Day: June 21, 2020

A Slice of The Pie… Not the Whole Pie

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Today’s meditation was ten minutes long and was very peaceful and quiet. Uneventful. I even managed to get through both meditation and yoga without an interruption (which is unheard of). I think the fact that I wanted to avoid working helped in my favor to be honest.   But, I did eventually get my ass in gear and get done what I needed to do so… all’s well.

Herbal Tarot - Two of Wands - BasilToday’s draw is the Two of Wands, which is traditionally interpreted as themes to do with planning and making decisions concerning one’s drive, ambitions, passions, and interests.  This can include the discovery of a direction that interests you and the planning stages that go into heading in that direction.

What stands out to me the strongest in the imagery of this card today is the world that the figure holds in his hand, and the small leaves sprouting from the two wands. These small leaves on the wands connect this card to the Ace of Wands, blending the spark of new life and discovery with the movement of progress and growth. The world in the hand of the figure on the card is a representation  of unlimited potential, but also that you have to pick a slice of the pie… not the whole thing. Because no one can have the world all for themselves, but anyone can have a sliver of it all their own.

That is where the message lies in today’s card.  In potential. When you start out on a new path, sometimes there is an eagerness to leap ahead, and other times there is fear and caution. This card says neither is the path is the one to success.  The path to success requires planning.

DECK USED:  HERBAL TAROT

#TarotForGrowthJune Challenge Prompt
Question: How can I bring more laughter into my life?

Sawyer's Path Tarot

Reading Summary: Slow down (Knight of Pentacles), involve others (Three of Cups), and count your blessings (Five of Cups).

Take Away: This reading has to do with stopping to smell the roses, and is another iteration of telling me that it’s time to take some time for myself. To lighten my load and slow down, and enjoy the things and people that are around me rather than spending every waking moment constantly pushing for performance and progress.

When you are in that mindset, it’s hard to see all of the things in life that you have to be grateful for. You’re too busy to savor them, but instead give them no more than a passing glance as you go about your way. To instill more joy and laughter into your life, you have to be willing to go at a slower pace and focus on those people and things that bring you joy… you have to be going slow enough that you can take the time to savor these people and things.

DECK USED:  SAWYER’S PATH TAROT

#DiscordTarotholicsJun2020 Challenge Prompt
Question: Do Spread #3
How can I ease myself into the slow down that the cards keep telling me I need to do, and that I know needs to take place?

Linestrider TarotReading Summary: The change needs to be gradual (Death), and will require self-love (Queen of Pentacles Rx) and the conscious choice (The Lovers) to ignore the chaos (The Wheel).

There is a connection between the Queen of Pentacles and the Wheel of fortune within the tattoo on the Queen’s shoulder and its matching of color and design to the Wheel’s imagery. This speaks of the need to approach the wheel and its constant transitions in a calm and nurturing manner. Accept this chaos as a part of life, rather than letting it run your life.

There is also a connection between the Death card and the grouping of the Lovers with the Wheel of Fortune. The colors of splatter in the death card connects it to the combination of these two cards, speaking of patience… time.  Death is about organic change and organic change is gradual and not sudden. This means that the choice to take this path and make the choice to ignore the chaos, I have to accept it won’t be a quick fix or an immediate change. There will be slip ups and struggles and mistakes made along the way, and only through time will I get where I want to go… not by pushing for it to happen faster.

Take Away:  Check my impatience at the door, no matter how tempting it is to try and push forward or plow ahead. Kindness to yourself and developing new habits means repetition, time, and mindfulness toward the direction you wish to go. You make the choice, and then you make it again… and again.  You make it so many times that it becomes a habit to make that choice, and then it becomes mindless and you do it out of rote rather than conscious thought.  It is a long road… not a sprint.

DECK USED:  LINESTRIDER TAROT

#TheJuneTarot Challenge by Lionhart
Question: Use today’s draw as a reminder of where you are in life.

Japaridze Tarot

Reading Summary: All this intellectualizing (King of Winds) and weighing out the pros and cons (Justice)… doesn’t change that you’re still at the beginning of your emotional journey (Ace of Tides).

Side Note: I really like the Justice card in this deck. The imagery really speaks to me of the balance and justice, and how one’s perception of justice can turn one way or the other depending on which side of the line you’re on.

Take Away: I am at the beginning. The growth spurt that I felt beginning last fall is still at its infancy. Picking it apart and weighing it out helps me to understand what I’m going through, but it doesn’t change where I am along that path… I am at the beginning of a very long journey. What it does is give me more to work with as I fumble my way in the dark.

DECK USED:  JAPARIDZE TAROT

#ConnectWithYourDeckChallenge by E Roebuck-Jones
Question: What is the current health of my relationship with Gideon?

