Planning Is Important

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Today’s meditation hasn’t happened yet.  I dozed off trying to do it this morning, and I haven’t made a second attempt yet.  I’m planning to try again before bed, that way if I doze off the next time, it won’t be cutting into more of my day with a second nap.

Madam Lydia Wilhelmina's Tarot - Seven of SwordsToday’s draw is the Seven of Swords, which is traditionally a representation of strategy and cunning, as well as deceit and betrayal… especially when it involves getting away with it.

What stands out to me the strongest in the imagery of this card is the vertical blade among those that the woman holds, and the two that have been left behind in the background.   This speaks to me not so much of good strategy, but greed.

Normally, in the Seven of Swords,  you see a couple of blades that appear to intentionally be left behind, as if they have only taken what they can carry.  But here, we see blades that look like they have been dropped along the way, and one still in her arms that appears about ready to drop as well.

The reminder here is two fold.  First…. if you’re going to do something, do it right.  Don’t half-ass it and drop things along the way.  And second?  A part of doing something well is planning ahead.  She could have solved this problem she’s having holding onto her bounty with a bit of strategy and planning.

DECK USED:  MADAM LYDIA WILHELMINA’S TAROT

LionHart’s #TheOctoberTarot #SeasonOfTheWitchChallenge Prompt
Question: Please send me your ancestral guidance from somewhere beyond the veil.

Zombie Tarot

Ace of Wands atop Knight of Hazards Rx – Think before you act.

Three of Wands atop Three of Swords Rx – Don’t carry your depression forward with you if you can leave it behind.

Death – Change is inevitable.

Take Away: It’s all good advice, and all advice that are things I need to keep in mind.  It came across a bit pithy and cliche, but that doesn’t make any of it any less on the nose.

DECK USED:  ZOMBIE TAROT

#DiscordTarotholicsOct2020 Challenge Prompt
Question: Your Strength / Your Weakness / Advice

Tarot of VampyresStrength – Queen of Knives – I have a sharp mind and a sharp tongue. These things allow me to cut through the bullshit and get to the core of a matter quickly and deal with it concisely. I’m also willing to use these qualities to help other.

Weakness – The Hermit Rx atop Nine of Skulls – My tendency to fall into a retreat into myself is unhealthy and holds me back from enjoying all I have achieved as well as potential successes that may lie before me.

Advice – The Priestess – Less logic, more intuition. There’s no point in pulling cards if you’re not going to listen to the advice they have to give.  Listening goes beyond just hearing what’s being said or even agreeing with it, it involves absorbing the advice and applying it in your life.

DECK USED:  TAROT OF VAMPYRES

#MysticStarChallenge October Challenge Prompt
Question: How do I send love and gratitude for all my Guides?

Tarot Z

Reading Summary: By leaning on them (Five of Pentacles) when I am feeling weak (The Emperor Rx) and trusting that spiritual connection (Temperance).

Take Away:  I can show my love and gratitude for my guides by making sure that I turn to them when I need them.  They want to help, and so by trusting and respecting that connection with them, I am both giving them what they want and showing them my love and gratitude at the same time.

DECK USED:  TAROT Z

Morning Bonus Read – Witch’s New Year Spread

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Dead Waite Tarot - Witch's New Year SpreadWhat is the strongest potential/possibility awaiting me in the next twelve months?
The Chariot atop Eight of Wands

Slow down and get where you’re going to faster.  It sounds counter productive, yeah?  Slowing down does not feel like it would get you where you want to go faster… but sometimes it does.

The Chariot indicates that I have the control to take myself forward in any direction that I want to go.  All roads are open. What’s key here, though, is that whatever road I choose?  I need to take my time.

What attitudes do I need to shift to welcome this opportunity?
Strength

I need to reevaluate what I perceive as strength.  This makes perfect sense, as taking things slow and moderation are not really things that I usually view as strengths, especially when trying to get somewhere or accomplish something. And they are very much something I’m not at all good at.  The suggestion here is that I need to sit with the concept of one’s strength, and consider how I view my own.

What beliefs do I need to shift to welcome this opportunity?
Page of Pentacles

So much of my time and focus lies on the development of stability and security in both my home and finances. This has been to such an extreme over the past decade that it sometimes feels as if these values are the only thing I have dedicated myself to working towards in life.

If I want to welcome in the opportunities available to me over the next twelve months, I need to reframe how I see these goals as well as how I go about accomplishing them.

What behaviors do I need to shift to welcome this opportunity?
Knight of Swords

Jumping in full-bore and going at it without taking a pause or giving myself breaks.  Allowing my ambitions to drive me ruthlessly forward, constantly pushing myself harder and harder.  These behaviors are not healthy and although I have begun the process of changing how I do things in this area, there’s still a long way to go.

