Gideon’s Challenge – Soul Bathing

Planting RosesSoul Bathing 

No gloves
just dirt
wrist deep
under the nails
and in the grooves
of fingerprints
as hands dig deep
in rich soil
to give life
a new start
and introduce
what will bloom
to it’s new home

Photo © ZenStatePhotography

Seek Out the Boon

Today’s meditation was eleven minutes long, and was one of the #DailyTrip sessions from the @Calm app. Balance vs balancing.

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Practical Tarot's Five of CupsThe @GlitterbyInk #JuneSun25 Challenge
Summer Sunlight Prompt for June 2 : Light
Daily Mental Health Prompt: Seek a positive message to carry with you throughout the day and offer perspective.

Today’s draw is the Five of Cups, which is traditionally a representation of pessimism, regrets, doomsday thinking, disappointments, and occasionally, failure (or at the very least, the perception of failure).

And the cards say… you missed the mark yesterday. Try again.

Maybe the bad shit is actually a boon, yeah?  What was in those cups anyway?

I am struggling. It’s hard to admit to that, but there it is. I thought that I had adapted well to the building that went up across the alley from my own, but what I’m finding instead? Is that I feel closed in and constantly bombarded by noises and smells.

What if this experience has a boon to it, though? What if this struggle is teaching me something about myself and what is essential to my wellness and happiness? What if the experience is to help in my growth?

The Five of Cups for today combined with the “Light” prompt asks us to look at our struggles not as discomfort and misery, but to seek out a lighter view and look for the boon. How is this struggle benefiting you, either now, or in the long run? Instead of wallowing in the negative, seek out the positive spin in order to see things from a lighter viewpoint and actually gain something from this negative experience.

DECK USED:  PRACTICAL TAROT

@LightningWildflower‘s June Tarot Challenge
Discovery Prompts for June 1st thru 3rd

Oracle Reading with the Woodland Wizards Game CardsWhat am I learning about myself?

Golden Phoenix – Above all else, you’re a survivor. You might come out the other side emaciated and tattered, but you will rise, survive, and live on to thrive once more. This is true no matter the hurdle or struggle involved.

What new things would I enjoy researching more about?

Mossy Dryad atop Dark Ferret – Take your camera and its macro lens with you and go scurrying through the undergrowth. There is healing to be found in getting lost in the smallest of nature’s wonders.

What have I discovered recently that I want to share with others?

Deadly Vine – Wow. This went really literal. I’ve noticed that there’s some foxglove and tansy growing in the weeds behind the houses on Ms B’s street. I’ve been considering giving the neighbors a heads up, as many of them have young children and pets.

Other elements included in this reading:
Foraged Wood Fern for Exorcising Negative Influences
Desert Rose for Purification and drawing in Positive Energy

DECK USED: WOODLAND WIZARDS GAME CARDS

Daily Self Kindness

I went out to dinner tonight instead of hiding inside. This is because I recognized that I was trying to wallow in an unhealthy urge (the hiding).

Gideon’s Challenge – Resistance

Steak DinnerResistance

Comfortable
hiding at home
with the curtains
closed
and the ceiling fan on
the invite feels
unwelcome
and is turned down
at first
until
they speak of flavors
and baked shrimp
appetizers
then
it’s time to go

Photo © ZenStatePhotography

Bad Lighting

Today’s meditation was ten minutes long, and was one of the #DailyTrip sessions from the @Calm app.

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Earth Mother Magic Tarot's Five of CupsThe @GlitterbyInk #JuneSun25 Challenge
Summer Sunlight Prompt for June 1st : Beginning
Daily Mental Health Prompt: Seek a positive message to carry with you throughout the day and offer perspective.

Today’s draw is the Five of Cups, which is traditionally a representation of pessimism, doomsday thinking, regrets, disappointments, and occasionally, failure (or at the very least, the perception of failure).

CS Lewis once said, “You can’t go back and change the beginning, but you can start where you are and change the ending.”

The figure in this card trudges into the dark, lit only by a candle and tripping over cups. But if they would just change their perspective, by turning around they would find that the moon will light the way and that not all has been lost.

When you begin something with a negative mindset, it can feel like trudging through the dark with only a candle to light your way.  You struggle to see where you’re going, and trip over things along the way, creating unnecessary setbacks.

Yet, by just changing our own perspective on what we’re doing and how it’s going, we can lighten our load and turn things around.

