Month: June 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

Inspiration and Warmth

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Today’s meditation was ten minutes long and I was a little distracted because I think I’ve devised a plan to make more room for my decks.  I know, I know.  Not what I should be thinking of during meditation, but it kept popping into my head.  SO…  I suppose you could look at it as that I got a lot of mental push ups done during those ten minutes as I kept bringing myself back to center.

Herbal TarotToday’s draw is the King of Wands, which is traditionally interpreted as a projective alpha energy, personality, or person in the area of one’s passions, ambitions, interests, and drive.    This often translates into themes that deal with inspirational leadership, authority mixed with an entrepreneurial spark, and vision one is on a path of leading others towards.

What stands out to me the strongest in the imagery of today’s card is the cinnamon plant combined with the very strong look of determination on the face of the figure on the card and the fact that he is facing (to my way of reading right and left) the past.

Magically speaking, cinnamon is used to create a spark of inspiration and warmth, and what I see in the direction that the King faces here is that sometimes you have to look to the past in order to find the strength you need to move forward… and lead others forward with you… into the future.

The message here is about learning from the past instead of discounting it or trying to forget it.  The wise leader does not ignore lessons learned or potential lessons in their past, instead they take these experiences and move forward with them, letting them help and guide his steps and… in turn… the steps of those that follow them.

Although I do not really consider myself a leader, I do consider myself a guide and I enjoy helping others find their own personal path and discover what works for them and fits for them.  This means I don’t seek to create conformity, but rather to inspire… and I use my past experiences in many different ways to help in this goal.   Today’s card is an encouragement, and a reminder, to continue along this path with warmth and inspiration.

DECK USED:  HERBAL TAROT

#TarotForGrowthJune Challenge Prompt
Question: What toxic beliefs would I benefit from releasing?

Happy Tarot

Reading Summary: You need to take some time and reflect (Hanged Man) on the fact that you don’t have to be perfect all the time (Six of Wands).  Better to own your mistakes and transform them into strength (Queen of Cups).

Take Away:  The belief I need to release is that deeply ingrained need to do better and be better all the time.   The problem is that in that drive is the inner critic that makes sure that any time I fall short from these impossible standards, I pay the price for it.   The cards suggest to take a more understanding and caring approach, and ease up on that demand for perfection from myself.

DECK USED:  HAPPY TAROT

#DiscordTarotholicsJun2020 Challenge Prompt
Question: What do I need to focus on for self-care for this new moon?

Tarot SireneReading Summary: It’s time to start moving in a direction (Three of Wands) that fosters your passions (Queen of Wands). This means that you might have to make some difficult choices (Two of Swords, and deal with a bit of sacrifice concerning your need for stability (Five of Coins).

Take Away:  A lot of the readings over the past few days have touched on this need to let go and allow myself some room to breathe and time to have some fun.  Here there is encouragement that now is the time.  The energy of the new moon gives a chance to start again, and I need to utilize that energy to move away from the slave driver mentality concerning my business and into an energy of more fun and enjoyment while things with the business are slow.

DECK USED:  TAROT SIRENE

#TheJuneTarot Challenge by Lionhart
Question: Instead of starting something new, what is something current I could focus on this new moon cycle?

Nicoletta Ceccoli Tarot

Reading Summary (left to right):  It’s time to put an end (first card) to the slave driver mentality you saddle yourself with (second card), because overwhelm (third card) puts you on shaky ground (fourth card) and is not your friend (last card).

Take Away: These cards are pretty much a reiteration of what has been coming up over and again throughout the past few days. The cards have given me this answer in different imagery and different phrasing again and again.  I’m doing my best to listen, and to direct my energy away from obsessing over my business and onto other things… it’s just a struggle to achieve and feels like two steps forward for every one step back.

DECK USED:  NICOLETTA CECCOLI TAROT

#ConnectWithYourDeckChallenge by E Roebuck-Jones
Question: What am I grateful for?

Tarot of the Animal Lords

Reading Summary: That the cycle of life (imagery in The Wheel) may take me through many changes and a lot of chaos (The Tower), but it also provides me with a new perspective for each experience I have (The Hanged Man).

Take Away:  Sometimes I forget just how grateful I am for this quality in myself to take the negative aspects of what has happened in my life and turn them into a perspective that allows for positive growth.  Occasionally, though, I run into someone that seems determined to wallow in the feelings of negativity and victimization that horrible events can create, and I realize anew just how glad I am that I am not able to linger in that place. I think that my life is far better for it.

DECK USED:  TAROT OF THE ANIMAL LORDS

 

Gideon’s Challenge

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Cladonia gracilis – Black Foot CladoniaPhysical Touch…

Fingertips
and breath through lips
you skim against skin
and goosebumps rise.
Awake
Aware
with bated breath
I wait.

More.

Photo © ZenStatePhotography