 How can I support myself as I make these shifts?
Page of Swords

I need to take some time to really think on and absorb the ramifications of the attitudes, beliefs, and behaviors mentioned above. In these specific areas, the old way is not the best way and I need to make sure that I am open to learning something new that’s going to serve me better.

 How can I empower myself as I make these shifts?
Ten of Swords

Accept the shifts need to happen and do what you can to step into them and allow these old attitudes, beliefs, and behaviors to die.  In order to move forward, you have to leave something behind.

DECK USED: DEAD WAITE TAROT

Enjoying the Journey

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Today’s meditation was skipped this morning because the girls would just not leave me the fuck alone.  Between that and the running of the vacuum, I just couldn’t make it happen.  I will be doing it before bed, though.  Absolutely.   I won’t skip it entirely.

Tarot of Haunted House - King of PentaclesToday’s draw is the King of Pentacles, which is traditionally a representation of a projective alpha energy, personality, or person in the area of one’s finances, resources, home and hearth, health, and manifestations. This often translates into themes that have to do with business acumen, a strong sense of responsibility, and financial growth and stability.

What stands out to me the strongest in the imagery of this card is that the king is surrounded in all of this wealth, but his sword is down and he looks bored as hell.

We all have goals to aim for, dreams to reach for.  We all have those things that we strive for in our day to day lives.  The thing is?  We spend all of this time striving… and then once we get there?  We’re bored.

The message in today’s card is about enjoying the journey.  It’s not about the end zone.  It’s about the game.  It’s about each step you take along the way and living in the moment instead of being so focused on the future that you miss all the good stuff in the now.

DECK USED:  TAROT OF HAUNTED HOUSE

LionHart’s #TheOctoberTarot #SeasonOfTheWitchChallenge Prompt
Question: I now call in my ancestors, how do you respond?

Ritual Abuse Tarot

Reading Summary: My ancestors respond with a hopeful outlook for this new connection (The Star), and an eagerness to play a more open role (The Sun) in helping me find balance (Justice).

Take Away: I wasn’t really sure how this reading would go, but it went really well and the answers came through loud and smoothly.  My ancestors are eager to have a more conscious role in my life just as my guides are, and hope to help me on my journey to make good choices, enjoy life more, and have a better sense of balance in my life. 

DECK USED:  RITUAL ABUSE TAROT

#DiscordTarotholicsOct2020 Challenge Prompt
Question: What healing lesson is waiting for me to realize and accept it?

Halloween TarotReading Summary: That you can carry forward and reap the benefits of the lessons you’ve learned (Page of Pumpkins) in the past (Six of Ghosts), while still letting go of the bad stuff and leaving it behind (Death).

Take Away:  Although I know that this is possible and have been able to do it in some cases, there are other cases where the crap that taught me the lesson still clings to the lesson itself. In these instances, I struggle to pry my emotions about the incident away from the lessons learned.  Although I realize this struggle is ongoing for me, I haven’t yet gotten to a point where I’ve been able to accept it in all cases yet.  Its something I’m working on, though.

DECK USED:  HALLOWEEN TAROT

#MysticStarChallenge October Challenge Prompt
Question: What in myself do I need to strengthen to understand my Guides better?

The Gothic Tarot

Reading Summary: The stronger your intuition is the more you’ll understand (The High Priestess rising up from beneath the Eight of Swords). Use the spark of passion that you have in your soul (Ace of Wands) to search for ways to develop this slowly… a bit at a time (Death).

Take Away: This is a message about taking things slow and steady while continuing to develop my intuitive abilities. The interior cards here are all about my intuition, and allowing it to emerge and slowly bring clear sight to murky moments and the things I’m not yet ready to see.  The outer cards are then about taking my time and allowing my curiosity to lead the way forward into this change and through it’s slow development.

DECK USED:  THE GOTHIC TAROT

#ConnectWithYourDeckChallenge by E Roebuck-Jones
Question: What beautiful aspect of my life am I ready to embrace?

Dead Waite Tarot

Reading Summary: Gideon is helping me in making better choices (The Lovers) that don’t involve retreating into myself (The Hermit Rx). As this help continues,  I’m learning to lean into that response as my go-to reaction less and less (Eight of Wands).

Take Away:  Each time situations arise that I would have previously retreated from the world and curled into myself, I more quickly jump to use the tools and methods that Gideon has been helping me with learning.  Healthier methods that allow for me to connect with others instead of close myself off from the world.  The beautiful aspect of my life that I am ready to embrace is two-fold in this reading.  First, is Gideon’s help.   Second is the healthier methods he has helped to teach me.

DECK USED:  DEAD WAITE TAROT