Hello! My name is Kat, known to the web world as Cyranna Caileadair. I live in New England year round, though in different spots at different times of the year; my family is from south-eastern Massachusetts, but I live most of the time in Newport, RI, as I go to school there for the greatest part of the year. I am currently a third-year university student studying Cultural and Historical Preservation.
I began my spiritual journey into Paganism over seven years ago at a typical age for exploration -- when I was 13. I had a brief encounter with Wicca when I was 11, but it didn't amount to much until two years later when I was a little more committed to studying it.
As I grew up in a rather liberal environment, and had no specific religious upbringing besides a very general but common-sense instruction in "right from wrong" it was not a huge leap for me to become interested in Paganism and openly discuss this interest with my family. They were, always have been and continue to be very supportive of my practices and beliefs. However, I cannot say that my experience with other people has been always positive. Very soon after I began wearing my first pentacle to school, I received some minor harassment from fellow students and even one subtle but nonetheless intimidating (and memorable) comment from a specific schoolteacher. I didn't understand the stigma attached to Paganism. I had a hard time understanding how and why a person could live a closed-minded life. Most of all, I didn't understand how such a positive, beautiful, life-affirming religion such as Wicca could be branded as "evil," "wrong" or "Satanic." At the young age of 14, I set out to circulate the truth about our faith. In the name of understanding and truth, I "outed" myself as a Witch in the face of those who would condemn me. This website was part of my mission.
Overall, though, I have to be thankful that my experience has been very good considering the stuggles faced by some of our Pagan brothers and sisters. Far too many people have been subjected to harassment, prejudice and bigotry because of their beliefs. The motivation behind the hatred can often be traced to the most damaging evil of them all: ignorance.
Therefore, I chose the motto for my site very specifically: "Three candles that illume every darkness: Truth, Nature, and Knowledge." I believe that part of our Path -- OUR Charge -- is one of illumination. May we work together towards a kinder, more understanding world in which one is truly free to believe as one chooses to believe.
