Quiet Moments
Sunset
and shadow
play games
high above
as we sit
together
on a cold bench
tucked in
to each other’s
warmth
and watch
as the sun sinks
and the sky
turns vibrant
as light
begins to fade
Author: Twist the Leaf
New Years Cartomancy Reading
Card to represent my energies this year.
Queen of Diamonds – Growing and fostering stability in your own life and others. You provide a sense of stability for those around you, and help to encourage them in creating that feeling of stability for themselves.
What do I need to invest in this year?
Four of Hearts – You need to start meditating again. You dropped the ball on that last year, and it’s time to pick it back up and get it working for you once again.
How can I trust change this year?
Seven of Clubs – No matter the changes and challenges you face, your values and principles are unshakeable and will guide you through to the other side. Don’t worry so much that changes might draw you off course, as your stubborn persistence in what is true and right for you is part and parcel to who you are and cannot be taken away.
What am I ready to leave behind as the year changes?
Eight of Diamonds – You have overworked yourself to the point of exhaustion, and thrived through the most difficult part of your work year. Now it is time to put away all that determined diligence, and have some rest and a bit of fun instead.
How can I welcome more harmony into my life this year?
Five of Spades – Don’t bother with butting heads with others this year. You’re already on top and there’s no need to go out of your way to prove it.
New year guidance from my guides.
Two of Clubs – Set your course and make your plans. Make lists of what you want to accomplish and map things out so that you don’t feel overwhelmed by the journey before you.
DECK USED: FESTUM PLAYING CARDS
Staying Open to New Opportunities
Today’s meditation was skipped.
Today’s draw is the Four of Moons (Pentacles), which is traditionally a representation of stability, stubbornness, stagnancy,
The hand in this card’s illustrations isn’t just holding on to one of the four moons on the card… it’s fisted around it and gripping it tight. Too tightly… as it leaves those other moons floating out beyond reach.
The message in today’s card is that if you stick to one path with too much single minded purpose, you will miss seeing the other opportunities out there waiting for you. The thing is? If you are holding on too tightly to the one thing that makes life feel secure? Your hand is no longer open and able to take on and experience the new things that come along.
Some may think “well that’s fine, because I’m happy with what I’ve got”… but for how long are you going to be happy there? How long before what feels like security becomes a cage of stagnancy that you can’t escape from?
Today’s card encourages us to not let our grip on the security and stability of a sure thing cage us in and keep us from experiencing new things, exploring new and better opportunities, and growing as a person.
CrowSister’s #DeckStudyTenTrueWords Prompt
Prompt: Distill your reading of the card to your ten truest words.
Move beyond
the cage
of lost opportunities
you cling to
DECK USED: THE WANDERING MOON TAROT
Lionharts’ #TheJanuaryTarot 2023 Year of Evolution Challenge Prompt
Question for January 6th: Go through your deck, card by card, until you find a card that depicts how you envision yourself by the end of 2023. Place it on the table then do a reading asking “What should I embrace or let go of to reach this?”
What You Envision – Tigers Eye – Success and grounded healing. Like all year endings, I will be stepping away from the holiday rush. Having neglected and abused myself with my single-minded pursuit of success in my holiday rush goals, I will be in need of healing and recuperation, and this will be a time to ground myself once more to begin rebuilding my strength.
What should I embrace to reach this?
To further this outcome and the recovery of your strength, the end of 2023 needs to include reconnecting with and embracing your emotions (Cancer) as well as your creative spark (Benzaiten). Set them free and allow them to flourish during this time, so that they can get some air after being caged for the seven weeks prior to Christmas.
What should I let go of to reach this?
You will also need to release your stubborn workaholic drive for more stability (Taurus) and the habit of closing yourself off to the beauty of the world around you (Xōchiquetzal) that your drive during the holiday rush causes you to turn away from. Stop pushing the outside world away and lean into gratitude rather than the constant strive for more.
DECK USED: SPIRIT ALLIES ORACLE
#DiscordTarotholicsJan2023 Challenge Prompt
Question for January 6th: What do you need to focus on for self care this full moon?
Reading Summary: Be generous with yourself (Six of Moons) while learning how to deal with chaotic disruptions that shake your sense of stability (The Tower atop Page of Moons).
Take Away: There is a high probability that there will be a few disruptions coming up in the week ahead that may leave you feeling unbalanced and uncertain.
If you are unable to sidestep these disruptions entirely, make sure that you are generous and kind with yourself as you deal with them. Don’t beat yourself up too much, as spending time berating yourself rather than dealing with the situation with acceptance and understanding will just cause more problems.
DECK USED: THE WANDERING MOON TAROT
I took an early nap today so that I could make some more room in my time for Gid and I to play a bit.