Bleu Cat Tarot

Reading Summary: Supportive (Ten of Balls), filled with emotional pleasures (Ace of Fishes), as well as protective and persevering (Seven of Plants).

Take Away:  Looks pretty good to me. We are at a place where we are able to enjoy and share in each other and feel stable and secure in doing so. Everything continues to feel both brand new and yet familiar and comfortable at the same time. And… I feel safe.  Protected and cared for.

DECK USED:  BLEU CAT TAROT

 

Self Care Saturday (On a Sunday)

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These Saturday 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 is not meant as a predictive reading… although that, too, happens on occasion.

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

Self Care Saturday Tarot Spread

Earth – Page of Pentacles, Tower Rx, Home Is Where You Are – You don’t need a catastrophic mentality to keep things on an even keel. Make an effort this week to not see everything as “on the precipice of disaster”, but instead acknowledge that you have everything well in hand.  Untie some of your knots… because right now in this present moment there’s no fires to put out and no need to panic.

Air – Ten of Wands and Here We Are – The overwhelm has been building for quite some time as more and more “children of the corn” keep popping their heads up out of the field to grab your attention. None of these “children” really need your attention though, so stop letting them distract you.

Water – Five of Swords and Get On Your Feet – The fight is not yet over and now’s not the time to rest. In the position of Water, this message is about my emotional growth and not about my work or my ambitions.   The message here is that while I’m easing up on these other topics and endeavors, the work with my emotional growth will be ongoing.

Fire – Hierophant and Follow The Wind – In the New Moon spread shown in my previous post, you also had the Hierophant. There it spoke of the need to tackle head-on where you are feeling overwhelmed in your “roles”… and here with the “follow the wind” card there is a message of needing to let go.

I think I’m going to skip this month’s lesson, which I should be teaching on Wednesday of this week.   But honestly?  I’m just not feeling it and the cards in both of these spreads are saying to “let go” at this time rather than struggling when I’m not feeling it.

Waning – Generosity – It’s time to take that generosity with your time and attention, and turn it inward to yourself.  You give more of yourself than you realize, and you’re tapping yourself out.  Take the time you need to rest, recover, and regenerate.

Waxing – Introspection – As you move away from offering so much of yourself and your time to others, don’t fill that time and energy up with other external distractions.  Instead, take time to focus on yourself.

Take Away – Tell your inner critic to shut the fuck up, step away from the responsibilities that you can afford to ease up on, and take some time for yourself this week. Don’t allow bullshit worries created by your inner critic to distract you back into those things you’ve committed to easing up on… it’s a trick, and will just lead to overwhelm and burn out.

DECKS USED:  TAROT FOR DANDELIONS, SALMON ADVICE ORACLE VOL 3, CREATIVITY ORACLE

Gideon’s Challenge

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Lilac BudsQuality Time…

It’s like
drops of water
in a bucket.
A minute here,
an hour there,
each moment
adding to another
and another.
Over time
we build a life
together
overflowing
with love.

Quality time doesn’t always come in large chunks of hours on end spent together. In fact, it rarely ever comes in that form. Instead, the truth about love is that quality time comes a little bit at a time, a moment here and a few seconds there, an hour here and a few minutes there.  This is how love develops.  This is how love grows.  This is how you fill a life to the brim with love. You sprinkle it throughout until love eventually becomes the whole of it.

Photo © ZenStatePhotography

New Moon in Cancer – June 2020

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New Moon in Cancer 2020 Tarot Spread

Yesterday was 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 brought to you by Ethony‘s Tarot By the Moon series.

1. How can I feed my soul during this moon cycle?

Knight of Pentacles – Keep in mind that the things worth having take time.  Foster patience in your expectations and in your actions as well.  It’s okay to take your time and take things at a slower pace right now.

2. What have I been hiding that needs to come forward?

Ten of Swords – I’m hurting myself with the expectations that I put upon myself.  My inner critic is far more vicious that I’ve been willing to admit to, and it’s becoming a detriment to my well-being. The blood drawn creates a perpetual cycle of exhaustion.

3. What needs to be tackled head-on?

Hierophant – Instead of focusing on the nebulous voice in my head that I can’t pin down, focus on what you can control and what you can do for yourself and others.  Don’t forget that the teacher is also a student.

The shield on the bird’s breast looks too big and too heavy.  It might be a good idea to take a look at all that you’ve taken on and do a little pruning, or take a break so that shield doesn’t feel quite so unwieldy.

4. How can I improve my relationships at this time?

Ace of Swords  – Share my thoughts and ideas instead of keeping them to myself.  Communicate what’s going on with me.  It’s okay to open up with those that you love and trust.

DECK USED:  DREAM RAVEN TAROT