affirmation

Stabilization Maintenance

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Today’s meditation was skipped.

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Floral Seeker Tarot's Queen of PentaclesThe @GlitterbyInk #JuneSun25 Challenge
Summer Sunlight Prompt for June 8 : Energy

Today’s draw is the Queen of Pentacles (Wax Begonia), which is traditionally a representation of a receptive alpha energy, personality, or person in the area of one’s resources, financial stability, health, home, labors, manifestations, or other aspects of the physical realm. This often translates into a supportive or nurturing energy or entity in the areas of one’s health, home, and financial responsibilities.

When you take care of others you take care of yourself, and when you take care of yourself you take care of others.

Just because others depend on you doesn’t mean that you can neglect yourself and your own needs. To be the stable foundation in others lives requires maintenance of that stability and thus… self-care.

Self-care isn’t selfish when you are the stabilizing force in others lives. It’s also another way in which you are caring for them.

DECK USED:  FLORAL SEEKER TAROT

#DiscordTarotholicsJun2025 Challenge
Prompt for June 8th : Do Spread 2
Philosophical Question for June 18th : Why do people feel the need to distract themselves from reality?


Philosophical Oracle Reading with the Wildflowers of the West Oracle and Twist the Leaf's Gratitude Oracle

Reading Summary: The color in the Black-Eyed Susan card correlates with the list of creators in the anchor card. The speaks of drawing one’s attention to what is creating a need for distraction. What is pushing this behavior?

In the Wild Bluebell card and the Butterfly Bush card, there is a connection between the pink in each of these cards and the hands and face of the diver in the anchor card. This brings into focus that the control of these situations is in our hands, but is mitigated by our perception of what’s going on in the moment.

The blue hues in the Wild Bluebell card is reflected in the blue ocean background in the anchor card, although not as a perfect match. This connection reminds us that our perception of the world around us is often flawed and how it can sometimes be skewed by what’s going on right in front of us.

Take Away: These cards indicate that when we are distracting ourselves from reality, it’s because we are not seeing the whole picture, and what we are seeing is causing misconceptions on how to move forward. The cards also offer advice that says instead of jumping to conclusions, one should take a closer look around and try and see things from an outside perspective, or from the perspective of where these stressors are originating from… rather than just our own perspective on the issue.

Other elements included in this reading:
Lace Agate for Increasing Inner Stability
Conch Shell Knot for Concentration and Clarity

DECK USED: WILDFLOWERS OF THE WEST AND TWIST THE LEAF’S GRATITUDE ORACLE

Daily Self Kindness

Although I didn’t take a nap today, I did take breaks and rest when I needed to.  I also stepped inside to cool down when I needed instead of pushing on in the heat.

Changing the Narrative

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Today’s meditation was eleven minutes long, and one of the #DailyCalm sessions from the @Calm app. Interconnectedness.

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Tarot of the Hidden Realm's The Sun CardThe @GlitterbyInk #JuneSun25 Challenge
Summer Sunlight Prompt for June 7 : Dim

Today’s draw is the Sun card, which is traditionally a representation of success, optimism, positivity, fun and frivolity. In my path, the Sun is also a symbol of male vitality, virility, and warmth.

Don’t let the responsibilities of the day keep you from having a little fun. Being open to a more positive outlook will help the day go much smoother, and you will feel a greater sense of achievement at the day’s end.

DECK USED:  TAROT OF THE HIDDEN REALM

@LightningWildflower‘s June Tarot Challenge
Balance Prompts for June 7th thru 9th

Oracle Reading with the Norse Oracle and Botanical Messages Flower OracleWhat imbalances would I find if I looked more closely at my life?

Asgard and Onion – When you look deeper than the surface, you will find that there is an imbalance between constructive and destructive forces in your life right now. A lack of planning can make it difficult to move forward, so make sure when you’re looking deeper that you’re not just looking… but also planning and strategizing a way ahead that rectifies things.

How can I bring a greater sense of harmony to my day?

Freyr and Amaryllis – Get your new flowers and plants that you picked up last week planted. It might be a bit too hot today, but you can tackle them tomorrow if you approach working with them early enough before the heat builds too much outside. You need the time outside with your hands in the dirt, and in doing so you will be accomplishing something you’ve been putting off at the same time.

What do I need to focus…

more on?

Aegir and Star Anise – Lean into your spirituality and intuition. Your emotions have made these things sometimes feel a bit less stable than you’re used to, but that is simply your emotions putting that impression in the mix. Make sure that you are continuing to look beyond just the logical answers that you tend to want to trust and depend on.

less on?

Heimdall and Morning Glory – Don’t let flights of fancy cause you to lose focus on what’s important. Sometimes it’s easy to get distracted, especially when working on things you don’t really enjoy, and you really need to make sure to keep your eye on the ball right now.

