Everything is Temporary

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Today’s meditation was curtailed in preference for more sleep. I’m not recovering from the all-nighters the way that I used to.  I guess it’s one of those “getting older” signs that I can’t just bounce back the way I used to.   Instead of meditation, I chose to go with more sleep and more time with you.   Tomorrow, I’ll get back on track with the self care, but today?  I really just wanted to spend time with you and get through the crapload of mail that I’d picked up yesterday.  I’m happy with the fact that I was able to manage both of those things today.

Tarot of the Sidhe - Dancer EightToday’s draw is is the Dancer Eight (Eight of Cups) card, which is traditionally a representation of walking away from a bad situation, abandoning what isn’t working, or releasing emotional burdens.

I like the interpretation in the key words for this card.  “Escaping Stagnation” is a beautiful interpretation of the Eight of Cups.   The imagery here of the woman leaving the dead grey waters behind her in preference for a path towards life and the sun speaks strongly to me of climbing out of the dark pit of depression to once again be able to recognize and seek out the light.

Depression, at least in my case, is not a choice.  Although there is much I can do to stave it off and lessen its effects, the fact is that it isn’t a situational reaction but rather an imbalance.  When climbing out of a depression, it feels an awful lot like the sloughing off of shadows that cling to one’s form and weighs one down, just as in this image the gray mud may try to cling, but slowly releases and sloughs away as she pulls free of its grip.

The message here is one of encouragement.  A message to bolster the heart and mind and soul when things are feeling dark or overwhelming.

Everything is temporary… including the bad stuff.

DECK USED:  TAROT OF THE SIDHE

#DiscordTarotholicsAug2020 Challenge Prompt
Philosophical Question: Can we understand good without evil?

Tarot of WhyReading Summary:  Defenses up (Nine of Wands) in response to sloppy drunkenness (imagery in the King of Cups). A resting time for to gear up and recover from being overburdened (Knave of Wands), followed by depth of understanding through empathy (Queen of Cups).

Take Away:  No.  When we are approached by something unpleasant, we learn to create defenses, but we also grow, and through growth something good is born (empathy).  This is the pattern shown in these cards.

Although I’m sure that good can exist without evil, I do not think that humanity is able to understand good without the existence of evil.   The cards here speak of the things that create defensive feelings, and how we learn through growth.  None of this is possible without lessons to help us in learning, and one of those lessons is given through the contrast we find between good and evil.  

DECK USED:  TAROT OF WHY

Lionharts #TheAugustTarot#ElementalChallenge
Question: How can focusing on creation support my path/journey?

Hero Analysis for the Future #79 MHA Tarot

Reading Summary:  Youthful enthusiasm (The Fool) kindles the fires of creative ownership (King of Wands) and create a sense of emotional fulfillment in my creative endeavors (Ten of Cups).

Take Away:  Focusing on creation instills a sense of eager enthusiasm in my life that feeds my creativity, swelling it to a point where my creative endeavors become consuming.  This process is a part of the secret to my success and the sense of fulfillment that I receive from what I do.

DECK USED:  HERO ANALYSIS FOR THE FUTURE #79 MHA TAROT

#ConnectWithYourDeckChallenge by E Roebuck-Jones
Question: What lesson do I need to learn?

Magic Tarot

Reading Summary: You can’t get nectar from a stump (imagery in the Ace of Wands).  Take what you’ve learned from the pain in your past (Ten of Swords) and compare it with the things in your life that make you happy now (Nine of Cups).  Allow this contrast to soothe you to into resting (Four of Swords).

Take Away:  I’m working too hard and I need to learn to truly rest.   To do this, it will be important to take a look at how far I’ve come and all that I’ve over come, and compare it with what I have now and what makes me happy in my life at this time.   In doing this, I can then allow this comparison to soothe my guilt over taking the rest that I need, and it will help in releasing me from the need to always be advancing.

DECK USED:  MAGIC TAROT

Gideon’s Challenge

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IMG_1288The Spill

Here
There
and everhwyere
moving at
the speed of light
while in a dizzying
hamster wheel
a splatter
a spash
lets not
get in a crash.

Too many hours without sleep… too many miles to drive.  Even after I finally made it home, I still felt like a crazy mess splattered all over the wall.  Sleep is not overrated… ever.

Photo © ZenStatePhotography

Weekly Creativity Prompt – Emotional Connections

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Pull up to three cards.
Create a piece of art, a crafted item, or a bit of writing that conveys the essence of an emotion expressed in each of the cards.

Potion Hunter Tarot

The Lovers – A grandfather and his young grandson decided to go on a journey to meet God. The grandson was excited and skipped a long, carefree and trusting in his father’s lead. The father was more practical and he knew that they would have to make wise choices on their journey in order to make it to the top of the hill where God lived.

