Lucid Dreaming and Control

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Today’s meditation was skipped.

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Transparent Wisdom Tarot - Justice card

Daily Mental Health Prompt: Seek a positive message to carry with you throughout the day and offer perspective.

Today’s draw is the Justice card, which is traditionally a representation of balance, cause and effect, repercussions and consequences, give and take, and can often indicate the law or legal system.

The Justice card has then been combined with the A Good Dream card from the Happy Little Things deck, which says, “In case you haven’t heard, there are entire universes inside you. Every day, humans spend 6 to 8 hours sleeping. And they sleep every day of their life. And every time they sleep they create wonderful universes. If you scrub the bad things from your brain before going to sleep, with any luck – sleep will bring out something magical.”

I often experience what I would consider to be “the cusp” of lucid dreaming. That is to say that often when I dream, I am fully aware that I am dreaming, and can even control certain aspects of that dream. I cannot, however, control the dreams theme or its atmosphere.

I suppose this is fair since my dreams seem to often be helping in processing traumatic experiences, but I have to admit it’s also irritating because a lot of the themes of my dreams that are not focused around my traumas are actually themed after frustration.

If I could take a greater control of my dreams, would that make for better sleep? Or would it stunt my growth in processing my trauma?

I have a feeling that the answer to that question is neither, and both. I think that there’s always going to be repercussions to every action we take, and that is how the world, and in fact the universe, creates balance.

Today’s Justice card and affirmation card ask us to consider what things in our life we desire to change but can’t, and what repercussions changing these things could create as a possible reason for why we can’t change them in the first place. Perhaps this can help us in accepting that we just can’t always have control over everything because we don’t always know what’s best, even sometimes when we think we do.

DECKS USED:  TRANSPARENT WISDOM TAROT AND HAPPY LITTLE THINGS DECK

The @ambitiouslyalexa July Journal Prompts
Prompt for July 14th : A goal you’re reframing

Oracle Reading with the National Parks Oracle Deck

Reading Summary: You are spending less time on the defensive (The Watchtower) as you delve into explorations (Green Sea Turtle) of your self (‘Ōpe’ape’a).

Take Away: Dipping into an exploration of self can be a daunting experience rife with vulnerability and triggers to trip over. It’s natural when you commit to this type of exploration that your defenses rise up in an effort to mitigate uncertainty and protect you.

As you continue on this path, though, you are finding less need to brace and defend. This is allowing for curiosity to flourish in this journey of self discovery, and making it easier to stretch into growth instead of flinching away from it in moments of uncertainty.

Not that the flinching still doesn’t happen from time to time, but you’re getting there in developing a new perception and response in those moments.

Other elements included in this reading:
Foraged Red Oak Leaf for Fostering Unconditional Love
Foraged Wood Fern for Exorcising Negative Influences
Clear Quartz for boosting Mental Clarity
Moss Agate for Attracting Opportunities for Growth
Selenite for Purification and drawing in Positive Energy

DECK USED: NATIONAL PARKS ORACLE

#DiscordTarotholicsJul2026 Challenge
3-Card Spread Prompt for July 14th : About life…

Tarot Reading with the Transparent Wisdom Tarot

My life’s purpose

Ace of Pentacles / Rabbit – To connect with the earth and explore the concept of potential, while learning to connect with opportunities that are right for you instead of jumping at every opportunity that presents itself.

How this looks in the day-to-day

Nine of Wands / Turtle – Regulation of the speed needed to do what needs done and the determination to connect authentically with those things that “fit” no matter the speed at which they move. Earning the wisdom needed to understand when to move faster, when to slow down, when to put up defenses, and when to allow for vulnerability.

How this looks at the end of my life

Nine of Pentacles / Bobcat – Independent, but satisfied. Wise enough to know your own strengths and weaknesses. Illusive to others at times. Able to choose your battles wisely with the understanding and skills gained by previous experience.

