Month: January 2020

The Grim Reaper and The Pilot

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Pull at least three cards and use them to formulate a response to…
“You’re early,” said the Grim Reaper with a hint of surprise.

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Making himself comfortable in the Grim Reaper’s waiting room, the pilot explains…

“Well you know, I’d really gotten fed up with things at home. My wife’s a bitch and my house is falling apart. I really hated where I was and I decided I wanted a divorce and to move in a new direction. (Eight of Oceans)  After all, I’m my own man, a big boy, and more than capable of doing things my own way. (The Emperor)

I figured, it’s my life. I can damn well choose how I live it. I don’t have to do things by the standards and rules of those that came before me, and sometimes you have to throw a joint history to make plans. (Six of Oceans)

After all, I deserve to have good things, and I deserve to have good people in my life. I deserve the opportunity to give myself what I need for once, yeah? (The Empress)

SO I took the initiative and I packed my bags, cookies and all, and headed for the airport.

I was determined was going to change my life for the better. Everything was going to be fine. Perfect, even! (Ten of Earth)

I talked myself up as I walked out the door and I hailed a cab. (Strength) I gave myself a pep talk all the way through the ride to the airport, and then through the airport to my gate.

I got on the plane and we prepared for take off. And then we were in the air, my bright new future ahead of me. (The World)

And THEN?

About half way through the flight that goddamned JACKASS of a co-pilot on the first ever flight of his career decided HE was the better pilot! (Page of Wands) He locked me in the bathroom, took the plane off autopilot, and took over the controls, and …

Here.
I.
Am.”

DECK USED: LOST FOREST TAROT

 

Revisit of the Five of Wands

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Today’s meditation was ten minutes long and focused on the benefits of meditation in helping keep mental clutter in check.  This has been one of the largest benefits of my meditation, to be honest.

I know that, like most people, I struggle with concentration while in the middle of my meditation practice, but the effort does seem to assist in building the mental “muscle” needed to focus better in the day to day, and by doing so, not allow overwhelm to get the better of me.

The thing is that with meditation it’s about slow progress and small gains.  You only start to see those gains once they’ve begun to add up like grains of sand in a glass.  One grain of sand or even a thousand of them, seems inconsequential.  But over time, they become something substantial.

Five of Wands - Spacious Tarot Today’s draw is the Five of Wands (again) which, as I mentioned before, is about tests, trials, and conflict in the area of one’s ambitions, drives, and passions.  And I’m just saying, but when this card shows up twice in a week and it’s only Tuesday? It starts to feel a little ominous. I know it’s just the cards saying, “You didn’t get it… Try again,” but still.

I still feel that this message is about what can be benefited from conflict.  The sparks still stand out to me the strongest. In that message, though, is also the indication that you have to go through the conflict in the first place.

As the purpose of my daily draw is to find the positive in each day’s card for mental health reasons, today’s appearance of the Five of Wands is a message of hope, indicating that no matter how hard  the conflict might be, there is a reason for it and an in to it as well. Because after every upheaval comes the calm, and in that calm a newness.

DECK USED:  SPACIOUS TAROT

#TarotForGrowthJanuary Challenge Prompt
Question: What can I do this year to be of service to others?

Jeremy Miranda Oracle Cards

Reading Summary: Provide a sense of stability and security (Card 1) and a calm center (Card 2) for others in the storm (Card 3).

In the first card, the house and garden communicate to me a sense of peace.  There’s a sense of providing what is needed in the healthy garden out front, and security and stability in the house itself and how well cared for it is. 

In the second card is a depiction of a beach and calm sea.  To me this imagery is very soothing.  There are stones well seated in the scene that speak to me of solidity and stability as well, reinforcing the first card and further indicating a sense of calm.

The third card depicts a roaring fire, and my first instinct when I saw this was the phrase “trial by fire” and the chaos and transformation that is involved in the process.

Take Away: Friends often come to me for an ear or guidance when they’re feeling lost.   For these friends, I represent a safe place and an open mind, a place they can come to confide in someone and find perspective.  The cards indicate that this is a good thing, and a way that I can contribute to others in the year ahead, just as I have in the years past.

