Brain Fog
in a world
filled with
shades of gray
I long for
the bright flash
of a smile
that can shine
a light
that can
pierce through
the darkness
and clear away
the fog
Gideon’s Challenge – Brain Fog
Author: Twist the Leaf
Looking Beneath the Mask
Today’s meditation was a ten minute self-guided session based on an affirmation card that says, “You are strong and smart and you’ve got this!”
• • • ◈ • 🎃 • ◈ • • •
The @GlitterbyInk #OctoberAlchemy26 Challenge
Bless Prompt for October 8th : Magic
Daily Mental Health Prompt: Seek a positive message to carry with you throughout the day and offer perspective.
Today’s draw is the Six of Wands, which is traditionally a representation of public accolades, societal expectations, people pleasing, and peer pressure.
People pleasing is it’s own kind of magic; its own kind of manipulation. In pleasing others, we are trying to convince them to let us in, to like us, to want us, to depend on us, to admire us and want to be near us.
It’s a manipulation of perspective; sometimes healthy, and sometimes not. It can be a trap of our own making if we allow our ego and self worth to depend on others, or a tool used to manipulate how others see and treat us.
The message in today’s Six of Wands card and Magic prompt is a reminder that it’s important to look beyond the public image and accolades. Is that person you admire really an admirable person, or do they simply have a skill that allows them to make others think they are? Don’t just trust the public facing mask… look deeper.
DECK USED: BEETLEJUICE TAROT AND TWIST’S HALLOWEEN AFFIRMATIONS DECK
#DiscordTarotholicsOct2026 Challenge
Prompt for October 8th : Skeleton – What secrets are you hiding that need exposed?
Reading Summary: Ms Luna (You meet a creature…) is nearly a year overdue for her vet check up and shots. You’ve avoided bringing her in because the vet you used to bring her to changed hands (The Medical Suite) and you don’t like the new one (Advancement Rx: The chain of command squeezes at your throat).
You need to do some local resourcing (Yes,but…) to find a new vet and get Ms Luna in to see them so that she can be checked over, cared for, and vaccinated. After all, just as she takes care of you, you need to take good care of her too (The Cat).
Take Away: It’s not a big secret but the fact you’ve been slacking in this area is problematic. Get this taken care of. Ask around for some recommendations and referrals. It’s time to get back into the swing of things.
Other elements included in this reading:
Pressed Pansy Flower for Hearing the Heart More Clearly
Oregon White Oak Leaf for Strength, Stability, and Longevity
Selenite for Purification and drawing in Positive Energy
DECK USED: THE ZONE GAME CARDS
October Prompts by @forgotten.dumpling & @ml.mecham
Prompt for October 8th : weathered words
we say them again and again
until they are frayed at the edges
and faded with wear
(Eight of Diamonds)
yet each time they feel like new
as you whisper them in my ear
(Ace of Clubs)
and butterflies stir deep in my belly
in a whirlwind only you can create
(Eight of Clubs)
awakening a longing ache
that only you can satisfy
(King of Hearts atop Ten of Hearts)
I love you
Other elements included in this reading:
Dried Rosebuds for Potential and Beauty Waiting to Unfold
Selenite for Purification and drawing in Positive Energy
DECK USED: MONSTERS OF FOLKLORE PLAYING CARDS
@owlandbonestarot #OctoberinBetween Challenge
Prompts for October 8th
Release – Three of Swords – Spending too much time dwelling on your failures and disappointments leaves you stuck in a cloud of prolonged mourning that is not just unhealthy, but holds you back from experiencing and enjoying what life has to offer.
It’s okay to feel these feelings, but it’s important to feel them, acknowledge them, and then release them rather than holding on.
Receive – Nine of Swords Rx – When you release those negative feelings, you release with them the space within you that fears and anxieties find to be rich and fertile soil to grow in. Thus, you are open to reviving and experiencing a view of the world rich with potential and possibly, rather than filled with things to fear.
Other elements included in this reading:
Bird Figurine for Encouraging Hope, Positivity, and Renewal
Moss Agate for Attracting Opportunities for Growth
Selenite for Purification and drawing in Positive Energy
DECK USED: BEETLEJUICE TAROT
I insisted on some outdoor time, regardless of the fact that I’m the only person on this trip that wants it and the rest of them see it as a waste of time they could be using to play in the casino.
Gideon’s Challenge – Relaxed
Relaxed
lie with me
in dappled sunlight
among the moss
wood sorrel
and clover
and watch
as the leaves
above
sway and dance
as they
announce autumn
by changing color
Photo © ZenStatePhotography
Regurgitated Judgements
Today’s meditation was a ten minute self-guided session based on an affirmation card that says, “Whatever you manage to do is enough.”