Other elements included in this reading:
Foraged Oak Branch with Moss and Lichen for Perseverance
Staghorn Sumac for Connecting Deeper with Nature and the Wild
Foraged Acorn for Protection during New Beginnings
Foraged Parmeliaceae Lichen for a “Breath of Fresh Air”
Foraged Wood Fern for Exorcising Negative Influences
Conch Shell Knots for Concentration, Clarity, and Determination
Gray Agate Druzy Slab for Stabilizing Energies and Expectations
Selenite for Purification and drawing in Positive Energy

DECK USED: TRANSPARENT WISDOM TAROT
Daily Self Kindness

This is a catch up post, and I’m not entirely sure what the self kindness was for this day.

Gideon’s Challenge – Wrong Way

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Cedar Woods - Western Red Cedar

Wrong Way

sunlight steals
through boughs
and branches
to illuminate
the shadows
as it speaks
of open spaces
instead of
the close tangle
of green
blocking out
the light
and warns
that it’s time to
change direction
or depart

Photo © ZenStatePhotography

Connections We Make

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Today’s meditation was skipped.

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Daily Mental Health Prompt: Seek a positive message to carry with you throughout the day and offer perspective.

Vintage Theatre Posters Tarot - The High Priestess

Today’s draw is The High Priestess card, which is traditionally a representation of intuition, secrets, sacred knowledge, mystery, the subconscious mind.

The High Priestess card has then been combined with an affirmation from Miracle Mantras Affirmation Deck, which says, “My relationships reflect the love I give myself.”

We see what we need in life, often without conscious thought of ever doing so. This is why those we engage in friendships in relationships with often appear to be the opposite of ourselves. They create the “puzzle pieces” that match up with our own, fitting together into a greater wholeness.

Therefore, I’m not entirely sure if our relationships actually reflect the love that we give ourselves (as stated in today’s affirmation prompt), or reflect the love we need but cannot give ourselves.

Either way, the message in today’s High Priestess card and affirmation is a reminder that the connections we make with others help to “round us out” into someone better than we are on our own. Sometimes how this is happening is hard to see clearly. These cards ask us to examine those relationships and take a moment to see and appreciate what it is that they contribute to our lives, our livelihoods, and our well-being.

DECK USED:  VINTAGE THEATRE POSTERS TAROT AND MIRACLE MANTRAS AFFIRMATION DECK

#DiscordTarotholicsJul2026 Challenge

3-Card Spread Prompt for July 13th : Self-care for this month’s new moon…

Oracle Reading with The Flower Oracle

Wanted – Rose

Perfection and acceptance. They are two very contradictory desires and it’s hard to accept that you can’t have both. The truth is, though, that you could if you were willing to redesign your definition of perfection. That you’re not willing to do this leaves both of these things out of your reach.

Needed – Daffodil

A new start and the patience needed to allow growth to develop at its own pace. Pride gets in the way of this patience, and is a bit motivator in your drive to push yourself too hard.

Accessible – Iris

Move forward one step at a time, even when doubts drag at you and obstacles hold you back. Trust in divine timing and let go of the need to force everything to move faster or to do more. That drive for control over everything leaves you unnecessarily vulnerable.

Other elements included in this reading:
Pressed Pansy Flowers for Hearing the Heart More Clearly
Dried Lavender Bundle for Calming and Comfort
Calcite w/ Conichalcite for Amplifying Intuitive Messages
Desert Rose for Purification and drawing in Positive Energy

DECK USED:  THE FLOWER ORACLE

The @ambitiouslyalexa July Journal Prompts

Prompt for July 13th : A comfort you’re allowing yourself

Tarot Reading with the Vintage Theatre Posters Tarot

Reading Summary: You’re giving yourself permission (Six of Pentacles) to not engage in stubbornly obsessive ways (Knight of Wands Rx) with those things that steal your time away from (Seven of Swords) the personal growth you wish to focus on (Page of Cups).

Take Away: You are prioritizing your emotional growth and understanding above your need to always be pushing for better and greater success.