DECK USED:  JEREMY MIRANDA ORACLE CARDS

#DiscordTarotholicsJan2020 Challenge Prompt
Question: What is a really great idea you had but then forgot about?

Ember + Aura Tarot

Reading Summary: A new investment (Ace of Coins) in my passionate endeavors (Daughter of Wands) that will take me to the “next level” (The World).

Take Away:  There are a couple of creative classes I’ve been wanting to take.  But over the past year I’ve not even been able to entertain the idea, let alone look into doing something about it.   The classes in jewelry design techniques and photography have the potential to elevate my work both professionally and creatively to a new level if i can find a way to fit them in sometime this year (or even beyond this year if that’s the case).  This is definitely something I had forgotten about over the past year.

DECK USED:  EMBER + AURA TAROT

#ConnectWithYourDeckChallenge Prompt
Question: Pull three cards for a career/life meaning goal.

Cat's Eye TarotReading Summary: The career/life goal that I focused on was a general outlook on the business over the next year.   From the cards pulled, business over the next year is going to be crappy (Seven of Swords… look at that cat pissing on the wall!  Jesus.  Seriously.) and uncertain (The Moon). Just remember to stay calm and centered emotionally (King of Cups).

Take Away:  That is not something I’m particularly good at since the awakening of my emotions has gotten more intense lately.  I’m referring to the whole “stay calm and centered” during personal crisis and uncertainty, yeah?   I mean I can?  But it takes a lot more effort these days than it used to when I could live in a state of detachment. 

That said, the cards are a good reminder that it’s going to be needed moving forward into this year, as there will be hurdles involved that are going to try my patience and effort to stay calm and collected.

DECK USED:  CAT’S EYE TAROT

Lacking the Oomph

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Today’s meditation was fourteen minutes long, and I tried again to do the spirit guide meditation.   I think that perhaps I need to find a different guided meditation for this.  I’m not sure if it’s the guide’s voice or the background music or something else entirely, but there’s something in there that is not allowing me to relax and focus as I’d like.  Maybe there’s just too much audio stimulation going on.

The Efflorescent Tarot (Color Edition)Today’s draw is the Three of Pentacles, which often for me is a representation of collaboration, but that is not what I pick up from this card.  In fact, if I were to take the image alone and fit it into the tarot, normally I’d have fit this in as the Eight of Pentacles rather than the three.

As an intuitive read, though, I see something else entirely in this card.

I see boredom.

The message in today’s card speaks the fact that no matter how good you get at something and how beautiful the end results are, sometimes it’s still just a job.  It might be your greatest passion.  It might be your most favorite hobby of all time.  You might absolutely love your job and everything about it.   But sometimes?  It’s just a job.  Sometimes you have a period of boredom and lack of inspiration, and that’s okay.

It’s okay to feel that way.  In fact, it’s perfectly natural.  And that reassurance is what I get out of today’s card.

DECK USED:  THE EFFLORESCENT TAROT (COLOR EDITION)

#TarotForGrowthJanuary Challenge Prompt
Question: What do my ancestors/spirit guides/the cards want me to know about 2020?

Golden Art Nouveau Tarot

Reading Summary:  There’s that King of Wands again.   Stop overburdening myself with brilliant inspiration and creative spark (Ten of Wands). New creative inspirations are great (Ace of Wands), but you need to take a more structured and grounded approach (King of Wands).

Take Away:  I’ve been getting this message from the cards a lot lately, and… clearly I’m not listening.  Or maybe I am, but I’m just not allowing it to actually absorb and sink in deep.   This is actually my very first “spirit guides” reading (for myself or for others) and… it makes me wonder if they haven’t been speaking through the cards all along actually.

DECK USED:  GOLDEN ART NOUVEAU TAROT

#DiscordTarotholicsJan2020 Challenge Prompt
Question: What do you actually deserve? (Built off yesterday’s cards.)

The Circle - Inner Animal Tarot

Reading Summary:  The Six of Swords is a repeat from yesterday’s read, indicating that I do deserve a change for the better (Six of Swords), but that it won’t come from changes to who I am or a personality/outlook adjustment.  Instead it will come from a more organic source that has been a long time coming (Death), and create a period of feeling overwhelmed and overburdened (Ten of Wands) while I move through the adjustment period.

