Monday, May 11, 2009
Meeting Maxine Sanders
Originally posted on my previous blog archive site
On May 5, 2009 I was honored to be part of a small group of people that held a private chat (with Q&A) with Maxine Sanders while she was here in the Salem/Boston area. (For those of you who don't know, Maxine was the wife and High Priestess of Alex Sanders and co-founder of the Alexandrian Tradition of Wicca.)
Her stay in Salem was hosted by Alexandrian Elders Karagan & Jimahl di Fiosa (http://www.karaganwitch.com/ & http://jimahl.blogspot.com/) and the event itself was graciously hosted at Nu Aeon by Alexandrian Elders Gypsy and Richard. These Elders arranged for her to have a combination social, talk, and chat with some of us.
The event was attended primarily by Alexandrian Elders but also by a few guests representing other Traditions. As the event was not Alexandrian or "elders only", she gave us explicit permission to share her words in public formats such as blogs and mailing lists. With luck, the audio recording that a friend attempted to make will be clear enough to be transcribed. It will be a couple days before I know.
When I was introduced to her (as an Alexandrian) she said, "I recognize you, you're Vinnie. I recognize you from the Alexandrian Network." She then clasped my hands in hers and gave me a kiss on each cheek. I admit I was quite tickled. She is a lovely lady and very gracious.
Although I wanted to ask her about some of the issues regarding difference in practice with the Alexandrian Tradition (including Same-Sex Initiations) I also realized that a public forum/social might not be the right place for a lengthy discussion. I simply mentioned to her that I had been in contact with one of the Elders in her daughter coven (giving her the name of the Elder) and at some point would love to ask her some of the same questions. Apparently, she was aware of the contact (as I would assume). She told me that I could trust the answers that he gave me regarding differences in the Alexandrian Tradition as they reflected her own opinions. Maxine also invited me to contact her in the future - which I am sure that I'll do!
Maxine has a new book out called Firechild. It chronicles the early years of the Craft in Britain and her life with Alex. It offers a unique perspective of the Craft at that time and modern day practitioners to clarify our origins. Although my book distributor hasn't yet stocked Firechild, I suggest that you get a copy and give it a good read. There are some real gems in it!
Benedizioni,
---Vinnie
I posted a couple pictures of Maxine here:
http://www.arsenic.com/images/personal/pics/VinnieMaxine1.jpg
http://www.arsenic.com/images/personal/pics/VinnieMaxine2.jpg
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