Month: June 2020

Stability For All

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As I mentioned in the post for the 18th, I’m in the process of catching up, although I do remember what happened with today’s meditation.   It was skipped.  I wanted to get on the road to head north for my mail as early as possible, so instead of lying down and risking falling asleep in the middle of my meditation, I skipped it.  I then played with you when I got home until I was dead tired and dropped right to sleep at bed time. So… no meditation today.

Herbal TarotToday’s draw is the Ten of Pentacles, which is a representation of fulfillment and completion in the areas of finance, resources, manifestation, health, and the physical world.

What stood out to me the strongest in the imagery of today’s card was the root (fruit) of the Wild Yam plant on the card.  Dioscorea villosa is a spiritual representation of releasing fears and using one’s talents and skills to better better not just your own position but to help others as well.   What I see here, though, is more than that.  The fruit of this plant holds strength in the soil.  It is the foundation itself that is strong, and where its strength lies.

The message that I see in today’s card has to do with building your own foundation, and using it not just to provide stability and comfort for yourself… but for others as well.  It is a message about cherishing those that are closest to you, and supporting them the best that you are able using the strengths that are at your disposal.

I have worked hard to manifest this stability in my life for a long time, but I have not taken the opportunity until recently to really appreciate the fact that I also provide this stability for others.   Today’s card is a reminder that I’m doing a lot more than I realize.

DECK USED:  HERBAL TAROT

#DiscordTarotholicsJun2020 Challenge Prompt
Question: What can I do to help my inner adolescent feel heard and understood?

Tarot MoodReading Summary:  More fun (The Sun) combined with the assurance of slow and steady stability (Knight of Pentacles).  Don’t let uncertainty (The Moon) turn you harsh and your inner critic vicious (Queen of Swords Rx).

Take Away: As I’ve mentioned before, I don’t really have much of a connection with my inner adolescent, but I see the sense in the approach that the cards lay out here for me.  Who doesn’t want a little more fun, and who (when feeling vulnerable) doesn’t feel the need for a slow but steady hand?

DECK USED:  TAROT MOOD

#TheJuneTarot Challenge by Lionhart
Question: What should I take to heart right now?

Tarot of Metamorphosis

Reading Summary:  Being bossy and commandeering (Chariot) is not going to get me to a place of stability and security (King of Pentacles).  Resist reacting to instability (The Wheel) and follow your intuitive voice instead (High Priestess).

Side note:  I get a good chuckle out of the Chariot card in this deck every time I see it.  The blond is like “Pull my hair again and I’ll eat your face off!!” while the brunette is like “OOhhh, I wish he’d pull my hair like that”.

Take Away:  I need to let up on myself for a bit.   I need to let myself coast for a bit and ease back on the grip on those reigns.   It’s a good time to do it, being that I’m sliding into my slow season with the business. The Wheel card in this reading refers that the ups and downs of my business and how I sometimes freak out when things slip into a lull, but the cards indicate that a lull is just what is needed at this time.

DECK USED:  TAROT OF METAMORPHOSIS

#ConnectWithYourDeckChallenge by E Roebuck-Jones
Question: What is my hardest lesson?

Tarot of a Moon Garden

Reading Summary: Self-love (Ace of Cups Rx), and not deceiving myself into thinking things are bad (Three of Swords) when they’re not (Nine of Cups).

Take Away: I often use my fear of instability and inadequacy as a drive to push myself forward and prod myself into doing more and working harder, especially in times when I really need to take a break but don’t want to let go enough to allow it.  The cards here indicate that my hardest lesson is loving myself enough to recognize I don’t need to use these methods, and I can ease up and be kinder to myself.  I am aware of the lesson I am being asked to learn… it’s just the act of actually learning it, taking i to heart, and putting it into action that I’m struggling with.

DECK USED:  TAROT OF A MOON GARDEN

 

Strength and Resilience

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I’m playing a bit of catch up for the blog posts at the moment.  Being that I’m writing this a couple days behind schedule, I can’t quite remember what my meditation was like on the 18th, but I know that I did meditate.  It’s tomorrow when I skipped it.  So… just a little note to heads up that it did happen, I just don’t remember much about it at this point.

Herbal TarotToday’s draw is the Page of Wands, which is traditionally a representation of a receptive omega energy, personality, or person in the areas of one’s passions, ambitions, interests, and ideas.  The wands suit also sometimes is interpreted as the journey of one’s spirit.

Today this card reminded me of that line in the “Sam I Am” song, that goes “Second verse, same as the first…”  I guess that this could be said about any of the Pages, as that is a part of that receptive omega energy that there is a learning from what has come before and beginning to put together how to carry that knowledge forward into a new cycle of experiences.

In the imagery of this card, what stood out to me the strongest today was the Shepherd’s Purse plant… especially the leaves at the base of the plant. Capsella bursa-pastoris is a very common weed in this area and it is also edible.  When the leaves are young, they are very good in salads.  As they age, their leaves become more peppery in flavor and there are many good recipes (especially in Southeast Asian cuisine) that use the plant as an integral part of their recipes. It is believed on a spiritual and magical level to foster fortitude and inner strength.