Take Away:  Change is coming… and it sucks.  It’s going to feel heavy and like it’s too much.  It’ll be a struggle.  But, once I’ve made it through the gauntlet?  I’ll be in a better place on the other side.   I have deliberately chosen not to ask the cards -what- this upcoming change is, at least for the time being.

DECK USED:  THE CIRCLE – INNER ANIMAL TAROT

#ConnectWithYourDeckChallenge Prompt
Question: Three cards for guidance on a personal goal. (Rephrased for specificity.)

Jeremy Miranda Oracle Cards

Reading Summary:  Stay on track (Card 1), stay grounded while looking forward towards what I want (Card 2), and invite others along the way to help me get there (Card 3).

Take Away:  I know that to a lot of people image-only cards are difficult, but they appear so very self explanatory to me.  It’s like my brain says “do I need to flesh this out?  Because it’s so obvious” but I know it’s not.  It’s just obvious to me.

My goal for this question are centered around stability and security concerning home and finances.   The shades of blue combined with hints of water threaded throughout all three cards is a reminder to stay calm and not allow emotional disruption to influence my outlook.

The first card speaks of staying focused on my goals rather than allowing different interests and distractions to take me off track.

In the second card I see a seaweed draped rock sitting before a painting of the sea, staring at where it wants to be, representing my need to focus upon the future and my goals and stay grounded in the moment while doing so.

The third card is an invitation.  A dinner party waiting for guests to arrive.  The card is a reminder that there are others in my life happy to step in and help, all I need to do is reach out to them and invite them in.

DECK USED:  JEREMY MIRANDA ORACLE CARDS

Waxing Poetic – The Hanged Man

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The Major Arcana card that identify most strongly with, and what it means to me.

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The Hanged Man reminds me that each hurdle I come upon (of which there have been many, and will surely be many more) is an opportunity for betterment in some way, not a road block.

The card says to me that it’s okay to have a life filled with struggles and hurdles, strife and discord, woe and adversity. These things are lessons in life that teach me how to become better. Better at the things I want to do… Better at the way I find my joy… And, just an all around better person as a whole.

The Hanged Man is a reminder that these things are there not to drag me down and make me miserable. Instead, they are there to create perspective, wisdom, and strength, as well as to foster deeper roots within myself and my life with which to anchor me through the hardest parts, like a tree standing strong in a storm is anchored deep within the soil.

Learning lessons and learning different perspectives is not always pleasant. It’s painful and uncomfortable and extremely awkward. To me the Hanged Man is a representation of how these struggles hold immeasurable worth, if I’m willing to look beyond the discomfort to see what’s waiting there for me to learn.

 

Creation Through Conflict

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Today’s meditation was ten minutes long and focused on a full body scan for the most part.  It was not a guided meditation, and although I had intended on going for a full fifteen minutes, I was interrupted by a phone call from the doctor’s office and couldn’t get back into it after I’d hung up.  (Everything is fine, it’s just bloodwork related.)

Spacious Tarot Today’s draw is the Five of Wands, which is traditionally a representation of tests, trials, and conflict in the area of one’s ambitions, passions, and drive.

What I see, though?  Is spark.

The message contained in the Five of Wands in today’s draw is that sometimes conflict actually has the potential to create.  It has the ability to get the juices flowing and, although conflict and trials can be a struggle, they can also provide a much needed clearing of air and energy, which makes room for something new and better.

DECK USED:  THE SPACIOUS TAROT

#TarotForGrowthJanuary Challenge Prompt
Question: What does my mind want me to know about 2020?

Lost Forest Tarot

Reading Summary:  I need to take time to examine what I’ve done and what I can do better (Judgement), especially in the area of what I want from my business (Queen of Fire), and in which direction I want to push it in (Knight of Fire).

Take Away:  I very often associate my creative business with fire, as that is a huge part of where my inner spark and drive are directed.  It’s no different here, where the answer to what my mind wants me to know for the year ahead focuses upon that business.  This is a reminder to look back at the time that has passed and base my future momentum upon what has and has not worked rather than constantly focusing on what I want in the future.