Judgement – As they climbed the hill the child was full of innocence each step only brought more joy. But, as the father stepped one step after the other, with each step he considered and weighed every little thing that he had done in his long life and wondered if he was really worthy of meeting God.

The High Priestess – The higher they got, the more the little boy seem to chatter on and on, excited at the prospect of where they were going. The old man, though, became quieter and quieter, delving deeper and deeper within himself as he sought the answers of his faith and how he fit within it.

Together these two represent the duality of each card upon the path of one’s life.  With youth comes innocence and enthusiasm, a guilelessness that is tinged by lack of experience and naivety.

With age, though, comes experiences.  Decisions pile atop decisions, and the choices made become something to contemplate on.  Where the youth does not carry such a weight upon their shoulders, with age we come to a point where we must look within and seek out our inner knowledge and inner compass to tell us if we have lived a good life… or if there are changes that need to be made.

DECK USED:  POTION HUNTER TAROT

I Was a Jerk

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Today’s meditation was non-existent.  As anticipated, I pulled an all-nighter last night to get through my orders and get them out to be shipped today.  I then made the trip up north to check my mail and… god it was a long drive.  Even with J along to drive part of the way.

Getting home, even if I shaved a good hour off the trip by driving like a nutcase, all I could think about was sleep. So… yeah.  I slept.  A lot.  And there was no meditation.

Next World TarotToday’s draw is the King of Cups, which is traditionally a representation of a projective alpha energy, personality, or person in the area of one’s emotions, relationships, creativity, and intuition.

What really stands out to me in the imagery of today’s card is the expression on the woman’s face in the picture, and the lotus that she cups in her hands. She’s seen it all, she’s been beaten down and yet still has the strength to keep going, and the compassion to hold space and gentleness for the delicate lotus.

There is empathy here, and that is something that I really lacked today.  I’m so sorry about being a dick and making you cry. I love you so fucking much and just because I was tired and riding a bit of an anxiety wave is no excuse for treating you badly or being a jerk. I love you.

DECK USED:  NEXT WORLD TAROT

#TarotForGrowthAugust Challenge Prompt
Topic: I’m struggling with boundaries in my relationships.
Question: What can I do to meet that need revealed in yesterday’s cards?

Monstarot

Reading Summary:  Own what you have done (King of Pentacles) with understanding (The Luminary) so that you can move forward (The World).

Take Away:  The need revealed in yesterday’s cards was about accepting the part that the past plays on our present and future instead of struggling against it.  Acceptance of this isn’t easy for me, but to meet that need head on I need to own my part in things and treat what has happened in the past with loving understanding and an open heart.  By not closing myself off to the influences of the past, I allow myself to move forward more smoothly into the future, and not end up stuck and stagnant.

DECK USED:  MONSTAROT

#DiscordTarotholicsAug2020 Challenge Prompt
Question: How can I best advance on what was revealed in yesterday’s cards?

Big Things In Small Packages TarotReading Summary: Allow others to help you in getting things done (Three of Pentacles) so you don’t end up stuck in place (Four of Pentacles). Their help will create the motivation you need (Knight of Wands) while taking off some of the pressure you’re putting yourself under (hot tub imagery in the Ace of Cups).

Take Away:  Sometimes, even the smallest of things can feel like it’s just too much.  That overwhelm can create stagnancy as you hesitate to move forward under the pressure that is real regardless of being all in your mind.  By inviting others in to help, it takes some of that pressure off of you, and allows things to move forward more smoothly, creating momentum in the process.

DECK USED:  BIG THINGS IN SMALL PACKAGES TAROT

Lionharts #TheAugustTarot#ElementalChallenge
Question: Fire, when I am ready and willing to create, where do I begin?

Luminous Void Tarot

Reading Summary:  Make the choice (The Lovers) to go with what is familiar and what you are well versed in (King of Swords).  When you conquer these things (Five of Swords), it will give you confidence and success (Nine of Discs), as well as freedom to enjoy life rather than feeling under constant pressure (imagery in the Nine of Discs).

Take Away:  Although new ideas and projects are always shiny and tempting, sometimes when you start on a creative path, it’s the familiar things you do well that are more in need of your attention and more beneficial to your goals.  These familiar tasks are the path to success, even if you have to go to battle to get there.

DECK USED:  LUMINOUS VOID TAROT

#ConnectWithYourDeckChallenge by E Roebuck-Jones
Question: What inspires me?

Hilda Tarot

Reading Summary: Collaboration in that I need someone to tell me when something is a bad idea (Three of Pentacles) so that my creative juices flow towards (Six of Cups) opening up to better methods (Nine of Wands Rx).