In this way, you are essentially putting yourself first above your responsibilities and obligations, giving yourself the space to learn and better understand yourself rather than pushing this focus on growth away to deal with at a later time.

By allowing yourself the space for exploration and growth, you are not punishing yourself as severely as you would have in the past for putting success and ambition in other areas on the back burner.

Other elements included in this reading:
Black Spruce Needles to Boost Self-Confidence and Positive Thinking
Dried Rosebuds for Potential and Beauty Waiting to Unfold
Dried Purple Heather Flowers for Independence and Luck
Scotch Pine Cone for Purging Negative Influences
Conch Shell Knot for Concentration, Clarity, and Determination
Gneiss Stone for Patience in Moments of Discomfort
Selenite for Purification and drawing in Positive Energy

DECK USED: VINTAGE THEATRE POSTERS TAROT
Daily Self Kindness

This is a catch up post, and I’m not entirely sure what the self kindness was for this day.

Gideon’s Challenge – Eager

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Seagull's Treasure

Eager

A new trinket
a shiny bauble
a treasure
as yet untold
awaits
for a key
in the lock
and the
eagerness
of wanting
to be home
to split tape
and
peek within

Photo © ZenStatePhotography

🌑 New Moon in Cancer – July 2026

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Tomorrow is the new moon, and like all new moons and full moons, I did a spread aligned to the moon’s current themes as a part of my recognition of the moon’s cycle and influences upon us. Today’s spread is courtesy of @oak.moon.magic

Cancer New Moon Oracle Reading with The Cantigee Oracle

Where do I feel most at home?

The Luminous Brew

“The strange and unforeseen adventures, synchronicities, and encounters that unfurl as you attempt the various feats of your life simmer within you. These experiences combined to form an elixir that nourishes and sustains you… throughout your life.”

It is in the coalescence of your past experiences that you find the nourishment to move forward. Don’t forget that where you feel most at home is in your present, where the past lies as a foundation to support you and the uncertainty of the future is not yet realized. It’s in the present where empowerment lives and your greatest potential and comfort resides.

What does emotional safety look like?

The Dawn That Follows the Prolonged Night

“Just as dawn begins so subtly that we only notice it once it’s well underway, the same is true of our experience of emerging from dark periods of pain and confusion.”

Safety is in the sensation of surfacing from depression or feeling the lift of experiencing pleasure sourced through nature. When you become more aware of the rhythms of life, you are able to more greatly appreciate the up-swings where you feel safe to be vulnerable.

What do I need less of?

The Self-Seeing Eye

“We all develop a handy thing called an ego… made up of assumptions, many of which took shape when you were very young. These assumptions worked well enough when they formed, but things change.”

It’s important to connect with and look closely at your assumptions and ego driven beliefs now and then, and to then discard those that are longer serving you well, what you now understand to be wrong, or that hold you back from growth into a better person. Don’t allow your misguided ego to hold you back from letting these things go when they are no longer needed.

What do I want more of this lunar cycle?

The Coiled Snake

“Once you acclimatize to having been turned into a snake, you start to enjoy the feeling of your whole body being in direct communion with the Earth. You luxuriate in the sensuousness of your movements and the sinuous power you feel in every cell of your serpentine self. To be a snake, you realize, is a profoundly tactile experience.”

More time communing with nature through the experiences found there. To explore nooks and hollows, touch leaves and bark, smell the earthy scents, and lie upon the spongy grass. To experience the air’s movements along with the branches above, and the squish of detritus and damp earth beneath your feet.

You want to get outside more. Not just any “outside”, but the kind of getting outside that allows you an immersive connection with the trees, plants, and the Earth.

How can I care for myself more gently?

Snake Encircles the Moon

“There are things that give you a sense of safety and stability. When you feel that things have become too turbulent in your life or in your heart, merely remembering these things is like bringing your storm-beaten ship to relieving moorage in a sheltered harbor.”

