In October of 2015 my wife and I became third degree Gardnerians.  When one becomes a third degree they are often expected to hive off and start their own Gard coven.  Since our initiators and mother coven are in Michigan that's exactly what we did.  

With the addition of our Gardnerian coven to lead we are now actively involved in leading two different circles and it's presenting its own challenges.  

Extra rituals mean extra work

A second coven means extra rituals, there's no way around that.  Luckily, my wife and I get to split the heavy lifting between our two groups because they run differently.  Anyone can lead a ritual in our more eclectic coven, which allows us a little more breathing room, and I'm also simply allowed to do more as a High Priest in our eclectic group.  That generally means I'm more involved with writing rituals than anyone else in our circle. 

In Gardnerian Wicca it's the High Priestess who runs the show, so my wife is in charge of most things in that circle.  I can assist and help, but certain things have to be done by her.  Why do they have to be done by her?  Because that's a part of the tradition, if we aren't going to follow the tradition, why bother being a part of it?  

The calendar is no longer our friend

Generally it's easiest for people to meet on the weekends, and we try to schedule our sabbat rituals on those days.  However, there just aren't enough days in the weekend.  Between work schedules*, social commitments, and my love of Michigan State sports it can be hard to schedule sabbat rituals.  

Sometimes we end up scheduling back to back rituals, one on Friday, and one on Saturday.  That works, but it's also exhausting.  Is our house a little more magickal after back to back rituals?  Sure!  But we often turn into little puddles of exhausted Witches afterwards.  

Two different covens means two different ritual styles

Sometimes I find myself wanting to do the things my more eclectic circle does in the middle of Gard ritual, and sometimes I've found myself drifting towards doing things a certain initiatory way while in my more open coven.  In my brain I'm getting things just a little confused . . . . but I have yet to say anything oathbound in front of non-initiates.  

Having two different ritual styles can be a valuable learning tool.  I get to do a lot of comparing and contrasting, and then eventually a little bit of analyzing to determine why a thing works (or doesn't) in such and such a setting.  

Eventually we are going to piss some friends off

I don't believe that initiatory Wicca is for everybody, and at some point someone in our eclectic coven is going to ask to be initiated and we are going to have to tell them "no."  It's not a conversation I don't look forward to having, but I think it's inevitable.

Why would someone not be a good fit?  I don't know, why are some people Druids and some people Witches?  We all do different things and not everything that I do fits what you do and vice versa.  Initiating someone is a large commitment and not one we want to enter into lightly.  Many of my best friends and favorite Witches are not Gard-witches, we don't all have to do the same thing to like one another.  Covens by their very nature are often exclusionary, that's just how it is, and many of them are not democracies.   

Is it worth it?

Of course or we wouldn't bother!  I love that I'm a part of a tradition with a long lineage, and that I'm helping to preserve it for future generations.  I also love that I get to write and lead rituals for what has truly become the best coven I've ever been involved in.  It's the best of both worlds, because I get to walk in two circles.  

*For us work schedules are even more challenging because my wife works in a laboratory and is often "on call" meaning she has to stick around the house in case she needs to go into work and save a life.  When she's on call we really can't do a whole lot of ritual, because she might not be there for it!