Month: December 2023

Tarotholics Challenge Dec Spread 1

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#DiscordTarotholicsDec2023 Challenge Spread 1

December Tarot Reading with the Snowland Tarot

Bear – Introspection / Healing – How can a period of introspection help with healing the past year’s pain?

Seven of Pentacles – Sustainable growth takes time and goes through many different phases. One of those phases that encourages growth is time spent looking inward at the self. When we rush, we often try to skip this step, because it’s difficult and uncomfortable, but in taking our time to explore it instead, we come out the other side happier and healthier in the end.

Robin – Compassion / Patience – Where can I express more compassion and patience with others?

Ten of Pentacles – During family times your loved ones could use a bit less snap and snark, and a little more compassion and patience. The stress of the holiday rush is making you snipe more often when you would normally have more patience. An effort toward a bit more compassion and patience will allow everyone to come together comfortably instead of going off into their own corners.

Deer – Gentleness / Intuition – How can I use my intuition to encourage more gentleness and caring this holiday?

Strength – Lean into your interpersonal strengths and seek out the nudge of your intuition to help you learn what others need in order to soften their hard edges and allow them to relax.

Squirrel – Preparation / Resourcefulness – How can prep and resourcefulness help me through the holidays?

The Star – Preparation and your resourcefulness assist in keeping things running smoothly, which in turn then allows you to more easily lean into hope and positivity instead of worry and self-criticism.

Wren – Inspiration / Enthusiasm – Where can I find inspiration to help me be enthusiastic about the holidays this year?

Nine of Pentacles – Stay focused on your accomplishments and how far you have come rather than allowing more negative inner narratives to take control. It’s through acknowledging your accomplishments (no matter how difficult they are to see, and no matter how small or inconsequential they might seem) that you are more easily able to see and enjoy the positives in life and fun in the world around you during the holidays.

Boar – Stubborn Persistence – In what way can stubborn persistence help me through the rest of this year?

Knight of Swords – It will allow you to stay on target and adapt to the sometimes unorthodox methods needed in order to meet your goals. Thinking outside the box is important in order to hit your target.

Owl – Trust / Knowledge – How can the knowledge I’ve gained this year help me to trust myself better?

Wheel of Fortune – Remember that everything you’ve learned is carried with you throughout your life. These lessons don’t go away, but are carried forward with you. Like learning a foreign language, the more you use what you’ve learned, the more it will stick and become natural to you. Use these lessons you’ve gathered through life well and often in order to keep them fresh and easily awakened when you need them.

DECK USED: SNOWLAND TAROT

Gideon’s Challenge

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Autumn CloudsThe Shift

Dark clouds
cast shadows
over the golden glow
of Autumn
while blue skies
peek through
here and there
and off
in the distance
the downpour
rolls over green hills
as Autumn
begins a slow march
into winter

Photo © ZenStatePhotography

Finding the Positive for December 1 – 3

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These Card of the Day readings are a mental health exercise (suggested by my shrink) used to help counterbalance my natural tendency toward pessimism, negative inner narratives, and depression. The request posed to the cards is, “A positive message to carry with me throughout my day and foster perspective.”

Sentient Tarot, Beartarot, Lunar Tarot, and Christmas Affirmation Cards

December 1

Today’s meditation was skipped.

Death – “You are a fighter, ever onwards.”  Change is daunting and can feel like the end of the world sometimes. That doesn’t mean you give up, lie down, and just let everything go. Change is the spark of inspiration for something new to take root in your life and flourish. Don’t give up… seek out that opportunity instead. Remember how good you truly are at adaptation. Adapt and keep moving.

DECK USED: SENTIENT TAROT AND CHRISTMAS AFFIRMATION CARDS

December 2

Today’s meditation was ten minutes long, and was a Daily Calm session from the Calm app. The meditation was a full body yoga nidra, which moved through the entire body from head to foot, before expanding out to encompass the entire body while speaking on the importance of self-nurturing.

Eight of Cups – “You’ve been doing a great job considering all you’ve been up against.”  The Eight of Cups is about letting go and walking away from those things that create emotional turmoil, and today this card combined with the affirmation card pulled, is a reminder (again) to focus on your successes instead of being dragged down by the negative nitpicking going on in your head. Let go of that negativity and worry, stress and anxiety. Turn away from the darkness and move toward the light.

DECK USED: BEARTAROT DECK AND CHRISTMAS AFFIRMATION CARDS

December 3

Today’s meditation was ten minutes long, and was a Daily Calm session from the Calm app. It was a self directed meditation with Celestial Sunbeams by Kip Mazuy playing in the background. I often use this music in my meditation when visualizing being a part of nature. Today’s visualization involved floating beneath the surface of water, tangled up in the roots of a large tree while leaves fell to land on the water’s surface above me.

The Tower – “You don’t have to be perfect to be lovable.” We all fuck up now and then. Sometimes it’s little things, and other times it’s colossal and devastating. Sometimes, it’s inconsequential, and other times it’s a nuclear bomb aimed at the heart of our life. Today’s card is a reminder that it’s okay to fuck up.  It’s okay when things go wrong.

