Your Energy
Tendrils
of golden light
curl gentle
and tenacious
around wrists
to tangle fingers
as warmth soaks
beneath skin
even
through distance
to find sticky grip
upon my heart
and soul
Weekly Creativity Prompt – Near and Dear – The Aces
Prompt: First, pull the Aces out of a deck of your choice. Then consider… Do you have someone in your life that fits with the theme of one of the cards? Do you have people in your life that would fit with each of them? Share the connection you see between each Ace card and the person in your life it represents.Â
Ace of Pentacles – The bakery could run on its own these days, and he could spend his time in an office while others do the work. And yet, every morning he gets up at 3AM, and is in the bakery by 4 in the morning to start the first batches of bread for the day. This is his quiet time, where he can bake loaves of bread, buttery croissants, and sweet scones… And feel content in the fact that he’s feeding the world, and that every bit of food he brings into existence is going to feed someone, whether it’s the customers that come in to buy his breads and confections or the needy that receive what’s left at the end of each day.
Ace of Swords – If you’re stuck in a rut? This is the woman to talk to. She’s full of ideas and happy to share with anyone that needs a little bit of encouragement. Sit down with her and let her fill your head with the possibilities of what you could do. Brainstorm about where you’re going, and talk long into the night as you bounce ideas off each other. She will inspire you, and give you a peek into the possibilities at your fingertips, helping you to find your way to unstuck so that you can follow those potential ideas into a new path.
Ace of Cups – He smiles without provocation, his laugh is infectious, and he cries at the drop of a hat. With his heart on his sleeve, every touching commercial causes his heart to pitterpat and his eyes to shine with tears, a happy ending will do the same, and an audio book as well. Music creates souring emotions that he rides like a surfer rides waves, immersed in the emotions of the music as they carry him away. He feels with every shred of his being, and loves with all his heart. He feels pain deeply… but then, he feels everything deeply.
Ace of Wands – Her house is filled with Rubbermaid tubs, cardboard boxes, and shoe-boxes, knitting bags, totes, and skeins of yarn, scraps of fabric and wicker baskets filled with this and that. Paints and paintbrushes, candle molds, boxes of wax, and little baubles. Beads and pearls and epoxy mixes and everything in between. She knows how to do everything, learning skill after skill, starting project after project… and yet none of them are ever finished before her attention is caught by the next new thing to learn, discover, and explore.
DECK USED:Â INSIGHT TAROT
Don’t Sweat the Small Stuff
Today’s meditation was subverted for a nap. Apparently I needed the sleep more than I realized, as I was going to be doing a guided meditation and as soon as I settled in place… I dozed right off to sleep.  I will try to meditate again before bed.
Today’s draw is the Nine of Swords, which is traditionally a representation of anxiety, insomnia, and struggling with one’s inner voice and worries.
I’ve always loved this card in a wide variety of decks. It’s one that I relate to greatly.  What stands out the strongest in the imagery of this card today is the astronomical symbols on the blanket covering the woman in the image. Or rather, it’s the style of artwork that allows for some of those symbols to be so crisp and precise, and others to be blurred or indistinct.
I understand that this was an artistic choice, and one that was probably not intended to convey a message. And yet, to me… it does. It speaks of allowing yourself not to worry so much about the little things.  It’s about that phrase “don’t sweat the small stuff” because perhaps these details are so small that many wouldn’t even notice them… and perhaps so unimportant that some wouldn’t pay attention. And yet to the artist? These detail are very important and a conscious choice was made not to make them so minutely detailed that they took up the focus of the image as a whole.
There’s always lots and lots of things to worry about in life, but we need to make sure we don’t get so focused on the small stuff that we forget to look at the big picture and allow ourselves to get a good night’s sleep at night. Let go of some of the small stuff and all those micromanaging inclinations… take a breath and relax.
DECK USED:Â HEAVEN & EARTH TAROT
LionHart’s Elements Tarot Challenge Prompt
Question: What am I asked to do about elements within myself that don’t support my plans?
 Reading Summary: Go on your merry way (The Fool) after the things that light your fire (Pupil of Lighters), and don’t allow your responsibility to others (Forecaster of Coins) to overwhelmed you (Ten of Lighters).
Take Away: This isn’t about ignoring those elements within myself that hold me back, but rather allowing my enthusiasm to overpower them and weigh that enthusiasm as having far more weight than the responsibilities that try to drag me down.  In other words… beware the burnout that can happen when you let those that depend on you become a burden instead of an asset.