• • • ◈ • 🎃 • ◈ • • •
The @GlitterbyInk #OctoberAlchemy26 Challenge
Bless Prompt for October 7th : Memory
Daily Mental Health Prompt: Seek a positive message to carry with you throughout the day and offer perspective.
Today’s draw is the Six of Wands, which is traditionally a representation of public accolades, societal expectations, people pleasing, and peer pressure.
Don’t let the expectations of those in your past influence how you treat yourself in the present.
We learn a lot of lessons in our lifetime. Some of them are easy to grasp, others we end up repeating over and over.
For me, one of the lessons I find I’ve yet to fully learn is how to shut out the past from creeping into my present judgmentalism towards myself. It’s as if I absorbed all those unreasonable and unrealistic expectations that others placed upon me and made them my own expectations and demands for myself.
The message in today’s Six of Wands card and Memory prompt asks us to consider where our harsh self-judgements really come from, and if they are really worth holding onto or if it’s time to let them go.
DECK USED: PENNY DREADFUL TAROT AND TWIST’S HALLOWEEN AFFIRMATIONS DECK
#DiscordTarotholicsOct2026 Challenge
Philosophical Question for October 7th : Do ghosts exist?
Feledir – Industriousness. There are times when a soul lingers because they still have something to do. This task can be great or small, but they ultimately linger until they can either let it go or it’s completed.
Netling – Flighty and frivolitous. Sometimes people’s souls linger simply because they want to stay and play and explore a bit more. Emotional attachments may keep them anchored, but their souls ultimately linger out of sentimentality and an emotional connection with others that they have no desire to break.
Anarach – Forced to linger due to closed thinking. These spirits tend to stay not necessarily because they want to, but rather because they are too stubborn to give up control. This is different than having a task to complete, for it’s more about refusal to accept their new path than anything needing to be completed.
Take Away: Yes, ghosts exist, and clearly many more of them than we realize. These cards show that the soul may linger for a variety of reasons, the three above listing off some of the most common.
Other elements included in this reading:
Bird Figurine for Encouraging Hope, Positivity, and Renewal
Dried Cedar Bundle for Protection from Negative Influences
Gray Agate for Instilling Gentleness, Calm, and Stability
Desert Rose for Purification and drawing in Positive Energy
DECK USED: SHADOWMYTHS MALOCHI MONSTER DECK
October Prompts by @forgotten.dumpling & @ml.mecham
Prompt for October 7th : stalked by my cravings
there is peanut butter in the pantry
and leftovers in the fridge
but it’s the ice cream in the freezer
I reach for in a pinch
(Jack of Clubs)
at the drive through window
it’s not juice or water I want
but chocolate milk or soft serve
that will really hit the spot
(Three of Clubs)
the healthy options are there,
and they don’t get thrown away,
but it takes much longer to go through them
when my cravings are holding sway
(King of Clubs)
Other elements included in this reading:
Roots and Branches Design on Cedar for Interconnectivity
Dried Purple Heather Flowers for Independence and Luck
River Rock for Resilience within Life’s Flow
Selenite for Purification and drawing in Positive Energy
DECK USED: LURKING PLAYING CARDS SILVER VEIL EDITION
@owlandbonestarot #OctoberinBetween Challenge
Prompts for October 7th
Question – Two of Swords – Make sure you are questioning the big decisions. Especially the ones that seem easy and obvious, but could have far reaching ramifications.
Take some time to think on things, rather that becoming impatient and choosing blindly just to get the selection making process out of the way.
Trust – Three of Pentacles – Not every problem can be decided on as a group.
If you have a true opinion and know your choice is the right one, sometimes consulting others can confuse the issue more than they help. Trust, in these instances, that you know the answer instead of reaching for outside input.
Other elements included in this reading:
Bird Figurine for Encouraging Hope, Positivity, and Renewal
Foraged Pin Oak Leaf for Strength and Endurance
Green Aventurine for Harmony and Balance of the Heart
Desert Rose for Purification and drawing in Positive Energy
DECK USED: PENNY DREADFUL TAROT
I didn’t head out first thing in the morning as I’d originally planned, but instead allowed myself to have a slow and easy morning before hitting the road..
Gideon’s Challenge – Gratitude
Gratitude
autumn arrives
in splashes of color
that tumble down
from branches
and dance
among
the green grass
buffeted
by breezes
with a nip
that chills fingertips
and noses
for the first time
in months
Photo © ZenStatePhotography
The Potential in Endings
Today’s meditation was a ten minute DailyTrip session from the @Calm.
