I have mentioned before that living in the bible belt does not make it easy to be open about paganism with your children. I have worked out ways to sneak it in with minimal effort.
- Celebrate the earth in small ways daily: recycle, grow a garden, look at the stars, take a nature walk, discuss the changing of the seasons.
- Pray before dinner and bedtime. We use the words Mother Earth, Luna, or no title at all when referring to the goddess. Check out the post here and here for a few sample prayers we use.
- Spend time outdoors as much as possible: swimming, hiking, collecting herbs, playing with your animals, feeding the ducks, etc.
- Read pagan or nature themed bedtime stories. My boys' favorites are Grandfather Twilight, The Sun Egg, Christopher's Harvest Time, Woody and Little Pip, etc.
- Discuss your child's beliefs about god with them without inputting too much information. I am always amazed at how similar my boys' beliefs are to my own. Children discuss god at school more than we think. Their friends go to church and your kids wonder why you do not do so as well. All these things and the little things you do at home and during the Sabbats plays a part in how your children perceive "god". I try to inform my boys about many different belief systems without opinion as to which is right or wrong.
my kids always knew what i believed and i was open to them following their own path. my son became very catholic for a while and i just about exploded but i kept it to myself. he saw it for what it was very quickly...thank goddess!
ReplyDeleteI wish that I was in an area that was more open to religious differences. The area I currently live would not be kind to my children because of my choices. I even have family members who I am pretty sure would act differently around them. Sad but true.
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