DECK USED:Â MUNDANE MAGICK TAROT
#DiscordTarotolicJan2021 Challenge Prompt
Question: What do I need to focus on for self-care during this new moon?
Reading Summary: Down moods and depression happens (Three of Swords). Use your strengths to rise above (Strength) and remember it’s only temporary (Wheel of Fortune).
Take Away: The whisper of my negative inner narrative has been flirting at the edges of my subconscious for about a week now. The cards are a warning of the whispers that are trying to slip in and mess with my head. They are a reminder than I am strong and I have tools at my disposal to help curb the coming depression into something more manageable. They are also a reminder that these struggles are not permanent. They are temporary, and they will pass.
Depression often feels like it will never end, that you will never feel better and that this is feeling of depression is your existence for always. Keeping in mind that it is temporary is an important part of making it through these times and to the other side.
DECK USED:Â FUTURE VISION GEM TAROT
Gideon’s Challenge
A Good Frolic
Lets hold hands
and wander
where the air
licks cold and wet
and pine needles
crunch underfoot
Lets get lost
together
where clouds
dip down
to kiss the earth
and weave
between
tree trunks
and branches
Photo © ZenStatePhotography
Morning Bonus Read – Monthly Key Spread
Key to Your Heart: What will guide you to make decisions that are aligned with your heart and your truths this month?
Ring – One of the heavy hitters in your life that guides you to make good decisions and always follow your inner compass is the responsibilities you carry and the commitments you have decided to take on. Many times when you feel the need to let go and just stop, to curl up and step away, it’s these commitments and responsibilities that keep you on your path and moving forward. The Ring card in this position indicates that this month is going to be one of those times.
Anchor: What will ground you in the face of anxiety, stress, overwhelm, and existential dread in general?
Mice – It is that anxiety and worry that helps keep me grounded in the first place. The pressure of that nagging fear helps me to remember to ground and reach out for the support of others when I need it. The Mice card in this position is a reminder to not take for granted the crap ass shit that sometimes happens, because it’s only through trial and struggle that we grow and learn how to become better and stronger in the face of our fears in the future.
Star Wand: What accelerates your magic, creativity, and manifestation powers?
Crossroads – Having options open to me to pursue and the autonomy to be able to go in the directions that your interests and intuition leads to accelerated growth of your powers of creativity, manifestation, and magic. It’s when you are backed into a corner or forced into a single path without the ability to make your own choices that you become stifled and your growth stagnates.
Blessings from the Stars: The Universe has got your back – how will you be supported this month?
Scythe – The universe is giving you the opportunity this month to practice your new, healthier methods of dealing with stress and discord. Take this opportunity to cut out of your life those methods that are unhealthy and no longer working for you. Divorce yourself from these unhealthy methods, and instead pave the road forward with these newer methods you’ve been working on.
One Trick Up Your Sleeve: A life saving idea or inspiration for any unexpected challenge or difficult moments?
Dog – Lean on those you trust this month when you come upon unexpected challenges or difficult moments. Those in your life that you love, those that you trust and that are there for you through thick and thin, will be there for you now as well.  They are the added reinforcement you need when things are feeling out of whack and you’re struggling… so don’t forget that they’re there for you. All you have to do is reach out for them.
Emergence Pt 1: What is emerging within you / within your reality right now?
Fox – That cunning creature within that makes sure everything gets done and cared for, and my responsibilities are being covered is rising up and strengthening as the month goes on. Sometimes the shit that you have to do to keep things running isn’t always fun or easy, but with a cunning mind and clever hands, you’ll make it through just fine.
Emergence Pt 2: What are you expanding towards?
Anchor – You have the opportunity to further your stability through how you react and manage the trials and struggles this month. Stability is yours if you want it, but as the cards above in this spread have indicated, you’ll have to earn it through growth spurred on by what you learn through dealing with this month’s struggles and strife.
DECK USED:Â LENORMAND ORACLE BY ALEXANDER DANILOFF
Whose Shoes Are Those?
Today’s meditation was just over ten minutes long, and was another of the guided meditations from the Calm app with interval timer for my piriformis and forearm flexor stretching.
The topic of today’s guided meditation was about having appreciation for one’s failures and mistakes. This is actually a topic that’s near and dear to my heart, and it’s one that is connected to something that I struggled for a very long time to understand in others (and sometimes still do). That is to say, I’ve never understood why people hold back from doing things out of fear of being bad at them or not doing them right.