Other elements included in this reading:
Foraged Silver Maple Key for Bouncing Back to Thrive
Green Aventurine for Harmony and Balance of the Heart
Aragonite for Fostering Truth, Understanding, and Clarity
Selenite for Purification and drawing in Positive Energy

DECK USED: NORSE ORACLE AND BOTANICAL MESSAGES FLOWER ORACLE

Daily Self Kindness

I had some appetizers for lunch instead of trying to choke down the healthy option that I was otherwise considering, but wasn’t really in the mood for.

Setting Ego Aside

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Today’s meditation was ten minutes long, and was one of the #DailyCalm sessions from the @Calm app.

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J.K Tarot's Three of Pentacles - Jupiter King TarotThe @GlitterbyInk #JuneSun25 Challenge
Summer Sunlight Prompt for June 6 : Newness
Daily Mental Health Prompt: Seek a positive message to carry with you throughout the day and offer perspective.

Today’s draw is the Three of Pentacles, which is traditionally a representation of teamwork, collaboration, working together, and themes to do with bringing in help and/or outside expertise in order to get something done.

It’s time to start looking at asking for help in a new light. Just maybe asking for help isn’t a sign of weakness, but rather an effort at inclusion and a sign of leadership. After all, asking others to step in and participate creates opportunities for bonding and a more communal atmosphere.  Letting someone brace your ladder shows trust, taking their input and ideas with a welcoming attitude shows respect, and delegating tasks to share the load shows a lack of ego-driven behavior.

None of these things are weaknesses.

The message in today’s cards tells us to put away our egocentric feelings on asking for help, and instead try to view it as a community building activity that encourages trust, respect, and interpersonal bonding… all facilitated by you.

DECK USED:  J. K. TAROT

@LightningWildflower‘s June Tarot Challenge
Healing Prompts for June 4th thru 6th

Oracle Reading with the Eco Heart OracleWhat healing has already taken place in my life?

Maple – You are safe and protected, which allows you to make the changes in your life you need to make to stay true to you. This can mean taking a flying leap now and then like the unlikely “flying trees” of maple seedlings spiraling their way to the ground, digging your roots deep for greater stability like the tree itself uses to ride out stormy weather, or shedding what needs released so that it doesn’t tap out your resources like maple leaves being shed in the fall.

What do I still need to move through or past?

Frog – Remember that this is not the end and there is still growth to be had, especially in the watery bog of your emotions. In this area, you are just starting out on a journey that most people begin in childhood. It’s okay to explore, and it’s okay to be confused. Be patient with yourself and your development, and celebrate the small steps you make from day to day.

How can I continue to heal and recover?

Winter Rose – Patience is important. Instead of struggling under the down times when things aren’t busy, use these times to soak up the rest you need and top off your energy stores for when you are too busy to be able to give yourself these needed moments of luxury. Rest and recover, get out in nature, and take these times to look at the dreams you’ve held onto with an open and curious mind.

Other elements included in this reading:
Foraged Wood Fern for Exorcising Negative Influences
Yellow Aventurine for Boosting Confidence
Selenite for Purification and drawing in Positive Energy

DECK USED: ECO HEART ORACLE

Daily Self Kindness

I was inspired to dive head first down a rabbit hole into the meaning of the word “ableist” to learn just exactly what it means and how it displays in people’s behaviors.

Finding the Positive for June 3 – 5

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Magic Pantry Tarot's Five of Cups and Judgment Card, Student Tarot v2's Wheel of Fortune and Chariot cards, and Greenwood Tarot's Judgement Card

June 3 – Mental Health Card of the Day

Today’s meditation was skipped.

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The @GlitterbyInk #JuneSun25 Challenge
Summer Sunlight Prompt for June  : Shine
Daily Mental Health Prompt: Seek a positive message to carry with you throughout the day and offer perspective.

I have now managed to pull the Five of cups three days in a row, this time combined with the Judgment card.

  • The Five of Cups is traditionally a representation of pessimism, regrets, doomsday thinking, disappointments, and occasionally, failure (or at the very least, the perception of failure).
  • The Judgment card is traditionally a representation of judgements, one’s inner calling and chosen life path, and looking back on one’s life to consider how they feel about the path they’ve taken and who they have become.

SO, because it’s clear that this card has a message for me that I’m missing, I went to the deck’s guidebook this time for a little guidance. The key points taken away from the guidebook’s input are…

  • Whatever it is that is creating this feeling of defeat for you is now in the past and can’t be undone.
  • Think creatively about how you respond and react so that not all is lost.
  • Don’t beat yourself up for struggling with this.
  • There is no prescribed answers sometimes, and in those moments you just have to wing it to gain better understanding through experience.
  • Expect the unexpected, even if you think you know what’s about to happen.