DECK USED:  LOST FOREST TAROT

#DiscordTarotholicsJan2020 Challenge Prompt
Question: What do you feel you deserve?

Beautiful Creatures TarotReading Summary:  The desire for something better (Six of Swords) obtained through a combination of optimism (The Sun),  self possession and strength (The Emperor), collaboration with others (Three of Coins), and a nurturing warmth towards myself and others (The Empress).

Take Away:  What I see here are the elements that I feel I am not strong enough in.  Elements that are building blocks to a change for the better, but are not my strongest qualities.  Considering the question, the cards indicate I believe I deserve to be better at these particular qualities and, as a result, deserve for things to be better in my life because of them.

It is not realistic, of course, as you do not miraculously develop such qualities… you learn them and work at them.   They are something to strive for, not something to simply obtain.

DECK USED:  FOREST CREATURES TAROT

#ConnectWithYourDeckChallenge Prompt
Question: Three cards that pertain to my goals.  (Rephrased for specificity.)

The Arcana Tarot

Reading Summary:  Lots of appearances of the King of Wands over the past few days for me.   If I want to find a sense of balance between my struggle for security (Nine of Wands) and a sense of contentment (Nine of Cups), I need to work at embodying a more controlled attitude toward my passions and drive (King of Wands).

Take Away:  A lot of times my passions and drive, both for the creative aspects of my business as well as my business as a whole, cause me to push too hard.  This creates a sense of imbalance and defensiveness that does not at all foster a sense of contentment.  If I apply more control and mediation to my drive, I can find a better balance and feel more satisfaction with my work.

DECK USED:  THE HYDRA-NIX ARCANA TAROT

 

Self Care Saturday (on Sunday)

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As I’ve mentioned before, these readings are (not usually) bearing in on any one thing or event in my life, as the question used is asking for a more general outlook. This is a self care exercise, and are not meant as a predictive reading.

The question is… What do I need to focus for self-care through the week ahead?

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Earth – Page of Swords, Elevate, and Be Careful Signing Contracts – Hmmmm… I wonder if my mortgage contract is coming up for renewal this week. I need to call the bank on Monday and check. I am also currently in the process of changing my medical insurance to a different provider. The cards are indicating something along these lines needs to be taken care of and re-evaluated to provide myself with a better position than the one I’m currently in.

Air – Three of Wands, Ace of Swords, and You Are Not Alone in This Uncertain Place – I need to remember that even though I am feeling unbalanced and uncertain while reorganizing how I run things with the business, I have people around me who love me and are willing to provide help or support as needed. I don’t have to do it alone, and it’s okay to ask for help when needed.

Water – The Moon and Not My Circus Not My Monkeys – Tend to your own garden and don’t let other people pull you into their chaos and drama. Allowing that will just cause confusion and lack of clarity.

Air – Ace of Pentacles, King of Swords, and The Enemy of Intuition is Self Doubt – Stay centered while on this new path with my ambition and passions, because you don’t want to allow self-doubt to filter in and screw with your perceptions and plans.

Waning – La Ruche et Surmenage – Don’t forget there is a life outside of work and running the business. It might feel like you’re not getting a lot done, but sometimes you need to take time to rest and step away, regroup and then come back fresh later on.

Waxing – La Tortue et Sagesse, L’anneau et Union – Wisdom and longevity in a solid and beneficial union. I definitely need to check on my mortgage contract and take a close and careful look at the new medical insurance package and contract.

Take Away – There’s going to be an element of self doubt and uncertainty in the week ahead and the plans I have been in the beginning stages of implementing to change some of the aspects of my business and work. It’ll be important to stay on track and pay close attention to my own issues and let others deal with their own shit this week rather than trying to help out.

Also, be sure to contact the bank to check on my mortgage contract, and take a close look at my new benefits package and make sure everything in there is as it should be and to my advantage.

DECKS USED: VINTER TAROT, POSTCARDS FROM THE LIMINAL SPACE ORACLE, L’ORACLE DE L’ARBRE DE VIE