Thundercats – Ho! *cracking up*

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Today’s meditation was ten minutes long and spent doing spinal alignment work with a bolster and a couple or rubber balls.  I was going to do a meditation separately afterward, but it turned out that I needed the focus and breathing exercises that the meditation provided just to keep muscles relaxed and pliant during the process. This really goes without saying that my back hurts like a bitch today, and my hips too since I spent my meditation doing spinal work instead of my regular piriformis stretching.

Tarot of the SidheToday’s draw is Lion-O from Thundercats.  *Cracking up.*  Just kidding.  Although, this guy on the card definitely reminds me of that character.

Okay so… anyway.  Today’s draw is The Fool card, which is traditionally a representation of youthful exuberance, new beginnings, naivety and innocence.

What stood out to me the strongest when I first saw this card this morning (aside from the uncanny resemblance to Thundercat’s Lion-O) is the Great Glyph of the Sidhe is carved into the Fool’s chest.

As a child I used to use this glyph as the basis for my circle casting, and as my sister lit candles for the elements, I would spin and spin and spin through the center, trailing my toe along the ground to create the spiral moving ever outward and finishing off with the dividing line during the lighting of the candles for Diana and Faunus.

This symbol, like none other, reminds me of my childhood. Of magic circles and bonding rituals between myself and my sister. Of romps in the woods and hours spent among moss and lichen, cedars and ferns. The message in today’s card is to remember that youthful fun, remember the freedom and allow the joyful innocence of those times to rise up within me and swirl through my life within the here and now.

DECK USED:  TAROT OF THE SIDHE

#TarotForGrowthAugust Challenge Prompt
Topic: I feel like I’m struggling to see clearly.
Question: How can I begin building more trust in myself and my lived experience?

Magic Tarot

Reading Summary: Own what you’ve done and experienced in life (Queen of Wands), and don’t allow yourself to hide behind addictions (The Devil). Instead, take the brave steps forward in learning from your experiences (Knave of Swords).

Take Away:  One of my most destructive (and most prominent) bad habits is my urge to retreat into myself and away from others when I’m feeling vulnerable.  In doing this, I also close myself off to myself, boxing up those small and vulnerable parts so that they whither and starve.  This is not trusting in myself and my experience… it is picking myself apart into pieces and making those fragments “deal with it” on their own.

I am in the process of learning a new way, and I need to stay mindful during these vulnerable times to reach not for my past habits… but for my new and healthier methods instead.

DECK USED:  MAGIC TAROT

#DiscordTarotholicsAug2020 Challenge Prompt
Philosophical Question: Are you more of a dreamer or a believer?

Tarot of the Dream EnchantressReading Summary: I am a grounded (Knight of Pentacles) dreamer (Page of Wands) that is open to possibilities (Ace of Cups).

Although I am a very motivated and grounded person as shown in the fact that the central card in this reading is in the pentacles suit, the Page of Wands and Ace of Cups bracketing this grounded energy speak of the fact that I am prone to flights of fancy and allowing my creative flow to take the reigns.

Take Away:  Regardless of my need for stability, I am open to a vast array of possibilities that go beyond the known world.  For me, seeing is not believing… feeling is.  And I am willing to follow those feelings wherever they lead as long as they feel right and entertain my inner spark’s interest.

DECK USED:  TAROT OF THE DREAM ENCHANTRESS

Lionharts #TheAugustTarot#ElementalChallenge
Question: How can I fully embrace the abundance meant for me?

Anthro Tarot

Reading Summary: The world is at my fingertips (The World), all I need to do is pick a direction (Two of Wands) and allow my inner spark and drive for manifestation to carry me forward (Page of Pentacles).

Take Away:  It doesn’t tell me what that abundance is exactly, but the answer to embracing it is simply in accepting that it’s there for me.  In doing that, I give myself permission to go for it, and begin the journey of moving in the direction to claim it for my own.

DECK USED:  ANTHRO TAROT

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

Hilda Tarot

Reading Summary: Be more generous (Ten of Pentacles) with my capriciousness and frivolity (The Fool) instead of letting my self-perceived shortcomings keep me down (The Devil Rx).