The message that I see here is to ride it out.  Ride out these feelings of struggle and disappointment, discontent and unhappiness. Look for the positive spin and let things move at their own pace while taking little sips of joy where you can.

Just make sure that you are staying alert to opportunities to turn things around moving forward. You can’t change the past and the decisions  you made. They say that hindsight is 20/20, and that’s true. Instead of looking back, look forward and seek out opportunities to change things for the better.

DECK USED: MAGIC PANTRY TAROT

June 4 – Mental Health Card of the Day

Today’s meditation was skipped.

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The @GlitterbyInk #JuneSun25 Challenge
Summer Sunlight Prompt for June  : Bright
Daily Mental Health Prompt: Seek a positive message to carry with you throughout the day and offer perspective.

Today’s draw is the Wheel of Fortune atop the Chariot card. This means that they came out of the deck together, and the Wheel of Fortune card was on top, and this the dominant card of the pair.

  • The Wheel of Fortune card is traditionally a representation of luck (both good and bad), changing circumstances, the ups and downs of life, and the cyclical nature of life and the world.
  • The Chariot card is traditionally traditionally a representation of control, determination, direction, and autonomy.

Some days, things are going to go how they’re going to go, and you can’t always have a lot of control over that. What you do have control over is your own reactions.

Make sure you are using that creative mind of yours to look on the bright side. Not being in control has a tendency to make you cranky and unreasonable. Be aware that today, it’s only you and your own reactions you are going to have control over.  Ride the wheel and enjoy the ride, no matter what it brings your way.

These cards are a reminder that some days all we can do in our lives or control is our own reactions an dhow we perceive a situation. Everything else is out of our hands, and any efforts to seize control will be overkill.

DECK USED: THE STUDENT TAROT v2

June 5 – Mental Health Card of the Day

Today’s meditation was fifteen minutes long, and self-directed. It was based off of the graphic included in the image with today’s card.  It was about something called “Window Light Theory”, and the concept that light itself is healing. It doesn’t require you going out into the sun to feel those healing effects, either.  How this small touch of natural light can do so much, if we take a moment to savor it… and so can other little things like appreciating a moment of quiet beauty in the world.

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The @GlitterbyInk #JuneSun25 Challenge
Summer Sunlight Prompt for June  : Outside
Daily Mental Health Prompt: Seek a positive message to carry with you throughout the day and offer perspective.

Today’s draw is the Judgement Card, which is traditionally a representation of judgements, one’s inner calling and chosen life path, and looking back on one’s life to consider how they feel about the path they’ve taken and who they have become.

Last night, I saw a video of a polar bear just wandering through an Alaskan town, and it struck me that I never really grasped just how large these animals are.  It meandered its way past a standard sized sedan, and… the car was smaller than the bear. In fact, the car was dwarfed by the bear’s size. And yet?  It still looked like a warm and fuzzy white teddy bear in need of a good petting.

It’s funny, because I see these memes all the time that say, “If not friend, why friend shaped?” and here it is!

The message in today’s cards is a reminder to not judge a book by its cover. That bear may be cute, but he could also kill you with a hug.  What we see on the outside is not enough. It’s not enough for our safety, and it’s not enough to make decisions and actions concerning. Beautiful flowers can be poisonous. Cuddly looking bears can be hungry killers. People are even more complicated than plants and animals, and their covers just as difficult to interpret.

Make sure that you aren’t judging them by “their covers” alone. Actions are important, and so is digging deeper.

DECK USED: THE GREENWOOD TAROT

Seek Out the Boon

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Today’s meditation was eleven minutes long, and was one of the #DailyTrip sessions from the @Calm app. Balance vs balancing.

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Practical Tarot's Five of CupsThe @GlitterbyInk #JuneSun25 Challenge
Summer Sunlight Prompt for June 2 : Light
Daily Mental Health Prompt: Seek a positive message to carry with you throughout the day and offer perspective.

Today’s draw is the Five of Cups, which is traditionally a representation of pessimism, regrets, doomsday thinking, disappointments, and occasionally, failure (or at the very least, the perception of failure).

And the cards say… you missed the mark yesterday. Try again.

Maybe the bad shit is actually a boon, yeah?  What was in those cups anyway?

I am struggling. It’s hard to admit to that, but there it is. I thought that I had adapted well to the building that went up across the alley from my own, but what I’m finding instead? Is that I feel closed in and constantly bombarded by noises and smells.

What if this experience has a boon to it, though? What if this struggle is teaching me something about myself and what is essential to my wellness and happiness? What if the experience is to help in my growth?