Even when it feels, in the center of the storm, like it’s the end of the world? It’s not. It’s merely the end of the world *as we know it*. There’s something new in the echo after the BOOM of destruction. Don’t let yourself (or others) put you down for these fuck ups. Release the blame and ride them out instead. Get excited for what new thing might be coming on the other side of the chaos.

DECK USED: LUNAR TAROT AND CHRISTMAS AFFIRMATION CARDS

Tarotholics Challenge Dec 1 & 2

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Journey of a Lonely Soul Oracle and the Cosmic Dreamer Oracle

#DiscordTarotholicsDec2023 Challenge
Questions for December 1st and 2nd

Draw 1 – 3 cards. Use each card to describe a quality about yourself that you love

Divine Alignment – I am open to my guides and their guidance. Even before beginning to work with them directly, they were there guiding me through the already learned language of my intuition.

Dreamtime Odyssey – My mind is flexible enough that I am not just always seeking new perspectives but able to understand them and, when needed, adapt my own views when I learn something that no longer makes them useful.

Covenant of Regret – I own my mistakes. Regardless of what the consequences might be, I acknowledge, accept, and openly admit my mistakes to others instead of trying to hide them or shift the blame  onto others when it should be mine.

DECK USED: JOURNEY OF A LONELY SOUL ORACLE

How can you rekindle your inspiration when you’re feeling uninspired?

Reading Summary – Sometimes when you look at things from a different perspective (Paradigm Shift) and try things that you’ve never tried before that make you feel uncomfortable (The Surreal Sea), surprising results come from of it (Butterfly Effect).

Take Away – When you are feeling uninspired, try something new and different. Something that, perhaps, you’ve never tried before.  Sometimes that shift in perspective and breath of fresh air can lend spark to that fire of inspiration and creativity within you.

DECK USED: COSMIC DREAMER ORACLE

Gideon’s Challenge

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Mum FlowersColorful Celebrations

Vibrancy lives on
in small pops
of color
in the autumn cold
and morning frost
that blankets
the blades of grass
and falling leaves
while hardy flowers
burst open
in celebration
at the end
of summer heat
and approach of winter

Photo © ZenStatePhotography

📆 Transitioning from November to December

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Month End Tarot Reading with the Urban Incantations Tarot

Here and Now I Exist – Who you are now, in your entirety.

The World – Major transitions happen around this time of year for you, with the holiday rush changing just about every aspect of your life in one way or another.  Your growth throughout the year comes to a culmination as your focus is drawn elsewhere and held for a stretch of six weeks, and your entire world changes.  Remember that there is a new journey that can once again focus on you and your needs once the race of the holiday rush comes to an end.

The Slough – What is to be left in the past as you move forward.

Knight of Pentacles – The time for slow movement is at an end. Things are picking up speed and you’ll need to move at a faster pace to keep up and succeed.

What Lies Ahead – An ideal state or ideal self you are seeking at this time.

Queen of Pentacles – This month ahead is filled with the potential for the wealth and success needed not only to fulfill your own needs, but also care for and support others.

Limitations – Negative influences, opposition, or ill will.

Five of Cups – Sour grapes and negative inner narratives are not your friend. Make sure you are aware of those self-criticisms and negative self-judgements, and do what you can to counterbalance them for a healthier outlook.

The Boon – Positive influences, higher guidance, or divine intervention.

Nine of Pentacles – Instead of focusing on failings and struggles, as mentioned above, make sure that you are focusing on your successes and accomplishments.  Boost your outlook through positive feedback instead of being a slave driver to yourself that is never pleased or satisfied.

The Wound – An unpleasant past experience or event that is ripe for some support and healing.

King of Swords Rx – Impulsive moments and acting without thought usually ends badly for you… but not always. When it does, though, you kick yourself for these moments instead of letting them go. Work harder to see them as learning experiences instead of failings.

Nostalgia – A positive past experience or event to acknowledge, reflect upon, and enjoy.

Death – You have done well with all the changes that have gone on in your life this year. Don’t lose sight of that ability to adapt and keep going as you move forward this month.

A Warning – Something coming that can be prevented or overcome.

Ten of Cups – Watch out for threats to your emotional security and familial ties. Stay aware of those things that could cause disruption to your “happy family” feelings that you share with others.

Empowerment – A future opportunity to work toward.

Seven of Wands Rx – Remember that sometimes empowerment doesn’t require outward expression. It’s okay to keep your opinions and beliefs to yourself, and stand firm in them without justifying them to others.

Message from the Spirit World – Keep in mind that happiness and success sometimes require you to yield instead of standing strong.

Message from the Mind’s World – Slow progress to your goals and beyond them is still progress. You’ll get there, and soon you’ll be in a position to not just work towards your goals, but support others in working towards theirs as well.

Message from the Physical World – Lack of motivation and strategy combined with negative thoughts equal more and more uncomfortable change in your life.

DECKS USED: URBAN INCANTATIONS TAROT