Take Away:  This is yet another encouragement to have more fun.  Don’t allow my negative inner narrative and addictive impulses to keep me pinned down or tangled up.  Set myself free to be open with my sense of fun instead of keeping it to myself. It’s okay to look silly sometimes… it’s okay to have fun.   I seem to need this reminder a lot lately, and the cards are definitely following through on making sure I hear the message again and again.

DECK USED:  HILDA TAROT

Gideon’s Challenge

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IMG_6551Drizzle

A cool kiss
upon the skin
A drip that causes
leaves to tremble
Smell the air
and taste
sweet sweet moisture
as the earth sighs
Lift your face
to delicate drops
and let your tension
ease.

Just missing the rain today.  The heat wave continues.

Photo © ZenStatePhotography

Weekly Creativity Prompt – Random Eight

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Shuffle your deck of choice, then pull out every ninth card.
Of the eight cards now sitting in front of you, which card do you relate to most strongly and why?
Of the seven cards now left sitting in front of you, which card do you relate to the least and why?
Extra Credit: There are now six cards left. Assign a real person in your life, a fictional character, a movie, a book, or a song to each of these six cards and then tell us why you made the choice you did for each.

IMG_5588

Part 1 (most relate to) –Ten of Swords – I am a survivor. I survived my father’s tyrannic rule.  I survived the accident that decimated the right side of my body and made it impossible for me to go through an MRI machine. I’ve survived sexual assault, betrayals, car accidents, impalement, a home invasion and near death experience, life-long chronic pain, ongoing physiotherapy, testicular cancer, and melanoma.

I have survived through years of suicidal obsession and urges, multiple major depressive episodes, and just this past year I survived a stalker that tried to kidnap me out of a Costco parking lot.  I have survived dropping out of university a mere three months before earning my degree, the crushing disappointment of discovering my mother is not the person (or mother) I thought she was, a metabolism that is determined to eat me alive, and the loss of loved ones.

I have survived, and learned from, all of these things and more. Each of these things was more than just a painful experience. Each experience brought me to my knees and made me bleed either from my body or my soul… and yet I have continued on.  The Nine of Swords connects me to these experiences, and my survival from them… as well as the fact that I continue to thrive not just despite them, but also because of what they taught me along the way.

Part 2 (least relate to) – Eight of Wands – I’m not getting anywhere fast these days, it seems.  In fact, life in general as well as the cards seem determined to teach me to slow down and take my time more often.  This is not something that is easy for me to do… and I struggle with it even at the best of times. 

Extra Credit:

Two of Wands – She makes lists.  Going on a camping trip?  She’s got a list.  A shopping trip?  She’s got a list. Need ideas for what to do next weekend?  She has a list for that too. If you need to get organized?  She is the one to go to.  She’ll help you make a list, and explain how to use it too.  There’s power in lists and she knows it well, and she wields that power with impunity.

Seven of Cups – A woman that sees outside the box, if you need ideas, she’s the one to go through.  Not that she’ll give you the answers, but sit and talk with her a while and you’ll soon find that your narrow view of what’s possible will begin to open up.  Options appear where none had been, just in the span of spending time in her presence.  Suddenly, the diversity of what’s possible is breathtaking and you wonder how you ever felt your options were so limited.

Five of Swords – He’s one of those guys that always has to have the last word in any situation. It makes him feel like he’s won, and that feeling is something he lives for. Whether it’s a debate or a disagreement, or even a physical fight, rest assured his voice will be the last one that sounds, and what he says will be sharp edged but probably not entirely unwarranted.

The Chariot – Single minded and determined, he plows forward with his eye on the prize. He knows what he wants out of life and he knows how to get it, he has both hands on the reigns and full control over the direction of his life.  Goals for this man?  They aren’t possibilities… they are already his reality as if he needs only to reach out and pluck them out of the air and they’ll be his.

The Tower – She’s spent her life catastrophizing every little thing. Nothing catastrophic has ever happened to her, and yet… to her even a splinter is just that.  The end of the world.  Her life is in chaos, her world in upheaval… and this is how she lives.  Each and ever day is one horrible thing, one disastrous event after another and she is unable to see beyond the cacophony to anything positive in any of it.  She’s trapped in this place… and refuses to try and escape.