When you are feeling overwhelmed, take it as a sign to step back for a moment and relieve your stress through meditation or positive visualization exercises. In doing so, you give yourself a break from the chaos, which allows you to re-enter the fray with fresh eyes and renewed energy.

New Moon advice from the Minoan Goddess Amalthea.

A Peach So Ripe

“…ambivalence is no longer an option. Like the (ripe end of season) peach, it’s time to either pluck it and eat it, or let it drop to the ground. Either commit more deeply to your current situation, relationship, or endeavor, or let it go. Use it or lose it. Be it or leave it.”

After a long period of stagnancy, you are beginning to finally move in the effort to turn things around for your creative business. Keep in mind as you do this, your commitment will be tested. Lean in.

Other elements included in this reading:
Goat Figure as Sympathetic Representation of Amalthea
Gneiss Wishing Stone for Patience in Moments of Discomfort

DECK USED: THE CANTIGEE ORACLE

Sensitivities and “Leveling Up”

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Today’s meditation was skipped.

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Daily Mental Health Prompt: Seek a positive message to carry with you throughout the day and offer perspective.

The Cowgirl Tarot - The High Priestess card

Today’s draw is The High Priestess card, which is traditionally a representation of intuition, secrets, sacred knowledge, mystery, the subconscious mind.

The High Priestess card has then been combined with a prompt from the Animantras Chakra Oracle, which says, “Be Sensitive”.

You can’t expect to get a greater connection with your intuition if you are unwilling to also connect more deeply with your emotions.

I have a theory that the reason why highly sensitive people are more often shown to have greater “psychic” abilities is directly in relation to the fact that they are highly sensitive. Their mundane senses and their emotions being more sensitive open them up to a greater range of experiences from the more subtle senses that many less sensitive people miss or disregard.

With this in mind, therefore, it makes sense that when we open ourselves up to our emotions to experience them on a deeper level, it also opens us up to a greater sensitivity for these lesser experienced senses such as the claire-senses and/or mediumship.

The message in today’s High Priestess card and affirmation prompt is a reminder that if you are looking to expand upon these lesser known and lesser experienced senses, you need to be prepared to also open yourself up to being more sensitive in other areas of your life as well, for they often go hand-in-hand.

DECK USED:  THE COWGIRL TAROT AND ANIMANTRAS CHAKRA ORACLE

One Card Tarot Journal Activity by @mariasofia_astro
Chapter 6 | Entry 17 – Spiritual Development
Affirmation : “I am my own person with my own heart and mind.”
Prompt : Reflect on the following question: “What do others believe that I don’t hold to be true but keep silent about?” Now draw a card and consider what it says about expressing yourself more authentically.

Tarot Activity from The One Card a Day Journal by Maria Sofia Marmanides - Caring Psychic Family Tarot - The Empress

What feelings came up when I pulled this card?

I was feeling a bit of trepidation when I was pulling the card for this prompt, as I felt concern that the inner betrayal I felt from the moment I was thinking would be validated by the card I pull…. even though I feel that my choice was the best available to me at the time. (Details in last prompt response.)

I then pulled the card and felt a touch of resistance, as I feel the Empress is reminding me to give myself a bit of grace and care, and I’m far more accustomed to punishing myself for perceived slights than approaching myself from a place of understanding and kindness.

What elements of the card’s meaning resonate with me and this prompt?

The Empress is often thought of as the culmination of all of the other queens in the tarot.

This means that she is seen, above all else, as symbol of nurturing. Nurturing not just one aspect of the self, but all aspects of the self and life. The Empress tells us that when we apply nurturing energy to a task or person (including ourselves) that we are then rewarded with abundance.

What in the artwork spoke to me?

One hand holds her staff with a firm grip, while the other cradles it gently. This speaks to me of the duality of the Empress and how she holds within her many faucets.

Beneath the staff, the Empress’ skirts create the shape of a heart, speaking to a innate caring within her nature. The things that she does, she does out of love.