Today’s prompt and card combo is a reminder that sometimes things aren’t as bad as you think. You just got off to a rough start with your mindset trained in the wrong direction. Take a moment to gather yourself. Take a breath. Look for the good and what’s going well.  Then? Move forward again with this new perspective to guide you.

DECK USED:  EARTH MOTHER MAGIC TAROT

#DiscordTarotholicsJun2025 Challenge
Prompt for June 1st
 : Do Spread 1

Summer Energies Oracle Reading with the Earth Magic Oracle

How is the rise of summer energies manifesting in my life?

Waterfall – Allow things to come as they will and flow with changes rather than trying to fight them. You don’t have to be calm and serene all the time. Instead, let the situation dictate how much or how little energy is needed from you, and expend just enough to suit those needs.

How can I harness these summer energies for my purposes?

Meadow – Remember that it’s okay to be vulnerable. No one is impervious to stress or outside influence. Be authentic and allow yourself to be open to others. You’ll know intuitively when this isn’t safe, so there’s no need to expend so much energy being on guard all the time.

Where would I be best served in directing these energies throughout the summer months?

Mountain – Greater stability can be gained by learning to allow yourself the vulnerability to let go of control and allow things to move at their own pace. Strength doesn’t always come from bracing for the worst, but also through allowing a mindset of allowance and openness to change.

Take Away: Use this summer’s energies to learn to let go and not try so hard to control every aspect of life. Open up to being vulnerable and letting things move at their own pace, and as a result you will reap the benefits of a greater sense of stability.

Other elements included in this reading:
Pressed Pansy Flowers for for Hearing the Heart More Clearly
Dried Rhododendron Leaf for Fostering Confidence
Orange Aventurine Leaves for Pause and Reflection
Selenite for Purification and drawing in Positive Energy

DECK USED: EARTH MAGIC ORACLE

Daily Self Kindness

I took it easy today, and made sure to keep up on the journal entries that I’m doing to track daily accomplishments even though I really felt like just letting it go.

Gideon’s Challenge

Sunset over PubTransitions

two lives
three lives
or even four
lived in
a single day
and as
the sun falls
behind treetops
and mountains
yet another life
begins
as we wonder
where
did the day go?

Photo © ZenStatePhotography

❤️ Self Care Saturday (On a Sunday)

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.

Self Care Saturday Tarot Reading with the New Earth Tarot and Everglow Divination System Cards

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

EarthFour of Wands – You are in need of a sense of comfort and security this week. Celebrate your time at home and focus on making it more welcoming so that each time you return home it feels like you’re being welcomed back.

AirNine of Mirrors (Pentacles) – Continue with your logging of your daily accomplishments. Your self destructive tendencies are trying to curtail what is working, and you need this lasting tangible proof that you are getting things done right now to silence your negative inner narrative’s claims that you’re accomplishing nothing.

WaterWoman (Queen) of Swords – Don’t go exclusively by what you feel this week. You need a little logical guidance to keep your head above water. That includes if you need an emergency session with your shrink? You do it. She can help you in getting your anxiety under control if the attacks you’ve experienced the last few days continue.

FireSix of Pentacles – Be generous with your time. There are people in your life that are going to need a little extra attention this week. Giving them this helps create a stronger, more long lasting bond, and can be healing to all involved. Just make sure you’re also resting when you need it.

WaningSurrender/Resistance and Air – There is such a thing as being too stubborn for your own good. That said? Make sure when you’re going with the flow this week that you’re not letting that flow direct you into going against your nature. Balance and boundaries are still important.

WaxingDiscipline/Time and Upheaval/Awakening – Take care that you aren’t filling your plate to the point you can’t make room for surprises and the unexpected to pop up. You need that extra wiggle room this week, so make sure it gets baked into your plans.

Take Away – Even though there’s encouragement to give your time to others this week, make sure that your boundaries stay in place and aren’t being compromised on.  Be true to yourself, and make sure that you have a comfortable place to retreat when you need to, and that you reach out for help when its needed. Take care that your self destructive tendencies don’t slip in and start pissing in the soup, because the things you’re doing for yourself right now are working and you need to continue with them.

Other elements included in this reading:
Dried Rhododendron Leaf for Fostering Confidence
Conch Shell Knot for Concentration, Clarity, and Determination
Selenite for Purification and drawing in Positive Energy

DECKS USED: NEW EARTH TAROT AND THE EVERGLOW DIVINATION SYSTEM