One of the biggest steps to learning a new skill or ability is trying and failing, you then take that knowledge learned about what doesn’t work… and try again. And through multiple failures, you learn what works and what doesn’t… and eventually? You don’t fail because you become an expert.  This is the process of trial and error that is what learning something new is all about.
Today’s draw is the Hanged Man, which is traditionally a representation of taking time to look at new perspectives and gather additional data. It’s about taking a pause in order to see things from a different angle, and allowing yourself time to wrap your mind around different viewpoints and opinions, ideas and angles… to see things from a different view in order to find more depth in understanding.
What stands out to me the strongest in the imagery of this card is the feathers in the lower right hand corner. They drew my eye very strongly today and are an indication of thought… of the fact that this man has a great need for thought and reevaluation… and clearly the opportunity to do so.
The thing is, even in situations like his? We still have a choice on whether we are going to be open to reevaluation and a different perspective than the one we ourselves carry, or if we are going to remain closed in our own personal box and unwilling to see our situation (or any other topic) from a place removed from our own opinions and perceptions.
I have found, over time and observation, that I don’t communicate with people that are unwilling to try and see things from outside their own personal “box”, as if stuck in the certainty that their viewpoint on something is the -only- view point and only reality. I struggle with communicating with people that have that mindset a lot, and it feels a lot like trying to squeeze blood out of a stone, especially when trying to help them in expanding their view to find a different perspective that might help them in some way.
I still try though, because I want to see their perspective… but I want to help them see more than that perspective as well in order to help them find a path out of the situations that have caused them to end up feeling stuck or stagnant.
DECK USED:Â BONESTONE & EARTHFLESH TAROT
LionHart’s Elements Tarot Challenge Prompt
Question: How can I attune to my internal elements to manifest my best in 2021?
(I had to rephrase this question so that it better suited my needs.)
 Reading Summary: Part of making sure that I am attuned to my internal elements is in finding a balance between the self care and nurturing that I need in my life (pomegranates) and the strength and responsibility that I carry on my shoulders (stag beetle). To do this, I need to learn how to create some organization and control within my inner narrative so that the negativity does not overwhelm (Princess of Air).
(Note: The first two cards are actually the Three of Cups and Four of Pentacles, but when they landed on the table in this reading, what I saw here were the Empress and the Emperor. I have not been able to divorce my mind in this reading from feeling that the Empress and Emperor are within these cards and they were read intuitively as such.)
Take Away: One of the things that sends me out of whack the fastest is when my pessimism and negative inner talk starts to take a front seat. It screws with my head and tumbles me into overwhelm, and both my responsibilities and my personal self care suffer as a result.  If I want to attune myself to manifest the best 2021 that I can, I need to make sure I keep things in that department in hand, because I need to both ensure I am getting the self care I need, and also not dropping the ball on my responsibilities.
DECK USED:Â WAYWARD DARK TAROT
#DiscordTarotolicJan2021 Challenge Prompt
Question: What is something that you miss that you can bring back into your life?
King of Cups atop Two of Cups: More quality time with Gideon. More harmony and time together, working together and “feeding” off each other to create a positive and happy synergy. This is something that the holiday rush took away, and that I didn’t get much of even during my time off after the holiday rush. It’s something I’ve missed and, as the cards here indicate, is definitely able to be brought back into my life now.
Nine of Pentacles: More gratitude practice. Another thing that had to be set aside for a time during my holiday rush was the morning devotional that I usually do each morning prior to my meditation. This devotional creates a daily regular opportunity for me to consciously focus upon the things in my life that I am grateful for, and express that gratitude openly. I have not yet picked back up my daily devotional since the end of the holiday rush, but this gratitude practice is something that would benefit me and is definitely something that it’s time to reestablish now that the mess of the holiday rush is over.
Three of Wands atop The Magician: More confidence and surety in the direction I’ve chosen to go in. I’ve taken a lot of steps over the past year to learn new ways of looking at and handling the balance between my personal needs and my responsibilities, new ways of acknowledging and dealing with my emotions, and new perspectives on how to make space for personal growth. All this newness creates a sense of unsure footing that can make avoiding backsliding into old habits difficult to avoid. The confidence and sure footed progress I want may be more of an illusion than reality… but the progress itself? It is something that it’s time to bring back into my life now that I am out of the rush and able to focus on my growth once more.