Judgement – He lies in a hospital bed and waits for his family to arrive and surround him.  He has things to say, and apologies to make.  Weathered, with aching joints and years of hard work wrought in wrinkles upon his face… he’s had plenty of time to consider all that he’s done and all that he failed to do.  It’s time to make things right, before it’s too late to do so.

DECK USED:  MONSTAROT TAROT

Do What You Love

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Today’s meditation was ten minutes long and was one of the harp string meditations.  I didn’t extend my yoga/physiotherapy today, and so I didn’t extend my meditation either.  It was a relaxing process, and for once I didn’t have a lot of distracting thoughts dragging me off center again and again.  It was also nice that Miss Luna came to snug up beside me while I meditated today, which isn’t something she does usually during my meditation time. During this time she usually settles in at the foot of the bed a few feet from me instead.

Next World TarotToday’s draw is the Page of Wands, which is traditionally a representation of a receptive omega energy, personality, or person in the area of one’s drive, passion, and that inner spark in the soul that spurs on one’s interests and enthusiasm.

What stands out to me the strongest in the imagery of this card today is the little green leaf on the staff the figure holds, and the little green lizards.   This is in relation to the very apocalyptic looking surroundings they are in the middle off.  The environment is filled with litter, the bridge in the background appears dilapidated. And yet… there is life here. Not just in the figure that is front and center, but also the lizards that surround her, the sprigs of new leaves on the staff in her hand, and the small tattered looking flowers among the scattered rubble.

This speaks to me of perseverance. Even when everything falls apart?  That inner spark within you will help you to survive, to carry on, and even to thrive under these conditions. This inner spark that lives within your soul is the seat of one’s adaptability as well as the source of life’s burning drive to survive at all costs.  Feed this inner spark the things you love to do… and it will turn into a blaze that will burn through adversity.

Do what you love.

DECK USED:  NEXT WORLD TAROT

#TarotForGrowthAugust Challenge Prompt
Topic: I feel like I’m struggling to see clearly.
Question: How would my life improve if I accepted that reality is inherently subjective and clarity is a myth?

Vivid Journey Tarot

Reading Summary: A crap load of misunderstandings (Five of Wands) and spurred on by clouded judgments (Judgement) making for feelings of defensiveness (Nine of Wands) that get in the way of positive relationships and good choices (The Lovers). Creating imbalance (Two of Pentacles Rx).

Take Away: When you accept that clarity is a myth, you stop striving for it. Yes, perfect clarity is unattainable because we are not omni-cognizant. But, that does not mean that we should not strive for perspectives beyond our own so that we can get a better idea of what’s going on and, as a result, obtain more clarity than we have when we are closed-mindedly willing to only look at our own view and our own perspective.

Once again, I think I missed the point of the question. I understand these questions are supposed to lead people to a healthier outlook, but all I see this question doing is leading them to a more close minded outlook and lack of perspective.

DECK USED:  VIVID JOURNEY TAROT

#DiscordTarotholicsAug2020 Challenge Prompt
Topic:  Hold Tight / Let Breathe / Set Free

Alan Tarot - Il Tarocchi di AlanHold Tight – The World – I need to hold tight to my path and the knowledge that each day is a new day.  Life goes through cycles, and with each cycle we learn and evolve, becoming more than we were before. My chosen path through these cycles is to improve… to become better.  Better at the things I do, better at my influence on others, better at being myself, and an all around better person.

Let Breathe – Knight of Spades and Seven of Heart – I need to ease up on the idea that I always have to move forward and choose which direction to go in right away. So often we feel like every decision needs to be made right away, and that can feel overwhelming. It’s okay to move slow and mull over your choices before making a decision. Giving yourself some space by being a bit less impulsive in your decision making process is a good thing.

Set Free – The Chariot – I need to let go of the idea that participating in any kind of conflict actually gets me somewhere. Things like blatant disrespect or perceived injustices can often cause me to get my back up. The thing is?  During these moments I want to jump in, in that moment, and give a bit of a verbal “smack down” for that kind of thing. But, that is rarely a wise choice and rarely gets you anywhere.