Gideon’s Challenge
The Unseen
Worlds lie
within worlds
secret and private
different
and alien
as they grow
and develop
mere inches
from our noses
and yet
unnoticed
by most
as they begin
to take over
little by little
Photo © ZenStatePhotography
🌕 Full Moon in Cancer – January 2023
Today is the full 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 @HermitsMirror.
Fuel: How can I express my emotions in a way that nurtures them?
Four of Wands – When you express your comfort and happiness in being around others, they feel more comfortable doing the same with you. We all need to hear these things sometimes.
Magical Peak: Where in my life can I call in my soul family?
Page of Pentacles – Let those you hold dear (of the living, dead, and other) help you in staying positive during times when you feel like things are moving at a snail’s pace.
Purging: What emotional rubble can be released into the Void?
Three of Swords – Remember that once you have expressed your disappointment, it’s time to let it go. Letting the disappointment continue to linger is harmful to you and has no positive outcomes or benefits.
Clear Mirror: Where does my inner knowing conflict with internal desires?
Four of Swords – Just because you know you need to rest, and that it’s an important and essential part of life, doesn’t mean that it’s what you really want to do with your time. Neither does it make it any less necessary just because you want to skip it.
Dancing Luminaries: How can I honor my spirit through this material body?
Three of Wands – Stay on course with the path you have chosen. Sometimes distractions can happen, but you need to make sure that you are orienting back onto your path and not getting mired in the weeds.
Full Moon advice from the Minoan Goddess Amalthea.
Knight of Pentacles atop Temperance – Now is the time of slowing down in your life, and you’re going to have to tap into your patience and keep moderation in mind as you move forward. Don’t let the slow pace fool you into thinking you’re not making any progress.
DECK USED: PORCELAIN TAROT
Don’t Forget the Stick
Today’s meditation was skipped.
Today’s draw is the Knight of Wands, which is traditionally a representation of an active projective beta energy, personality, or person in the area of one’s drive, determination, passions, motivations, values and principles, and/or inner spark.
The only thing a dog holds more sacred than his stick is his bone (which has clearly been left at home for safe keeping), and so it is off to charge out into the woods this dog goes with stick in mouth, holding on to what is most valued even as he plunges headlong into his next big adventure.
There is a lot of impulsiveness in the Knight of Wands, as it is his nature to charge forward with eagerness and boundless energy. Today’s card reminds us, though, that even as enthusiastic as we might be to dive into a new project or adventure, make sure that we don’t leave our values and priorities behind in the process. Who we are and the kind of person we wish to become should be unwavering… even in the chaotic enthusiasm of something new and exciting.
CrowSister’s #DeckStudyTenTrueWords Prompt
Prompt: Distill your reading of the card to your ten truest words.
Hold tight
to values
and principles
while diving
into adventure
DECK USED: ETHEREAL FOREST TAROT
Lionharts’ #TheJanuaryTarot 2023 Year of Evolution Challenge Prompt
Question for January 5th: Go through your deck, card by card, until you find a card that depicts what you would like to establish this month. Place it on the table then do a reading asking “What can I do to achieve this?”
What You Want to Achieve – Lunar Light – I don’t want to just be guided forward into the future by the faint glimmering lights of hope. I wish to collect those lights up and bring the close to me, fostering positivity and optimism in order to save myself from becoming lost in the encroaching darkness that usually begins to creep up on me at this time of year.
What can I do to achieve this?
When you feel your energy, efforts, and mood beginning wane (Waning Crescent), connect more strongly with your spirituality and spiritual practices (Taking the Moonlight), and reach out to connect with those you love to get their help in bolstering you in your efforts (Lover’s Moon).
DECK USED: MOON MAGIC ORACLE
#DiscordTarotholicsJan2023 Challenge Prompt
Question for January 5th: National Bird Day – How can engaging socially with others lift your spirits?
Reading Summary: Allow socializing with others to lighten your mood and bring a bit of frivolity into your life (The Fool). Not everything has to be so serious and in your control all the time (The Magician), and a little fun won’t hinder your ability to grow and adapt (Death), nor will it send you off course from your chosen path (Three of Wands).
Take Away: You have a habit of being too serious and always a bit too single minded. It robs you of the joy and fun that is needed in your life. Engaging socially with others helps lift your spirits by pulling you away from that always-serious mentality and shoving you into situations where you can let go and have a little fun, and forget for a time about the fear that you’re going to “drop the ball” somewhere else in your life by cutting loose now and then with friends and loved ones.
DECK USED: ETHEREAL FOREST TAROT
I took a nap today, and I also got a little bit of play with Gid, even if it was interrupted.
Twisting the Leaf 