The message in today’s card is about repeating cycles.  Sometimes when we learn lessons or strike out on a journey, we end up right back where we were before… just with more knowledge under our belt the second time around.   It’s important, in these times, to remember that you wouldn’t be there if you weren’t strong enough to have made it there. And that means you’re strong enough to take that knowledge you’ve learned and apply it to your forward movement so that you can do things differently (and better) the second time around.

Sometimes, I forget this. At those times it can feel really tiring and trying to find yourself back at the beginning again (or what feels like the beginning).  Today’s card is a reminder that this is not the same beginning as the first time.  This time, you’re more prepared.

DECK USED:  HERBAL TAROT

#DiscordTarotholicsJun2020 Challenge Prompt
Question: How can I help my inner adolescent in letting go of their unresolved angst?

Tarot of Passing ShowersReading Summary:  It’s important to keep a calm level head (Queen of Swords) and remember all the good that you have in  your life (Nine of Pentacles) and have accomplished (Eight of Pentacles) rather than flying off the handle impulsively (Knight of Swords).

Take Away:  The cards appear to be indicating that if I want to help my inner adolescent in letting go of unresolved angst, it is through comforting that inner adolescent and assuring them of our resilience that will do the trick, rather than allowing that angst to break free.

DECK USED:  TAROT OF PASSING SHOWERS

#TheJuneTarot Challenge by Lionhart
Question: Draw one card to reveal a lesson that this retrograde phase wants to teach you.

Tattoo Tarot Ink & IntuitionReading Summary: Choose the path that offers you assistance, or crash and burn alone on your own.

Take Away: The lesson that mercury retrograde wants to try and teach me this time around is that sometimes you have to look up and look around when things start going down hill.  There’s help… but you have to actually notice that its there and reach out for it.  Otherwise, that downhill  momentum will continue and you’ll continue on… miserable and on your own.

DECK USED:  TATTOO TAROT INK & INTUITION

#ConnectWithYourDeckChallenge by E Roebuck-Jones
Question: What is my best achievement for this year?

Brady Tarot

Reading Summary: Finding a level of positivity (Four of Wands) and truth (Seven of Swords Rx) even when the chips are down (Eight of Swords) manifests a magic all its own (Ace of Roots).

Take Away:  The cards here speak about my efforts to try and continue to see positivity in difficult situations, and allowing that positivity to carry forward into my life and the world rather than withering and dying when things feel like they are going the wrong direction.  Optimism really isn’t my strong suit, but it is  something I’ve been trying really hard to foster in myself over the past few months as I recover from the struggle and fear I went through in the winter months.

DECK USED:  BRADY TAROT

 

Gideon’s Challenge

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IMG_5880Bond…

Attached.
Connected,
we ride the waves,
floating in the depths,
crashing on the shore,
caught between
rock and stone
chipped and broken.
Even then,
together
for always,
until dust we become
and beyond.

Photo © ZenStatePhotography

How Long Is Your Reach?

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Today’s meditation was again postponed to take place at bed time.  I know.  And I agree with you that I need to get on track and more dedicated to doing my meditation practice in the morning again.  But it did not happen today.   I will put more of a push behind doing better about this, though. Because you’re right… morning meditation works a lot better for my self care than evening ones do.

Herbal Tarot - Seven of Cups - Juniper BerriesToday’s draw is the Seven of Cups, which is traditionally a representation of being presented with a variety of opportunities, and using one’s heart assist in making choices.  It can also represent feeling overwhelmed by the choices set out before you.

A lot of times when I get this card in my personal readings, it means that I am leaning too heavily on making decisions in my head, and that my heart needs to have its voice included in making whatever decisions are going on at the moment.

What stood out the strongest to me today in the imagery of this card was the sprig of Juniper at the top of the card, and the image of the little blue dragon that looks like its trying to get a nibble off that sprig.

Juniperus communis is used spiritually as a way to protect oneself from negative thoughts and influences, which fits in well with what I see in that little dragon, actually.   As what I see here in the imagery of today’s card and the relationship between the dragon and the Juniper sprig… is empowerment.

When you reach for the things you want, sometimes? Negative thoughts have a way of shortening your reach and influencing you to fall short of your goals.   The message in today’s card is to not allow those negative self dialog to have that kind of power.  It’s not about a specific thing or event, instead this card is about how to build my confidence and become stronger.

DECK USED:  HERBAL TAROT

#TarotForGrowthJune Challenge Prompt
Question: How can I align more with the wildness within me?

Tarot of a Moon Garden

Reading Summary: It is self defeating (Five of Swords) to intellectualize (Nine of Swords) your emotions so much (Queen of Cups). Set them free and allow them to find their own way (Six of Cups).