DECK USED:  ALAN TAROT

Lionharts #TheAugustTarot#ElementalChallenge
Question: Earth, I ground myself in you. What is your message for me?

Encore Tarot

Reading Summary: Instilling more joy and positivity (The Sun) will allow you to triumph (Five of Swords) in your work life (Eight of Coins).

Take Away: The message here is to remember that doing what you love is supposed to be fun.  Too often I get so wrapped up in the “work” side of things that I forget to truly focus on and appreciate the pleasure that my work gives me.  This includes not just my jewelry design business, but also extends to my work on the farm, at the nail salon, and even into my client readings as well.

DECK USED:  ENCORE TAROT

#ConnectWithYourDeckChallenge by E Roebuck-Jones
Question: How do I feel when I look inside myself?

Tabula Mundi Tarot in MinimaReading Summary:  Like an esoteric teacher that is also still learning (Hierophant on its side). Someone that walks their own path (Three of Wands), and has a lot of inner shadows (The Aeon Rx).

Side Note: My first impression of this deck is not particularly positive. The imagery feels chaotic and abrasive. I’ll continue to keep it in the rotation for the month, tho, as I need some time with it to get to know it a bit better.

Take Away:  The cards indicate that I identify with being a guide and teacher, but only when I feel that I am learning from others as much as I am giving to them in turn.  The cards indicate as well that when looking inside myself I can clearly see and feel that I have a clear path and direction to my life, but that my soul is clouded by shadows.

DECK USED:  TABULA MUNDI TAROT IN MINIMA

Gideon’s Challenge

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IMG_8178Propagation

Vibrant
and full of promise
colorful and bright.
Sticky bulbs
of procreation
ready to take flight.
And every touch
that comes
spreads potential
far and wide.

The purpose of flower’s beautiful colors and fragrant scent is to draw in assistance to spread their pollen far and wide.  This allows for reproduction as the pollen from one flower finds its way to another of its kind.   It is a continuous cycle of potential that is repeated again and again, a delicate dance that allows the future to be build from the present… from chance and cooperation.

This is the essence of potential in all things, and something I think about often.  Without chance and cooperation… there is no potential.  No matter if you are a flower… a tree… an insect… an animal… or a person.

Photo © ZenStatePhotography

Full Moon in Aquarius – August 2020

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The Hilda Tarot - Full Moon In Aquarius 2020

Yesterday was 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 Ethony‘s Tarot By the Moon series.

1. What possibilities are being offered to me right now?

Death Rx – A time of peace is being offered to me.  Change is so often a constant in life, and organic change is a theme that runs throughout a life like the circulation system of a body.  But there are moments of pause… of peace.  Of quiet.  These moments are not stagnancy, they are an opportunity to take a deep breath and rest before life moves on into the next change.

2. What area of my life is craving freedom and experimentation? (check
the suit for big clues)

Page of Pentacles – Get your ass outside and have more fun with it.  Yes, hiking in the woods is peaceful and amazing, but allow it to do more than just be refreshing.  Allow these experiences to brighten your day and lighten your heart. Find your excitement, and stoke that fire again so that your enthusiasm spills over into a joyous sense of discovery.

3. Where can I be more open minded?

The Fool – Being jaded is boring.  Don’t allow yourself to become boring.

4. What old habits/beliefs need to be released under this Full Moon?

Strength – Heroism is not always a sign of strength.  Sometimes? It’s a sign of weakness and stupidity. Don’t mistake risk-taking behavior for strength… strength comes from within in relation to doing what needs done and how you grow from those experiences. It has nothing to do with putting yourself in unnecessary danger.

5. Where do I need to go with the flow?

Four of Wands – Let your freak flag fly.  It’s okay to be silly now and then.  The entire theme of this reading (with the exception of the allowance of rest) supports this need to let down your hair, kick off your shoes, and just let yourself have a little more fun with life.   It’s okay.  The world isn’t going to fall apart if you have a little fun and smile freely a bit more often.

DECK USED: THE HILDA TAROT