Generous lips, wide eyes, and an appearance of leaning slightly forward gives the impression of invitation and investment. She wants to hear how you feel and what you have to say; she is interested in the many faucets of the situation and engaged in fostering you to thrive through it.

My prompt response and reflections.

The situation in question that I was thinking about for this prompt was when Ms B’s family visited last year and I was present for the visit. One of her cousins is a riot, and quite fun and interesting to be around.

Somehow, the topic of homosexuality came up, and he was very clear on just how violently repulsed he was by even the thought of homosexuality (m/m, f/f, trans, et al). When I mentioned something about it not really being any of my business what other people do in their beds and to each their own, he was adamantly against this perspective and disgusted to the point of nausea.

Instead of stepping forward to then say “well, I’m technically gay and you don’t seem to have a problem with me”, I kept my mouth shut. This was primarily because I did not want to ruin Ms B’s visit with her family nor dissuade her family from visiting her again in the future just because I might or might not be there. In the moment, this felt like a betrayal of my authentic self, and yet I don’t think it was the wrong choice.

Neither does the Empress card, who says that there is more involved here than simply a single aspect or perspective. She reminds me that one’s response needs to be tailored to the situation and all of the different faucets that that situation entails… which is exactly what I did in the encounter mentioned above. This card gave me the opportunity to claim a sense of validation I didn’t realize that I was still seeking.

Other elements included in this reading:
Amber Resin D25 and Banded Agate D6 Dice

DECK USED: CARING PSYCHIC FAMILY TAROT

#DiscordTarotholicsJul2026 Challenge
Prompt for July 12th : Do Spread 2
Question : In what way could I have better handled the situation with Ms B’s cousin?

Tarot Reading with The Cowgirl Tarot and Gallery In a Box Vol.2

Reading Summary: The sky in the Nine of Swords Rx overwhelmingly connects with the color of the woman being held in the Anchor card. In the sky a dragon runs away from the dog on the ground, disappearing into that bright shade of blue. The connection between these two cards speaks of a need to instead of keep your worries and fears inside, connect with your allies to help deal with them.

The Knight of Cups peers through the heart he holds in the direction of the Nine of Swords Rx, while the color correlation in this card connects to the Anchor card through the legs of the horse (speaking of stability found in seeking help from others). This reinforces the message concerning needing to actually reach out to those who are your allies so that they can help you to seek out a better (and more stable) perspective than the one that you are stuck with on your own.

In the Five of Cups card, we also see a small correlation of color in the blue between the vessel on the card and the Anchor card. Some of the dogs in this card are upside down, and there is a feeling of connection between the center dog on the card being upright and the solid upright stance of the Egyptian god Anubis in the Anchor card.

The anchor card’s “Allies” title at the bottom of the card strengthens this connection between the three tarot cards, connecting them together to let you know that it’s through your contact with others you can find a healthier and happier perspective on your fears, including your fears in situations like the one mentioned in today’s question.

Take Away: Sometimes stepping back to put distance between yourself and your fears isn’t necessarily a bad thing if it keeps those things you hold priority for intact in the way you want them to be. Even if you end up stewing about it later.

The best thing you could’ve done is talk to your friends and loved ones about this after the situation was over in the hopes that your allies could give you a healthier perspective on the situation. Don’t hold in your worries in this area, but share them with those that will support you and help you in working through your discomfort and fear.

Other elements included in this reading:
Black Spruce Needles to Boost Self-Confidence and Positive Thinking
Dried Rosebuds for Potential and Beauty Waiting to Unfold
Dried Purple Heather Flowers for Independence and Luck
Black Tourmaline for Grounding and Protection
Rose Quartz for Gentle Kindness to Self and Others
Selenite for Purification and drawing in Positive Energy

DECK USED: THE COWGIRL TAROT AND GALLERY IN A BOX v2
Daily Self Kindness

This is a catch up post, and I’m not entirely sure what the self kindness was for this day.