Take Away: I’m inspired by roadblocks.  I’m inspired by those that give me constructive feedback that allows me to search for answers and grow instead of shut me down.  Being open and not defensive with those that help provide me with this type of feedback stoke the creative fire within me that allows me to stretch my creativity and abilities.

DECK USED:  HILDA TAROT

Gideon’s Challenge

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IMG_6086Fuzzy

Silky soft
and welcoming
slippery and cool
it sits
ready and waiting
to welcome me in
with open arms
and softness.
Nuzzle in…
bliss awaits.

I miss my pillow.  With the subdrop and lack of sleep, I really don’t want to pull an all-nighter tonight, but there’s no other way to get everything done in time to ship orders out tomorrow.  I’ve felt like I’m moving at a snails pace all day long, and all I really want is my beautiful satin encased pillow to welcome me in.

Photo © ZenStatePhotography

A Sense of Community

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Today’s meditation was just under ten minutes long and was very restless and uncomfortable.  It wasn’t pain that was causing it, but the fact that I knew I had a lot of work to get done and just could not manage to put it out of my mind long enough to get in a peaceful ten minutes.  Hopefully I won’t be pulling an all nighter tonight, and will have a chance to do a do-over before bed.

Next World TarotToday’s draw is the Three of Pentacles, which is traditionally a representation of collaborative efforts in the areas of finances, resources, home life, health, and  manifestations.

This card’s imagery takes this from the scope of small groups collaborating with each other as is often where the mind first goes when seeing the traditional imagery for the Three of Pentacles, and opens it up into a community scope, which I really like.  It allows for a larger perspective, and encourages one to look beyond more minimal interpretations that you usually see come from the Three of Pentacles.

What I feel is the message of this card today is that it takes a community to create a community.  It takes people willing to come together to support a singular goal.  And, I think that this is something I want to discuss with L, because I feel like I want to encourage her to volunteer to be a part of our building’s council.

There’s been a lot of distance and lack of communication lately where the building is concerned, and I have a feeling she’d be a good addition and terrific at helping in getting the building back to feeling like a community again.

DECK USED:  NEXT WORLD TAROT

#TarotForGrowthAugust Challenge Prompt
Topic: I’m struggling with boundaries in my relationships.
Question: What pressing need of mine am I overlooking?

Stunning Tarot

Reading Summary:  Both slow growth (Seven of Pentacles) and eventual success (Nine of Pentacles both require A certain amount of controlled finesse.

The yellow combined in the second and third card creates a connection there that indicates we often need to look back at the past in order to build towards the future, and once success is obtained you need to continue to have an awareness of the past, but juggle it with future vision.

Take Away:  This is a direct response to my rant yesterday about the influence of parents on your foundation. The cards here are indicating that no matter how much you grow or how far you move forward in life towards something better, those things that made you bleed from your past are still going to be an influence and continue to be relevant.

DECK USED:  STUNNING TAROT

#DiscordTarotholicsAug2020 Challenge Prompt
Topic: Retreat / Hold Ground / Advance

Encore TarotRetreat – Three of Swords – Retreat from the pessimism and negativity that have the ability to draw me down into the pit of despair and depression.

Hold Ground – Page of Cups – Hold my ground with my creative endeavors. Explore and have fun with it and don’t allow it to become too staid and serious.

Advance – Knight of Cups – Advance in my emotional growth. Pay attention to those things that make me feel good and create a positive emotional response… and go after them instead of disregarding them as frivolous.

DECK USED:  ENCORE TAROT

Lionharts #TheAugustTarot#ElementalChallenge
Question: How can the element of Fire boost my (creative) energy?

Tarot del Fuego

Reading Summary: Allows me to identify my hearts desires (King of Cups), and use both my heart and gut (imagery in the Nine of Pentacles), to go after what I want and achieve my goals (Ten of Pentacles).

Take Away: Fire allows me to identify what my heart and soul wants. Rather than getting wrapped up in the mind and logic, the fire in my soul gives me the spark to go after those things and manifest them into reality.

DECK USED:  TAROT DEL FUEGO

#ConnectWithYourDeckChallenge by E Roebuck-Jones
Question: What drains my energy?

Alan Tarot

Reading Summary: Impatience (Eight of Clubs) concerning my creative endeavors and explorations (Page of Hearts). I’m not giving myself enough nurturing rest (The Empress).

Take Away:  What is currently draining my energies is twofold.  First and foremost, is the lack of rest and nurturing care directed toward myself.  Added to this is the fact I’m pushing too hard.  I need to spread out my efforts over a longer period of time instead of cramming them into a single day twice a week and pushing myself on those days until they turn into an all-day-and-all-nighter.

DECK USED:  ALAN TAROT