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 APPELSCHA, Netherlands (AP) - Cobwebs
cling from the wooden rafters. Dusty shelves are cluttered with glass
jars of home-brewed potions, dried herbs and stone amulets. An oil cooker
and a black cauldron sit in the corner, ready for the next full moon.
This isn’t a Halloween party, it’s Margarita Rongen’s year-round workshop
and she is a witch - according to her tax return.
Dutch witches were guaranteed a financial treat when the Leeuwarden District
Court reaffirmed their legal right to write off the costs of schooling
- including in witchcraft - against their tax bills. Those costs run to
thousands of dollars.
Courses are held 13 weekends a year closest to a full
moon when outdoor rituals are practiced and potions boiled. Participants
learn healing with herbs and stones, divination and fortunetelling with
crystal balls and hieroglyphs, and how to make potions.
from AP
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