, politics, mental health, partners who practice magick and other "adult and serious" things in life.

However, I'm not quite yet out of my 20's and have been practicing just short of 20 years so I guess my experiences don't count.

"Not to disparage any of you on this site who ''starting studying magic at 4/5/6/7/13/ years of age.'' Or to cast any doubts upon your ability as a practitioner."

I thought that was crystal clear. Do not judge me because I would like to talk with someone of my own age with teenage children and I will continue to be clear that I am not casting any doubts upon your ability as a practitioner.

If you still take issue with my statement, then by all means email me on this site and we will further discuss your perceptions and how I might better approach getting my needs met without wounding you.

I'm not sure where anyone (myself included) "judged" you. Openly anyways.

You are more than welcome to wish to speak to people in your own age group, there's nothing wrong with it. How you choose to limit or expand your experience on this site is completely up to you.

No one has been wounded and certainly no ones confidence in their practice has been shattered because they don't meet the criteria of life experience of one person.
Personally, my comment of experiences not counting referred to life experiences and not just those of spiritual study and practice.

Marcassa I was really intrigued with your Southern Baptist upbringing, and the fact that you did look into Catholicism before finally becoming so well versed in the Wiccan Tradition. I would say this would make any practitioner well rounded and interesting to talk to, and I couldn't agree more with your thoughts of including one's children into a family pagan practice. I think thats whats wrong with a lot of the world today. If more pagan or Wiccan oriented parents included their children into their practice and practiced as a family like most of the "older" practitioners on this site have done; then I feel there may be fewer misconceptions amongst the younger generations.

As for the topic of this thread, I know you will find 2 well past there 50's on here, small handful pushing mid 40's and over. But the majority of the working folk on here with kids, struggling to pay bills and their taxes would be in their late 20's to late 30's. This site tends to draw more of a younger crowd, which does work out beautifully for the most part. Usually your well older crowd seems to spend a lot of time on sites like Witchvox, which I see you are well acquainted with already.

Please forgive Rashnu as well she may seem brash, but as a single working mother who just came home from spending 2 nights in the hospital with her son whom has been extremely sick for the past couple of weeks, I think she just needed some rest. She might surprise you though as a well rounded practitioner herself, and with a college education to boot I personally think she fits in the "older" crowd though she's a year shy of her 30th birthday.

But we do have a few wonderful moderators that have children, work hard for a living and practice as well. What we like to call middle aged folk, would they be up to par?

I meant no offense when I stated my needs. If I offended, I am sorry for that. I try hard to not paint with a broad all encompassing brush and obviously despite my attempt, I have failed at least one person. I have never claimed to be perfect only a person on a journey trying to have certain spiritual needs met. Sometimes even trying to express those needs can be difficult, as I have so inelegantly demonstrated.

I continue my offer for anyone who finds offense with me, to take it to me privately. I have found that in public confrontations both sides end up looking equally ridiculous and those confrontations work to destabilize community instead of making it stronger.

I feel strongly that the use of sarcasm and words meant to put someone in there place, especially in this medium, is very difficult to direct in positive ways. I fell into this trap myself with my snarky comment back to the young lady and I want to apologize for that. I do not know you. I tried in my human way to express my need. I meant no offense and I certainly was in no way attempting to discount a world of experience that can be had by people of any age. I should have tried harder to find a better way to express my needs or sought another less public medium to get what I was looking for. I will take this lesson to heart. thank you both for helping to bring it to my attention.

I have met persons of all ages who can discuss some of the various issues I want to discuss. So as far as I am concerned, this thread is closed. I will no longer be posting or responding to this thread. Thank you.