The Five of Cups for today combined with the “Light” prompt asks us to look at our struggles not as discomfort and misery, but to seek out a lighter view and look for the boon. How is this struggle benefiting you, either now, or in the long run? Instead of wallowing in the negative, seek out the positive spin in order to see things from a lighter viewpoint and actually gain something from this negative experience.

DECK USED:  PRACTICAL TAROT

@LightningWildflower‘s June Tarot Challenge
Discovery Prompts for June 1st thru 3rd

Oracle Reading with the Woodland Wizards Game CardsWhat am I learning about myself?

Golden Phoenix – Above all else, you’re a survivor. You might come out the other side emaciated and tattered, but you will rise, survive, and live on to thrive once more. This is true no matter the hurdle or struggle involved.

What new things would I enjoy researching more about?

Mossy Dryad atop Dark Ferret – Take your camera and its macro lens with you and go scurrying through the undergrowth. There is healing to be found in getting lost in the smallest of nature’s wonders.

What have I discovered recently that I want to share with others?

Deadly Vine – Wow. This went really literal. I’ve noticed that there’s some foxglove and tansy growing in the weeds behind the houses on Ms B’s street. I’ve been considering giving the neighbors a heads up, as many of them have young children and pets.

Other elements included in this reading:
Foraged Wood Fern for Exorcising Negative Influences
Desert Rose for Purification and drawing in Positive Energy

DECK USED: WOODLAND WIZARDS GAME CARDS

Daily Self Kindness

I went out to dinner tonight instead of hiding inside. This is because I recognized that I was trying to wallow in an unhealthy urge (the hiding).

Bad Lighting

/ Twist the Leaf / 1 Comment

Today’s meditation was ten minutes long, and was one of the #DailyTrip sessions from the @Calm app.

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Earth Mother Magic Tarot's Five of CupsThe @GlitterbyInk #JuneSun25 Challenge
Summer Sunlight Prompt for June 1st : Beginning
Daily Mental Health Prompt: Seek a positive message to carry with you throughout the day and offer perspective.

Today’s draw is the Five of Cups, which is traditionally a representation of pessimism, doomsday thinking, regrets, disappointments, and occasionally, failure (or at the very least, the perception of failure).

CS Lewis once said, “You can’t go back and change the beginning, but you can start where you are and change the ending.”

The figure in this card trudges into the dark, lit only by a candle and tripping over cups. But if they would just change their perspective, by turning around they would find that the moon will light the way and that not all has been lost.

When you begin something with a negative mindset, it can feel like trudging through the dark with only a candle to light your way.  You struggle to see where you’re going, and trip over things along the way, creating unnecessary setbacks.

Yet, by just changing our own perspective on what we’re doing and how it’s going, we can lighten our load and turn things around.

Today’s prompt and card combo is a reminder that sometimes things aren’t as bad as you think. You just got off to a rough start with your mindset trained in the wrong direction. Take a moment to gather yourself. Take a breath. Look for the good and what’s going well.  Then? Move forward again with this new perspective to guide you.

DECK USED:  EARTH MOTHER MAGIC TAROT

#DiscordTarotholicsJun2025 Challenge
Prompt for June 1st : Do Spread 1

Summer Energies Oracle Reading with the Earth Magic Oracle

How is the rise of summer energies manifesting in my life?

Waterfall – Allow things to come as they will and flow with changes rather than trying to fight them. You don’t have to be calm and serene all the time. Instead, let the situation dictate how much or how little energy is needed from you, and expend just enough to suit those needs.

How can I harness these summer energies for my purposes?

Meadow – Remember that it’s okay to be vulnerable. No one is impervious to stress or outside influence. Be authentic and allow yourself to be open to others. You’ll know intuitively when this isn’t safe, so there’s no need to expend so much energy being on guard all the time.

Where would I be best served in directing these energies throughout the summer months?

Mountain – Greater stability can be gained by learning to allow yourself the vulnerability to let go of control and allow things to move at their own pace. Strength doesn’t always come from bracing for the worst, but also through allowing a mindset of allowance and openness to change.

Take Away: Use this summer’s energies to learn to let go and not try so hard to control every aspect of life. Open up to being vulnerable and letting things move at their own pace, and as a result you will reap the benefits of a greater sense of stability.

Other elements included in this reading:
Pressed Pansy Flowers for for Hearing the Heart More Clearly
Dried Rhododendron Leaf for Fostering Confidence
Orange Aventurine Leaves for Pause and Reflection
Selenite for Purification and drawing in Positive Energy

DECK USED: EARTH MAGIC ORACLE

Daily Self Kindness

I took it easy today, and made sure to keep up on the journal entries that I’m doing to track daily accomplishments even though I really felt like just letting it go.