Take Away:  Funny that we just talked about this a bit ago.  Although, this question refers specifically to connecting more to the wildness within me.   So of course intellectualizing would be self defeating in that goal.  I’m not really sure that connecting to my wildness is what I need right now though.  So perhaps the intellectualizing is a good thing, yeah?

DECK USED:  TAROT OF A MOON GARDEN

#DiscordTarotholicsJun2020 Challenge Prompt
Question: Philosophical Question: Are beliefs and superstitions the same?

Japaridze TarotReading Summary: When driven by our convictions and passions (Queen of Fire), belief and superstition can both provide a sense of emotional fulfillment (Ten of Tides) when we feel that we are being guided and protected by them.

When we connect with others that share the same beliefs or superstitions (Three of Gardens), the experience has the ability to create a sense of intellectual superiority over others that do not share the same views (King of Winds).

By the same turn, both beliefs and superstitions can create a sense of being overburdened if we become too focused upon them and too dependent upon them and their parameters (Ten of Fire).

Take Away:  What is being shown in these cards is about how both belief and superstition are related.  In these ways, they are absolutely the same.  I do think, though, that there are as many differences between belief and superstition as there are similarities.

DECK USED:  JAPARIDZE TAROT

#TheJuneTarot Challenge by Lionhart
Question: What more can I do to ready myself for the next mercury rx?

Simply Deep Tarot

Reading Summary: Have a plan in place (Three of Wands), depend upon your intuition to guide you forward (High Priestess), and keep plowing forward (Chariot).

Take Away:  I’m not usually particularly affected by mercury rx, but the people around me are and as a result what I notice most is a bit of a breakdown in communication between others… and sometimes between others and myself.  Essentially what the cards are telling me is to keep my head down and keep moving.  Don’t allow things to stagnate, and follow my intuition when I need a little boost or a bit of extra direction.

DECK USED:  SIMPLY DEEP TAROT

#ConnectWithYourDeckChallenge by E Roebuck-Jones
Question: What are my 3 goals for the next quarter of the year?

Grimalkin Tarot

Reading Summary: More understanding and nurturing of the self concerning stability goals (Queen of Pentacles. More stable and grounded self talk (King of Swords). Inner growth and maturity (Grimalkin).

Take Away:  I hadn’t really set out to make goals for the next three months, but these sound like really good ones.

The first goal is about allowing myself a bit of wiggle room concerning my usual obsession with stability and security.  This is a topic I’ve been hyper focused on for the majority of my adult life, and I’ve had a lot of readings indicating lately that I need to loosen those barbwire bindings I use to keep everything in control.  I have a feeling that this loosening is necessary if I want to do the restructuring I’ve been working on and have it be a success.

The second goal is about my inner narrative and being more kind to myself.  Or… not so much more kind as less unstable.  Less lashing out, more stability and strength.  There are good kings that make spectacular leaders, and bad kings that are tyrants.  Don’t be a tyrant.

The third goal is about learning from your mistakes and the growth and maturity you develop through experience.  This is a long standing goal, and I feel it’s also a healthy one to continue.

DECK USED:  GRIMALKIN TAROT

Gideon’s Challenge

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SelfSelf…

Rough and ragged.
Flesh once smooth
now
scored and scarred.
Damaged walls protect
inner softness.
What lies within
concealed.
Supportive and nurturing
and yet
thick walls hide
what lies beneath.

Like the tree I have thick walls, although unlike the tree, as I age those walls become thinner. You chip away at them again and again, tirelessly exposing the meaty softness of tender wood beneath. And yet, there is always more bark… more walls to work through.  The bark of this fir tree marks a part of my ‘self’ that I strive to defeat… strive to find balance with. Each year we are together, I get a little bit closer to finding that balance between damaged mess and flawed perfection.  Each year, you help me find another step along that path.

Thank you.

Photo © ZenStatePhotography

 

 

Weekly Creativity Prompt – Magical Spell

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Pull (at least) three cards and use them to write about a magical spell.

The Magus Arcana Deck

There was once a young girl (The Fool) named Emmaline that spent all of her time frolicking by herself (The Hermit) in the forest among the Fae. They taught her many things (The Hierophant) and filled her days with an abundance of joy (The Sun).

Her mother was worried for her daughters safety (The Empress), and did everything in her power to dissuade Emmaline from going out into the woods on her own (The Magician).  When nothing seemed to work, the mother eventually consulted with the old crone witch that lived at the edge of their village (The High Priestess).

The witch was powerful and used her significant magical abilities (Strength) to cast a spell upon Emmaline and pin the girl in place at home (The Hanged Man).

It worked! But it made Emmaline very sad, and the Fae missed her very much (The Tower). So much so that they came to rescue the little girl (The Chariot) and allowed Emmaline to choose if she wanted to live in the forest forever or stay at home with her mother (The Lovers).

Emmaline chose the woods (Death).

The Fae’s powerful magic broke the spell and the little girl bounded off into the forest with the Fae, never to be seen again by human eyes (The World).

DECK USED:  THE MAGUS ARCANA DECK