• • • ◈ • 🎃 • ◈ • • •
The @GlitterbyInk #OctoberAlchemy26 Challenge
Burn Prompt for October 6th : Transform
Daily Mental Health Prompt: Seek a positive message to carry with you throughout the day and offer perspective.
Today’s draw is the Death card, which is traditionally a representation of gradual organic changes, loss, slow moving transitions, and letting go.
People who are not educated in tarot (and even sometimes those who are and know better) often have a very visceral reaction to seeing the Death card.
Yes, the Death card is about endings, but it’s extremely rare its appearance is a prediction of literal loss of life. In most cases, it means the eventual organic end to something. Like the completion of Hamlet sans intermissions after realizing you’ve been sitting so long your ass has gone numb. And like this hypothetical theater production, these endings come with them opportunity (such as with our example… getting up and walking around, and getting fresh air).
Sometimes endings give us small opportunities, like mentioned above. Sometimes these endings are transformational, such as graduation from high school or college. There’s always opportunity, though, as long as you’re looking for it.
The message in today’s Death card and Transform prompt is a reminder to look for the opportunities that endings offer you. Don’t get so wrapped up in the ending itself that you forget to look beyond it.
DECK USED: TAROT OF SATAN
October Spooky Season Challenge by @MercuryTarot
Prompt for October 4th and 5th
What role do I play at a party?
Mask, Metamorphosis, Clover
You tend to be a responsible guest, adapting and changing roles as needed to ensure things go off without a hitch. Sometimes that means standing back and watching, other times it can mean stepping in to help in some way.
You tend to look for the hitches and hiccups, and make sure things like that get smoothed over instead of letting them spiral out of control or become a problem.
Are my values more modern or traditional?
Mouse, West, Tower
You tend to take things (including values and other traditional themes) and change them, making them your own rather to conforming to what others expect from you.
That said, there is a traditional bent to your values, even if it doesn’t always look like it from the outside. This inner core of tradition isn’t about other’s teachings or societal expectations, though, but rather about what feels right to you.
Other elements included in this reading:
Foraged Parmeliaceae Lichen for a “Breath of Fresh Air”
DECK USED: COSMIC BUTCHER’S WALK THROUGH THE ETERNAL GARDENS ORACLE & LENORMAND
October Prompts by @forgotten.dumpling & @ml.mecham
Prompt for October 6th : dirt beneath my fingernails
chaos rages wild in a cacophony in my brain
emotions out of control and thoughts driving me insane
(Eight of Clubs atop Five of Clubs; Three of Spades)
until all I want to do is make it all stop
and salty tears escape to fall like raindrops
(Ten of Clubs and Five of Hearts)
this is when I step outside with bare feet to dirt
and dig fingers and toes into soil to release the hurt
(Three of Clubs and King of Diamonds)
threads of energy digging deep to tangle up with roots
so I can ground in peace and seek out the truth
(Queen of Diamonds atop Four of Spades; Jack of Spades)
Other elements included in this reading:
Foraged Parmeliaceae Lichen for a “Breath of Fresh Air”
Oregon White Oak Leaf for Strength, Stability, and Longevity
Foraged Oak Branch with Moss and Lichen for Perseverance
Dried Red Maple Leaf for Adaptability and Connection
Clear Quartz for boosting Mental Clarity
Rose Quartz for Gentle Kindness to Self and Others
Desert Rose for Purification and drawing in Positive Energy
DECK USED: INFERNO PLAYING CARDS
@owlandbonestarot #OctoberinBetween Challenge
Prompts for October 6th
Engage – The Moon Rx – Make sure that you are engaging in those things that hold a bit of certainty for you.
You need an extra bit of that certainty right now to ensure that your imagination isn’t running amok, so make sure you are connecting with and participating in those things that help you feel the stability under your feet.
Retreat – Knight of Wands – The above includes when you are going after your passion pursuits.
Don’t allow your enthusiasm talk you into something that doesn’t show a clear reward from the onset. Now is not the time to be jumping in blindly or taking risks.
Save your desire to experiment and try new things for later on when you’re feeling more stable and surefooted.
Other elements included in this reading:
Dried Rosebuds for Potential and Beauty Waiting to Unfold
Chestnut for Bolstering the Sacred Masculine Within
Selenite for Purification and drawing in Positive Energy
DECK USED: TAROT OF SATAN
I did a good deal of sleeping today. I feel like I’m struggling to get back on even keel after too much people time.
